The Proposition

by Judith Ivory, Judy Cuevas

No man, gentleman or otherwise, has ever looked at Lady Edwina Bollash the way the brash, handsome man standing before her is doing now. Edwina has accepted the challenge to transform incorrigible Mick Tremore into a gentleman in just six weeks. And although the linguist is sure she can rise to the task, she isn't at all certain she won't swoon under his frankly sensuous gaze before her job is done.

Mick has lived outside of London society long enough to know that appearances can be deceiving. Edwina might look all buttoned up—the perfect English lady—but there is unleashed passion existing just below her placid facade (not to mention a great pair of legs!). And as she prepares him to take his place in society, Mick prepares Edwina to take her place in his heart...and in his bed.

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Historical, Historical Fiction, Regency, Victorian, Fiction

355 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 8, 1999

About the author

Judith Ivory "accidentally" acquired two degrees in mathematics, then sold her first novel in 1987 and closed up the math books for good. She lives in Miami Florida, with her two children, two cats and a dog.

"Judith Ivory" is the pseudonym of author Judy Cuevas (real name).

The pseudonym was first used by her after publication of her last book as "Judy Cuevas," in 1996 - Dance. Her first book, Starlit Surrender, which was published under her real name of Cuevas, was re-released under her pseudonym of "Ivory" in 2006 under the title, Angel in a Red Dress.

Reviews

[Christina ~ Brunette Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

4,5 Stars

London, 1890s,
Lighter in tone if compared to other romances by this author, though showing the same sharp and disenchanted undercurrent humour and polished superior writing, The Proposition is first and foremost a fresh and witty twist on the classical Pygmalion trope.

Published about twenty years ago, in many aspects this book hasn’t aged a day and hats off to Ms. Ivory for the brave choice, in an historical setting, not only of having opted for a more audacious gender-role “my fair lord” reversal, but also for not having shied away from a really lower class hero without sugar-coating the abject conditions many Victorians lived in. No barrister, no man of affairs, no rich cit or nouveau riche shunned by the Ton, Mick is a rat-catcher, he gets dirty crawling on floors, sleeps in a sort of cellar and his best friends are a mutt terrier, a ferret and a counterfeiter, yet the author manages to make him an outstanding and unforgettable hero, with his quick wit and easygoing nature. And when an outrageous bet comes his way, too good to be true, and he’s put in the prim hands of Lady Edwina Bollash, philologist and spinster extraordinaire, it is only a matter of time for these two opposites to attract each other, complicit a pair of long and shapely feminine legs and the tempting challenge to turn a handsome, scruffy, Cockney-Cornish foulmouthed charmer into a believable viscount, if only for the span of a night ball. The path from there, far from being overly predictable given the wide notoriety of such myth, takes a satisfyingly original bend all the same thanks to pages and pages full of sparkling banter, sensuality and tongue-in-cheek exchanges, while the clash of different personalities ultimately brings an uplifting and liberating “shaping” going both ways, with Mick realising his potential and ambitions and Winnie shedding her mostly self-imposed repression.
Even the little too pat and fairytale-ish resolution at the end, which many readers have understandably pointed out, didn’t bother me much as I thought it suited the overall playful atmosphere of the story. I just wished it had occurred a couple of chapters earlier in order to allow more room to explore the characters’ reactions and behaviours, but this is the only quibble (and the only reason I rounded down the 4,5 Stars rating) I can complain of.

Judith Ivory’s prose, painting pictures with words, once again sports all the trademark flair and uncanny sense of time and place, together with the usual irresistible narrative skills and, though I’m aware it can sound like a contradiction as we’re talking about a two decades old book, if you want to try something “new” in the Historical Romance offering you may want to give The Proposition a chance.

[K.J. Charles]

Well this bothered the hell out of me on a number of levels.

I get this is a hugely popular book, I see why. But. But. Spoilers will follow.

Mick, the ratcatcher hero. Brilliant! Working class hero who is as handsome and charming and intelligent as any aristo once he's given the tools of privilege, showing that people are all oh wait no he's the lost son of a duke. Of course he couldn't actually *be* working class but still innately impressive and worthy of a HEA. Silly me.

Then, his dealings with Winnie squicked me out. He is constantly pressuring a reluctant woman, a virgin, into sex, including sticking a finger up her without consent leaving her in tears, but after he goes on and on and on about how she ought to like sex she turns out to love it really. I get this was meant to be freeing her trammeled nature. It read like grooming.

And Mick's dialect bore no resemblance to any Cornish speaker I have ever heard, or any Cockney either, and I have no idea how it was meant to sound. The problem is you can't transcribe phonetically unless you use the phonetic alphabet. Use normal, write "blewdy" for bloody, and you are making a huge assumption about how readers pronounce vowel sounds. Which is, IMO, a problem in a book about speech.

And since I'm on a roll, don't literally say "this was the correct title of a marquess' eldest daughter" if it isn't, something that takes two minutes to check. JFC, I am sick of histrom treating my country like a puppet theatre.

So. I mean, it was hugely readable, I finished it, I loved a non conventionally attractive heroine, I can see why it's beloved, but...it bothered the hell out of me.

[Zumbagirl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, I looved this book so much! A very original premise and a refreshing break from the traditional spinster/rake. Lots of love and romance too - and one of the best heroes ever! At first, I was like, this guy, Mick, is a dirty rat catcher (I hate rats and mice more than anything. I can handle spiders and snakes, but freak out over rodents) and this is never going to work for me, why am I reading this book. And Winnie is another tall, almost 30, spinster, who is also a linguist and teaches people how to present better in society. She was originally very wealthy, but after her father died, her second cousin, once removed, Xavier, inherited her father's title as Duke and all his wealth/lands. She's not living in fashionable society or associated with former friends because of embarrassment over her changed lifestyle since Xavier took everything. But she enjoys her teaching and is good at what she does.

IMO, Mick had the bigger role in this story and I felt like I really got to know and understand him. He was the most likeable hero with no hangups or issues - so refreshing - not tortured, holding onto grudges or behaving ruthlessly or aggressively toward heroine, or others. He was just a happy person, working hard with his job in order to send money home to his siblings in Cornwall (story takes place in London) and has a great outlook on life.

