{"id":31001,"date":"2024-03-01T12:36:53","date_gmt":"2024-03-01T16:36:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/?p=31001"},"modified":"2024-03-01T13:04:22","modified_gmt":"2024-03-01T17:04:22","slug":"review-it-takes-a-rake-by-anna-bennett","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/2024\/03\/01\/review-it-takes-a-rake-by-anna-bennett\/","title":{"rendered":"Review \u2764\ufe0f It Takes a Rake by Anna Bennett"},"content":{"rendered":"<!--themify_builder_content-->\n<div id=\"themify_builder_content-31001\" data-postid=\"31001\" class=\"themify_builder_content themify_builder_content-31001 themify_builder tf_clear\">\n    \t\t\t<!-- module_row -->\n\t<div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_row themify_builder_row tb_rklq206 tb_first tf_w tf_clearfix\">\n\t    \t\t\t<div class=\"row_inner col_align_top gutter-narrow tb_col_count_2 tf_box tf_rel\">\n\t\t            <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column tb-column col3-1 tb_jyow206 first\">\n                                                        <div class=\"tb-column-inner tf_box tf_w\">\n                        <!-- module image -->\n<div  class=\"module module-image tb_y75z206 rounded drop-shadow customBorderRad_top image-center auto_fullwidth tf_mw\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div class=\"image-wrap tf_rel tf_mw\">\n\t\t    <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"1048\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett.jpg?resize=640%2C1048&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"wp-post-image wp-image-31002\" title=\"it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett\" alt=\"it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett.jpg?w=916&amp;ssl=1 916w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett.jpg?resize=183%2C300&amp;ssl=1 183w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett.jpg?resize=625%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 625w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett.jpg?resize=768%2C1258&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett.jpg?resize=400%2C655&amp;ssl=1 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/>\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<!-- \/image-wrap -->\n    \n    \t<\/div>\n<!-- \/module image --><!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_j2g9207 customBorderRad_bottom repeat \" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"a-text-bold\" style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><strong>She\u2019s about to face her biggest challenge yet\u2026<\/strong><br \/><\/span><br \/><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">Since she was a girl, Miss Kitty Beckett has been adept at finding trouble: sneaking brandy, running away, and getting under the skin of the boy who, like her, was an apprentice to an architect. Now Kitty\u2019s a talented heiress who can take a dry building plan and breathe life into it with her pencils and paints. Also? She can spot a rake at a hundred yards\u2014and she won\u2019t be tricked or charmed into marriage. Certainly not by a man who might interfere with her dreams. When Bellehaven Bay announces its first ever architectural design contest, she vows to win\u2014with a little help from her childhood rival.<\/span><br \/><br \/><span class=\"a-text-bold\" style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><strong>Turning her buttoned-up nemesis into a certified rake.<\/strong><br \/><\/span><br \/><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">Leo Lockland, a hardworking architect with a gift for numbers, has returned home after a few years in London, and he has secrets. The biggest? He\u2019s been in love with Kitty since they were both apprentices. She refuses to give her heart to any man, but Leo\u2019s determined to beat the odds\u2014even if it means learning how to be a rake. Fortunately, Kitty\u2019s willing to tutor him in the nuances of fashion, flirtation, and seduction in exchange for his help with the contest. But the whole plan would fall apart if she knew how he felt, so he\u2019ll have to be very convincing.<\/span><br \/><br \/><span class=\"a-text-bold\" style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><strong>Let the lessons begin\u2026<\/strong><br \/><\/span><br \/><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">Leo proves to be a surprisingly quick study in the ballroom, on the beach, and in the bedchamber. Before long, he\u2019s softening Kitty\u2019s hard edges with his wicked words and kissing his way past all her defenses. Perhaps she\u2019s a bit too skilled at teaching, because her lessons are threatening to backfire, putting her closely guarded heart in grave danger\u2026<\/span><\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text -->                    <\/div>\n                            <\/div>\n                        <div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column tb-column col3-2 tb_hjfl207 last\">\n                                                        <div class=\"tb-column-inner tf_box tf_w\">\n                        <!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_58y9207  repeat \" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-25879 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/smitten-top-pick-banner-1-2.png?resize=296%2C72&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"296\" height=\"72\" \/><\/p><hr \/><p><strong>Release Date:<\/strong> Jan 23, 2024<br \/><strong>Series:<\/strong> <em>Rogues to Lovers<br \/><\/em><strong>Book: <\/strong>3<br \/><strong>Heat Level:<\/strong> Warm\/Sensual<br \/><strong>Publisher:<\/strong> Macmillan<br \/><strong>Imprint:<\/strong> St. Martin&#8217;s Press<br \/><strong>Price:<\/strong> $8.99<\/p><hr \/><blockquote class=\"quotes\"><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>\u201c\u2019You were foolish to trust me- your competition. And you\u2019re foolish to trust him, too,\u2019 he added, gesturing toward Leo. Kitty curled her fingers into her palms. \u2018He is nothing like you. He is honorable, loyal, and good.\u201d<\/em><\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>\u201cShe turned toward Leo and let her love for him wash away her anger. \u2018It seems that despite my best efforts, I was unable to change who you are at your core. And if you want to know the truth, I\u2019m glad. Though you can be extremely vexing at times\u2026. I wouldn\u2019t want to change a thing about you.