A Caribbean Heiress in Paris- A Novel by Adriana Herrera
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Web ID: 16836043A rum heiress & an Earl walk into an exhibition...
A rum heiress, her two best friends, and a Scottish Earl walk into The Exposition Universelle in Paris feels like the start of a joke, but also sets the stage for a sizzling historical romance that will leave you thirsty for a sip of a tropical cordial. Luz Alana Heith-Benzan, ready to do proverbial battle with three hundred casks of her family's Caribbean rum, finds herself in a bind - she must sell as much of her stock as possible at the exhibition if she is to keep her business running, as the trust her father left to her cannot be accessed unless she marries - which she is completely unwilling to do. Unfortunately for her, the buyers and shippers at the Exhibition are loathe to work with a woman - and a woman of color, no less. To top it all off, her run-in with infuriating whiskey seller (and Earl, though she doesn't know this) James Evanston Sinclair is pushing the boundaries of her don't-fall-in-love-rule she set for herself on this trip. Equally busy with a revenge agenda of his own, Evan can't understand why his thoughts constantly turn to the flaming Spanish-speaking heiress either, but if both of them aren't careful, they'll find that their marriage of convenience may turn both of their lives upside-down. I always thought I wasn't a fan of insta-love, but if every insta-love trope could be written by Adriana Herrera, I'd change my mind. If the premise of this book wasn't enough to entice you - the historical fiction equivalent of a girlboss who has to fight against sexism, racism, and the patriarchy, and does it while also succeeding in business, being a great friend and a big sister, and stunting on everyone who crosses her path - the big Scottish guy who's a champion of women's rights (and to some extent their wrongs) in a man-run world should seal the deal. This book also had some of the best spice I have ever listened to in my life, and saved me from crashing out while driving in a white-out, and I HIGHLY recommend grabbing the audiobook of this series if you can. Otherwise, if you love tropes such as allies-to-lovers, he falls first and comically hard, found family, Bridgerton vibes, trauma healing, big reveals, revenge plots, found family, sticking it to the patriarchy, "good girl", and 'side' characters who definitely have their own secrets and stories to share, run (don't walk) to pick up this sun-drenched historical masterpiece!
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
A delightfully diverse historical romance
CW: physical abuse; emotional abuse; racism; misogyny; sexism; references to slavery This book made me thirsty in more ways than one! All I wanted to do was pour a glass of whisky and find myself a hunky Scotsman after reading this. With a diverse cast of characters, a fantastic romance, and a compelling plot, A Caribbean Heiress in Paris was an engaging, fun read. Luz Alana Heith-Benzan arrives in Paris for the Exposition Universelle in hopes of expanding Caña Brava, her family’s rum business. After her father’s untimely death and the inability of Luz to access her inheritance until she marries, the trip takes on new urgency. However, buyers and shippers dismiss Luz as they cannot imagine doing business with a woman, let alone a woman of color. When she runs into James Evanston Sinclair, the Earl of Darnick, she initially sees a rival. But as she keeps running into him, she sees him as a potential business partner, even while fighting a growing attraction to him. Meanwhile, for Evan, all he wants to do is continue to grow his whisky brand and get what is rightfully his, even if he has to take down his father in the process. A marriage of convenience may prove to be the perfect solution to both of their problems. But the more time they spend together, the less their marriage feels like a business arrangement and begins to feel like something real. Marriage of convenience stories can be very hit or miss for me, but this one was a hit. I loved that they both got something out of the relationship of equal value – they approached it as a business deal, which works so well for Luz and Evan. These two were also clearly infatuated with each other very early on, so it was fun to watch them navigate their feelings. I was living for the scene with Evan and Luz together, as their banter and chemistry were sizzling hot. The romance was also relatively low-angst, even if there are a few incidents of Evan lying by omission. But this book was smoking hot when it came to the sexy times. Evan’s got a wicked mouth on him, and I loved that. Plus, he’s a fan of the “good girl,” which I love. He’s incredibly opened minded compared to many of the other men in this book, and I liked that he doesn’t judge people based on their sex or race. At the start, he has a single-minded focus on making Braeburn his and getting vengeance on his father. But when Luz enters his life, that complicates things, especially as this man is so far gone for her. I loved that he also didn’t try to change her but respected her for who she was and actually admired her business skills. Plus, who doesn’t love a big, charming Scotsman? I also love female business owners, so of course, I was going to love Luz. She is a flask and pistol-carrying woman – you don’t want to mess with her. Luz is determined to make a name for herself and her rum, even if she does put a lot of pressure on herself to succeed. I loved how she wanted to celebrate and build on the generation of women in her family before her. And despite the face she puts on when dealing with business, she also has a lot of emotional depth. I also loved that