Here's a peek into his thinking: "Sometimes Mick dreamed of a fancy life. (Money and legs. He would have been embarrassed to tell anyone how common-minded his ambitions were.) He always felt guilty doing it. Disloyal or something. He was a workingman. A good, solid man of the working class. He didn't think fancy fellows were happier than him. Didn't think they were nicer to their families or that God gave them an easier time of it. They still get sick or lame or died, just like everyone else."

Winnie, on the other hand, has been through some tough times and is trying to get by the best she can. Her parents didn't think well of her and she doesn't think much of herself as a result. Mick compliments her, to which she replies: "Mr. Tremore, I am a gangly, plain woman with speckled skin, who wears glasses on a nose that looks like an eagles. I'm taller than any man I know...Except you." But little does she know, Mick really likes her and has the hots for her legs - yes, her legs - he's a major leg man and she has really looong legs!

So how did this unlikely couple wind up together? It starts out as part of a wager - can she change Mick into a viscount in six weeks? He speaks with a very heavy accent and she has to work with him hours and hours every day to improve his pronunciation. In this time, of course, there's a growing attraction between them. And there are several hysterically funny scenes - Mick's first bath, their first kiss, their first fight, singing in the garden - " I did drills today, la, la, that was too hard and my tongue wouldn't do right...I hope tomorrow is easier, and I get something right" (I was laughing so hard, I was scared I'd wake everyone up in my house) And their first "deal" where Mick set the terms for his mustache to be shaved was one of the best scenes in the book. This author writes in such a way that it's not sexually graphic, but very hot - can't explain it but it's true.

I think my favorite part was when Mick bought Winnie a birthday present - this was so beautifully described and showed how much Mick loved her - which he had shown in many other ways - but his gift was perfect. After he gives it to her, he says: "It's really beautiful. I've outdone myself. I'll never pick anything more beautiful than this...Except you." Mick found Winnie beautiful and did everything to try to assure her of his love for her - even though they both thought the relationship was doomed due to their class differences.

I loved the way they resolved their problems and how open their communication was. Honestly, this may be the best matched couple I've ever had the pleasure to read about. While they both had their faults, for the most part, they dealt with things very maturely. Even though the ending was not exactly what I would have wanted I would have been just as happy if they went to the country and Mick got employment there and they lived happily ever after - not as nobility it didn't change the best thing about the story: THEM! They are one of my favorite couples and I just loved this book.

Very softly as he nuzzled her, his mouth near her ear, he began to sing: "I'm so happy with you, la, la..."

[Dina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is unusual, to say the least, but not in a bad way.

When I read the scene at the tearoom, where Mick and Winnie first met each other, I thought I was in the middle of a slapstick or a "cartoon-ish" farce and braced myself to read that kind of comedy. Then, Mick and Winnie started singing their lines in the garden and I thought, okay, it was a musical. Finally, when Mick showed Winnie how he caught rats, it was like watching an "Animal Planet" show. At that point, I decided to relax and simply enjoy the book with all its quirky antics.

This book is full of overlong descriptions and insights into Mick's and Winnie's minds, and that was distracting. At times, I had to go back a few pages to remember how the scene started and what they were talking about. BUT, strangely enough, that didn't bothered much because I was in the right mood for a slower-paced read.

I really liked Mick, one of the most unusual hero I've ever met. He was full of life, funny, loving and not one bit tortured. I thought Winnie was kind of snotty and cold at first, but she grew on me and I ended up liking her too. And when they finally made love, wow, it was so good to see them having fun with it. Winnie wasn't overly sensitive about it, which I found totally believable considering how old she was and what her role in society was. I mean, she was a Lady by birth, but she wasn't living like one and she didn't have any false hopes about it.

The HEA was a bit "over the top" (everything was "tidily wrapped with a pink bow"), but I liked it. It was in tune with the overall feeling of the book, a happy "fairy tale" with likeable characters.

This was my first book by Judith Ivory but I can already agree with readers that say she's an "acquired taste". Her writing isn't like any other author I've read. It worked for me in this book and I hope it works in her other books too.

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this fresh and different HR. The hero was a rat-catcher and I doubt I would have read it if I knew that beforehand. But it worked. It's a Pygmalion story with the genders reversed. The heroine grappled with her own personal anxieties, and as their love grew, Mick helped her deal with them. The ending for me was unexpected and very sweet. I recommend this read, and want to read more by this writer.

I read this book for the May 2021 BOTM for HRBC, Bluestocking trope.

[Alexis Lee · Rating 1 out of 5]

So; Judith Ivory's been sitting on my to-read list [no, not the Goodreads one - the one in my head] for a while. I've been directed to her writing quite a few times. Read Beast! Read Indiscretion! Read The Proposition! Judith Ivory ROCKS! And more along that line.

I was understandably excited. Would this be the second Lord of Scoundrels?
My answer? No.

It was a 'no' that was growing from the beginning, before I even started reading the actual book, because I skimmed through all of Ivory's popular novels - Beast, Indiscretion, Black Silk - just to get a feel of things, you know - and I began to feel uneasy. I didn't like her plot summaries/ideas or her writing style but well, The Proposition was the plot I was most comfortable with, so I started there. Very obviously it was My Fair Ladyesque, of course, but I actually enjoy the musical - its a classic. I wanted to see where she went with this, plus, she gender-swapped the characters: should be fun, hey?



No. It was a...how shall I put it? Lukewarm read, at times chilly. That may sound odd to you, but it really felt like that - bland, unexciting, unoriginal, uncomfortable - and also, *lukewarm* in the chemistry between the two leads, something I consider to be of utmost importance in a contemporary regency novel. It certainly didn't have any of the charm or finesse of the original musical. In fact, Ivory fails to incorporate any of the elements that made the musical successful - there was no wit, no sarcasm, no meaningful relationships between characters, and worse of all, no humor.

