Sophie Reads YA: Tessa Dare

Waiting On Wednesday: The Bride Bet (Girl Meets Duke #4) by Tessa Dare

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2020 Beat the Backlist challenge

Review: Do You Want to Start a Scandal (Castles Ever After #4) by Tessa Dare

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Do You Want to Start a Scandal
Series: Castles Ever After #4
Author: Tessa Dare
Published September 27th 2016 by Avon

Goodreads Synopsis
On the night of the Parkhurst ball, someone had a scandalous tryst in the library. Was it Lord Canby, with the maid, on the divan? Or Miss Fairchild, with a rake, against the wall? Perhaps the butler did it.

All Charlotte Highwood knows is this: it wasn’t her. But rumors to the contrary are buzzing. Unless she can discover the lovers’ true identity, she’ll be forced to marry Piers Brandon, Lord Granville—the coldest, most arrogantly handsome gentleman she’s ever had the misfortune to embrace. When it comes to emotion, the man hasn’t got a clue.

But as they set about finding the mystery lovers, Piers reveals a few secrets of his own. The oh-so-proper marquess can pick locks, land punches, tease with sly wit . . . and melt a woman’s knees with a single kiss. The only thing he guards more fiercely than Charlotte’s safety is the truth about his dark past.

Their passion is intense. The danger is real. Soon Charlotte’s feeling torn. Will she risk all to prove her innocence? Or surrender it to a man who’s sworn to never love?
Goodreads

Review
I wasn’t really sure what series this book fell into, either Spindle Cove or Castles Ever After, but while bingeing the latter series, I ordered this one to finish them all off. At a house party at the Pankhurst’s estate, Charlotte Highwood is hiding in the library, to avoid being thrust towards the Marquess of Granville, when she comes across the very man snooping around. Her 'reputation' as a fortune hunter is due to her mother's insistence she marry well, and she wants to warn Piers that she is nothing like that. Both don’t want to be caught alone together, so hide, but after another couple’s tryst is made public, with everyone thinking it was Charlotte and Piers, they find themselves engaged and seem to have no way out. Together, they plan to discover just who the couple was in the library, and prove to those assembled that there's no reason for them to marry. But, it seems like Piers isn't wholly into this plan, and seems to relish the idea of marrying Charlotte, especially they longer they work together.

When with first met Piers at the end of Say Yes to the Marquess, I found him very aloof and secretive, but with his history as a spy working on the continent, I understood why he was that way. In this book, he's very much the same, but his playful side comes out with Charlotte the more and more they are together. He's at the Pankhurst's to check that Mr Pankhurst is an honourable gentlemen, not involved in any schemes as money seems to be going missing, and doesn't want anyone to know about that, but Charlotte quickly sees through it all and wants to help him in any way she can. Charlotte was lovely, and sweet, and wanted to see the good in all, and with Piers, she finds her rebellious side, and I just loved seeing it. Their chemistry was outstanding, and no matter how adamantly Charlotte claimed she didn't want to force Piers to marry her, he was gone from the get go. I think they may be one of my favourite Dare couples, and being able to see a cameo from Brandon, and hear how he and Clio are doing was wonderful. Tessa is definitely on my auto-buy list now!

Dates Read:
June 23, 2020

Rating
4 Stars

2020 Beat the Backlist challenge

Review: When a Scot Ties the Knot (Castles Ever After #3) by Tessa Dare

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When a Scot Ties the Knot
Series: Castles Ever After #3
Author: Tessa Dare
Published August 25th 2015 by Avon

Goodreads Synopsis
On the cusp of her first London season, Miss Madeline Gracechurch was shyly pretty and talented with a drawing pencil, but hopelessly awkward with gentlemen. She was certain to be a dismal failure on the London marriage mart. So Maddie did what generations of shy, awkward young ladies have done: she invented a sweetheart.

A Scottish sweetheart. One who was handsome and honorable and devoted to her, but conveniently never around. Maddie poured her heart into writing the imaginary Captain MacKenzie letter after letter … and by pretending to be devastated when he was (not really) killed in battle, she managed to avoid the pressures of London society entirely.

