MOGUL

A poor little rich girl gets her way by growing up.

Lillian Davies is a woman accustomed to getting what she wants thanks to an indulgent father and a high-society upbringing. The only thing she’s wanted and lost was Calvin Cabot; their hasty marriage was annulled by her father's connections, leaving her heartbroken. Four years later, Lillian is running her late father’s company, Calvin has become a notorious newspaper owner, and both are still unmarried. They’ve staked out positions in opposite circles of the New York social scene and avoid each other entirely—but after Lillian’s brother is kidnapped, she heads to Chinatown to hunt for Calvin, the only person she knows who can rescue him. Their chemistry blazes early, and though Lillian has a suitor and both are still furious with each other, the search for Lillian’s brother means they can't resist reigniting their romance. The latest entry in Shupe’s Knickerbocker Club series (Baron, 2016, etc.) starts out quite steamy and keeps the tension—sexual and otherwise—at a high level throughout. The excess and inequality of turn-of-the-century New York City provide the perfect backdrop to a romance between a headstrong hero and a stubborn heroine. Both Lillian and Calvin have contemporary sensibilities about race and gender, which allows the plot to be driven by the darker side of the Gilded Age without too much whitewashing, to great effect. Fans of the series will love this new installment, but it also stands alone nicely.

A rapid-fire plot and a smoldering love story produce Gilded Age gold.