Verdict: A joyful, clever heist romance where a grieving piano-maker’s daughter falls for the con-woman recruiting her into a scheme to swindle a swindler.
Best for: Readers who love a caper, a competent heroine, and a sapphic Regency that is more fun and warmth than angst.
Heat: 🌶🌶🌶 (3/5) — playful and sensual, with a few explicit scenes woven into the growing trust between the leads.
Rating: ★★★★½ (4.4 average across 500+ Amazon ratings — a delightful, lower-stakes close to the trilogy).
Tropes: Heist romance · con artist · found family · opposites attract · revenge scheme · slow burn · Feminine Pursuits #3
The Hellion’s Waltz by Olivia Waite closes the Feminine Pursuits trilogy with its lightest, most playful entry — a heist romance that fits squarely in the best of modern historical sapphic romance.
What Is The Hellion’s Waltz About?
Sophie Roseingrave, whose musical family was ruined by a con artist, moves to the weaving town of Carrisford hoping for a quiet life restoring pianos. Instead she meets Madeline “Maddie” Crewe, a silk-weaver with a plan: swindle the corrupt banker who has been fleecing the town’s workers.
Wary of anything that smells like a con after her own family’s ruin, Sophie is slowly drawn in — by the justice of the scheme, by the community of women behind it, and most of all by Maddie herself. What follows is equal parts caper and love story.
What Makes This Regency Romance Work
Waite ends her trilogy on a note of pure fun without losing her signature warmth. Here is what makes it sing:
- A genuine heist plot. The scheme is clever, community-driven, and satisfying to watch unfold step by step.
- Trust as the central tension. Sophie’s history with con artists gives real emotional weight to learning to trust Maddie.
- A town full of working women. The supporting cast of weavers and tradeswomen gives the book its found-family heart.
- Music and craft. Sophie’s piano restoration threads sensory detail and metaphor throughout.
- Low angst, high charm. It is the breeziest book in the series, ideal for a feel-good read.
Book Synopsis
When Sophie arrives in Carrisford to rebuild her family’s fortunes, she wants nothing to do with schemes. But Maddie Crewe and her circle of weavers are planning a long con against the man bleeding their town dry, and they need Sophie’s particular talents.
As the plan tightens and the attraction between the two women deepens, Sophie must decide whether she can trust again — in the scheme, in the community, and in a love that asks her to risk everything she has left.
My Review
Of the three Feminine Pursuits novels, this is the one I reach for when I want to smile. It is lighter than its predecessors — less politically weighty than Waspish Widows, less aching than Celestial Mechanics — but it makes up for it with sheer momentum and charm.
Sophie is a wonderful lead: cautious, competent, and quietly hurt in a way that makes her slow thaw toward Maddie deeply satisfying. Maddie, all confidence and mischief, is the perfect foil, and their chemistry crackles from the first scheme-planning scene.
The heist itself is genuinely fun to follow, and the community of women around the leads keeps the stakes emotional rather than just financial. It is a caper with a heart, and it left me grinning.
My honest note: If you want a low-angst, high-fun sapphic Regency with a clever scheme and a warm found family, this is a delight — and a perfect entry point to the series.
| Element | In The Hellion’s Waltz |
|---|---|
| Central relationship | Sophie Roseingrave (piano restorer) & Maddie Crewe (silk-weaver, schemer) |
| Core tropes | Heist romance, con artist, opposites attract, found family, slow burn |
| Setting | Regency England — the weaving town of Carrisford |
| Heat level | 🌶🌶🌶 (3/5) — playful, sensual, a few explicit scenes |
| Series | Feminine Pursuits #3 (fully standalone) |
| Content notes | Past family financial ruin, references to fraud and exploitation |
How Spicy Is The Hellion’s Waltz?
This is a mid-heat romance with a playful streak. There are a handful of explicit scenes, and they carry the same warmth and consent-forward tenderness as the rest of the series, arriving as the trust between Sophie and Maddie deepens.
If you like your heat balanced with plot and banter rather than dominating the page, the mix here is comfortable and fun.
Who Should Read This Book?
You’ll likely love it if: you enjoy heist plots, competent heroines, found-family warmth, and low-angst sapphic Regencies with plenty of charm.
You may want to skip it if: you prefer heavy emotional drama or a slower, more literary pace — this one is brisk and breezy.
In short: the most purely fun book in the Feminine Pursuits trilogy, and a wonderful pick-me-up read.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to read the earlier Feminine Pursuits books first?
No. It is fully standalone with new leads. Reading the others simply adds context to the wider world.
Is there a happy ending?
Yes — a warm, satisfying happily-ever-after, plus the pleasure of a successful scheme.
How explicit is it?
Moderately. A few explicit scenes, always emotionally grounded and consent-forward.
Is the heist plot complicated?
It is clever but easy to follow — the fun is in watching the pieces fall into place, not in untangling it.
Is it truly a sapphic romance?
Yes. The central love story is between two women, and it drives the entire book.
If You Loved The Hellion’s Waltz, Read These Next
If Waite’s playful, community-driven Regency charmed you, explore more like it in our full guide to historical sapphic romance. Fans of the caper elements often enjoy Cat Sebastian’s lighter historicals next.
To complete the trilogy, pair it with The Lady’s Guide to Celestial Mechanics and The Care and Feeding of Waspish Widows for the full Feminine Pursuits experience.
The Bottom Line
The Hellion’s Waltz is a joyful, clever heist romance and the most purely fun entry in a beloved trilogy. If you want charm, competence, and a low-angst sapphic love story, it is well worth your time. Check The Hellion’s Waltz on Amazon →
The Eikna Overall Ranking
We score every book across eight dimensions to show exactly where it shines. Here is how The Hellion’s Waltz performs on the Eikna scorecard.
The Evidence Scorecard
Overall — ★★★★½ 4.4/5
- ✓ A delightful trilogy closer
- ✓ High charm, low angst
- ✓ Clever heist premise
- ✓ Broad feel-good appeal
Romance — ★★★★½ 4.5/5
- ✓ Crackling opposites-attract chemistry
- ✓ Trust-building at its core
- ✓ Playful, warm dynamic
- ✓ A satisfying HEA
Characters — ★★★★½ 4.5/5
- ✓ Sophie is cautious and competent
- ✓ Maddie is confident and fun
- ✓ Vivid found-family cast
- ✓ Grounded motivations
Writing — ★★★★ 4.3/5
- ✓ Brisk, witty prose
- ✓ Sensory music detail
- ✓ Smart plotting
- ✓ Effortless momentum
Emotional Impact — ★★★★ 4.1/5
- ✓ Heartfelt without heaviness
- ✓ Real stakes in trust
- ✓ Feel-good warmth
- ✓ A joyful payoff
Heat Level — ★★★ 3.0/5
- ✓ Playful and sensual
- ✓ A few explicit scenes
- ✓ Consent-forward
- ✓ Balanced with plot
Ending — ★★★★½ 4.5/5
- ✓ Satisfying caper resolution
- ✓ Fully earned HEA
- ✓ All threads tied off
- ✓ Leaves you smiling
Re-read Value — ★★★★½ 4.5/5
- ✓ Perfect comfort read
- ✓ Endlessly rewatchable heist
- ✓ Light and rewarding
- ✓ A shelf favorite
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