May 16, 2014

When The Marquess Met His Match by Laura Lee Guhrke (American Heiress in London #1)

When The Marquess Met His Match by Laura Lee Guhrke 
Genre: Historical Romance
Bottom Line: An adorable story with a misunderstood rake.  Great if your in the mood for a feel-good romance without too much tension. 

Rating: 8




An American Heiress in London
1.  When the Marquess Met His Match
2.  How to Lose a Duke in Ten Days
3.  Catch a Falling Heiress (February 2015)


Synopsis (Goodreads):

What happens when a carefree, disreputable, stone-broke bachelor is forced to find a wife in a hurry? He hires a matchmaker, of course. What happens when the matchmaker doesn’t want to help him? Well, that’s when the fun begins…

Nicholas Stirling, Marquess of Trubridge, loves his life just as it is: dissolute, scandalous, and deuced good fun. His father, the Duke of Landsdowne is not amused, and when he cuts off Nicholas’ trust fund, the fun-loving marquess is forced to find an alternate source of income—in other words, he has to marry an heiress.

Every new-money American heiress knows Lady Belinda Featherstone is the key to social acceptance. Once a new-money nobody herself, Belinda discovered first-hand how heartbreaking the game of love and matrimony could be after a reprobate British earl married her for her money. Now a respectable widow, Belinda has become England’s most successful matchmaker, guiding young American heiresses through the hazards of the London season and helping them to find husbands worthy of them. To her mind, the Marquess of Trubridge is nothing but a fortune-hunting scoundrel and she has no intention of allowing him to charm his way into any American girl’s heart, including her own.

My Thoughts:

This was a very sweet, light read.  Belinda Featherstone has made a living at playing matchmaker for American girls who are looking for a titled English husband.  She prides herself on making good, happy matches and is wholly anti-rake, after having her heart broken by her fortune hunting former-husband.  She meets Nicholas when he comes asking for her services to find him a wealthy bride.  Nicholas' father, the Duke of Landsdowne, cuts him off stating that he must marry an appropriate woman before his trust fund will be reinstated.  Unfortunately, the Duke's idea of an appropriate wife is a little different from Nick's, so he decides to do anything he can to go against the Duke's wishes, starting with finding his own wife.  Belinda despises Nick right off the bat because she assumes he is just a fortune hunting rake like her late husband, while he is immediately attracted to her.  When he starts to pursue her young, romantic-at-heart client just to spite her, Belinda agrees to take him on to keep him from hurting any innocent girls.   

Nicholas is such a sweetheart.  He is known as the worst of rakes, but he is just misunderstood, and has learned not to expect much good from life.  Almost from the very beginning, we learn that Nick is really not a bad guy, while Belinda bases him off of her less-than-positive expectations despite never having met him.  I thought this was a nice twist, since romance novels often make us side with the innocent girl at the start.  It was nice seeing Nick prove his worth to Belinda, and I loved how he wasn't afraid to admit his faults AND actually work to change them.  

I could have handled a bit more excitement in this book.  After the tension between Nick and Belinda in the beginning, there really wasn't anything that tugged at my emotions.  I mean, it was all very romantic, but nothing that really got to me.  I think the main conflict in this book was just Belinda being a rude to Nick because she thought he was like her late husband.  This is perfect if you are just looking for a nice quick read without too much tension.  

Find it on: Amazon | Goodreads | Laura Lee Guhrke 

No comments:

Post a Comment