Recently jilted by his fiancée, David Gray, Earl of Ravenport is not in the market for a wife. Even if Gray didn’t have his hands full renovating his crumbling country house, it would take more than a bold marriage proposal from a headstrong young beauty to thaw his frozen heart. Gray is confident that spending a week at his ramshackle estate will change her mind about marriage, but every passionate moment he spends with her tempts him to change his…
A talented artist, Miss Fiona Hartley desperately needs her dowry money to pay off a blackmailer set on ruining her sister. The handsome earl seems a sensible choice for a husband…if only she can convince him that romance will play no part. But marrying in name only may prove difficult for Fiona. Gray can’t help but be dazzled by her genuine warmth. Yet as their feelings deepen, Fiona’s deadline looms. Will her secrets destroy them, or is true love their final destiny?
Review:
What a delightful read! Fiona needs a marriage of convenience, David needs money, but is too honourable to take part in Fiona's harebrained scheme. He's sure hosting her at his estate will scare her off - as it did his previous fiancee - but somehow sharp-eyed Fiona sees beyond the cracks to what's really important.
I loved the attention to little things in this book - Fiona's love of drawing, David's perceptive grandmother, the sisterly bond between Fiona and Lily, the realisation on both sides that this was a marriage that both wanted for more than the convenience. I especially loved the lack of unnecessary angst - yes, there are some tense moments, but these are two wonderfully practical people who, upon further machinations of the blackmailer, independently realise this and don't blame the other.
An extremely enjoyable historical romance.
Four and a half stars
I received an ARC from St Martin's Press
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