Instead, we plod through repetitive, stifling scenes - the hero and the heroine engage in meaningless eye humping under guise of 'teaching him to become a fake Viscount'. Some long legs are scandalously exposed, they wax lyrical over buttocks and flirt with each other. The heroine plays coy, shy virgin, the rakish and most manly hero thinks she is the most speshul snowflake ever and tries to convince her to have sexytimes because come on, he knows she wants it, she just has to admit it. Yes, I do realize that this is the general gist of most contemporary regencies, but there's a difference. The two leads have some of the blandest chemistry I've read...ever. I think its because Ivory has a tendency to tell, rather than show the relationship developing. The hero's got hair on his chest, the heroine has rippling golden hair, yadda, yadda, yadda. Even with things beyond the initial physical attraction, she tells - the hero apparently has endless daily lessons in being a gentleman, but we never see much of that. Oh no, instead we are treated to the breakfast and supper seduction routines. Ugh.

That's fine, though. I can deal with all that prosy characterization, because I expect it, to some degree. Its a smutty!regency, after all. But no, the novel has bigger problems.

The plot, for one thing. In a nutshell? Bad. I suppose Ivory wanted to focus on 'developing the main relationship', but still - you have to have *some* plot, right? Seems not. There were no layers, twists, conflicts. I knew exactly where the plot was going, in a bad way. There were so many interesting avenues left undiscovered - classism, trade amongst the gentry, sexism, discrimination, pride, family obligations - but these things were blatantly ignored, leaving the novel with no substance whatsoever, and thus, robbing the depth from the characters. I hate it when characters have no depth, because then they become meaningless - there's nothing to admire, to inspire, to relate to, to learn from - so you can imagine how I felt about the characters in this novel.

I have many bones to pick with the characterization of the hero and the heroine as well. You know, I thought I would like them at the beginning of the novel. They had their quirks, the hero was an original, I was interested to see where they would go - but then it all went down the drain. The heroine became intolerable - she alternated wildly between sullen and playing virginal hard-to-get. Plus, there are some very skewered ideas of feminism in some parts of the novel - yes, you can certainly like *feeling* sexy. I agree its a powerful thing that all females have a right to feel, but the novel starts toeing the line pretty quickly, then steps right over it and does a can-can over its remains - especially considering its setting. [ESPECIALLY. THE. SETTING. Its *supposed* to be a historical novel...right?] Neither do I like how she blows hot and cold with the hero, or how she treats him with a very, very odd mix of 'ooh, kiss me now you manly hunky man with sexy accent!' and 'you poor, weirdly smart working-class ratcatcher!'

Also, the hero turned into some sort of sexist...doormat. Yes, I kid you not, a sexist doormat. He condescends to the heroine and assumes what she wants BUT ALSO sacrifices his identity and his job to be closer to the heroine (not even literally closer to her, he just wants to be 'closer to her world' is what I'm getting from this). He sells his beloved pets, the things that MAKE UP HIS JOB AND HIS LIVING, to buy the heroine a dress. A PRETTY PRINCESS SNOWFLAKE DRESS.

Say it with me:


What a very odd mishmash of characteristics, hey? If a guy that I liked got rid of all the things that were important to him just to buy me a sparkly dress, I'd be alarmed, not impressed or touched - I don't need anybody to go sacrificing things for me, and not surely not for an inconsequential thing like a pretty dress.

I also have some beef with the ending. It is BAD. BAD. What little conflict that existed was solved too easily, like it didn't even matter in the first place. It is absurd and frustrating, a big deus ex machina that ties everything up in a neat bow and kills all the baddies.
The hero is actually the lost heir to the Dukedom! The old Duke dies! Heroine gets married with no scandal whatsoever! The two twats who started everything are ignored!

So, no. I didn't like this book, and I'm not going to read another Ivory. I don't think I can. I've scanned them.

[Hannah B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Listen it had me googling if marrying your second cousin once removed is incestuous, but so what who cares. Tomato tomahto. 💁‍♀️

4.5/5 bc the pace in the middle seemed to be pretty slow, but it was also fun info; I was just getting a bit restless. (I think listening via audio could’ve helped that.) Loved the third act as it throughly surprised me. The romance also took a pretty long time to develop but I guess that’s realistic (I’m just impatient). Could’ve used another sex scene bc I love how Ivory wrote the one.

The legs in the summary made me go ??? and then I read the book and was like ooooo I see. The Audible sample is the leg scene too lmao.

Still think Magic should be with them but who am I to separate puppy love 🥺

[♡Karlyn P♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book I could just re-read over, and over. I've now read it three times, and I think I enjoy it more each time. It's hard to imagine that a 'rat catcher' could be one of the greatest fictional heroes in romance land, but that is what Judith Ivory has created with the lovable and cantankerous Mick.

This is a wonderful variation on the "My Fair Lady" theme but with a twist. In this version it is the hero, not the heroine, in need of a make over to present them self to proper society. Edwina (Winnie) is not the typical romance heroine either. She is a blue stocking well on the shelf, and while most men consider her plain on the eyes, to Mick she is beautiful in ways he can't explain. He is obsessed with her long legs, which is just a delicious part of the story.

The chemistry between Mick and Winnie is so thick you could cut it with a knife. Their budding relationship is tending, volatile, and passionate.

When twin brothers wager if Mick could be reformed, Mick reluctantly agrees to allow Winnie to tutor him in order to win a large sum of money. In time we learn the twins are not what they appear to be, but a bet is a bet.

I highly recommend it to anyone who loves a well crafted romance novel. This one is a classic, full of whit, humor, heat, heart, and passion.

[Melanie THEE Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Forget having a face that “launched a thousand ships." I want legs that'll drive a man to shave off his emotional support mustache 😤 💅🏽 🫡

[Juliana Philippa · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5-5 stars
Read for the third time. Such a great book! Have always rated it 5 stars, but am tempted to bring it down to 4.5 this time because was annoyed by the convenience of some things; can't say more without giving away spoilers.

This is always a go-to recommendation when discussing HRs with others. Judith Ivory is a very talented writer, in that the characters and stories she crafts are truly unique. I love historical romances, but even I can admit that there are some times where we see the same plot/trope/character-type recycled over and over and over again.

