Two Rogues Make a Right by Cat Sebastian

Narrated by Joel Leslie

In Two Rogues Make a Right, childhood best friends – torn apart at the whim of a selfish, evil man – learn what it means to fall in love with a person they’ve loved their whole lives.

Note: There will be spoilers for the first two books in the Seducing the Sedgwicks series in this review. This book can be read as a standalone; I will not recap events in the earlier novels.

Martin Easterbrook grew up knowing three truths: he loved his best friend Will Sedgwick; he resented his father, who treated him like an invalid unworthy of this attention or affection; and life was mostly a series of unfair experiences sometimes interrupted by moments of happiness and joy (usually whenever Will was around). When Two Rogues Make a Right begins, Martin still loves Will, and he’s risked his own life helping him overcome a deadly addiction to opium; he has newer, more awful reasons to resent and loathe his now deceased father; and he’s given up on the possibility of future happiness or joy with or without Will. Martin is resigned to death from consumption. Fortunately for us, his best friend Will isn’t willing to let him go.

After the chaos of his upbringing in the Sedgwick household, Will welcomed the order and routine of life at sea as a sailor in the Navy. Although he missed his best friend, with whom he happily spent most of childhood, he cherished every letter he received from him, reading and re-reading them over and over again. But Will returned to London a shell of his former self. Diminished and haunted by the horrific memories of his time at sea with a sadistic captain, he turned to opium and oblivion. He barely registered Martin’s attempts to help him, but now, newly sober, he can’t find Martin anywhere to thank him. Letters go unanswered, and no one seems to know what happened to him. When he finally discovers Martin near death, hidden away in the attic of his brother Hartley’s home (left to him by his vile godfather, Sir Humphrey Easterbrook), a desperate, anguished Will kidnaps him and brings him to the countryside – praying that he recovers.

Convinced Martin is dying, Will panics at the thought of his life without Martin in it, knowing he is essential to him. He worries about Martin’s reasons for rebuffing him and hiding away in Hartley’s attic – trying and failing to understand his reasoning. He’s nearly convinced Martin is going to die, when the fever finally breaks and Martin’s prickly personality – ill-tempered, arrogant, and supercilious – resurfaces. By this point, Will – left to ruminate and then marinate in guilt – convinces himself he’s yet another burden Martin was trying to escape.

When Martin finally begins to recover, he isn’t certain how he’s ended up in bed in the country with Will playing nursemaid, and he’s confused by his feelings. He’s happy to be with Will but resents being fussed over and the feeling that he’s once again lost the ability to make his own choices, and more importantly, that he’s some sort of burden to Will. Yes, Will is his favorite person on earth and he relishes their time together, but “real life” is like an unrelenting ticking clock he can’t escape. He feels guilty for the way he treated Hartley (he blamed him for stealing his father’s attention, not knowing it was a predatory relationship and that Hartley was his father’s victim), guilty for being the reason Sir Humphrey sent Will away to sea, guilty for not knowing how to move forward with his life with no skills or money, and guilty for wanting to be with Will when he knows Will could be amongst friends and family in London. Oh Martin! Friends, he’s a hot mess. And he’s desperately in lust with his best friend, too.

Forced to co-exist in a cabin with only one bed (located on the periphery of one of Martin’s estates), Martin and Will each slowly but surely reach a turning point in their relationship. Over cups of tea and teasing conversations, evenings spent reading to each other in bed, and a general sense of happiness and contentment in their small corner of the world, Will and Martin ultimately realize they don’t just love each other, they’re in love with each other. It’s a new experience for both, and leads to all sorts of awkwardness. (I absolutely adore these kinds of cringe-inducing scenes.) Meanwhile, this new awareness intensifies and electrifies their time together until it isn’t enough to just share a home; they start to explore their burgeoning sexual attraction, too. Will is the more experienced of the pair, but nothing prepares him for the joy that comes from consummating his relationship with Martin. And Martin, true to form, attempts to keep himself at a remove from the intense sensual pleasure of their lovemaking. Will won’t let him. He revels in making Martin lose control, and they learn how to please each other best.

Friends, Sebastian casts a spell over readers during this idyllic time in the country, and when the real world intrudes (in the form of Martin’s aunt), it’s abrupt and unwelcome. Will doesn’t lose faith that they’ll find a way forward together, but Martin falters at the first hurdle.

After my disappointment in It Takes Two to Tumble, I questioned whether I would return to the Sedgwick series. That novel felt almost offensively silly in light of its many painful revelations (the childhood neglect of the five Sedgwick boys; Hartley’s abuse; Will’s being sent away to join the Navy and barely surviving a mutiny at sea; Will’s subsequent addiction to opium). But I ended up enjoying A Gentleman Never Keeps Score more than I expected, and I looked forward to Two Rogues Make a Right. That said, this story is absolutely improved by Joel Leslie’s audio performance. Joel does a marvelous job balancing droll and acerbic with mischievous and tender (see: Gabe, Rule Breaker), and he perfectly captures Martin’s tricky, prickly personality. It’s a remarkable, nuanced portrayal of a hard-to-love character, all the more impressive because he then seamlessly pivots from Martin to Will – and imbues that character with all the hopeful optimism that makes him such a likeable hero. As usual, Mr. Leslie does a terrific job capturing memorable secondary characters, too – male and female, and I found myself tempted to pick up A Gentleman Never Keeps Score simply to spend more time listening to his interpretation of Hartley Sedgwick! He absolutely nails this complicated character, and I found myself wishing there was more of him in this story.

While I definitely think the title of this novel is misleading (who are these rogues?), and I have more than a few problems with the easy, breezy tone of the series in light of the ultra-heavy subject matter, Two Rogues Make a Right is a charming, mostly lovely friends-to-lovers romance. Joel Leslie’s narration brings the story to life, and it was a treat to spend time with this opposites-attract pairing. Recommended.

Em