Until years later, when this kilted Highland lover of her imaginings shows up in the flesh. The real Captain Logan MacKenzie arrives on her doorstep—handsome as anything, but not entirely honorable. He’s wounded, jaded, in possession of her letters… and ready to make good on every promise Maddie never expected to keep.
Goodreads

Review
Just as she is set to debut for her first season, Madeline Gracechurch claims to be in love with a Scottish officer, and eschews all events that may show just how shy and awkward she is. With the fictional Captain MacKenzie around, she is comfortable and secure, and loves the whole experience. After the time has elapsed she kills him off, but after inheriting a castle in the Highlands, the real Captain MacKenzie appears. The letters that she had been sending to keep up the ruse had actually be given to Logan while out in Spain, and when he is invalided home, with the rest of his detachment, he heads to Scotland to find his 'lover', and make her his bride.

This was a book I wasn't expecting to be so funny, but there were some proper laugh out loud moments. Madeline and Logan were wholly fleshed out characters, with pain and suffering in their pasts, but together they could be themselves, and the moments were they were pushing the boundaries with each other, and with the rules around the castle were fantastic! That being said, there were some really heartbreaking moments when we saw just how much the war had affected Logan's men, from PTSD, to injuries, to ruined futures, and I felt that Tessa dealt with this really well. The side plot of the lobsters - yes, I mean it - was the lighthearted reprieve we needed from it all, as were the true affection between Madeline and Logan. Definitely a fantastic book by Dare, and I can't wait for more!

Dates Read:
June 21-22, 2020

Rating
4 Stars

2019 Beat the Backlist challenge

Review: Say Yes to the Marquess (Castles Ever After #2) by Tessa Dare

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Say Yes to the Marquess
Series: Castles Ever After #2
Author: Tessa Dare
Published December 30th 2014 by Avon

Goodreads Synopsis
Your presence is requested at romantic Twill Castle for the wedding of Miss Clio Whitmore and... and... ?

After eight years of waiting for Piers Brandon, the wandering Marquess of Granville, to set a wedding date, Clio Whitmore has had enough. She's inherited a castle, scraped together some pride, and made plans to break her engagement.

Not if Rafe Brandon can help it. A ruthless prizefighter and notorious rake, Rafe is determined that Clio will marry his brother—even if he has to plan the dratted wedding himself.

So how does a hardened fighter cure a reluctant bride's cold feet?

He starts with flowers. A wedding can't have too many flowers. Or harps. Or cakes.
He lets her know she'll make a beautiful, desirable bride—and tries not to picture her as his.
He doesn't kiss her.
If he kisses her, he definitely doesn't kiss her again.
When all else fails, he puts her in a stunning gown. And vows not to be nearby when the gown comes off.
And no matter what—he doesn't fall in disastrous, hopeless love with the one woman he can never call his own.

Goodreads

Review
Say Yes to the Marquess is the second book in the Castles Ever After series, and sees the lovely, and abandoned, Miss Clio Whitmore inherit Twill Castle. For eight years she has been engaged to Piers, Marquess of Granville, but any time there's opportunity for a wedding, something gets in the way. Now, she's had enough of all the jeering and ridicule, and is ready to break the engagement, especially when she has a castle belonging only to her. All she needs is for Piers' brother, Rafe, to consent to break the engagement, and she'll be on her merry way. Rafe, full of guilt and shame for how he is the black sheep of the Brandon family, will not do anything that could hurt his brother any more, and will plan the perfect wedding and make sure that Clio's cold feet warm right up. Can Rafe convince Clio to wait just a bit longer, or does she know what she wants, and Rafe looks exceedingly more like it?