\u2019\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Kitty Beckett<\/strong> and <strong>Leo Lockland<\/strong> have been rivals since childhood, but Leo has a secret. He has been in love with Kitty for years, and now that he is back in town, he is ready to win the love of the woman he has been pining after. Kitty doesn\u2019t care about marriage or men; all she wants is to be taken seriously as an architect. When a competition to design a new building in their seaside paradise, Kitty vows to win at all costs. She will lose something more important that the contest when her heart gets involved.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">It&#8217;s no secret that I am a huge <strong>Anna Bennet<\/strong> fan. Her books are something different from the astronomical amount of historical romances that I\u2019ve read where the heroes always have daddy issues and claim the line will end with them or the heroine is a clever and beautiful spinster whose avoided marriage until she is 26.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Anna always gives her characters interesting quirks and hobbies, but they don\u2019t come off as pretentious. Her heroines always seem very genuine to me, and Kitty followed that trend. She had hopes and dreams more than marriage, and she was a talented architect in her own right. She has a mistrust of people, and Leo had to work extremely hard to gain her trust back from his previous mistakes. When he broke it, she didn\u2019t immediately forgive him, which was refreshing. His grand gesture to show Kitty he loved her was adorable. It showed how much he respected her and her talents.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Leo was a sweetheart. Probably my favorite hero of Anna\u2019s. He is so thoughtful and intentional with Kitty. Everything he does is to win her heart, and he is a genuinely good man. I thought this was delightful and was easily my favorite in the series.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">If you\u2019re a fan of other low angst historical romances like those of <strong>Vivienne Lorret<\/strong> or <strong>Christy Carlyle<\/strong> then you don\u2019t want to miss this release.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>~ Michelle<\/em><\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text --><!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_y5r1207 customBorderRad repeat \" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span class=\"s1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3OYCkez\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Amazon<\/a><\/span><span class=\"s2\">\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/apple.co\/3SRuwfO\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">iBooks<\/span><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett\/1143330024?ean=9781250793966\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">B&amp;N<\/span><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kobo.com\/us\/en\/ebook\/it-takes-a-rake\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">Kobo<\/span><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/books\/details\/Anna_Bennett_It_Takes_a_Rake?id=CE24EAAAQBAJ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class=\"s3\">Google Play<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text -->                    <\/div>\n                            <\/div>\n            \t    <\/div>\n\t    <!-- \/row_inner -->\n\t<\/div>\n\t<!-- \/module_row -->\n\t<\/div>\n<!--\/themify_builder_content-->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>She\u2019s about to face her biggest challenge yet\u2026Since she was a girl, Miss Kitty Beckett has been adept at finding trouble: sneaking brandy, running away, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":31002,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[119,122,48,59],"tags":[153,305,404,405,548,485],"class_list":["post-31001","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-macmillan","category-michelle","category-reviews","category-st-martins-press","tag-4-5-stars","tag-historical-romance","tag-recommend","tag-recommended-reads","tag-regency-romance","tag-top-picks"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Review \u2764\ufe0f It Takes a Rake by Anna Bennett - Smitten by Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, 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\u2764\ufe0f It Takes a Rake by Anna Bennett"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/","name":"Smitten by Books","description":"Where HEAs are guaranteed","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Smitten by 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Books"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/5a4181aeb9cd5641e30023b9b4d3e00d","name":"beverley","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d01d9a027fd24b3d94658206104dd5d7aaffba75b651e55c08358a9bc51b26a1?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d01d9a027fd24b3d94658206104dd5d7aaffba75b651e55c08358a9bc51b26a1?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d01d9a027fd24b3d94658206104dd5d7aaffba75b651e55c08358a9bc51b26a1?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"beverley"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog"],"url":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/author\/beverley\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett.jpg?fit=916%2C1500&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"builder_content":"<img src=\"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett.jpg\" title=\"it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett\" alt=\"it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett.jpg?w=916&amp;ssl=1 916w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett.jpg?resize=183%2C300&amp;ssl=1 183w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett.jpg?resize=625%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 625w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett.jpg?resize=768%2C1258&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett.jpg?resize=400%2C655&amp;ssl=1 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 916px) 100vw, 916px\" \/>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>She\u2019s about to face her biggest challenge yet\u2026<\/strong><br \/><br \/>Since she was a girl, Miss Kitty Beckett has been adept at finding trouble: sneaking brandy, running away, and getting under the skin of the boy who, like her, was an apprentice to an architect. Now Kitty\u2019s a talented heiress who can take a dry building plan and breathe life into it with her pencils and paints. Also? She can spot a rake at a hundred yards\u2014and she won\u2019t be tricked or charmed into marriage. Certainly not by a man who might interfere with her dreams. When Bellehaven Bay announces its first ever architectural design contest, she vows to win\u2014with a little help from her childhood rival.