The Rogue of Fifth Avenue (Uptown Girls #1)

A forbidden relationship fuels lust and love in the stellar first Uptown Girls historical by Shupe (the Four Hundred series). In 1890s Manhattan, 23-year-old-socialite Marion “Mamie” Greene worries that she’ll be miserable in an arranged marriage, especially given her growing affection for handsome attorney Frank Tripp. Frank, who can be counted on to get his high-society clients out of trouble, is in hot water himself when he falls under Mamie’s spell. Neither is aware that their interest is mutual, and their social standings and obligations prohibit their relationship. Social mores of the time are revealed through Frank’s attempts to conceal his humble beginnings and Mamie’s effort to hide her humanitarian exploits from her controlling father. Complications develop when Mamie asks Frank to represent a low-income woman she’s met through her charitable work, highlighting social hierarchy and women’s relative powerlessness. The lovebirds’ flirtatious and wry dialogue is entertaining, and their 19th-century propriety heightens the palpable energy between them. The winning combination of wealth, romance, secrets, and seduction makes this an enticing and scintillating series launch. Agent: Laura Bradford, Bradford Literary. (June)