Lord I love Mick! And Win—and the two together! But yeah, Mick ... ::sigh:: Oh he's so wonderful and delicious and sweet and clever and caring and lovely and resourceful and fantastic-in-all-ways. And Win is strong and vulnerable and independent and lonely and intelligent and brave.

This is a twist on Pygmalion/My Fair Lady, with Mick being the scruff (he's a rat-catcher) and Win being a linguist who makes her living teaching ladies elocution. They're thrown together through a haphazard chance meeting and a random bet by a pair of twins, and next thing you know, Win and Mick are spending all day, every day together. However, while Win is focused on being professional and teaching Mick what he needs to learn, Mick wants. to teach Win to live, let go, and enjoy herself.

[Jessica · Rating 1 out of 5]

This hero gave me the BIGGEST ick and I could not get behind any woman being remotely attracted to him and his obsession with legs 🤢

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars for this *Victorian Era romance, superbly narrated by Steven Crossley. Loved it, even though the story is a bit slow -- it's not action-packed -- and Crossley's speaking pace is also a bit slow (story feels faster when reading). It's written in 3rd person POV of the hero and heroine (their thoughts slowed the pace but weren't maudlin or repetitive).

The story is My Fair Lady or Pygmalion -- but the hero is transformed.

"I look like a bloody lord, don't I?"

Edwina cleared her throat. Well. Yes. And here stood another unwelcome bit of truth. The handsomest bloody lord she had ever seen was a ratcatcher wearing her father's outdated trousers, shirt, and vest, and wandering her house in the middle of the night.

Lady Edwina Bollash sees herself as a Plain Jane academic type, a frumpy linguist. Goodness knows why -- maybe it's the nose, or the spectacles. More likely, it's fall-out from a cold, neglected childhood. At any rate, she's never garnered any interest in men.

Now, she has accepted a challenge to transform the brawny, rough, irascible, devilishly handsome Mick Tremore. Mhaha! He's a ratcatcher! A shrewd lewd ratter, with a ferret named Freddie and a terrier named Magic, helping him support 14 siblings in Cornwall.

She must reduce Mickey's Cornish dialect, clean him up, and teach him manners in just six weeks, so he can impersonate a Viscount and dupe a duke. (Deeper plot therein, with a twisty turn or two.)

But Mick's got something to teach his teacher. His lessons begin with a trade. He will shave off his mustache if she will raise her skirt. Just a little...

Loved this! Funny! Sexy. Sweet. Poignant, watching lonely Edwina blossom under Mickey's hot regard. And he is hawt!

Memorable scenes: (CAUTION. BIG SPOILERS): Looking up her skirt at the dressmaker's. Chasing a ferret at Abernathy's Tea Shoppe. Cutting off his mustache / lifting her skirt. Learning to waltz. Catching rats in the carriage house. Testing out his new persona at Abernathy's. Necking on top of omnibus. Dancing at the pub. Hand job in the alley. Chasing Freddie at the duke's gala. Bringing home a little Magic.

Amazing narration by Steven Crossley. Just wow. But a bit slow.

*Victorian Era: Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death, on 22 January 1901

[Alisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pygmalion (film or play). My Fair Lady. She's All That. If you've seen any of these pieces, you'll know the general premise of this book. All are based on the Pygmalion myth of Greek origin in which a sculptor falls in love with his work of art. This book makes a slight alteration by switching the roles of the male and female...that is, the woman is the teacher and the man is the ruffian in "need" of improvement. I found that to be a fun little twist, and it worked out to wonderful effect here in this book that takes place in late-Victorian England (where accepted gender roles make such a dynamic important).

I just devoured this book. The two lead characters were simply delightful, and I found their budding connection to be mesmerizing and charming. Scene after scene with the two of them, first struggling to tolerate each other, then later struggling with their attachment...it was always engaging. It was sweet and slightly tragic that each felt themselves not good enough for the other. But, I got my HEA so I'm not complaining. ^_^

Edwina's naivete provided some very humorous moments, and were perhaps my favorite bits in the book. In one scene she ruminates on the word widge, a colloquial term for a man's privates:

His word seemed friendlier. A fond name. Were men fond of that part of themselves? It was certainly not the best part of statues; she made a point not to look there. And it changed, it grew. She'd read that astounding piece of information in a book. That was the worst part, the horror—or it had been the worst until this very moment, when it occurred to her that, goodness, a man might have hair there, too. She did. Oh, something that grew larger, up and out of a tangle of hair. How disgusting.

...oh my gosh, I was giggling so hard at that. That she is a linguist and learned woman, a successful professional...who is so squeamish about more intimate topics...well, I found it supremely amusing. And endearing! Edwina was supremely endearing.

It is really too bad that the part I was sort of underwhelmed with was the very end...because I finished the book with so much less enthusiasm than I had throughout most of the book. The word that keeps coming up in my head is discordant...the last 15% of the book felt so much different than what preceded it. The tone, the voices of the characters (primary and secondary), and (most obviously) the plot. It's not that it was bad so much that I didn't feel it fit with the absolute excellence of the rest of the story. But I won't go into further detail so as to avoid spoilers.

Overall, this was an easy and enjoyable read.

[Wicked Incognito Now · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, this story is simply fantastic. It quickly skyrocketed to the top ten of my all-time favorite romance novels.

This is reverse "My Fair Lady" story (or "Pygmalian" of Greek mythology and the play by George Bernard Shaw). It also has the feeling of that movie with Eddie Murphy and Dan Akroyd--"Trading Places" because it's all based on a bet by two rich men. Can a nobody be a somebody just by changing his speech patterns and clothing? These two rich gentlemen make a bet to discover if it's possible, with Mick as the mark, and Winnie as his teacher.

Mick is a ratcatcher from Cornwall. And Winnie is a spinster with a fascination for regional speech patterns. She is a speech specialist, and makes her living training the country out of young girls hoping to come out in society. She also trains them in the niceties and customs of the bon ton. So, Winnie is the perfect person to train ratcatcher Mick out of his rough ways.

Of course, romance ensues. I felt romantic tinglies all through the reading of this novel. Just one thing after another tickled me through and through. Judith Ivory has a way about writing that is lyrical. Sometimes, her writing style leaves me detached from the story and the characters. Not this time. This is a type of style that I like to call (in my own head) close writing. It's close because the reader is privy to close observation of the characters. Little facial expressions are noticed. Nuances of observation that bring us into the interaction between h/h that leave me breathless. It's wonderful. Laura Kinsale, Sherry Thomas, Meredith Duran, Joanna Bourne, sometimes Julia Quinn and Eloisa James....all write in this way. It's my personal thrill. It's what I'm looking for EVERY TIME I pick up another historical romance, or just a romance novel in general.

THE ENDING!!!! The story ended well, and was satisfying....but I must say I'm disappointed. I was afraid the story would end in some way similar to how it ended, and I just really didn't want it to. I wanted something else. Oh well. I still love this book.

[Lady Wesley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to this wonderful audiobook last year and neglected to write a review. Let me just say that the team of author Judith Ivory and narrator Steven Crossley made me fall in love with a rat catcher.

I have a weakness for lower-class blokes who are smart and savvy enough to work their way into the upper-class world. Derek Craven in Dreaming of You, “Charming” Mickey O’Connor in Scandalous Desires, and Nick Gentry in Worth Any Price are now joined by Michael "Mick" Tremane, the Cornish/Cockney rat catcher who is the hero of this Pygmalion-inspired story.

The devastatingly handsome Mick is so clever, sweet, and charming that you can understand why the genteel but rather impoverished heroine falls for him. In fact, if you're like me, you wonder why she doesn't do it sooner. But she is not a woman given to living her dreams. Indeed, she hardly has any dreams. She's too intelligent and too independent to believe that any man can desire her, given that she's twenty-nine, too tall, and wears spectacles.

There's not a lot of action in this book. It's mostly Winnie teaching Mick to speak and act like a gentleman, and him gradually wearing down her formidable defenses.

How can the grand-daughter of a duke find happiness with a rat catcher? The ending is a bit contrived, as well as rushed, but this is Romancelandia after all.

Steven Crossley does an excellent narration, wonderfully voicing Mick's transition from rat catcher to gentleman.

[Petra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable read. I was going into this intrigued about how can a rat catcher become a romantic interest. I had faith but the book exceeded it. Yes, there are some strongly forced circumstances but they didn't bother me because the story that was evolving was really interesting.
Mick and Winnie's relationship heats up pretty quickly and unexpectedly and it has to do with one thick mustache and long legs. After that, as if they knew they've done something wrong, they both slow down.

”She could feel her heart thudding. How long had it been pounding like this? Was it healthy for it to pump at such a rate for so long a time as it seemed?”

I loved how Mick showed her a little bit of his world. We are even taken for a night of pub dancing. On the other hand, Winnie is changing Mick into society gentleman and it suits him so well.

“Miss Bolash, life be rich. Why don't you bite yourself off a piece?”

[Lady Wesley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've discovered a weakness for lower-class blokes who are smart and savvy enough to work their way into the upper-class world. Derek Craven in Dreaming of You, “Charming” Mickey O’Connor in Scandalous Desires, and Nick Gentry in Worth Any Price are now joined by Michael "Mick" Tremane, the Cornish/Cockney rat catcher who is the hero of this Pygmalion-inspired story.

The devastatingly handsome Mick is so clever, sweet, and charming that you can understand why the genteel but rather impoverished heroine falls for him. In fact, if you're like me, you wonder why she doesn't do it sooner. But she is not a woman given to living her dreams. Indeed, she hardly has any dreams. She's too intelligent and too independent to believe that any man can desire her, given that she's twenty-nine, too tall, and wears spectacles.

There's not a lot of action in this book. It's mostly Winnie teaching Mick to speak and act like a gentleman, and him gradually wearing down her formidable defenses.

How can the grand-daughter of a duke find happiness with a rat catcher? The ending is a bit contrived, as well as rushed, but this is Romancelandia after all.

[Carol Cork *Young at Heart Oldie* · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW! WHAT A FABULOUS BOOK! IT IS DEFINITELY ONE OF MY TOP PICKS FOR THIS YEAR!

I was totally captivated by this book…by the fresh working of the “Pygmalion” story, the lyrical writing and sparkling dialogue, the unforgettable characters and the wonderful romantic chemistry. In fact, everything blended so perfectly.

MICK TREMORE


Mick is such a unique and wonderful hero…handsome, charming, honest, hard-working and so sexy in an earthy way. He is a very caring person , sending most of his money back to Cornwall to support his ten younger siblings. That care extends to his dogs and ferrets as well and it was touching to see his genuine concern for his old and frail ferret, Freddie.

I couldn’t help but be swept away by his positive attitude and carefree enjoyment of life – “Miss Bollas, life be rich. Why don’t you bite yourself off a piece?”

EDWINA BOLLASH


It was refreshing to have a heroine who doesn’t conform to the standard mold. Winnie is a 6ft tall, bespectacled, gawky, 29 year old spinster, who sees herself as unattractive and has no romantic expectations. She is strong and capable but with vulnerabilities that make her such a sympathetic character.

The daughter of the Marquess of Sissingley, she once lived a life of wealth and position until her father died and a distant cousin inherited the marquisate. Left to fend for herself, she makes ends meet by tutoring private students in elocution and deportment. Her father had been a linguistics scholar of some stature and she too had developed an interest in people’s speech.

THE ROMANCE

The romance between Mick and Winnie was funny, sweet, poignant and passionate and I loved sharing every moment. If I was asked to pick a favourite scene, it would have to be where Winnie suggests that Mick shaves off his mustache. The mustache isn’t going without something in return…after all it is an outward symbol of his “lionhearted virility“. For a man with a fetish for long, long legs, there is only one bargaining chip…

“Hop up here, loov. Let’s see what’s under those skirts.”

What follows is one of the best sexually charged scenes I have ever read. Brilliantly done.

