To Stop a Scoundrel
Series: Ashton Park #1
Author: Abigail Bridges
Published September 2nd 2021 by Dragonblade Publishing, Inc.

Goodreads Synopsis
She wants to protect the innocent. He wants to regain his reputation. Will working together bring redemption—or ruin?

Welcome to Book 1 in the fabulous new series from Abigail Bridges.

Spinster Lady Rose Timmons has one purpose in life: protecting the vulnerable young women in London's Society from the scores of scoundrels who would prey on their innocence. She has an extensive network of informants who keep her up to date on all their misdeeds and schemes, and she will take any action needed—even public humiliation.

Thomas Ashton, Lord Newbury and heir to the Duke of Kennet, is one of those Lady Rose has in her sights. Despite being a childhood friend—and a man she has long been fascinated with—Lady Rose is determined not to let his rakish behavior spoil the debut season of her beloved sister or any other woman.

Lord Newbury, however, has his own ulterior motives about rejoining Society after years as a rogue. He desperately needs an heir—and an heiress. Society, however, is not so eager to welcome home a prodigal son. When he crosses paths—and wits—with Lady Rose, he proposes an unexpected bargain: if she will help him regain his reputation, he will help her destroy the one scoundrel she has never been able to touch, a man who has hurt dozens of people, including Rose herself.

Lady Rose, intrigued and as fascinated by Newbury as ever, accepts the challenge. But even as they are drawn ever closer to each other, they remain unaware that their efforts to bring down a ruthless man could endanger more than their reputations—it could cost them their lives.
Goodreads

Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.

Thomas Ashton, Lord Newbury and heir to the Duke of Kennet, has spent most of his time in the ton as a rake, along with his younger brothers. But when his parents give the sons an ultimatum - marry by the end of the year or lose their inheritance, Thomas knows he needs to restore his reputation, and there's no one better than Lady Rose Timmons, former friend, and renowned protector of the vulnerable. It's not an easy arrangement, but Rose knows that this will be her last Season as a member of the ton, before retiring to Yorkshire, and she's planning on exiting with a bang. But soon their hearts are engaged, and as much as they want each other, Rose isn't willing to ruin Thomas' future, not for her own benefit.

I found myself hooked to this book straight away. It's not the longest - about 300 pages - but so much happens in that time. Lady Rose is the eldest of 6 siblings, and has been in society for nearly  a decade now, she's seen four of her siblings married, and now that her youngest sister, Cecily, is set to debut, Rose is about to have her final season. An incident when she was younger has left her scarred, and she will do anything to protect other young ladies - of all classes - from those who want to hurt them. I adored this aspect of Rose's life, and the way in which she had formed her ring of accomplishes and informants to help her efforts. Thomas took a little longer to warm up to, but soon it was clear that though he meant well, he wasn't always the most smart in social situations. A lot of the events in the book tried to pull the couple away, and there's some really dark scenes (tw for attempted rape) which affect both characters immensely. I think some of the drama may have been a little contrived, but I adored the final pages, and can't wait to read Robert's book - he really deserves his happy ending after what we learnt of him here.

Dates Read:
March 20, 2022

Rating
3 Stars