Review: Ladies in Hating by Alexandra Vasti

When she sat down to pen her first novel all Lady Georgiana Cleeve intended was to support a life for herself and her mother. Now a celebrated writer of the gothic variety, Georgiana has a much bigger problem. Ever since she became a renowned author Georgiana has gone toe to toe with Lady Darling, another beloved writer in the genre. No one knows Lady Darling’s true identity but the similarities between her stories and Geogiana’s are far too close to be a coincidence. Determined to unmask her rival goes awry when Georgiana confronts Catriona Rose Lacey, daughter of their former butler and Lady Darling herself. Georgiana hasn’t seen Cat since her father was dismissed from service, for reasons unknown, but she has harbored the youthful infatuation she felt for her close. When a sojourn to the decaying Renwick House to research their upcoming novels leads to an unexpected confrontation, Cat and Georgiana agree to set down their swords and pen their novels side by side. But when they become trapped in the manor, fiction becomes reality, and as danger ensues Cat and Georgiana must face the desire burning its way through their bitter rivalry.

Oh no we’re two gothic novelists writing stories inspired by our childhoods together as we subconsciously yearn for the past…what happens if we kiss in a decaying manor that may or may not be haunted? If there’s one thing I am, it is a gothic romance lover to my core and Alexandra Vasti’s Ladies in Hating is a delectable feast for anyone who loves the gothic or sapphic historical romance. In the final book in the Belvoir’s Library trilogy, Alexandra Vasti pens a tender love letter to women gothic novelists, the gothic genre, and the queer people who found love and livelihood in the Regency period. Ladies in Hating is a model representation of gothic literature, in its themes and motifs, and a stunning example of what the historical romance genre can afford our greater understanding of love and connection. The persistent Lady Georgiana Cleeves meets her match in Catriona Rose Lacey, her rival and worse, the woman who could change her closely guarded principles and make her believe in love again. A wondrous rivals to lovers story submerged in fervent wanting and agonizing romance, Ladies in Hating made me feel every emotion and left me aching for more historical romance from its ridiculously talented author.

Ladies in Hating is the kind of book that feels almost written for me. This exquisite novel reached into the crumbling caverns of my heart and fortified my belief in love and existence as a radically political act. Now the gothic has long been a genre for exploring societal wounds and the intricacies of our experiences. The decaying manor house that comes to represent the fragility of the psyche or the hurts and traumas of a family is a prominent motif within the genre. Vasti understands this inextricable link as she traps two rival gothic novelists inside the dilapidated Renwick House —with its peeling wallpaper and crumbling facades, to reconcile their past hurts and confront their growing passion. But mystery takes the center stage as authors Georgiana Cleeve and Catriona Rose Lacey are left to uncover the secrets of a family long buried. 

Gothic imagery is a staple in itself and Vasti adheres to this with a cadence that submerses the reader in the intricate conventions of the genre. Renwick House and its medieval structures are transportive, invoking a period long past and ravaged by time. The host of bats that call the manor their home, the decaying trees in the orangery, and the damaged books in the crumbling library recall meaning to this place and its former inhabitants. For Catriona and Georgiana it’s a source of inspiration for their continued livelihood through their gothic novels, but it quickly becomes something far more personal. I love the sense of mystery that shrouds the narrative, wonderfully entwined with the romance between rivals. Love and horror are so often linked together and Vasti gives a dash of that in her mystery — the screams which draw Georgiana out of her bed chamber in the night to wander the hallways in the dark and the dead body unexpectedly uncovered. The moonlight conversations in the library and a conservatory hidden in the recesses of the manor are two phenomenal settings in this novel, connected to the love between these two women and the uncovered sapphic love story of Renwick’s past.

The external plotting to Ladies in Hating is essential in developing the love story at its center. Georgiana and Cat’s respective family backgrounds provide a rich foundation for the discussions surrounding sexuality, class, and sex, which Vasti brings into the fold. The tension this suffuses into the narrative as they find a mutual attraction was exquisite. Georgiana is someone who wholeheartedly believes she is responsible for bringing ruin on her family and that she will hurt everyone around her, a conviction Vasti works to shatter across this novel. It’s quite heartbreaking but an important perspective of Georgiana as a victim of emotional abuse from her father and how that necessitated having to reveal her author identity to the public. Her relationship with Cat opens up a whole world if she can only reach for it with both hands, but giving up her principles is easier said than done. Cat on the other side just wants to be chosen —an extension of their class disparities when first they met. Though brought closer in the years following Georgiana’s life away from her father, it is the basis of their understanding of one another and not easy to shake. The longing and tenderness at the center of Cat and Georgiana’s romance made me quite feral and that my friends is the barometer for an excellent romance.

Drawing her Belvoir’s Library trilogy to a close, Alexandra Vasti honors the fierce women who penned gothic stories and the queer people of the past who reached for their happiness and lived in joy. This is one of those books further enriched by its afterward where Vasti addresses the historical significance and her sources of inspiration for the text. The sheer research present is evident from the start but it was fascinating to read about the property on which Renwick House was based and the sapphic illustrations and Lesbian writers who paved the way forward. Ladies in Hating is radical in all the ways standing firm and building a life in a world that would deny you that can be. Catriona and Georgiana building a life at Renwick House is a powerful full circle moment — made stronger in the discovery of the letters between Luna Renwick and her love, Sarah Sophia Penhollow, forever immortalized in the estate. I’m truly sad to be leaving the ladies of Belvoir’s Library behind but know Vasti is nowhere near done bringing us historical romance excellence. Sapphic, mysterious, and insanely hot (praise be to Alexandra Vasti), Ladies in Hating is my latest —and eternal—historical romance obsession.

Thank you to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Trigger warning: homophobia, physical abuse (mentioned),

Preorder a Copy: