ARC Review: Queen of My Hart (Headstrong Harts #2) by Emily Royal
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Series: Headstrong Harts #2
Author: Emily Royal
Published November 24th 2020 by Dragonblade Publishing, Inc.
Goodreads Synopsis
Sometimes, a losing hand can be the greatest victory of all.
Born into poverty, self-made banker Dexter Hart is now one of the wealthiest men in London. His ambition is to marry a title—and who better than the daughter of his enemy Viscount Alderley, the man who once whipped him as a boy, and on whom he vowed revenge? But Dexter’s plan backfires, and he finds himself tricked into marrying Alderley’s illegitimate daughter instead.
Margaret Alder has known heartbreak and betrayal, and has lived in exile and disgrace for eight years. When her natural father rips her away from her home, he bullies her into marrying a stranger. The marriage thrusts Meggie into a world she doesn’t understand, with a bridegroom even more reluctant than she—a world of society, traditions and etiquette, where even the servants don’t hide their scorn. But she soon learns that beneath her husband’s ruthless exterior lies a passionate man who renders her breathless with his fiery kisses and skilful touch.
Meggie rises to the challenge and proves herself an intelligent and kind-hearted woman, and Dexter wonders whether Fate chose for him a better wife than he would have chosen for himself.
But when Meggie’s past returns to haunt her, she must decide whether she can trust the husband she’s growing to love—or risk losing him forever.
Goodreads
Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.
After pulling himself and his family out of the gutter, the self-made Dexter Hart only wants one more thing - revenge. He was ridiculed and punished by the wicked Viscount Alderley as a boy, and now that he holds more wealth than imaginable, he's out to punish Alderley by forcing his hand and marrying his eldest daughter. After winning a wager, Dexter seems to have defeated Alderley, but when the old Viscount reveals his eldest daughter is not the Honourable Elizabeth, but rather his bastard daughter, Meggie, who he's had hidden in the countryside. Now forced to marry beneath him, Dexter sends his new wife away to the country, and tries to ignore the growing connection between them.
After reading What the Hart Wants, I was intrigued by Delilah's older brother, and was glad when Dexter's story became available to review on NetGalley. However, I just really disliked Dexter in this entire book, even if he did redeem himself towards the end of the story. He was rude, condescending, and wholly ignorant to the feelings of others around him. He basically shunned half of his family, talked down to Meggie, and cared only about the titles and prestige that came with society. His lust for Elizabeth, who was a raging bitch if ever there was one, annoyed me to no end, and I just wanted to hug Meggie at nearly every turn. For Meggie, she was a lovely character, who had been hurt in the past, and it's because of her this book is a 3 star read for me. I loved her growth and development, and felt so sorry for what she had faced being the illegitimate daughter of Alderley, and being seduced and left pregnant when she was just a bairn herself. I think I probably will read Hidden Hart, just to see if we learn more about Meggie, but I'm in no real rush.
Dates Read:
December 20, 2020
Rating
3 Stars
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