Infamous
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- Create Date：2022-07-18 08:52:01
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Lex Croucher
- ISBN：1804180017
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Summary
22-year-old aspiring writer Edith 'Eddie' Miller and her best friend Rose have always done everything together-climbing trees， throwing grapes at boys， sneaking bottles of wine， practicing kissing 。 。 。
But following their debutante ball Rose is suddenly talking about marriage， and Eddie is horrified。
When Eddie meets charming， renowned poet Nash Nicholson， he invites her to his crumbling Gothic estate in the countryside。 The entourage of eccentric artists indulging in pure hedonism is exactly what Eddie needs in order to forget Rose and finish her novel。
But Eddie might discover the world of famous literary icons isn't all poems and pleasure 。 。 。
But following their debutante ball Rose is suddenly talking about marriage， and Eddie is horrified。
When Eddie meets charming， renowned poet Nash Nicholson， he invites her to his crumbling Gothic estate in the countryside。 The entourage of eccentric artists indulging in pure hedonism is exactly what Eddie needs in order to forget Rose and finish her novel。
But Eddie might discover the world of famous literary icons isn't all poems and pleasure 。 。 。
Reviews
Annette Jordan
，
Infamous by Lex Croucher is a beautiful historical LGBTQ+ romance that captivated me with strong writing， great characters and an engaging storyline。 Edith "Eddie" Miller and Rose Li have been best friends since childhood， but as young women now out in society it seems like they are starting to grow apart。 Rose seems keen to marry and has settled on a suitable if rather dull man who meets her family's approval。 Eddie could not imagine any worse fate， instead of settling down she dreams of becomi Infamous by Lex Croucher is a beautiful historical LGBTQ+ romance that captivated me with strong writing， great characters and an engaging storyline。 Edith "Eddie" Miller and Rose Li have been best friends since childhood， but as young women now out in society it seems like they are starting to grow apart。 Rose seems keen to marry and has settled on a suitable if rather dull man who meets her family's approval。 Eddie could not imagine any worse fate， instead of settling down she dreams of becoming a writer so when she meets one of her idols。 poet Nash Nicholson and he seems keenly interested in her work she is on cloud nine。 The fact that she finds him incredibly attractive doesn't hurt either， even though she knows he is a married man。 When he invites her to visit his crumbling gothic estate ， along with Rose and her fiance and some other friends ， telling her it would be the ideal place to work on her novel ， she excitedly agrees。 Once there she gets a glimpse of his hedonistic lifestyle and tempestuous marriage， and begins to question how well she truly knows him and what will bring her true happiness in the future。 Eddie is a great character to hang a book on， she is determined and strong willed， almost to the point of being stubborn， but is also naive and at times I found myself wanting to shake some sense into her。 Nash is deceptively charming but certainly has a darker side that the reader is more aware of than Eddie is。 Though he is described in the book as a rival to Byron， I felt while reading that the character of Nash could have been based on Byron and there could even be some parallels to Byron's relationship with Mary Shelley in the dynamic between Nash and Eddie。 I loved the friendship between Rose and Eddie， and seeing it develop over the course of the book was a real pleasure。 The writing is descriptive and evocative of time and place but still feels fresh ， and there was a thread of humour throughout that I really enjoyed。 I went into this book not really knowing what to expect， but it turns out that it was a real treat and one that I would recommend to anyone who enjoys historical or LGBTQ+ fiction。 I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher， all opinions are my own。 。。。more
bookishcharli
，
This was an insanely fun read and I loved every second of it （because Eddie is an actual LEGEND）。 I’m not overly obsessed with the whole Bridgestone/Pride and Prejudice inspired books because I’m in the minority of people who don’t actually like them （I know， i know。。 how？ Why？ Am i okay？） but I occasionally find books inspired by them/set in the same era and I ADORE them。 And that， friends， is this series。 Lex Croucher can write all the hitlit regency romance books they want and I will happily This was an insanely fun read and I loved every second of it （because Eddie is an actual LEGEND）。 I’m not overly obsessed with the whole Bridgestone/Pride and Prejudice inspired books because I’m in the minority of people who don’t actually like them （I know， i know。。 how？ Why？ Am i okay？） but I occasionally find books inspired by them/set in the same era and I ADORE them。 And that， friends， is this series。 Lex Croucher can write all the hitlit regency romance books they want and I will happily read them all。 The more I think about it， the more I can pinpoint that it’s the humour of the author that comes across in the book that sets these apart from the competition。 Definitely give these a read， regardless of whether or not you like regency romances。 Thank you to Pride Book Tours for sending me a copy and having me on the tour。 。。。more
Becks
，
Exactly what I wanted to read at the moment。 Eddie and Rose have been friends forever with an intense relationship， two halves of a whole。 When aspiring author Eddie meets famous poet Nash， he promises her the world and she drags Rose along for the ride。 But of course， it's not all as it seems and they end up in a world quite unlike what they're used to。 It's such a relief to see more authors having lgbt+ and poc characters in historical fiction and this was such an enjoyable read。 I loved our t Exactly what I wanted to read at the moment。 Eddie and Rose have been friends forever with an intense relationship， two halves of a whole。 When aspiring author Eddie meets famous poet Nash， he promises her the world and she drags Rose along for the ride。 But of course， it's not all as it seems and they end up in a world quite unlike what they're used to。 It's such a relief to see more authors having lgbt+ and poc characters in historical fiction and this was such an enjoyable read。 I loved our two protagonists and their relationship， as much as I wanted to shake them sometimes。 Flew through this in the end and really adored it。 。。。more
