Book 852: It Takes Two to Tumble (Seducing the Sedgwicks #1) – Cat Sebastian

Who doesn’t love a little bit of historical romance? I mean these, or at least the hetero versions, are the books I grew up watching my mom read (oh hey Harlequin) and let’s be honest, it was only a matter of time until I dabbled.

This is another one chalked up to I saw a sequel that got my attention (A Gentleman Never Keeps Score) because it had diversity on the cover and the premise was interesting. Add in that book three in the series has a pun-ny title, Two Rogues Make a Right, and I was here for it. Thankfully, my local library came through and after a short wait, I once again dove back into the regency period, this time with a gay lens.

I’ve read a couple of Regency era MM Romances and a couple of other historical fiction versions and for the most part they seem to take two paths: Gay is okay and accepted (a la The Lords of Bucknall Club) or the couple decides to persevere because love is greater than societal expectations and norms (like this one).

He knew it would be putting paid to his hopes and dreams, because it was one thing to quietly and privately desire men and quite another to act on it, or so he told himself. He could lust after all the men in the north of England and he could still have the safe and comfortable life he longed for. This was what he told himself in the quiet hours of the night when doubts assailed him. (64)

Honestly, I don’t mind either of them as long as they feel authentic and accurate (as if I’d really know). I would say I probably prefer the earlier, but only because you get happily ever afters and not just a happy for now, which is always a bonus if it’s well written.

It Takes Two to Tumble is the story of Philip, a naval captain who spends years at sea and has avoided coming home for ages, but has finally had to return because his wife has died and his ship needs repairs, and Ben, the local vicar who has taken charge of Philip’s wayward children because they’ve scared off all the governesses and tutors they could!

Both characters were believable and relatable. I definitely got a Mr. Darcy vibe from Philip because of his stand off-ishness and his inability to interact with anyone without coming across as angry or an elitist ass-hat. Ben on the other hand was just sunshine, like he’s described in the book. He has a live and let live attitude and knows when he has to decide for himself or his future and does his best to do no harm to anyone or anything. Seriously, the best scenes were Philip realizing this and slowly coming to adore it about Ben.

‘I know what you meant. And don’t worry about penance. That’s . . . not a concern.’
‘Isn’t it, though? If not actual penance, then guilt. Shame. I won’t have any part of your sin, Sedgwick.’
‘You can leave it to me to decide what I think a sin is. Everybody’s a damned theologian on this topic. I’m so tired of it. If we can all quietly agree that eating pork and shaving aren’t sinful, I don’t see why we can’t extend that same grace to men like us.’ (125)

The sex scenes were well written and diverse. I liked the quick tumble (literally) in the hay they had to kick things off and the other two scenes were slow and intense and emotional, not just a quick fumbling in the barn. Sebastian did a really good job of writing about how scared each of the characters were as their physical relationship expanded because they were opening up a vulnerable part of themselves to someone else and admitting something that society says was bad, was what they wanted.

Their lips met with more urgency than finesse, and Phillip didn’t care because he had gone too many years with too few kisses, and he had gone his whole life without Ben, and now he had kisses and Ben and he had never felt better. (158)

If there’s one thing I was sad about, it was the ending of the novel. Don’t get me wrong their HFN was perfect and I had so much hope after, but I also really wanted to know how they would handle Philip’s kids? Like would Ben be dad? Ben seemed to grow up in a pretty liberal (if scandalous) family and Philip was the one pushing for Ben to stay with them and live there, so I just really want to know. I’m hoping there’ll be a glimpse of their happiness in the second book of the series or even the third book, just throw me a bone please!

Recommendation: I very much enjoyed this one. Philip and Ben are great counter-balances to each other and Ben’s occupation as the local vicar didn’t take over the entire book or story which was a relief. Sebastian wrote an engaging love story and I really want to know what happens after the last page and I have every finger crossed that Ben and Philip (or the kids) will make an appearance in one of the next two novels in the series.

Opening Line: “England in June was greener than anything Phillip had ever seen, except perhaps the sort of mold that grew on badly potted marmalade after too long at sea.”

Closing Line: “Phillip brushed a kiss across his lips, and Ben could tell he was smiling. ‘Take me home, Phillip. Please.'” (Whited out to avoid spoilers, highlight to read.)

Additional Quotes from It Takes Two to Tumble
“Ben took his leave and crossed the lane to the vicarage. Alice was sicker than he had realized and none too enthusiastic about getting married, it seemed. His future father-in-law didn’t trust him. He was about to leave his cozy house for the mayhem of Barton Hall. And soon there would be a grim-faced stranger in his midst. By the time he had packed a bag and headed off to Barton Hall, he felt like the comfortable, safe life he had always dreamed of was somehow slipping out of reach.” (10)

“Why did some men have a way of looking even more dangerously handsome when they were angry than they did when they were pleasant? It made no sense.” (19)

“‘Does it matter what it’s called?’ He genuinely didn’t know, had indeed deliberately avoided thinking about what it might mean to find love and companionship and desire all in the same person, because to form that thought would mean to acknowledge a future he would never have.” (50)

“The vicar seemed to have his own personal ray of sunshine following him about, casting light in his path and drawing people to him, while Phillip was ever under a storm cloud.” (76)

“He tended to think that when the Bible condemned something practically everyone did, whether it be tossing oneself off or eating pork, there was likely some nuance that had been lost either to history or to translation.”

“This wanting felt like such a part of Ben’s soul that it had to mean something, had to carry with it its own kind of moral gravity.” (95)

“Peace, Ben knew, was a series of small things, each insignificant but together making landmarks for a life: his parishioners knew that when they were sick, he would visit, that when they were needy, he would find a way to help. Marriages and funerals, morning prayer and evening prayer, all a recognition that they were here for a greater reason. This, too, was peace, and he believed he served God and his flock by bringing it about.” (108)

“This was some unholy combination of desire and friendship and something else, because apparently when you took workaday lust and combined it with affection and threw in garden-variety honesty, you got something new and totally different.” (160)

“He hadn’t realized that this other kind of love, the kind he felt for Phillip, had so much in common with falling off a cliff. He couldn’t stop loving Phillip any more than he could stop gravity.” (170)

“The important thing, Mr. Sedgwick says, is to remember that during brown studies our minds are not particularly honest. That if you want to know the truth, you need to wait.” (219)