Review: Prudence by L.H. Cosway (Balfe Family #1)

Note: An advance reader copy (ARC) was provided by the author via Grey's Promotions.

Prudence is the first novel in L.H. Cosway's Balfe Family series, which is a spin-off of her Quiet Love series but can be read independently of anything that came before it. Having said that, I must confess that because I had read--and loved--the aforementioned previous trio of books and knowing that this new set of stories were part of a spin-off series, my expectations were rather lofty. I tried to be prudent--see what I did there?--but experience has taught me that Cosway's writing never ceases to make me feel, and by the end of this new series starter, this second chance romance set mostly in Dublin and a bit in London did exactly that. It also left me wanting...wanting the next in the series as soon as the author publishes it!

When Camille O'Shea rejected Derek Balfe's proposal eighteen years ago, she knew all too well that she had broken both their hearts in the process. Now thirty-seven, Milly has made her way back to Dublin from London with her fifteen-year-old daughter, Deirdre, in order to be closer to her parents and for a new job as a lecturer at the University College Dublin's School of Medicine. Crossing paths with thirty-eight-year-old Derek is inevitable, but she wasn't quite prepared for his obvious disdain for her. Avoidance becomes futile when Deirdre's new best friend just happens to be Derek's fourteen-year-old daughter, Gigi. As much as the divorced dad of two wants to keep his distance, being around his first love makes him realize that his feelings for Milly never went away. But will the reason for her initial rejection all those years ago end up costing them their second chance at getting their happily-ever-after?

Holding a grudge is one of my super powers, so I empathized with Derek. After all, rejection is a bitter pill to swallow, especially when it comes from someone you love. Weird as it may sound, I liked that Derek and Milly had to figure out how to, at the very least, be civil with each other, especially when it became clear that their daughters had become fast friends. The truth about everything that led to Milly turning Derek down almost two decades ago took some time to come to light, but I appreciated that, when they took stock of everything, anger and resentment weren't at the forefront of how it was received. There was a lot to love about this book, especially the fact that there was no third act breakup nor was their any drama from their exes. All throughout, I enjoyed every bit of Prudence, which receives 4.5 stars.

Release Date: 30 September 2025

Date Read: 29 September 2025

Learn more about L.H. Cosway.

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