One for the Rogue by Manda Collins

💙 I read this for the Unapologetic Romance Readers' New Years 2018 Reading Challenge, for the category of: STEM Heroine Romance. For more info on this challenge, click here. 💙

I tend to prefer vintage bodice rippers to their present-day historical romance counterparts, but the prospect of reading about a female geologist was too good to miss. #Fomo

ONE FOR THE ROGUE is about a woman named Gemma Hart. She, and several other ladies, are under the guardianship of a woman named Serena Beauchamp, living in the Beauchamp household which was previously owned by another female geologist, a woman named Celeste.

Celeste has bequeathed her collection to Gemma, who works tirelessly to add to her late-benefactress's legacy. This is an obstacle hampered, as you might well imagine, by the fact that she is a woman.

Cam, the hero, is one of these hamperees. Gemma previously sent in a paper to be published in his magazine, only for him to turn it down. He claimed it was because it was too similar in nature to other articles being published at the time but she assumes (probably partially correctly) that it's because she's a woman and he's just another barrier to that elusive glass ceiling.

He's nothing compared to the slimy idiot who is conniving to breach the Beauchamp estates in order to gain access to the grounds. Rumors of a dinosaur skeleton abound, one that would be a priceless edition to any fossil collection as well as a sizeable feather (did you know that dinosaurs were feathered?) in one's geologist cap. The question is - how many other people want this fossil? And what might they be willing to do to get it?

The beginning of this book was very good. The mansplaining and the sexism were done well, and any woman who's worked in an industry or workplace populated mostly by men knows how it feels - to this day - to have someone make light of your contributions or knowledge simply because you are female. The plot crumbled a bit when the author introduced a murder mystery, made a big conspiracy out of it, and tried to get me to like the hero when he had revealed himself to be one of those insensitive mansplainers fairly early on in the book (even though he did redeem himself).

Despite the unique premise, ONE FOR THE ROGUE just couldn't pull me in the way I wanted to be pulled in and I rolled my eyes at the cheesy ending. If you're a fan of Courtney Milan's fluffier stories, you might like this.

Thanks to Netgalley/the publisher for the review copy!

2.5 out of 5 stars