she was the one to initiate and ask for a sexual relationship in her marriage of convenience and didn’t shy away from those intimate moments. Outside of Luz and Evan, I loved the secondary characters in this. Luz’s friends, Las Léonas, and Evan’s sisters were some of my favorites. Las Léonas are the type of girls you’d want to have in your corner as they genuinely care about their friends and will fight for you. Evan’s sisters were similar, as they also gave Evan and Luz a push in the right direction. Despite really enjoying this book, I found it a little slow initially. It took a little time for the story to gain momentum, and things picked up for me as Luz and Evan spent more time together. I really enjoyed the ending – the plot went in a totally different direction than I thought, and the stakes were way higher than I anticipated! Reading this book was so much fun, and this book was way hotter than I expected! I hope we’re getting more books in the series as I could see some of the couples potentially being set up. I’d love to see more of Las Léonas getting their happily ever after.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
I enjoyed it
A Caribbean Heiress in Paris (Las Léonas, #1) by Adriana Herrera Luz Alana Heith-Benzan arrived in Paris in May 1889 for The Exposition Universelle to promote her rum, Caña Brava. With three hundred casks of rum, her two best friends (Las Leonas), Manuela (Manu) Cáceres and Aurora (a physician), and her 10 y/o sister, Clarita. She has one simple rule: under no circumstances is she to fall in love. Luz's trip has a dual purpose - after her father died, she must expand the rum enterprise he built - and she must go to Edinburgh to claim his inheritance from Prescott Childers who controls her trust. As it turns out, Prescott is dead, and his son, Percy has taken over the trust. The participants of the exposition are rude and dismissive - they can’t imagine doing business with a woman - never mind a woman of color. Enter James Evanston (Evan) Sinclair - Earl of Darnick. He shares with her his table at the Exposition and introduces her to his many contacts so that she can sell her rum. As Evan and his associate, Raghav Kapadia, taste her rum, they become fans of Ms. Heith Benzan. Evan has some troubles of his own. His father the duke has pilfered the family fortune, taken away Evans's first love, Charlotte, marrying her away from Evan and making her his stepmother. The duke had a child in Colombia - Apollo César Sinclair Robles - who has proof of his claims and also Evans's mother - Catherine - will, in which she leaves Braeburn and the whiskey distillery to Evan. Evan doesn't care about the fortune or the title - which would pass to his older brother, Apollo - but he cares deeply about the whiskey distillery - which was willed to him. There's a catch - Evan must be married to claim his inheritance. They quickly form an alliance against their father. Luz Alana meets with Percy to no avail. Percy refuses to give her the inheritance - which also needs her to be married when doing so. From the beginning, there are sparks between Evan and Luz Alana - so they come up with a proposition. A marriage of convenience for three months so that can both claim what they want. Will their sham romance lead to something else? Will Evan and Apollo be able to expose their father and claim their titles? Narrated from the third-person point of view, this is an interesting book that reads quickly. Unfortunately, I found the plot unrealistic. I don't think a woman of color would have fared as well as Luz Alana did in 19th-century Europe in spite of her feminist views. The characters are well developed but I didn't care much for them. I did enjoy the book, but I don't think I'll be reading any of the sequels.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Great Book
A Caribbean Heiress in Paris by Adriana Herrera is an amazing historical fiction romance that is fresh, spunky, and features such a rewarding character cast with a fascinating plot and I just loved it! It is the first book in a new series: Las Leonas. There are so many amazing positives with this book that I could go on forever. Some of my favorites are the amazing character cast. Such a vast array of cultures, personalities, interactions, and complex histories. The main characters are just awesome! Luz Alana is such a strong, smart, fiery, loyal, independent, complex, and beautiful woman. Best of all, she is Latina, she is from Santo Domingo, and she is just perfect. A woman with a rum business to run, she is equally matched with the handsome Scottish James Evanston Sinclair, Earl of Darnick. Both compliments one another perfectly. Their chemistry is spot on, and their relationship of “business” that then turns to companionship and then true love, is just perfect. I also love all of the work and research that was placed into this gem in regards to historical context and detail. I actually learned a lot while reading, and that is just awesome to be able to say that. I am so glad that this is the start of a new series, and I will be snatching up every book that is part of this perfect series of novels. 5\5 stars enthusiastically
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
4.5 stars