Sophie
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Laugh-out-loud funny with some really emotional moments too - another fantastic novel from Lex Croucher！ We meet Eddie and Rose， best friends since childhood， who are beginning to come 'out' into society。 Eddie dreams of becoming a writer and is shocked when she realises her dreams and Rose's plans dont seem to be matching up。 After the girls come across famous poet Nash Nicholson at a party， they are drawn into a world very different to the one in which they grew up。 Relationships of all kinds Laugh-out-loud funny with some really emotional moments too - another fantastic novel from Lex Croucher！ We meet Eddie and Rose， best friends since childhood， who are beginning to come 'out' into society。 Eddie dreams of becoming a writer and is shocked when she realises her dreams and Rose's plans dont seem to be matching up。 After the girls come across famous poet Nash Nicholson at a party， they are drawn into a world very different to the one in which they grew up。 Relationships of all kinds are tested as the girls navigate young adulthood and Eddie reassess what she really wants from life。Really recommend this book for fans of Bridgerton - or anyone who wants to have a laugh while also getting to know some fantastic characters！Thank you to Bonnier Books Ltd and Netgalley for the e-ARC and the chance to review this brilliant novel！ 。。。more
Charlie
，
Maybe even better than Reputation which I absolutely loved， I need the option of more stars！ Adorable romance with amazing characters， lots of personal growth and great settings。 Couldn't have enjoyed it more if I tried。 Thank you NetGalley and Bonnier Books UK for providing me with a free digital copy in exchange for an honest review。 Maybe even better than Reputation which I absolutely loved， I need the option of more stars！ Adorable romance with amazing characters， lots of personal growth and great settings。 Couldn't have enjoyed it more if I tried。 Thank you NetGalley and Bonnier Books UK for providing me with a free digital copy in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Readerwithacamera
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This is the first book I’ve read by Lex Croucher and I really enjoyed it！ I pulled me in straight away and despite being in a reading slump I did enjoy it every time I was reading it。 I think my only complaints （which I don’t think had anything to do with the actual book） was I was a little confused with the pacing of it。 I think the format of it was just a little weird and when it’s published it will be spaced out more。 Also I was really confused with the ending I felt like I was on dr*gs while This is the first book I’ve read by Lex Croucher and I really enjoyed it！ I pulled me in straight away and despite being in a reading slump I did enjoy it every time I was reading it。 I think my only complaints （which I don’t think had anything to do with the actual book） was I was a little confused with the pacing of it。 I think the format of it was just a little weird and when it’s published it will be spaced out more。 Also I was really confused with the ending I felt like I was on dr*gs while reading it 😭 did Henry die？ Was it a coverup， was the whole thing just an hallucination？ I would have felt better if I had physically read Henry was Alive after。I knew that Nash was going to be an horrible person！ Because I liked him at first and he defended Eddie！ But I knew pretty early on that he was not the good guy in the story。 Especially when eddies manuscript went missing。 I just knew he stole it。Where can I find forms to be adopted by Rose and Albert please， because I need them to be my parents… I loved the side characters （especially valentine。 They were just so funny and had my sense of humour！ But also loved kitty and how she was just chilling paintingI think Eddie could have had more potential and she just seemed a little immature a lot of the time and even after all the crap Nash did and proved he was not a great friend， she just ruined a lot of her relationships over him for a story she never wrote。 I loved the Rep and I feel like it was really well written for a historical book。 Obviously liking the same gender is quite uncommon but how extra uncommon that someone could possibly like both genders。 I just like how it wasn’t made into a big deal and they were like one little family。Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this arc in exchange of an honest review。 。。。more
KC
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I really wanted to love this one。 I had high expectations which made the fact that I hated this， so much worse。 I could not stand Eddie。 I just。。。 couldn't。 She seems trite and intolerable and her interactions with all of the other characters were painful to read。 This book has promise， just to me， it didn't live up to it。 The setting is fun and there are aspects that were intriguing but as a whole， this felt disjointed and lackluster and I couldn't make myself care about the plot。 There was som I really wanted to love this one。 I had high expectations which made the fact that I hated this， so much worse。 I could not stand Eddie。 I just。。。 couldn't。 She seems trite and intolerable and her interactions with all of the other characters were painful to read。 This book has promise， just to me， it didn't live up to it。 The setting is fun and there are aspects that were intriguing but as a whole， this felt disjointed and lackluster and I couldn't make myself care about the plot。 There was some nice descriptive language （particularly about the settings） but that's about the best thing I could say about this。 I think I was just expecting something from this， that just wasn't there。 I wanted a delightful， queer Regency romp， and this wasn't that for me。 Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an arc of this in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Heather （londonhev or folkestonehev）