I enjoyed seeing how each of them grows and changes in the course of the story, Winnie most of all. Mick opens up a world of fun and passion to her and nothing exemplified the changes in her more than the scene in the Bull and Tun tavern where she lets go of her all inhibitions.

How grand! Oh, how grand it was simply to do what she felt like doing! How grand to be alive tonight!

I loved how Mick adored Winnie and saw only beauty in her irregular features..who wouldn’t love a man like that!

Pretty faces are a guinea a dozen. So predictable. I’m tired of pretty faces already Your face, though, I’d never tire of.”

Like other reviewers, I was disappointed by the rather conventional ending but it did not detract from the sheer pleasure of reading this story.

MY VERDICT: A MUST READ FOR ANYONE WHO LOVES HISTORICAL ROMANCE!


REVIEW RATING: STELLAR 5 STARS

This review is also posted on my Rakes and Rascals Blog:

https://rakesandrascals.wordpress.com...

[MomToKippy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this gender reversed "My Fair Lady" style historical romance. I started out thinking it was just going to be ok but it just gets better and better as it goes along. It is so much fun! Judith Ivory really knows out to nurture and draw out the romantic tension and chemistry. The "moustache" scene lasted for nearly 30 pages and not one minute boring! She does a good job of building the characters and allowing us to get into their heads. Many scenes are just so utterly heartwarming. And such a lovable hero! Yowza. It does not quite rise to the level of writing of Kinsale but still very good. First time I have read this author and I would be tempted to read another.

[Zoe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book started out great for me. I was so pleasantly surprised that I did not mind Edwina, aka Winnie, the 29-year-old spinster philologist who was not exactly pretty. She was tall and skinny, spinsterish, but she was some kind of a linguist and having been a linguist in my first career, I can totally relate to her interests in dialects and accents. I have to give Ivory a lot of credit for making Winnie who she was. I cannot explain this, Winnie was strong and vulnerable at the same time. Very charming character.

But I think the star of the book was Mick, the rat-catcher. This story is very much the opposite version of My Fair Lady. With a Cornish-Cockney accent, Mick was one of the most original characters I have read in a long time. I could almost hear him in my head. Winnie and Mick are strong leads who made the first 70% of the book really, really interesting.

What I loved about Winnie and Mick is that neither of them ever gave the impression of being emotionally needy. Mick came clean with his feelings about Winnie early on and had no problems owning up to his affections. Ivory created Mick, this somehow primitive giant of a man and made him sweet, feral, charming and kind all rolled into one. Winnie on the other hand had trouble letting herself go but she was never hurtful or snobbish toward Mick or anyone for that matter. With the difference in their social classes and physical attractiveness, Winnie and Mick were amazingly on equal footing. She, the genteel but less than attractive lady and he, the unsophisticated but extremely attractive rat catcher, they each held their grounds. I don't know how Ivory did it, but it certainly worked for Winnie and Mick.

The book is extremely character-driven, but also boasts an interesting plot. The brothers who made the bet and brought Winnie and Mick together and their scheming, Winnie's cousin who inherited her father's title and his missing grandson, all rather interesting but I regret to say that I find them contrived. The last 30% of the book quickly deteriorated in my eyes because Winnie and Mick's relationship seemed to have reached its peak at that point. The rest of the story was devoted to the eventual turnabout of Mick's pretending to be a lord and fooling the ton. It couldn't really hold my interest anymore and I wondered now that Mick and Winnie were finally honest about their attraction, how was Ivory going to resolve the biggest problem, aka, how was a rat catcher going to marry a genteel lady?

The solution was just disappointing and rather ruined the book for me. Mick's appeal is that he was NOT a lord, and to turn him into ...... suffice it to say that I thought the ending too convenient.

The book was 4-5 shining stars for me all the way until Winnie and Mick slept together (There it goes again, this entire penis-business, or in Mick's words, widge-business rarely impresses me). After that the relationship was kind of stuck and could not progress further. Ivory needed a mechanism to allow Mick and Winnie to marry and I was not very impressed with how that was accomplished.

I decided to give the book 4 stars for the character and relationship development. The plot in the last 30% rather screwed up the book for me and I ended the book with a 3 stars kind of feeling. But I must admit that I am impressed with how Ivory developed the characters. This is one of the rare cases where I am willing to go up a star when I am in doubt.

[Miranda Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charming hero falls into the hands of an improving speech therapist who has been engaged to eliminate his lower class accent for mysterious reasons. Heroine, a well-born woman on her own, making her way teaching the mercantile class to talk nob properly. I read this last year and only recently realized after I got a PB of it that I'd read it as an ebook and had loved it. My details will necessarily be sketchy but I still have the overall afterglow of a sweet (not treacly sweet) Pygmalion plot with a hunky rat-catcher and his frustrated spinster teacher trying to hoist him out of the gutter-speak. What follows is a fun battle of wills bet. the somewhat uptight teacher and the handsome mustachioed ladykiller Mick. There are hilarious negotiations for baby steps in his clean up, and along the way he teaches her a thing or two about passion and letting loose.

The author's research was extensive about dialects and mores of the times, her dialogue clean and crisp, the chemistry cooking. It hit all my buttons just right.

I will re-read it at some point but not right now. I'm saving it. I suspect others have long known about this title and this author but I'm happy to have rediscovered her via a reco in a goodreads comment. My kindle archive is cluttered with great, good and what was I thinking? Now, at least this will sit on my keeper shelf with Lord of Scoundrels, Goddess of the Hunt, G. Heyer's best (IMO), and a few others. Ho ho ho.

NOTE: The audiobook is lots of fun too.

[Esra Kara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Çok tatlış bir kitaptı, fakat sonu bana çok zorlama geldiği için puanı düşürdüm maalesef. Mick karakterini de, Winnie'yi de sevdim. Konu da çok güzeldi, ama adamın iki ay boyunca aldığı dersleri yazar bence hızlı işleyip geçmişti, daha güzel ve farklı şekillerde yazılabilirdi diye düşünüyorum. Kurgu eğer doğru şekilde işlenseydi kesinlikle favorim olabilirdi, ama zaten çok fazla da bir beklentim yoktu. Tarihi aşk romanı aşerenlere tek oturuşta okuyup bitirebilecekleri bir kitap olarak öneririm. Tatlı ve yaşlı gelinciğiyle birlikte fare avlayan bu yakışıklı ve bir o kadar da naif, ince ruhlu Mick karakterini unutmayacağım.