<br \/><br \/><strong>Turning her buttoned-up nemesis into a certified rake.<\/strong><br \/><br \/>Leo Lockland, a hardworking architect with a gift for numbers, has returned home after a few years in London, and he has secrets. The biggest? He\u2019s been in love with Kitty since they were both apprentices. She refuses to give her heart to any man, but Leo\u2019s determined to beat the odds\u2014even if it means learning how to be a rake. Fortunately, Kitty\u2019s willing to tutor him in the nuances of fashion, flirtation, and seduction in exchange for his help with the contest. But the whole plan would fall apart if she knew how he felt, so he\u2019ll have to be very convincing.<br \/><br \/><strong>Let the lessons begin\u2026<\/strong><br \/><br \/>Leo proves to be a surprisingly quick study in the ballroom, on the beach, and in the bedchamber. Before long, he\u2019s softening Kitty\u2019s hard edges with his wicked words and kissing his way past all her defenses. Perhaps she\u2019s a bit too skilled at teaching, because her lessons are threatening to backfire, putting her closely guarded heart in grave danger\u2026<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/smitten-top-pick-banner-1-2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"296\" height=\"72\" \/><\/p><hr \/><p><strong>Release Date:<\/strong> Jan 23, 2024<br \/><strong>Series:<\/strong> <em>Rogues to Lovers<br \/><\/em><strong>Book: <\/strong>3<br \/><strong>Heat Level:<\/strong> Warm\/Sensual<br \/><strong>Publisher:<\/strong> Macmillan<br \/><strong>Imprint:<\/strong> St. Martin's Press<br \/><strong>Price:<\/strong> $8.99<\/p><hr \/><blockquote><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>\u201c\u2019You were foolish to trust me- your competition. And you\u2019re foolish to trust him, too,\u2019 he added, gesturing toward Leo. Kitty curled her fingers into her palms. \u2018He is nothing like you. He is honorable, loyal, and good.\u201d<\/em><\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>\u201cShe turned toward Leo and let her love for him wash away her anger. \u2018It seems that despite my best efforts, I was unable to change who you are at your core. And if you want to know the truth, I\u2019m glad. Though you can be extremely vexing at times\u2026. I wouldn\u2019t want to change a thing about you.\u2019\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Kitty Beckett<\/strong> and <strong>Leo Lockland<\/strong> have been rivals since childhood, but Leo has a secret. He has been in love with Kitty for years, and now that he is back in town, he is ready to win the love of the woman he has been pining after. Kitty doesn\u2019t care about marriage or men; all she wants is to be taken seriously as an architect. When a competition to design a new building in their seaside paradise, Kitty vows to win at all costs. She will lose something more important that the contest when her heart gets involved.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">It's no secret that I am a huge <strong>Anna Bennet<\/strong> fan. Her books are something different from the astronomical amount of historical romances that I\u2019ve read where the heroes always have daddy issues and claim the line will end with them or the heroine is a clever and beautiful spinster whose avoided marriage until she is 26.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Anna always gives her characters interesting quirks and hobbies, but they don\u2019t come off as pretentious. Her heroines always seem very genuine to me, and Kitty followed that trend. She had hopes and dreams more than marriage, and she was a talented architect in her own right. She has a mistrust of people, and Leo had to work extremely hard to gain her trust back from his previous mistakes. When he broke it, she didn\u2019t immediately forgive him, which was refreshing. His grand gesture to show Kitty he loved her was adorable. It showed how much he respected her and her talents.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Leo was a sweetheart. Probably my favorite hero of Anna\u2019s. He is so thoughtful and intentional with Kitty. Everything he does is to win her heart, and he is a genuinely good man. I thought this was delightful and was easily my favorite in the series.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\">If you\u2019re a fan of other low angst historical romances like those of <strong>Vivienne Lorret<\/strong> or <strong>Christy Carlyle<\/strong> then you don\u2019t want to miss this release.<\/p><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>~ Michelle<\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3OYCkez\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Amazon<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/apple.co\/3SRuwfO\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">iBooks<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/it-takes-a-rake-anna-bennett\/1143330024?ean=9781250793966\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">B&amp;N<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kobo.com\/us\/en\/ebook\/it-takes-a-rake\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Kobo<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/books\/details\/Anna_Bennett_It_Takes_a_Rake?id=CE24EAAAQBAJ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Google Play<\/a><\/strong><\/p>","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31001","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31001"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31001\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31019,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31001\/revisions\/31019"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31002"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31001"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31001"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31001"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}