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With thanks to NetGalley for the ARC。I ADORED this book， for so many reasons， but mainly because of Eddie。 She is the heart of this story， and while yes， it is frustrating at times that she can't see what's right in front of her （view spoiler）[ （Rose is in love with you！ Nash is a dick！） （hide spoiler）]， who has not been there？ No one has life all figured out， especially at 22， and while we are no longer in Regency England， those themes of trying to figure out where you fit， finding your people With thanks to NetGalley for the ARC。I ADORED this book， for so many reasons， but mainly because of Eddie。 She is the heart of this story， and while yes， it is frustrating at times that she can't see what's right in front of her （view spoiler）[ （Rose is in love with you！ Nash is a dick！） （hide spoiler）]， who has not been there？ No one has life all figured out， especially at 22， and while we are no longer in Regency England， those themes of trying to figure out where you fit， finding your people， and working out what really matters to you are still incredibly relatable。 I loved the period detail， and the exploration of what life might be if you didn't fit into social norms （and， of course， if you had money and privilege）。 As with Reputation， I loved the diversity and representation， which not only matters today， but is also historically accurate。 There are plenty of shenanigans， and as ever， Croucher writes with plenty of humour。 Rose is a wonderful character， and I loved how she very much knows who she is and is determined to make a life for herself that honours that。 Her friendship with Eddie is the heart of the story， and I love that we get to explore the ups and downs of a relationship between flawed people。 They have fun， they stick up for each other， they fall out， they figure stuff out， things aren't always perfect。 The ending was a cracker， and while it had me spitting feathers， I loved that it demonstrated Eddie's confidence in who she knows herself to be， which is a far cry from Eddie at the start of the book， desperate for validation （again， hard relate）。 Plus， we are rewarded with a fantastic epilogue， which gave me hope and made me a little teary （in a good way）。 。。。more
Niamh
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I was very kindly given an e-ARC of this book via Netgalley and Bonnier Books。 3。5/5 starsWe're shifting away from Austen and heading closer into Eyre， with just a dash of Northanger Abbey thrown in for the fun of it。 Did I enjoy this one more than 'Reputation'。 Yes， I did。 It had a lot more bite and intrigue to it and the queer elements were fantastic。 The book follows Eddie， who wants to be a writer， and Rose， her best friend， who is in love with her。 Eddie meets the charismatic Nash Nicholson I was very kindly given an e-ARC of this book via Netgalley and Bonnier Books。 3。5/5 starsWe're shifting away from Austen and heading closer into Eyre， with just a dash of Northanger Abbey thrown in for the fun of it。 Did I enjoy this one more than 'Reputation'。 Yes， I did。 It had a lot more bite and intrigue to it and the queer elements were fantastic。 The book follows Eddie， who wants to be a writer， and Rose， her best friend， who is in love with her。 Eddie meets the charismatic Nash Nicholson， who charms her enough to bring her to his crumbling country home and then do a lot of creepy shit。 Because that was his whole character and sadly， I've met many of those men before。 Ultimately， that's the core theme of this book。 Men are trash， don't let them write anything。 I'm having this issue with another book I'm reading ATM - it's too long。 'Infamous' is 400 pages - it didn't need to be。 There were so many instances of repetition， where the same thing happened again and again until finally， it was a little different。 There were moments of real dramatic tension that I felt didn't get fully explored - the number of times I wanted someone to punch Nash and it never happened would make ME want to punch him。 I also got completely lost with the massive number of side characters who began to blend into each other after a few chapters。 It felt like it needed a ren pen through it， just to tighten the whole thing because the concept？ Fantastic。 Loved it。 The execution was not my favourite。 Once the location changes， everything gets a bit stuck in the mud。 I enjoyed reading most of it， but I did find myself skimming through chapters when the action dried up。 Or Nash was being extra pervy and I couldn't be dealing with that。 'Infamous' by Lex Croucher will be released on July 21st。 。。。more
Danielle Amor
，
Infamous is the second book by Lex Croucher。 After setting the bar so high with Reputation this was definitely one of my most anticipated reads and Lex smashed it once again！ I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – Historical Fiction is not my go-to genre， but I am absolutely loving the Regency era with modern twist reads。There was a fantastic mix of characters in this book and controversially I adored Nash！ I pictured him as a younger Johnny Depp （as Captain Jack Sparrow） and I also loved t Infamous is the second book by Lex Croucher。 After setting the bar so high with Reputation this was definitely one of my most anticipated reads and Lex smashed it once again！ I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – Historical Fiction is not my go-to genre， but I am absolutely loving the Regency era with modern twist reads。There was a fantastic mix of characters in this book and controversially I adored Nash！ I pictured him as a younger Johnny Depp （as Captain Jack Sparrow） and I also loved that Valentine used the pronouns They/Their。 I cannot recommend this book enough！ Please check out Reputation too - Lex Croucher is 100% an Author where I will read anything she writes！ 。。。more
