In just six days, Lady Jessica Stanton will turn twenty-five and inherit enough money to make her one of England’s wealthiest women. And when that happens, her stepbrother Colin will swoop in to take it all—along with her freedom. The only solution: find a husband strong enough to stand up to Colin. But even if she’s able to find someone able to protect her, what man will marry her once they discover her secret?

Not only is Simon Westland, Earl of Northcote, bankrupt, but the London gossip continues to speculate that he had a hand in the untimely death of his wastrel father. Now he is desperate to find a woman to keep him from losing everything. But what woman will want to marry a suspected murderer?

Thrown together by sheer necessity, Jessica and Simon agree that theirs will be a marriage of convenience. But no legal document can protect Jessica’s heart when she learns of Simon’s hidden motive for marrying her. For despite her best intentions, Jessica has fallen in love with her husband. And love is the last thing either of them wants—though it may be exactly what they both need. 

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I have only recently been introduced to Laura Landon novels and this one seems to fit the mould of the others I have read. It's fun, romantic and interesting but doesn't have the sparkle of some of the big names of historical romance.

In this book, Simon and Jessica are thrown together by necessity but soon find themselves tied together by feelings and ultimately love. With secrets on both sides, there's plenty of interest to keep the pace of this book moving along.

With that said, there were a few things that stopped this getting 5 stars. There were a few anachronisms and Americanisms dotted throughout the text which always jar and pull you from the story. There were also a couple of issues regarding Jessica's deafness as well as confusion over just how much of a social outcast Simon was - but these are minor things in what was, overall, an enjoyable read with likeable characters and plot. 4 stars.

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381 pages

* I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. *

Click to see other books by Laura Landon

“Some day, when you have the most to lose…I’ll take it all.”
 
Jonah Armstrong, Earl of Haywood, and the Duke of Hadleigh were best friends until a scandal involving Hadleigh’s fiancée destroyed their friendship. Three years later, Jonah returns from the Crimea as a war hero and London’s most eligible bachelor, setting the gossip afire and fanning Hadleigh’s long-simmering rage into an inferno. Hadleigh has not forgotten his old friend’s betrayal, and now that Jonah has returned, he will take his revenge. 

Lady Cecelia Randolph has loved Jonah Armstrong for as long as she can remember. The moment they share a passionate kiss, she dares to hope that he feels the same for her and that his attention is driven by more than his desire to taunt her brother or his desperation for her dowry. It isn’t until Hadleigh’s quest for vengeance nearly destroys her that she realizes that Jonah loves her enough to risk everything to protect her. 

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This book just didn't hit the mark with me. Everything was just okay. The characters were okay. The plot was okay. The writing, fine. It just never elevated itself to something special that set itself apart from all the other romances I like to read.

I think that my main issue was with the lack of sensuality and sexual tension. I never felt that the two main characters really felt much for each other and even then, I couldn't understand their motivations. Was Jonah really falling for Cecilia or was it all a ruse? We were told but weren't shown so I didn't really believe it.

Another little bugbear of mine is when two main characters have similar names (or at least names with the same initial). Hadleigh did this while Haywood did that - for some reason I can't easily distinguish between them which draws me out of the story as I try and figure out what's going on. That could just be a personal idiosyncrasy so I haven't let this affect my rating overly much.

If you have this book and are happy with a sweet, uncomplicated Victorian romance story then it's certainly not offensive. But if you're looking for something a little bit, well, more, then I can't really recommend this to you.

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293 pages

* I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. *

Click to see other books by Laura Landon