The Bibliophile's Bookshelf

Title: The Heart of War

Series: Standalone

Author: Olivia Snow

Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Historical Fiction

Rating: 5 stars

Review:

London, 1815

If love is war, then London’s marriage mart is a battlefield—and Helena Weston is its most cunning general. As the diamond of the season, Helena has never struggled to collect suitors. But when her father’s fortune collapses, she faces the unthinkable: marriage not as a conquest, but as survival.

Using Sun Tzu’s The Art of War as her courtship playbook, Helena has only two months to secure a husband rich enough to save her family from destitution. She selects three candidates for her scheme, including Edmond Hawke, a handsome newcomer to London with a mysterious past and an insufferable tendency to jeopardize her carefully laid plans.

With her future on the line, Helena must decide what victory truly means—and whether surrendering to love is the most strategic move of all. – summary from Goodreads

*I received an ARC from the author, and all opinions are my own

The Heart of War is a wonderful Regency-era romance with unique characters and a lovely storyline!

I loved this book so, so much! Definitely one of my favorites of the year and I will reread this many times!

Helena was the best! She was determined to accomplish what she wanted, as well as very smart. Helena also went through some nice character development, that I really enjoyed. She learned to recognize her faults and to be better. She was taking all her advice from The Art of War, which was both amazing, and led to some funny moments. I especially liked that she called Mrs. Sweete “lieutenant.”

I was laughing throughout this book! Some of Helena’s antics were just hilarious and fun. The battledore scene is a highlight for me. Definitely one of my favorite scenes! I also really liked her mission to get Mr. Hawke to say her first name.

Speaking of Mr. Hawke, or Edmond, I loved him. He was so sweet and shy- it was adorable. I liked how much he tried throughout the novel. He is also an incredibly smart character, and very thoughtful. He showed another side of London society. Edmond was a self-made gentleman, which I enjoyed. It was unique and added some nice challenges to the story.

I loved Mrs. Sweete, too! Her “hmm’s” were everything, and I loved how they called Helena out. Throughout the course of this book, we did get to see a little bit of Mrs. Sweete’s own story. I liked how she wasn’t forgotten and a very big part of the Helena’s story, while also getting one of her own. She was an amazing friend and chaperone to Helena, and I really liked her.

Helena has three suitors in this book, one of which was Edmond Hawke. The other two were Mr. Marceaux and Lord Cranford. At first, I liked Mr. Marceaux- he seemed fun- but over time I liked him less and less.

I really liked Lord Cranford. He was much older than Helena, so while I didn’t like him for her in a romantic sense, I totally support a friendship between the two. He was such a sweet, calm man. He was so great and he was always willing to help both Helena and Edmond with whatever they needed. I really liked this character, and I loved everything he brought to the story.

Sybella was Helena’s rival, and I didn’t mind her character. I don’t mind drama, as long as it’s not over the top, and the way it was done stuck true to the time period. Sybella wasn’t a bad character, and while I didn’t mind her, she also wasn’t my favorite.

I did not like Helena’s father. I thought he was just awful, and I was really happy with how Helena handled it at the end.

I loved the setting! It was amazing, and exploring Regency London was so much fun. All the different events and customs that were explored was everything! This book has inspired me to read more Regency romances!

I will say the ending was everything I needed! The three questions game before the proposal was everything and it was my favorite part of the book!

The Heart of War is a Regency romance with a determined FMC, a shy MMC, fun antics, and a sweet romance!

Quotes:

“‘Because if I can get that scoundrel of a man to fall hopelessly in love with me, he will lose all sense of rationality- and I will have defeated him. I will take his pride as well as his insufferable self-assurance and turn it into my triumph. He will be in my power, at my mercy, and I will prove once and for all that I have won.’”

‘”My feelings for you are not determined by whether or not they’re returned. I love you for you.’”

“‘For you, Helena. I did all of that only to be worthy of you. I had to become the kind of man who could withstand the light you radiate.’”

“‘You are more than just the sun that shines brilliantly; you are the warmth that nurtures life itself. You’ve brought light to places in me I thought had to remain darkened forever. My heart is yours. It always was, and it always will be.’”