Frances
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Thank you to NetGalley and Bonnier Books for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review。After Reputation earned a spot in my top 10 reads of 2021 I was so excited for Lex Croucher's next novel。 I love Croucher's tone and approach to Regency-era fiction， and I was especially excited for Infamous to feature a sapphic romance。I think ultimately my expectations for a sapphic romance from Croucher led to Infamous feeling slightly underwhelming for me。 The modern approach to the Regency per Thank you to NetGalley and Bonnier Books for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review。After Reputation earned a spot in my top 10 reads of 2021 I was so excited for Lex Croucher's next novel。 I love Croucher's tone and approach to Regency-era fiction， and I was especially excited for Infamous to feature a sapphic romance。I think ultimately my expectations for a sapphic romance from Croucher led to Infamous feeling slightly underwhelming for me。 The modern approach to the Regency period and Croucher's narrative voice didn't shock/excite me as much as it had in Reputation because I knew to expect it， and my excitement for the romance meant that I went into the novel with the wrong expectations。Like Reputation， Infamous isn't a romance novel， it's a coming-of-age novel that features romance as a facet of that。 Whereas in Reputation the decentralisation of the romance centred Georgiana's relationships with other women， in Infamous the relationship most centred is Eddie and Nash's。 （Arguably it's Eddie's relationship with herself， but the relationship with the most on-page screen time is her and Nash's）。 This frustrated me and I wished there had been more of a focus on Eddie and Rose's relationship。I think one of the dangers of the friends-to-lovers trope is that it can rely a little too much on the preexisting relationship between the characters。 Rose and Eddie only had a handful of intimate romantic moments throughout the book and their romance felt a little underdeveloped。 Some of the moments were incredibly sweet and there were definite hints of chemistry but I felt that the majority of the relationship development had occurred prior to the setting of the book。Outside of my issues with romance， I did really enjoy this book。 I liked how Croucher played with a gothic setting， it was very different from Reputation and brought an interesting atmosphere to the novel。 I enjoyed the main plot line of Eddie's relationship with Nash and her writing career， it didn't feel tired or overdone despite being （as Croucher acknowledged within the book） one of the oldest stories。The plot line with Henry did feel a little rushed and inconclusive to me and I'm not sure it added anything to the book。 Additionally， I would have loved to have seen more about Rose and Albert's relationship and where Eddie fits into that and their goal of building a kind of counter-culture safe space。Overall， this was another great Regency-era coming-of-age novel from Croucher。 I think if you go into it aware that the romance is not the main plot focus and accepting of it for what it is you'll enjoy it just as much， if not more， than Reputation。 。。。more
Vikki Matthews
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Absolutely marvellous
Lizzie
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Reputation was one of my top books of 2021， so I was SO excited to see Lex Croucher had another Regency coming-of-age story coming out。 And it did not disappoint！！Our lead， Edith （known as Eddie）， is an aspiring writer， who has never quite fit in with her peers。 You can’t help but root for her the whole way through， even though you wish you could drag her out of her story and give her some sound advice before shoving her back in there to hopefully make better choices the second time around。📚Find Reputation was one of my top books of 2021， so I was SO excited to see Lex Croucher had another Regency coming-of-age story coming out。 And it did not disappoint！！Our lead， Edith （known as Eddie）， is an aspiring writer， who has never quite fit in with her peers。 You can’t help but root for her the whole way through， even though you wish you could drag her out of her story and give her some sound advice before shoving her back in there to hopefully make better choices the second time around。📚Find this and more reviews on my blog！📚Although this is a romance， it is Eddie’s own story that takes centre-stage， as she – for want of a better phrase – finds herself and her identity。 As with Reputation we have a great cast of supporting characters too， and the way they write diversity in a historically accurate way while still celebrating the joy of diversity is something very rare indeed。I won’t spoil the ending here but just know that it’s absolutely perfect， tying everything up very neatly and satisfyingly and giving us a sense of the wider world outside this group of characters。 While the majority of the action takes place in one house on one island， the action never felt confined from the wider world of the story， but more like it was going to have an even bigger impact when those two worlds collided。It’s definitely true to say that if you like Bridgerton you’ll like Infamous， but I think it’s more true to say that Infamous provides all the things you’re missing Bridgerton。 I’m hoping that Croucher’s books mark a turning point in our approach to historical fiction， where we acknowledge that people throughout history were just as messy and chaotic as we are and that’s great！Thank you to the publishers for providing me with a copy for review。 All opinions are my own。 。。。more
Alice
，
