Sydney (sydneysshelves) West's Reviews > One Night with an Earl

One Night with an Earl by Tina Gabrielle

I was gifted this ARC from Netgalley and Entangled Publishing for free in exchange for an honest review. Note that all thoughts are my own.

One Night with an Earl follows Ana, a “chaperon”, who longs for one night of absolute passion before her 30th birthday when she believes she’ll become a spinster. However after her night at the local elite brothel she finds herself unable to stop thinking about her sexy night with the Earl. The problems is two fold: a) The Earl is the son of the man who ruined her father, the Duke of Rosewood and forced her into servitude in order to be able to provider for her younger brother and b) The Earl is currently courting her charge, Lady Penelope. Whatever is a girl to do?

Plot – I thought the plot for this story was fairly believable. I was never pulled from the story suddenly. And I personally felt like there was just enough plot to move the story along without overwhelming the romance aspect. The romance remained center state while also keeping the reader intrigued and invested in the “side stories” of Ana’s family friend and Ana’s charge Lady Penelope. Tropes used include: ‘Met in a Brothel’, ‘It’s just for one night’, ‘Enemies to Lovers’, ‘I Love You – But I Can’t Have You’, and ‘Secret Heiress’.

Characters – I really loved both the Hero and the Heroine. The Heroine is part Lebanese, and I loved that the author didn’t shy away from showing some of the bits of Lebanese culture from food to personal hygiene. She was also fun to read about because she was very kind without being bland. She knew what she wanted and went for it. I struggled a bit with her reasoning for being mad at the earl. But the story worked out. And the Earl was *swoons*. I loved that he was a genuine person who actually cared about his tenants. I liked that he channeled his emotions into his passion for boxing. I loved seeing him always interact with authors with consideration. Sometimes kindness is sexy. The side characters were also fun to read about. I would love a novella following the progression of Penelope’s relationship.

Romance – I liked that despite how this romance started off with sexy times, the relationship between Ana and the duke was developed authentically. You could see them become friends and then move into something more with every encounter no matter how small. When they confess their love it was totally believable. And the 3rd act “problem” wasn’t overly dramatized or made into this ridiculous thing. I also felt like the Earl groveled the appropriate amount.

Overall would I recommend this romance: I think it depends. If you are looking for a romance that brings something unique and unforgettable to the genre then you might want to pass on this one. However I personally had a great time reading it. It was a fun escape from the world as we know it that gave me hope and made my heart flutter.

4.5/5 stars.