Review: The Art of Scandal by Regina Black

Thank you Grand Central Publishing for my copy of The Art of Scandal! All thoughts are my own.

After Ashley Herring Blake pitched this book to us on Read It Or List It, I immediately requested it. It did not disappoint and I really loved the complexity of this book. It was juicy and sexy, but it really was “more” than what I expected. This felt like it bridged the gap between literary fiction and Romance. If you enjoyed Seven Day sin June, I think you’ll really enjoy this book!

It’s heart wrenching and delightful, full of surprises that will make you swoon and anger you. Imagine the passion of Scandal with the backdrop of The Good Wife and the prose of Seven Days in June. Oh, and the “taboo” goodness of The Idea of You.

Synopsis:

“On the night of her husband Matt’s fortieth birthday, Rachel Abbott receives a sexy, explicit text from her husband that she quickly realizes was meant for another woman. Divorce is inevitable, and Rachel is determined not to leave her thirteen-year marriage empty handed. Meanwhile, Matt, a rising star mayor with his eye on the White House, can’t afford a messy split in the middle of his reelection campaign. They strike a deal: Rachel gets one million dollars and their lavish house in the wealthy DC suburb of Oasis Springs, as long as she keeps playing the ideal Black trophy wife until the election.

Then Rachel meets Nathan Vasquez, a very handsome, very lost twenty-six-year-old artist, and their connection makes Rachel forget about being the perfect politician’s wife. As Rachel reawakens Nathan’s long-dormant artistic aspirations, their attraction becomes impossible to resist. But secrets are hard to keep in a town like Oasis Springs, and Nathan has a few of his own. With the risk of scandal looming and their hearts on the line, they’ll have to decide whether the possibility of losing everything is worth taking a chance on love.” —NetGalley

What I Liked:

1. The Premise—I was immediately intrigued by the blurb and it did not disappoint. It even surprised me more than I thought possible.

2. The Complexity of the Characters—Rachel and Nathan were fully realized characters, flaws and all.

What Didn’t Work For Me:

1. Length—I think I am protesting against long chapters. It made picking It up harder for me, which I know is a picky personal thing!

2. Rushed Ending—Now, since this didn’t feel like 100% a traditional Romance novel, I get it. But things felt a little rushed for me at the end! I wanted more of a resolution!

Character Authenticity: 4/5 Spice Rating: 2/5 Overall Rating: 4/5

Content Warnings:

Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Death of parent, Drug use, Grief, Racism (microaggressions), Mental illness, Alcohol, Cursing, Infidelity, Cancer