（E-ARC provided thanks to NetGalley and Bonnier Books）I really enjoyed Reputation and as I think I said in my original review for that， it really felt like Lex was writing a （very lovely and charming） M/F romance but was also being pulled in a More Gay direction… so to see their next book was an actual sapphic regency romance was very exciting。 This is such a delight。 It really is。 Eddie is such a fun narrator and her dynamic with Rose is instantly delightful， too。 I thought Reputation was great （E-ARC provided thanks to NetGalley and Bonnier Books）I really enjoyed Reputation and as I think I said in my original review for that， it really felt like Lex was writing a （very lovely and charming） M/F romance but was also being pulled in a More Gay direction… so to see their next book was an actual sapphic regency romance was very exciting。 This is such a delight。 It really is。 Eddie is such a fun narrator and her dynamic with Rose is instantly delightful， too。 I thought Reputation was great but this feels so much like Croucher is really in their stride with this kind of book， and it’s even funnier。 Nash is such a brilliant character for Croucher to write because the humour that he emanates seems to just really vibe with them， and I loved every scene with him:“Very good， Henry，” said Nash。 “God， what have you been eating？ Lesser men？”“Er…” said Henry， nonplussed。 “Eggs？”“I shall have whatever you’ve been having，” said Nash。 “Tell your grandmother。” （SPOILERS）In a way， Nash is absolutely the stand out character for me， because he’s written so carefully and subtly （as well as being very funny。） When you first meet him， you can’t help but like him， and perhaps you have doubts about his intentions or his integrity but it’s impossible to really definitely point to anything。 You get to go on the whole ride with Eddie of figuring out what he’s actually like and what he’s capable of。 It’s devastating。 It doesn’t make any of his earlier appearances any less charming or likeable。Croucher also hits all these lovely emotional notes， too， and this particular bit stood out to me:“But you know， Miss Cliff is a few years your senior。 She has had more time on this earth to think about who exactly she’d like to be。 And she didn’t invent the concept of ladies in breeches。 She probably saw somebody do it， and thought she might like it， and discovered she was correct。 None of us are true originals， Eddie。 We piece an approximation of a person together from what we like and what we hate， and somewhere in that muddle we find ourselves。” This is delivered by a nonbinary character who I was very fond of - it’s not necessarily easy to slot in a nonbinary character into a historical setting without getting into all sorts of pitfalls， but this is quite subtle， and generally very low key， and just very nice。 I liked them a lot。Like Reputation， this is quite an irreverent and not-necessarily-accurate historical novel， but it does a lot of fun things with it。 （Badmouthing Byron， for one。 Always fun。 Slotting in your own version of Ann Lister is also GREAT。） Croucher’s couple can’t actually have that typical regency-style happy ever after so they do something else that is just as heart warming。 The last few pages （presented as historical documents， almost） are very sweet and emotionally satisfying， it was really lovely。 。。。more
Cat
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Whyyyy did I leave this sitting on my NetGalley shelf for a month？ I adored it。 I haven't read Reputation， but after this I will have to。 I read this as a free arc but I'm thinking I gotta buy a physical copy for my shelf。 So， obviously it's a Bridgerton-esque， Regency setting。 I enjoy the Bridgerton show but I'm not a huge fan of historical fiction in any capacity。 That being said， this was good。 I'm a slut for typical， almost boring stories with loads of tropes but SAPPHIC。 I spend my reading Whyyyy did I leave this sitting on my NetGalley shelf for a month？ I adored it。 I haven't read Reputation， but after this I will have to。 I read this as a free arc but I'm thinking I gotta buy a physical copy for my shelf。 So， obviously it's a Bridgerton-esque， Regency setting。 I enjoy the Bridgerton show but I'm not a huge fan of historical fiction in any capacity。 That being said， this was good。 I'm a slut for typical， almost boring stories with loads of tropes but SAPPHIC。 I spend my reading hours desperately seeking stories that are just regular stories but with gay girls and this book helped fill up that hole in my heart。 Plot-wise， it is pretty basic and the plot twists are mostly foreseeable， but some bits get revealed in a way that I wasn't expecting which was a pleasant surprise。 Some of my favorite scenes were of Eddie with her family， particularly her youngest sister， Trix， who is in fact full of tricks。 So wholesome and cute。 I also appreciate that， while being queer is not a polite society thing， it isn't portrayed as some terrifying， evil taboo。 Even though queerness is not a properly accepted thing， there's not really homophobia in the story either， which I like。 I did prefer the first part of the book that featured more Rose and Eddie's family， but that's just personal preference。 I detest Nash。 Absolute worst。 Not a big fan of Liza either。 However， that's a normal reaction and they were very well written。 The side characters are fun to get to know because you discover extra bits to flesh out their personalities and they are also all well written。 There's even a genderqueer character and their presence surprised me but then made me really happy。 Eddie can be a bit of a stupid ass at points， but that's to be expected of a protagonist who is coming into their own and it made her realistic rather than just making her unreadable。 Everyone drinks like they're in a Hemingway novel。 I will acknowledge that there were a few threads I didn't feel were quite tied up and several things that I thought would be more important than they actually were， but I still really enjoyed the book。 How often do you get sapphic stories with happy endings？ Not that often。 Regardless of the literary prowess of Infamous， it made me feel things which is the most important part。 I felt giddy and excited and inspired and seen。 There's no beating around the bush that this is a queer girls who love girls story （disclaimer: I would say lesbian but I think Eddie is bisexual and I don't want to erase that）。 Thank you Lex Croucher for helping to fill the void in media and my soul。 I really enjoyed it。 。。。more
