When You Wish Upon a Rogue
Series: Debutante Diaries #3
Author: Anna Bennett
Published May 26th 2020 by St. Martin's Press

Goodreads Synopsis
She knows what she wants.
Miss Sophie Kendall is happiest arranging the secret meetings of the Debutante Underground, a group of women who come together to discuss the weekly advice column The Debutante’s Revenge. What makes Sophie most unhappy is her impending march down the aisle to a man she does not love. But her family’s finances are in increasingly dire straits.

He makes an offer she can’t refuse.
Henry Reese, Earl of Warshire, hasn’t slept in weeks. Desperate to escape his manor house and its haunting memories, he heads for one of his abandoned London properties. There he meets a beautiful, intriguing woman―trespassing. Reese is far less interested in Sophie’s search for a secret meeting spot than he is in her surprising ability to soothe his demons. So he strikes a bargain with her: his shop in exchange for spending one night a week with him.

Is this love for real―or just a dream?
Sophie never expected this to happen. But she cannot deny the fire Reese sparks in her―and soon their shared desire burns bright. Sophie is irrevocably promised to another. But maybe these two ill-fated lovers can find a way to risk it all―all the way to happily ever after…
Goodreads

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

When You Wish Upon A Rogue follows Sophie Kendall, who is enjoying her time with a secret group of women, known as the Debutante Underground, who meet once a week in private to discuss all matters that are deemed unsuitable for discussion in polite society. She needs to find a new place for them to meet though, and a nearby tailors, which has been closed for some time, seems to be the perfect building. However, when she has a look around the shop, she is found by the owner, who is willing to let her use the space, as long as she helps him to overcome his insomnia, which is only stopped when she's around. The owner happens to be Reese, the new Earl of Warshire, and he is battling his demons since he came home from Portugal. A major in the army, he left his commission when his brother was killed in a hunting accident, and is feeling guilty that his brother died, and he's alive, and that men from his unit were killed after he left. Only when he's with Sophie can he ignore his worst fears, and feel like his old self. Sophie is happy to help Reese, but she's soon to become engaged - to someone she doesn't want to marry, but has to to help her family with their financial issues - and the more time she spends with Reese, the more against the match she is, as he seems to be perfect for her. Can they find a solution before it's too late, or will Sophie have to marry Lord Singleton?

This book was such a quick read, simply because I didn't want to put it down until I was done. Sophie was a really fantastic main character, and I really felt for her situation. Her two best friends had made love matches, but because of her alcoholic and gambling father, and her elder sisters childhood illness, she needed to marry, and marry fast. She had resigned herself to a loveless marriage, hoping at least to be comfortable, but once Reese came along, she couldn't think of anything worse. She didn't fall for him straight away, but as soon as she did, marrying Lord Singleton was the worst thing she could imagine, but she couldn't find any way to stop it. Reese was a brooding character, who I think was suffering from PTSD, and wouldn't let himself be vulnerable, but you could see Sophie breaking down his walls the more she helped him with his sleeping issues. Their relationship was definitely believable, and I was rooting for them from the get go. Like I said, I needed to see how their story ended before I could put the book down. This was my first book by Bennett, but it definitely won't be my last.

April 18, 2020

Rating
4 Stars