seriously romantic a scandal by any other name by kimberly bell

the tale of two sisters duet concludes with julia and jasper's story, a scandal by any other name. julia is not your average victorian heroine. she's bold and ahead of her time in some ways, yes, but she's also very spoiled and deeply sheltered. she's also disabled. she has what is described as an exposed spine condition, one that we know today as spina bifida occulta. an indomitable spirit is the best way to describe her.

she knows the limits of her condition. she's been aware her whole life that due to a condition of birth outside of her control she is destined to live life in the outer edges. but julia doesn't belong in the outer edges. she's so vivacious and bright in spite of everything.

so when jasper de vere first encounters her and doesn't immediately notice her issues, she decides to pretend to be someone else. he flirts with her, and no one ever looks at her with interest. so she convinces the household to pretend she is lady juniper fairchild and throws herself into the pretense of someone who isn't hiding something major.

jasper is lost in many ways. he's recently inherited a dukedom and feels incapable of handling the weight of his responsibilities. he's always done his best not to take things seriously. he's suffered enough loss and pain in his life that he prefers to dwell on the fun and light-hearted parts of life.

being with julia encourages jasper to face some of his demons. his ability to be strong for her gives him the confidence to face the responsibilities he's been hiding from. his acceptance of julia and her condition is remarkable. he doesn't see her as damaged or evil. he just sees a beautiful, fun woman he wants to spend time with because he's falling in love. and there are obstacles around their love. he is a duke who requires royal approval to marry and julia is not a desirable candidate.

but the victorians always love a good love story, and jasper and julia's is definitely a good one.

**a scandal by any other name will publish on january 30, 2018. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of netgalley/entangled publishing (amara) in exchange for my honest review.