Karoliina
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I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。I'm going to say something that sounds like an insult， but I promise it isn't: this reads like fanfiction。 And by that I don't mean that the book is amateurish or badly written。 Rather， the gently joking style and the tropes will be familiar to anyone who has been involved in reading or writing fanfic， and queer fics， especially。 （I can just see the tags on AO3: Eddie/Rose; oblivious Eddie， Rose needs a drink， hurt/comfort， fri I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。I'm going to say something that sounds like an insult， but I promise it isn't: this reads like fanfiction。 And by that I don't mean that the book is amateurish or badly written。 Rather， the gently joking style and the tropes will be familiar to anyone who has been involved in reading or writing fanfic， and queer fics， especially。 （I can just see the tags on AO3: Eddie/Rose; oblivious Eddie， Rose needs a drink， hurt/comfort， friends to lovers， slow burn）。Romance， be it fanfic or original fiction， is built on characters， and it was easy to fall in love with our main couple， Rose and Eddie， whose rapport and obvious love for each other is endearing。 The main antagonist， the poet Nash Nicholson whose work Eddie is obsessed with， is also indefinitely enjoyable。 When we first meet him， he squabbles over Eddie's masculine nickname， and it's obvious that it will be both horrifying and entertaining to watch his relationship with Eddie crash and burn。 The happy ending we of course eventually get to is both satisfying and not too out of place for the time period。 Overall， the tone of the book is quite anachronistic。 Even though I enjoy labouring over extremely detailed， accurate historical fiction， I didn't mind the generous artistic licence here。 I think the slightly tongue-in-cheek writing style carries it well and the anachronisms aren't jarring。 This and the author's other book have been advertised as being similar to Bridgeton， but it actually reminds me more of Apple TV's Dickinson， in that we have modern jokes and behaviour in an otherwise historical context。 。。。more
Abby
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Sometimes I worry I hype myself up to read a book so much before it comes out that I’ll be disappointed。Lex did not disappoint me。If I could bottle these characters and have them as my friends I would do it。
Kayleigh
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♡ insta ♡ blog ♡ twitter ♡ booktok ♡ ”I am quite determined to do exactly the opposite of what the world wants from me。”SUMMARYEdith ‘Eddie’ Muller and Rose Li are the very best of friends who do everything together， including practising kissing。 Suddenly， Rose is talking about getting married to Albert Rednock and Eddie is enthralled with her hero: Nash Nicholson。 As heated rifts form between them， Rose and Eddie have to navigate these new levels of their friendship and face the trut ♡ insta ♡ blog ♡ twitter ♡ booktok ♡ ”I am quite determined to do exactly the opposite of what the world wants from me。”SUMMARYEdith ‘Eddie’ Muller and Rose Li are the very best of friends who do everything together， including practising kissing。 Suddenly， Rose is talking about getting married to Albert Rednock and Eddie is enthralled with her hero: Nash Nicholson。 As heated rifts form between them， Rose and Eddie have to navigate these new levels of their friendship and face the truths that lie deep in their hearts。 OPINIONImagine Bridgerton but with lesbians and poets。 This is honestly an incredibly witty and engaging story。 Lex Croucher has nailed the character development， the romantic chemistry， the equal parts humour and horror， and has added a dash of mystery。 I consumed this story easily in a few hours with much delight; many laugh out loud moments， many groans of frustration， and a couple of inconspicuous tears。 I wish the ending had a bit more oomph in it， there were so many directions LC could have taken it and I couldn’t help but be a little bit disappointed with what actually transpired。 RECOMMENDATIONPerfect for historical romance fiction fans who like their stories to have a good sense of humour and a healthy dose of gay。 。。。more
Bronwyn O'Neill
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Thank you so much， Bonnier Books and Netgalley for an advanced copy of Infamous。It will come as no surprise that I absolutely adored this book。I loved Lex Croucher's debut novel and I had high， high hopes for Infamous。 And it certainly didn't let me down！Much like Reputation， this book is a regency era novel that pulls inspiration from contemporary media。 This time around we're being told this is akin to Booksmart。 One of my favourite films！So I was immediately ready to meet Eddie and Rose， best Thank you so much， Bonnier Books and Netgalley for an advanced copy of Infamous。It will come as no surprise that I absolutely adored this book。I loved Lex Croucher's debut novel and I had high， high hopes for Infamous。 And it certainly didn't let me down！Much like Reputation， this book is a regency era novel that pulls inspiration from contemporary media。 This time around we're being told this is akin to Booksmart。 One of my favourite films！So I was immediately ready to meet Eddie and Rose， best friends who are teetering around the edge of their feelings。 Like most young， sapphic women there is that moment of "Oh this ISN'T how best friends behave？" when Eddie realises that she really is in love with Rose。 Yes， this is a queer friends to lovers novel and it warmed my cold heart。A lot of the book takes place in a crumbling manor on a remote lake after Eddie is invited on a writing retreat to sleaze-ball Nash。 Ew。 I love the representation， the joy， the silliness and the darker aspects of the novel。 How could it be anything other than five stars？ 。。。more
Katy