Clio was a fantastic character, who I really felt for. Her younger sister, Daphne, is recently married, and treats her like rubbish, finding all the faults that she can and making Clio feel she's worthless. The youngest sister, Phoebe, is so sweet, and though it's not named, seems to be on the autistic spectrum to some extent, but with Clio and Rafe she's listened to, and treated as she should be. Rafe, being a prize fighter, would be expected to be rough and a bit of a brute, but he's secretly a puppy, especially when it comes to Clio. He's always had a soft spot for her, even loving her from afar but knowing that she's to be Piers' and he was the runt of the litter who didn't deserve love for 'killing' his mother in childbirth. His father, the late Marquess, treated him like something he had stepped in, and it's affected Rafe ever since. Both the main characters had their walls and issues, but together they manage to overcome them all, and I think they may be my favourite couple in this series. I just adore them, and hope we see them in the fourth book, which is about Piers.

Dates Read:
June 20, 2020

Rating
4 Stars

2019 Beat the Backlist challenge

Review: Romancing the Duke (Castles Ever After #1) by Tessa Dare

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Romancing the Duke
Series: Castles Ever After #1
Author: Tessa Dare
Published January 28th 2014 by Avon

Goodreads Synopsis
In the first in Tessa Dare's captivating Castles Ever After series, a mysterious fortress is the setting for an unlikely love . . .

As the daughter of a famed author, Isolde Ophelia Goodnight grew up on tales of brave knights and fair maidens. She never doubted romance would be in her future, too. The storybooks offered endless possibilities.

And as she grew older, Izzy crossed them off. One by one by one.

~~Ugly duckling turned swan?~~
~~Abducted by handsome highwayman?~~
~~Rescued from drudgery by charming prince?~~

No, no, and… Heh.

Now Izzy’s given up yearning for romance. She’ll settle for a roof over her head. What fairy tales are left over for an impoverished twenty-six year-old woman who’s never even been kissed?

This one.
Goodreads

Review
I just love Tessa Dare's books, and decided to order her Castles Ever After series during lock down. Romancing the Duke sees penniless and orphaned Isolde Ophelia Goodnight inherit a castle in Northumberland from her late godfather, and her luck seems to be changing. Growing up, her father always told her stories about bravery and romance, but she knew that would never be for her. Now, she can live her life in comfort, not having to rely on the fans of her father's work, the Moranglians, who still think of her as little Izzy Goodnight. However, it seems that the castle isn't as uninhabited as she first thought, and the occupant is more than angry to have his peace broken. Ransom Vane, Duke of Rothbury, returned home from war an angry man, and after a disastrous duel, he's left a scarred man, blind and even angrier. He's eschewed all of society, except for his loyal valet, and having a woman disrupt that peace, and claim to now own the castle, makes him more than a bit annoyed. Ransom and Izzy must learn to co-exist in Gostley Castle, and discover just how the castle came to be sold, before the Dukedom is taken from him.

Izzy and Ransom were amazing characters, and their story just blew me away. Now I did read this book back in 2019 when my library had it on their ebook system, but I hadn't really discovered my love for historical romances just then. When I re-read it during lock down, I realised that my first read through wasn't enough, and picked up on so much more this time! The idea of having inherited a castle was such an original idea, and I loved how Izzy took to it all. Her and Ransom have such a chemistry that it is impossible to put the book down, and I couldn't help but ship them together. Ransom needed someone like Izzy to break through his defences, and she needed Ransom to help her understand her own worth and value. The subplot with the Moranglians coming to save the day was the nice bit of light humour that we needed, and this has definitely cemented Tessa as one of my favourite authors!

Dates Read:
June 18-19, 2020

Rating
4 Stars

2020 Beat the Backlist challenge

Review: The Wallflower Wager (Girl Meets Duke #3) by Tessa Dare

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The Wallflower Wager
Series: Girl Meets Duke #3
Author: Tessa Dare
Published September 5th 2019 by Mills & Boon

Goodreads Synopsis
They call him the Duke of Ruin.
To an undaunted wallflower, he's just the beast next door.

Wealthy and ruthless, Gabriel Duke clawed his way from the lowliest slums to the pinnacle of high society―and now he wants to get even.

Loyal and passionate, Lady Penelope Campion never met a lost or wounded creature she wouldn't take into her home and her heart.

