What an utterly beautiful surprise this book was. Huzzah JQ! I can't tell you how much I've missed reading her work. I'll be honest and say I haven't been overly impressed with her recent work over the past few years. Her Bridgerton series was her strongest work for me hands down, everything following that hasn't been the same and I've always felt something was missing. But this....this was a wonderful surprise. I saw that special quality that shined in her earlier work come out in this. This new installation to her Smythe-Smith series reminded me so much of her earlier work which thrilled me. YAY! A lot of witty humorous dialogue and hilarious characters, an adorable hero and heroine and a story with a darker edge that I've felt has gone missing in her recent stories. It's not all just fluff in this which I really liked and have missed tremendously. The quirky family dynamics and endless chatter and hilarious quips between siblings and cousins were entertaining and so much fun. There was some great chemistry between the hero and heroine, it just glided right off the page and I felt every line, every word, every emotion so easily. 
 I completely and utterly adored Daniel, Lord Winstead. What a hero. He made me melt more than once in this. His snark and sense of humor and affection and steadfast protection of his family reminded me very much of Leo Hathaway from the Hathaway series by the wonderful Lisa Kleypas. For all those Leo fans...you know what I'm talking about. ;) Speaking of which, the heroine in this Anne Wynter did remind of Leo's pairing as well, Catherine Marks. In here, Anne is in a similar position, a governess to 3 energetic girls with a dark past she's been covering up and trying to run away from for 8 years. 
 Daniel was so lovely and sweet with a little bit of a wicked naughty sense of humor which was so damn fun. And he's got a way with words. Oh boy does he ever. His devotion and open heart and playfulness with Anne was adorable and so endearing. It bears repeating, he made me melt just with his words. Lovely beautiful words that made me wish he was real. He wooed not only Anne in this but me too. He broke my heart and made me turn to a puddle of goo. 
 I didn't read the first book in this series, but I will continue on with the next book which seems to be for Sarah and Hugh. Hope it's as fun as this one!