Print Length: 277 pages
Publisher: Harlequin Historical (July 23, 2024)
From Goodreads.com: Marina Fletcher’s Rules:
Rule 1: Spend life composing music in peace. Do not worry about finding a husband.
Rule 2: If must worry about finding a husband, marry for love only or commit to becoming a spinster.
Rule 3: Resist urge to spend time with the sinfully sexy Duke of Framlingham, who clearly does not believe in love.
Rule 4: Never ever say yes to said duke’s wicked plan for us to silence society’s expectations with a fake engagement…
But what happens when this wallflower breaks every single rule?
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My Rating: 3 stars out of 5
On the whole, this was a cute read that I easily finished in a day and a half. I enjoyed the characters, but there were some things that I wish had been done differently that I feel would have added to my overall enjoyment.
To begin with, I wish there had been an prologue from the night of the soiree where Marina was so thoroughly humiliated. Hearing about it after the fact, I didn't quite get the sense of what had actually happened. Was it just finding out that the man she had feelings for was using her, or were there a lot of snide comments made from the other guests prior to that? I really needed to know why her confidence was so badly shaken when it seemed most of what happened that night boiled down to the man she liked, and his cousin.
I also wish we would have gotten an epilogue set some ways in the future so that we knew how things turned out not only for Brook and Marina, but for Brook's mother as well. It seemed very unfinished to have him proposing to her and his mother poised to go off on a grand adventure of her own and then not know what happened. Did his mother find what she was looking for? Did Brook take Marina to visit the places she wanted to visit? Did she become well-known for her music? I had so many questions that I wanted answers to.
One final issue that I found curious is the way the Moorcroft family constantly made snide (and often downright rude) comments towards Marina and her family when Mr. Moorcroft was also trying to win the right to build the Duke's new home. It seemed ridiculously childish, and in my opinion it took Brook entirely way too long to put them in their place.
Aside from those things, I loved the chemistry between Brook and Marina and how she wasn't afraid to put him in his place when he needed it. I also enjoyed how they were friends first, that made it easier to believe that they had fallen in love with one another as the time passed. I would definitely read more from this author.
DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel from the publisher. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.
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