When her imposing―and attractive―new neighbour demands she clear out the rescued animals, Penny sets him a challenge. She will part with her precious charges, if he can find them loving homes.

Done, Gabriel says. How hard can it be to find homes for a few kittens?
And a two-legged dog.
And a foul-mouthed parrot.
And a goat, an otter, a hedgehog...

Soon, cold-hearted Gabriel, who wouldn't know a loving home from a workhouse, is covered in cat hair, knee-deep in adorable animals, and bewitched by a shyly pretty spinster who defies his every attempt to resist. Now she's set her mind and heart on saving him.

Not if he ruins her first.

Goodreads

Review
Following Lady Penelope Campion, The Wallflower Wager see her challenging her handsome new neighbour, and renowned rake, Gabriel Duke, over the topic of her group of injured animals. Gabriel has worked his way from rags to riches, and wants to turn his new house into a perfect home, and sell it for a big profit, but the sheer number of animals living next door at Penny's home is putting that all at risk. She agrees that she will part with them, as long as Gabriel finds loving homes for them all, that she'll vet to check. The longer that Gabe and Penny spend together, it's harder for them to stay professional and not give into their feelings.

Lady Penelope has always intrigued me in the previous books, especially with her sort of lackadaisical attitude towards life, and her love for those that might be considered unlovable. Because of her title and wealth, she's never really felt the need to marry, and was more than happy to stay in her home, but companionship was definitely something she always desired. After two of her best friends, Emma and Alex, had married well, and were completely in love (seeing the two couples more in this book was everything!) she starting thinking about having that for herself, and with Gabe, the chemistry was undeniably there. One thing I definitely wasn't expecting was the revelations about Penny's youth, and it does answer some questions about why she is all about loving those that are 'unlovable'. And Gabe was definitely someone who you might say was 'unlovable'. He was gruff and standoffish, but a big softy at heart when you saw him interacting with Penny and her animals. He'd also do anything for Penny, and I just love that! I can't wait for The Bride Bet, and am gutted it's been pushed back; bring on March 2021.

Dates Read:
February 23, 2020

Rating
4 Stars

2019 Beat the Backlist challenge

Review: The Governess Game (Girl Meets Duke #2) by Tessa Dare

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The Governess Game
Series: Girl Meets Duke #2
Author: Tessa Dare
Published August 28th 2018 by Mills & Boon

Goodreads Synopsis
He’s been a bad, bad rake—and it takes a governess to teach him a lesson

The accidental governess

After her livelihood slips through her fingers, Alexandra Mountbatten takes on an impossible post: transforming a pair of wild orphans into proper young ladies. However, the girls don’t need discipline. They need a loving home. Try telling that to their guardian, Chase Reynaud: duke’s heir in the streets and devil in the sheets. The ladies of London have tried—and failed—to make him settle down. Somehow, Alexandra must reach his heart . . . without risking her own.

The infamous rake

Like any self-respecting libertine, Chase lives by one rule: no attachments. When a stubborn little governess tries to reform him, he decides to give her an education—in pleasure. That should prove he can’t be tamed. But Alexandra is more than he bargained for: clever, perceptive, passionate. She refuses to see him as a lost cause. Soon the walls around Chase’s heart are crumbling . . . and he’s in danger of falling, hard.

Goodreads

Review
In The Governess Game, Alexandra Mountbatten is visiting the home of Chase Reynaud to find a new client for her clock setting business when he mistakenly think she is a governess, and hires her for his two difficult wards, Daisy and Rosamund. Initially she refuses, but when she loses everything she needs to work properly, she takes on the job, and soon the girls worm their way into her heart. The girls need care and love, and the way Chase treats them as a nuisance he can't wait to get rid of, is bound to affect them. Chase cares more about transforming his office into a boudoir, and keeping up his liaisons with the women of London than he does caring for the children of a distant relative. They have turned his life completely upside down, and worked their way through governess after governess and he is at his wits end. Alexandra is like a dream come true, and though her methods aren't particularly what you would expect, she is helping them to show their true selves, while also teaching Chase how to care for someone after so long. Will Chase and Alex come out the other side unscathed, or will their hearts be irrevocably changed.

