Lord Christopher Eden maintains sole responsibility for his family estate, as the last surviving member. As such, Christopher is duty-bound to seek out a wife and maintain the estate, but he is a "man of unusual make," so any marriage will be one for the sake of image, rather than love or attraction. But Christopher reluctantly ventures into the ton and the marriage market, helped along by his new, and troublingly attractive, valet, James. Honesty is paramount, so Christopher won't lie to any prospective brides, but in maintaining his integrity, he risks ruin on multiple fronts.

All I could think while reading this book is that Lord Christopher is so lovely and pure and must be protected at all costs. Losing his entire family and having to protect his true nature has necessarily isolated him, and it explains his reluctance to open himself up to outsiders. This provides the context for his initial interactions with James, ensuring that their relationship to one another makes sense. Nothing feels forced; rather, everything feels entirely earned. I also love the fact that Christopher will not lie to a prospect simply to ensure he gets to protect his estate. This decision provides a level of depth to his character that helps round out his characterization.

And James must also be protected at all costs. I absolutely adored getting more information about James' backstory because it humanized a character that might otherwise seem too terse or beholden to societal norms and positions. 

I really started to love this book when I stopped trying to guess what was coming next. Christopher and James are such an interesting pair, and letting the story unfold was so much more satisfying than trying to predetermine the outcome. I adored the representation in the book, not just trans representation, but class distinctions, and gender norms. While the latter two are common in regency romance, the former is not. Together, this created a beautifully rich world with interesting characters and questions to consider.

This was a wonderful addition to the historical romance category, highlighting an underrepresented community, while still maintaining a believable happily ever after.