What a beautiful story. The author does an amazing job with the imagery, somehow making the FMC and her Lèonas pop compared to the other characters. It was as if I was watching a movie where Luz Alana and her circle were in color and the rest was in black and white. Truly amazing. There are many lessons to be learned from this story. Just as with the imagery, the author does a great job of educating her readers without it feeling like an education. Everything is organic to the story and flows with each situation Luz Alana or Evan happen to be in at the time. The setting, the concept, the interactions, all wonderfully done. There is an instant connection between Luz Alana and Evan and I was overjoyed to learn this would be a fake relationship story. One of my favorite tropes. Before these two even agree to embark on their fake marriage, they are already in deep. Not only is there a strong physical attraction, they are both very impressed with the other’s grit and determination to go after what they want and have earned. Two extremely head-strong characters, both with an overabundance of compassion for those around them. The only thing that detracted from this story for me was the pacing. Something about it was off and I can’t quite put my finger on why. It made it much easier to put the book down, yet I was always eager to pick it back up. Which means I will be snatching up the next book in this series as soon as they announce a publication date. **I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely**
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Smart and inventive
In 1889, Luz Alana travels from the Dominican Republic to Paris to enter her distillery's rum in an international exhibition. There, she meets Evan, a Scottish whisky distiller. Though attracted to each other, they're both too independent to desire marriage. Unfortunately, they both need to wed in order to take control of their inheritance. Is a marriage of convenience the answer? This is a smart, inventive novel that explores the difficulties of a woman making her way in a man's world. I like Luz Alana's spirit, though I had some trouble connecting to her emotionally. She and Evan are well-matched. Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
I am here for diversity in historical romance!
Historical romance is getting the shot in the arm it needs thanks to authors like Adriana Herrera who are brave enough to let their imaginations create an exciting and refreshing world full of diverse characters! We meet Luz Alana and the other two Leonas (this is the first of a new trilogy) at the start of the book on a ship bound for Paris so that Luz Alana can sell her rum and eventually move to Scotland to create a new business and life, while taking care of Clarita, her precocious younger sister, who may be an early Goth. At the start, you know our entrepreneurial heroine is a feminist and she and her two besties, Aurora and Manuela, are educated, well-off and Black, and really, how great is this set-up!?! The hero is Evan Sinclair, whiskey maker, second son of a Scottish duke yet heir apparent. He is the only white guy in Paris and Edinburgh who isn’t a racist and he quickly develops the hots for Luz Alana. He also has a revenge plot going on. The two end up in a marriage of convenience but with copulating and that means lots of steamy scenes! There’s mention of a cervical cap, birth control is discussed, and I am 100% for it! Our heroine is a working woman and has to care for her younger sister, so this is smart and sensible! There’s a lot of history in this ambitious book, and I wished for more balance juggling history, storytelling and entertainment. Still, I give Ms. Herrera a lot of credit for kicking this particular door down, and I want to read more diverse historical romances in the future. I am also hoping for shenanigans and meaningful conversations among the Leonas and between Luz Alana and Clarita in the future books! Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Refreshingly original, steamy historical romance
The beginning of the story is a bit weighed down with a plethora of character and backstory details, but once I was able to get it all sorted the story came together nicely. Luz Alana, along with her young sister and several friends, travels from the Dominican Republic in 1889 to Paris for an international exposition. Luz is seeking to expand her family's rum distillery while on her way to Edinburgh to claim her inheritance. Right away, she meets Evan, a huge Scot who is displaying his whisky while also pursuing a plan to secure the entire business away from his wastrel father. Turns out, they each are being held back by wills that require them to be married in order to inherit. Soon a marriage of convenience is devised, and that familiar trope is played out exactly as one would expect. A fine story in itself, but not nearly the entirety of this reading experience. Luz Alana is like no other heroine I've ever read. Sharp-tongued and quick-witted, she is fiercely independent and has no filter when it comes to telling people what they don't want to hear. She does it in such a restrained and polite manner that one almost wants to thank her for the enlightening insult. Luz and Evan are fire and ice right from the start. The attraction is visceral and takes on a life of its own as they try to balance their hearts against their secrets. I loved the progression of their relationship and the discovery that they both love in exactly the same way that they live life - with no doubts or hesitations. The secondary characters aren't just window dressing in this story. There's tremendous depth in who is included as well as why they're connected to either Luz or Evan. The writing is exquisitely intelligent, clearly benefiting from a wealth of research by the author, and sardonic enough to make a few important points without being scathing. The HEA was delightful and there were a few hints as to the stories that might be coming next in this series. I hope the author continues to expose the kind of history that tends to be ignored while presenting us with truly valiant heroines that the world needs even today. I highly recommend this lovely story. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com