This review is for the Imogene Farrell series, as each book is one part of an epic story, rather than four individual novels (or novellas). It really needs to be read in its entirety or you will get a fragmented story, with no HEA until the last book. I enjoyed this series so much so that after I finished it, I read it all over again, and was so distracted thinking about it that I couldn't get into reading anything else for a while.
As much as I would love to shout from the rooftops how great these books are, they're definitely not for everyone. In fact, I'm quite sure that as much as I loved the story, some romance readers would absolutely hate it. If you read the preview or "look inside" from the first book, it should give you a feel for the grittiness of the story. Here are a few points I thought I should mention
There are a few attempted rapes and one actual rape. They aren't gratuitous, they fit into the circumstances and the actual rape is integral to the story. They aren't too graphic, but they're in there, so if that would bother you, you should skip these books.
Imogene is pimped by her brothers. They protect her from dangerous customers and enforce her "hands only" policy, but they're the ones drumming up business and she's the only service provider. She started doing it when she was 17 years old after they hadn't eaten for two days. Also, it is alluded to that the youngest brother Charlie (who isn't their brother by blood) was pimped out to male customers when they first met him and he was just a boy. They saved him and made him an honorary Farrell brother.
The leading male character pays for sex. This doesn't bother me at all, but for some people it might be a deal breaker. He's also a bit of a boundary pusher, though he doesn't take what he wants by force.
It is sexually pretty explicit, not very vanilla, a lot of it illicit. To me those are generally selling points, but if you find that sort of thing offensive these books are not for you. There is also a bit of violence, mostly bad guys getting their comeuppance, though also some innocents who are victims of arson.
Overall it is well written. The sentence structure and flow are good. It was well researched and I didn't catch any anachronisms. There are a few minor mis-edits, but I didn't think it was too bad. The story is gripping and the characters are well developed. I'd love to read Frank's story and see him get his own "happily ever after" if Eliza Lloyd were to write it. He was one of my favorite characters, and I would have enjoyed reading a little (or a lot) more about him. Again, I can't stress enough how much I loved this book. If you wouldn't be put off for the reasons I gave above then I highly recommend it.
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