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4。5 stars Infamous follows the story of Eddie， an ambitious young writer who has grown up very close to her best friend Rose， but Eddie is worried as she can feel them drifting apart。 When Eddie meets her poet inspiration and idol Nash Nicholson she is quickly infatuated with his talent and when he persuades her to come on a writing retreat in the countryside and she is thrown into a society of libertines and rebels， Eddie will discover there is a lot more to the world and a lot of lessons to le 4。5 stars Infamous follows the story of Eddie， an ambitious young writer who has grown up very close to her best friend Rose， but Eddie is worried as she can feel them drifting apart。 When Eddie meets her poet inspiration and idol Nash Nicholson she is quickly infatuated with his talent and when he persuades her to come on a writing retreat in the countryside and she is thrown into a society of libertines and rebels， Eddie will discover there is a lot more to the world and a lot of lessons to learn， whilst trying to stay true to her heart and best friend。 I really loved Eddie and Rose and their relationship in this book。 I'm an absolute sucker for friends to lovers， especially when one friend is so obviously in love and the other is completely oblivious （and the other finds their obliviousness adorable and exasperating）。 I really liked the development of Eddie's character with her realising her queerness and having that oh！ sapphic moment which felt very genuine （and a long time coming T_T。 Eddie's development as a character was also really satisfying and seeing her mature and come into herself as the novel went on made me very proud， even if I was a little infuriated with her character at times。 I really loved Rose as a character as well， she is so kind and caring and gentle and I loved how she stood up for herself with Eddie as well， despite loving her。 This book also gets an award for probably my most hated character of the year so far （I mean you are meant to hate him so this is a good thing lol）。 Nash was such a sleaze bag and honestly I just wanted to punch him through most of the book。 He is an excellent example of how monstrous people can often come in very charming packages and fool/gaslight a lot of people。 I really enjoyed the story and setting - a lot of the book takes place in a crumbling （literally） manor on a remote lake which really added to the atmosphere。 The writing was also very solid and struck a great note of lighter humour with a look at some darker aspects of human nature。 I look forward to reading more of this authors work in the future！ 。。。more
Maria
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They’ve done it again！ Another brilliant book by Croucher who manages to pack in a lot of laugh-out-loud moments in a book that doesn’t let you get your eyes off the page （because so much happens！）。 If you loved Reputation， do yourself a favour and pick this up too！
Shannon
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lex croucher is quickly becoming my new favourite author
Rachel
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3。5 stars
Gemma
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IINFAMOUS⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️"You。。。have come to rescue me from a fate worse than death""What fate is that？""Obscurity"E-ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 （Thank you NetGalley）。Eddie Miller is a young writer who enjoys spending time with her best friend， Rose Li， and dreaming of being a published author。 She wants no part in polite Regency society， and is dismayed when Rose starts to grow up without her。 To put off adulthood a little longer （like doing a masters after an undergraduate d IINFAMOUS⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️"You。。。have come to rescue me from a fate worse than death""What fate is that？""Obscurity"E-ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 （Thank you NetGalley）。Eddie Miller is a young writer who enjoys spending time with her best friend， Rose Li， and dreaming of being a published author。 She wants no part in polite Regency society， and is dismayed when Rose starts to grow up without her。 To put off adulthood a little longer （like doing a masters after an undergraduate degree）， Eddie， Rose， and a crew of loveable eccentrics abscond to the crumbling gothic Manor owned by romantic poet Nash Nicholson （Eddie's literary hero） for a writing retreat。 Drama and hijinks ensue。I really really enjoyed this book。 It starts with Eddie and Rose practicing kissing， which is a brilliant place to start a book。 The plot is fast-paced and the reader gets swept up in the excitement of meeting one's hero and going to stay with them。 Setting most of the story on an island could have limited the action somewhat， but the author avoids this by drawing on different aspects of the island and utilising the space fully。 The characters are lively enough to ensure there is never a dull moment。 There were a lot of references to the characters being cold， though， which made me appreciate my Teddy blanket all the more。 The ending snuck up on me but the story had a satisfying conclusion， and even the parts that made me want to scream were enjoyable。 My suspicions about the plot came true and it was fun to see how those played out。As well as having a strong plot， INFAMOUS has a cast of diverse and engaging characters。 The main character， Eddie， is interesting。 She is very set in her ways and believes she knows everything and discovers that she actually doesn't know very much。 As I am a similar age to Eddie and Rose， I felt their frustrations about the world and saw my own flaws reflected in some of Eddie's less desirable traits。 Rose is Eddie's long-suffering beat friend; she is gentle and kind but isn't afraid to stand up for herself when she has to。 Of the other characters， Valentine stood out immediately as one of my favourites， and I also loved Dayo。 Juno the dog is a delight and she helped me visualise the scenes; she made everything feel more vivid and alive。 Can you tell I'm a dog person？For better or worse， we see Nash Nicholson through Eddie's eyes。 I wondered if he would be similar to Thomas Thorne from Ghosts but the two are complete opposites （and would probably hate eachother）。 