Now, I think I might have enjoyed this one even more than The Duchess Deal. Alex was the perfect heroine here, and learning about her love of clocks, her fear of water and ships, and her past made the story so much more! Though friends with some very important ladies, Alex herself needs to work to survive, and always has wanted to find a rich patron to take her on for her stargazing, especially when she thinks she may have plotted a new star in the night's sky. Being a governess, though, had never crossed her mind, and she really isn't qualified, but meeting the fantastic Daisy and Rosamund, she realises what they actually need is a childhood, and to be made to feel special and care for, and damned if she won't do that. Her and Chase's every scene had sparks flying, and the chemistry was wholly undeniable. She sees that Chase has been hurt in the past, and is feeling guilty over the fact he is heir to a Dukedom, and helps him to recover, and show his love. The little family unit of the four of them was unbelievably cute, and I hope we see them again in the following books!

Dates Read:
February 22-23, 2020

Rating
4 Stars

2019 Beat the Backlist challenge

Review: The Duchess Deal (Girl Meets Duke #1) by Tessa Dare

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The Duchess Deal
Series: Girl Meets Duke #1
Author: Tessa Dare
Published February 22nd 2018 by Mills & Boon

Goodreads Synopsis
When girl meets Duke, their marriage breaks all the rules…

Since his return from war, the Duke of Ashbury’s to-do list has been short and anything but sweet: brooding, glowering, menacing London ne’er-do-wells by night. Now there’s a new item on the list. He needs an heir—which means he needs a wife. When Emma Gladstone, a vicar’s daughter turned seamstress, appears in his library wearing a wedding gown, he decides on the spot that she’ll do.

His terms are simple:
- They will be husband and wife by night only.
- No lights, no kissing.
- No questions about his battle scars.
- Last, and most importantly… Once she’s pregnant with his heir, they need never share a bed again.

But Emma is no pushover. She has a few rules of her own:
- They will have dinner together every evening.
- With conversation.
- And unlimited teasing.
- Last, and most importantly… Once she’s seen the man beneath the scars, he can’t stop her from falling in love…
Goodreads

Review
The Duchess Deal meets Emma Gladstone as she is desperate enough to be knocking on a Duke's door for payment on a wedding dress she made. After leaving home a few years ago, she managed for find a position at a dressmakers, and has been making do, but after the former fiancee of the Duke of Ashbury refused to pay for her work, she's at risk of losing everything. After returning from war, injured and scarred, Ash has been alone. His fiancee back out of their engagement, and he's now realising he needs an heir. But to get one of them, he needs a wife. When one seemingly appears on his doorstep, wearing a wedding gown no less, he makes a deal with Emma - marry him, and never want for nothing again - but there are a few caveats. They will only be 'married' by night, there's no kissing, and once an heir is on his way, Emma can leave and go to one of the other properties and live in peace. Emma doesn't want a marriage like that, but is willing to accept it, at first, with some of her own requests. Will Emma knock down Ash's walls, and allow them both to feel loved?

Both of the main characters in this book were fantastic, and so nuanced. Because of his injuries, Ash feels basically worthless, and tries to keep anyone and everyone away from himself. When he meets Emma, and she perfectly fits his bill for wife, he thinks he can scare her away too, but she's too much for him. Because of her own background, she won't accept feeling worthless, not again, and as the new Duchess of Ashbury, she has a position that lets her meet people who love and care for her. The group of women she meets, Lady Penelope, Alexandra, and Nicola, are all fantastic in their own rights, and will have their own books which I'm desperate to read! The banter between Ash and Emma was wonderful, and to see both of them grow and open up to past trauma was refreshing to see. I honestly was grinning at times when they were together, and though there was a bit of angst towards the end of the book, the resolution was perfect! Bring on The Governess Game!

Dates Read:
February 21, 2020

Rating
4 Stars