[Sally Jask-eh · Rating 5 out of 5]

audio book reread. Jan 2025 This book is so charming. I find myself smiling at Mick and Winnie throughout. Elocution coach Winnie agrees to help Cornish rat catcher Mick talk and act like a gentleman for a bet. He stays at Winnie’s
place while she works
magic a la reverse my fair lady. Mick pumps his pecks in the bath and is generally perfect book boyfriend material the entire time. Winnie is painfully insecure but allows herself to enjoy time with Mick. Plot twist towards the end ties up a nice HEA.

[b.andherbooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

FIVE STARS PERFECTION

Mick!!!! The ferrets! Magic the dog! the BANTER. Immaculate vibes, I'm over the moon. New instant favorite historical romance. THE MUSTACHE.

More thoughts to come, but omg. i love this book so hard.

[Senem Elmas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Giriş, gelişme için değişik; sonuç için bilindik bir historycal.
Mick çok şekerdi

[Arzu · Rating 5 out of 5]

*Teklif*

Ya tesadüfi okuduğum bir kitabın bu kadar mükemmel eğlenceli çıkması? İNANILMAZ Eğlendim🎉

Kitabın sadece arka kapağını okumuştum ve konu ilginç gelmişti kitaba bir şans vereyim dedim daha yazar girişten beni güldürdü onu tebrik ediyorum. Bence çevirinin de bunda payı var ama neyse nsjsjsj

Kitabımız soylu ikiz kardeşlerin, varoşlardan gelme bir fare avcısının beyefendiye dönüşüp dönüşemeyeceğine dair iddialarıyla başlıyor. Ve bunun için ders verecek öğretmenimiz, Wina adında evde kalmış bir leydi. Zamanında haksızlıklara uğramasa şu an karun kadar zengin olabilecek bir leydi hemde. Ve gelelim Mick'e. Yani fare avcımıza.
Karakterlere gelecek olursak Mick ya ben seni ısırırım sen ne kadar tatlı bir manyaktın öyle? Wina'cığım senin de bu yabaniliğin beni çıldırttı ama sonlara doğru açıldın o da yeter bana.

Başlarda Mick karakterinin bakış açısını konuşma tarzını okuyunca dedim ki bu iş nasıl olcak😵 Çok zor olmaz, hatta imkansız falan dedim ki kızı da kendine benzetir sonunda dedim. Ki zaten benzetti de sayılır dnndjsj

Ama sonrasında olanlar cidden iyi yazılmıştı. Aralarındaki elektrik, eğlenceli diyaloglar, sınıf farkı ve yetişmeleri gereken bir balo derken her şey çığrından çıkmaya başladı bir ara kitapta. Okurken bir ara cidden ne oluyor falan oldum ve bir de kızın keçi gibi inadı yüzünden adam ırta yerinden çatladı ve kızın ruh haline ayak uydurcam derken iki dengesiz gibi takılmaya başladılar. Bir sayfada adamı tokatlıyor diğer sayfada tokatladığı yeri okluyor falan Wina harbi yabaniydi sözde adam varoşlardan gelme😂 Mick'çiğim ise son derece sabırlı bir beyefendiyi sadece aklını pergeller çok kurcaladı o kadar. Pergel kelimesi de zaten ayrı manyaklıktı. Kırk yıl düşünsem aklıma gelmezdi bu deyim😂😂

Yani kızımızla oğlumuzun sevgiliyken olan diyaloglarını daha çok okumak isterdim. Çünkü sona doğru artık birbirlerini kabul ettiler ondan öncede kedi köpek gibiydiler resmen. Bir de sonlara doğru son elli sayfa falan cidden beklenmedikti benim için.

Spoilerlı kısım
Burdan sonrası için kitabı okumayan gelmesin!!!!!

Ya o son sahneler neydi öyle?! İkiz kardeşlerin bir şey planladıklarını biliyordum ama bu hayatta aklıma gelmezdi, cidden. Ben bir suç işleyip üstüne yıkacaklar falan sandım ama meğerse dertleri başkaymış. Bana Julia Quinn'in Kayıp Dük kitabını anımsattı. Orda da böyle bir durum vardı. Meğer bizim fare avcısı bir dükmüş. Şaka gibi 😂 Özellikle o ikizlerin baloya gitmeden önce adamın ne kadar da kayıp düke benzediklerini görünce dehşete düşmeleri. Sonra kendi dümenlerini yutacak hale gelmeleri 😂😂

Kitap sırf şu beklenmedik sonuyla beşi hakketi cidden. Ve bir de süt anne vakasını hiç beklemiyordum ona da çok şaşırdım zaten. Sonlara doğru mutluluktan çıldırdım. Çünkü ikilimizin mutlu olması için piyango falan çıkması lazımdı ama o devirde piyango olmadığından dükalık çıktı bahtlarına. Wina için sevindim hem kendisini çok seven bir kocaya hemde büyüdüğü yere tekrardan sahip oldu. Acaba diyorum beraber büyüselerdi daha mı erken evlenirlerdi yoksa ikisi de başka dünyalarda mı olurdu? Kim bilir kader işte😪

Yok ya ben Mick'e güveniyorum, yine Wina'nın bacakları uğruna yapmayacağı şey olmadığından daha önce nikahına almış olurdu sjsjsjjs Zaten o bıyıkların bacaklar uğruna gitmesi de yarı komedi, kitabın sonunda yine bıyık mevzusu ile bizi gülümsetmsi daha güzeldi. Kitabı cidden sevdim zaten historical seven bir insanım bir de beni şaşırttıkları zaman daha bir bayılıyorum şu türe. Umarım on çocuklu bir aile olursunuz,Mick. Kalbin o kadar güzel ve temizdi ki Wina sadece ambalajını onardı. İşte insan güzel bir kalbe sahip olmaya görsün, cenneti bile cehennem gibi görür.

