ARC Review: Only Rakes Would Dare (The Debutante Dares #5) by Charlie Lane
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Series: The Debutante Dares #5
Author: Charlie Lane
Published August 25th 2022 by WOLF Publishing
Goodreads Synopsis
In this sizzling opposites-attract Regency romance by Charlie Lane, a lady of passion and an earl of logic commit to a fake courtship as rakish as it is daring.
Lady Edith knows the sting of unrequited love, and now she wants only one thing—to marry a man who desires her or to never marry. But at the Season’s end, her father threatens to provide a husband if she cannot secure one herself. When a family friend saves her from the unwanted advances of one of their suitors, she falls a little bit in love. With his auburn hair and radical ideas about women, Griffin Paxton, the Earl of Eastern, is perfect. Except he doesn’t want her back.
Griffin will not be distracted by Lady Edith’s diamond-eyed beauty. He needs a wife to fulfill his dying father’s wish, and he needs her to be a model of propriety to repair the family reputation his rakish father sullied. When Lady Edith calls herself a rake, he knows she’ll never do. He’ll have to guard his attraction to her fiery spirit and open heart behind thick ice walls and look elsewhere.
But when Edith suggests they forge a fake engagement to appease both their fathers, Griffin can’t refuse. She needs his help, and he never ignores a damsel in distress. Will a fake courtship bring out their rakish desires, or will it offer a home to two hurting hearts?
Goodreads
Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.
Lady Edith knows that she needs to marry. After all, her lot in life is to marry and produce heirs for her husband, isn't it? Well, that's what her father, and brothers (affectionately known as the Brutes) have always told her. But, she never expected that her family would demand she marry by the Season's end, or else one of her brother's reprobate friends will be chosen for her. Griffin Paxton, the Earl of Eastern, and one of the family's oldest friends, finds himself in a similar situation. His father is dying, and has demanded that Griffin marry first, or else he'll tell society about his mother's affair. It doesn't matter than the marquess has been a rake for his whole life, and is dying of the pox. No, it's on Griffin's head to restore honour to the family. So Griffin needs to find a respectable bride, and though he wants Edith, her passion would be his ruin, wouldn't it?
I think this one may be my favourite of the series. We saw both Edith and Griffin in the previous book, and it was clear then that Griffin has some feelings for her. I'll admit, I didn't like her in that book, but as she was attempting to get in the way of the main couple's happiness, I think that can be excused. What we see in this book completely makes up for her past digressions, as it explains away just why she after that way, particularly when you consider her family life. I loved that both of them proclaimed they were rakes in their own ways, but neither had any experience with the other sex, and where exploring it all together. A fake romance plot line will always get my attention, and this one was executed very well. I'm hoping the next book will be about Sarah and Xavier, because their chemistry was more than clear in this book!
Dates Read:
October 28-30, 2022
Rating
3 Stars
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