Becky's Book Reviews: 100. The Merchant and the Rogue

Thursday, August 26, 2021

100. The Merchant and the Rogue

The Merchant and the Rogue. (The Dread Penny Society #3) Sarah M. Eden. 2021. 368 pages. [Source: Review copy]

First sentence: If laughter truly were the best medicine, Brogan Donnelly would have been the healthiest Irishman in all of England. Jests came as easy to him as breathing, and that was more-or-less all anyone knew of him. He preferred it that way.

Premise/plot: The Merchant and The Rogue is the third in Sarah M. Eden's Dread Penny Society historical romance series. Each title focuses on a particular member of the Dread Penny Society. (Characters from other books do make appearances.) This third title focuses on Brogan Donnelly. He's hard at work UNDERCOVER investigating a case surrounding Russian immigrants--it's a political case. His undercover work brings him into close contact with Vera Sorokina and her father--who owns and operates a print/book shop. Vera loves, loves, loves to sell penny dreadfuls. She has no idea she has just hired someone who writes penny dreadfuls.

There are at least two (maybe up to three) sub-stories that add mystery, suspense, and danger to the novel. Some of these stories--or rather their villains--have carried over from previous books.

In addition to the main story--a romance between Vera and Brogan--there are two penny dreadfuls shared throughout. One being The Merchant and the Rogue and the other being The Dead Zoo.

My thoughts: The Merchant and the Rogue was a BUSY novel. I would almost recommend reading all three books in the series close together so that they stay fresh in your mind. I would also recommend reading this one is as few sittings as possible. I think if I could have found the time to read it in one to two sittings, I would have enjoyed it more. As a romance it worked for me. I just think I lost some of the mystery/suspense elements by taking two weeks to read it! It was especially hard--and this is all on me--to keep up with the penny dreadful sections. But the last third of the book I read all at once, and I did find myself swept up in the story. That's why I think it's mostly my fault.

I do recommend the series. This wasn't my favorite and best from the series. But again I think that might have been a timing issue. My advice is to read this one when you're in the just right mood for it. Perhaps one day--maybe before the fourth installment releases--I'll treat myself to a reread of all three books!