Nash is a vital character; he holds both the keys to the house and the keys to Eddie's future as a writer。 Whether Nash is mad， bad， and dangerous to know remains to be seen。 （I would have liked to learn a bit more about his relationship with Byron but that's just a personal thing）。The writing in INFAMOUS is strong， insightful， and witty。 It manages to feel both Regency and modern， without the dialogue getting too bogged down in flowery Georgian language。 The themes also juxtapose modernity with antiquity， and they work so well。 There are good explorations of race， gender， sexuality， class， and trauma， although they could maybe have gone a little further。Lots of quotes stood out to me。 I've put one at the start of this reveiw， but my favourite was about London。 It made stop and think about how well it sums up my feelings towards this place， and I'll be thinking about it for some time。This book is perfect for fans of historical fiction， people who like LGBTQ+ fiction， and those who like their drama sprinkled with humour and jokes that always land and make you feel like part of the gang。 It was a really fun read and I can't wait to read it again when it's published。 Come and scream with me once you've read it！ 。。。more
Rosie
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~I received this book in exchange for an honest review~I was completely absorbed by this book。 Croucher has such a fantastic way of writing that really makes her characters feel so alive。 As a writer （or at least hobbyist writer）， I really connected with Eddie。 I really loved watching her be dragged into a world where she so longed to belong。 It was a pleasure to experience her journey！I absolutely loved Reputation so I had a feeling that I'd love this too， but I wasn't prepared for quite how mu ~I received this book in exchange for an honest review~I was completely absorbed by this book。 Croucher has such a fantastic way of writing that really makes her characters feel so alive。 As a writer （or at least hobbyist writer）， I really connected with Eddie。 I really loved watching her be dragged into a world where she so longed to belong。 It was a pleasure to experience her journey！I absolutely loved Reputation so I had a feeling that I'd love this too， but I wasn't prepared for quite how much I would love it。 I know that I will be revisiting this book in the future and I'm already recommending it to friends and family。 I'm also hoping to convince the library I work in to buy a copy （fingers crossed）。 。。。more
Aria Harlow
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A wuick， easy read that was dark in places。 Well writtne with a compelling sotyrline and well developed characters that although I found them unlikeable， they were were believeable and added something to the book。 A great read。
charlotte，
，
Rep: bi mc， British Chinese lesbian li， Black side character， gay side character， agender side character
meg barrett
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In Regency England， Eddie Miller is attempting to pen her debut novel。 Her best friend Rose is talking of growing up and getting married， while Eddie's attempting to hold onto their days of hiding in a treehouse and practicing kissing together。 When she meets her literary hero， Nash Nicholson， at a dinner party， she gets ushered into a world of drunken excess， erratic artists， and crumbling lake houses， much to Rose's chagrin。 The lifestyle Eddie thought she desired isn't all it's cracked up to In Regency England， Eddie Miller is attempting to pen her debut novel。 Her best friend Rose is talking of growing up and getting married， while Eddie's attempting to hold onto their days of hiding in a treehouse and practicing kissing together。 When she meets her literary hero， Nash Nicholson， at a dinner party， she gets ushered into a world of drunken excess， erratic artists， and crumbling lake houses， much to Rose's chagrin。 The lifestyle Eddie thought she desired isn't all it's cracked up to be; she's finally making sense of her book， but the nights are cold， the parties are loud， and her feelings regarding Rose and Nash are only getting more confusing。。。 While Croucher's sophomore novel is just as witty and heartwarming as their first， the dark elements are even darker （check content warnings！）。 I genuinely can't wait to force this book upon everybody I've ever met and all of their friends。*content warning provided by author: drinking， drug use， unhealthy power dynamics， sexual assault， mentions of racism， threat of gun violence， mentions of parental death， mentions of death by drowning。 。。。more
El
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ARC from NetGalley in exchange for review。An utter delight - I loved Reputation and I think I loved this even more。 An improvement in terms of the writing （the humour in this is so well placed and also very funny） and the cast of characters who are all very distinct and enjoyable to read about - all with their own motives and personalities。 I was a big fan of both Rose and Eddie， and Eddie is a very relatable character to me personally but also quite frustrating at times - the character growth w ARC from NetGalley in exchange for review。An utter delight - I loved Reputation and I think I loved this even more。 An improvement in terms of the writing （the humour in this is so well placed and also very funny） and the cast of characters who are all very distinct and enjoyable to read about - all with their own motives and personalities。 I was a big fan of both Rose and Eddie， and Eddie is a very relatable character to me personally but also quite frustrating at times - the character growth was much needed by the end， but that's just being in your early twenties really。 Satisfying ending， would read again and recommend to many。 。。。more
Michaela
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When this comes out， everyone needs to read this。 My god ♡♡♡
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Infamous
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Infamous&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Infamous&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0