Mick o güzel kalbiyle hayatını seviyordu işte bu detay çok güzel işlenmişti. Wina'sı mutlu olsun diye mesleğinden vazgeçip eşyalarını satıp elbise alması. Evlilik teklifini kanule ettiğini duyunca bir anda dansı bırakıp sevinçten insanlara sarılması😍 Sevdikleri için herşeyini verecek yüreğe sahip olmasıyla unutulmayacaksın, Mik. Kalbimdesin.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Man, what a unique book. The hero was a rat catcher. I can't say that I have ever read another historical with a hero like him.

Mick was bold and confident even though he wasn't a lord. He was a good rat catcher and he was proud of it. He even puts together a little demo for the heroine later in the book to show off his skills. That's definitely a unique way to woo a woman. It worked for him though.

Mick was great, he knew who he was (although he starts to question his identity the longer he trains with Winnie) and what was important in life. He was sexual and funny and had a great personality. He wanted Winnie, but he wasn't the type of guy to let lust rule him.

I loved the battle they had over his mustache. It led to a very sensual scene where he got to look at her legs and touch them once.

Winnie was an interesting character. She starts out with a lot of hang ups. She's rather snobby and very uncertain of her sexuality. Winnie is the character that does the most growing in this story. While Mick changes in a more obvious manner, Winnie changes internally. They both come to love and value each other above all the social stigma that would follow their union.

The reason that this got four stars instead of five stars was the ending.

***SPOILERS***
Winnie agreed to marry Mick even though he was a rat catcher. She loved him enough to change her life to be with him. I thought it was kind of a slap in the face for the author to suddenly pull a stolen-baby-of-the-nobility out of nowhere. Mick and Winnie were perfectly content with how their life would be. Why did the author feel it necessary to undermine all time it took Winnie to get over her snobbery enough to value Mick and the life he leads? It pissed me off!
***END SPOILERS***

Other than that it was a marvelous read.

[Ana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary:

No man, gentleman or otherwise, has ever looked at Lady Edwina Bollash the way the brash, handsome man standing before her is doing now. Edwina has accepted the challenge to transform incorrigible Mick Tremore into a gentleman in just six weeks. And although the linguist is sure she can rise to the task, she isn't at all certain she won't swoon under his frankly sensuous gaze before her job is done.

Mick has lived outside of London society long enough to know that appearances can be deceiving. Edwina might look all buttoned up-the perfect English lady-but there is unleashed passion existing just below her placid facade (not to mention a great pair of legs!). And as she prepares him to take his place in society, Mick prepares Edwina to take her place in his heart...and in his bed.

An amazing book with a far from common plot.

I adore Mick - he wasn't raised as a gentleman, but he has all the qualities of a true one - he's gentle, patient, smart, generous... His view of the world is fascinating.

Edwina is a spinster unused to men wanting her - and yet there's this ratcatcher that turns her world upside down. She has some serious issues, mainly her desire to run everything, she's insecure, but to Mick she's perfect. My favorite thing about her: she loved Mick as he was - not the gentleman she created, but the man inside, And yeah, her willingness to marry him regardless of his occupation made me love her. :-)

There were some small imperfections in the book - there was a time in the middle of the book when it was a bit lagging (the part when they're in the pub), but mostly the perfect ending. I know it's a romance and all, but it was just too damn perfect - I would've preferred a more realistic conclusion. Or maybe just a bit less abrupt.

Rating:

4.5 stars

[Sam I AMNreader · Rating 4 out of 5]

After setting this aside initially, I am glad to have revisited
In her trademark sensual language, ivory takes in class, language, the power of acceptance and love -

This isn't my favorite of hers (that would be Bliss) but there's so much good meat here. Along with a little classic plot twist.

I have many notes but no patience for a better review.

[Renae · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pygmalion, My Fair Lady...we know the story. An arrogant linguistic expert decides to torture a poor lower-class human for several weeks and try to pass them off as a duchess to all of high society.

In this case, the linguist is a woman, Edwina Bollash, and her victim is Mick, an incorrigible Cornish ratcatcher out for a fun time. Will she succeed in passing off Mick as a viscount at her nasty cousin-the-duke's annual ball?

Read The Proposition to find out!

I guess my biggest trepidation with this book, coming in, was how...unlikeable the original Professor Higgins character is. To be blunt: he's an ass. And, yes, in this case, the professor is an awkward spinster, so it's different, but still. I wasn't excited to think that I was in for a book about an abusive pedagogue and her hapless victim. Luckily, that's not the case. Edwina is snobby and strict, but she's not a two-dimensional tyrant. Judith Ivory gives her heroine a lot of depth and nuance (uncomfy upbringing, a pretty obvious anxiety disorder, etc.) that make it easier for readers to understand why a person could be so...rough. This is not, by the way, to say that had Edwina been an unlikeable female character, I would have jumped ship. This is merely to say that, unlike in the original story, it's not confusing as to whether or not the "love interest" is actually the villain.

On the other hand, Mick's character was utterly charming. He's a large, honest man who works hard and is proud of himself, but isn't so hard-headed as to pass up a chance to improve himself when it comes along. Rather, he sees it as a stroke of luck—especially since his teacher, the Junoesque Edwina Bollash, has the best pair of legs he's ever seen on a woman.

The Proposition is, like any good romance, a story of mutual improvement. Mick learns to diction and etiquette, and Edwina learns to get out of her head and control her anxiety. The story might be a little overdone, but when it's written well, it's enjoyable and sexy. Spoiler: Judith Ivory writes this plot well.

If you're interested in a cute, teacher/student romance featuring ferrets and waltzes, or if you're curious how the daughter of a marquess and a ratcatcher could possibly find their HEA, look no further. The Proposition is sweet and surprising and (mostly) a huge improvement on Rex Harrison's crotchety Henry Higgins. (I do really love My Fair Lady, though.)

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