Top Pick – Highly Recommended – Page 61 – Flippin' Pages Book Reviews

How to Survive a Scandal by Samara Parish

Series: Rebels with a Cause, #1

Release Date: May 25, 2021

Betrothed to the Duke of Wildeforde for most of her life, Lady Amelia Crofton, the only child of the Earl of Crofton and reigning belle of the ton is tired of waiting for the duke to finally set a wedding date and means to convince him that it is time to wed! In her rush to get to his estate, she leaves unprepared for winter travel and without her maid – mistakes that will change her life forever when she ends up stranded and half-frozen to death on the road. But, as luck would have it (or not), she is saved by Wildeforde’s neighbor and one-time friend, Mr. Benedict Asterly.

Benedict “Ben” Asterly is a self-made man, the son of a misalliance between the daughter of a marquess and a footman, Ben has no liking for the Aristocracy, especially when he saw how unhappy his mother was in his father’s world. His distrust for nobles increased when his mother left them and disintegrated, even more, when he found her alone and dying and her father refused to help. Since then, Ben has avoided interacting with the nobility – but when he is found in a state of undress with Lady Amelia by her father, her fiancé, and a gossipy neighbor, his honor will not let her be ruined, so much to her horror, he offers to marry her.

At first, their marriage seems like it will be just as awful as his parent’s was, but Amelia surprises him time and again and he finds himself agreeing to changes that he has always been adamantly opposed to. Additionally, Amelia’s connections and standing in the ton may be exactly what he needs to secure a lucrative contract to build trains for an American company. Things seem to be going well and Amelia feels like she has finally found her “place” and begins to open her heart to Ben and his young sister, but her happiness is cut short when a tragedy has Ben questioning his actions of late and placing the blame for everything squarely on Amelia. Can these two find their way back to the happiness they had just begun to share? Or will past hurts make a future together impossible?

What a great debut novel! It is a well-written, nicely-paced, fresh, and original story with very likable and relatable characters. This book is a great “fish out of water” type story with strong characters, warm love scenes, detailed character growth, wonderful secondary characters, betrayal, misassumptions, some shocking twists and turns, a dash of angst, some interesting historical facts woven into the story, and a very lovely HEA complete with a touching epilogue. I enjoyed the story despite some title errors and a couple of questionable timeline plot points (it is important to note that the copy I read was an ARC/Proof and any errors/inconsistencies I noted may well be corrected in the final, published copy.). Overall, for a debut, this book was outstanding and I believe Ms. Parish will quickly become a “must-read” author for historical romance lovers! This is the first book in the series and I am happy to recommend this title and will be impatiently waiting for the next installment!

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own. *

Tempting Fate by Kerrigan Byrne

Tracy’s rating: 5 of 5 stars

Series: Goode Girls, #4

Release Date: May 11, 2021

Upon the death of her parents, Felicity Goode learns that her father made her his sole heir, but has placed stipulations on her inheritance – she must marry into the nobility – nothing less than a Viscount will do and if she fails, then she will be left with nothing. Of all the Goode sisters, Felicity is the only one that can actually claim to be a “good girl”. Studious and prone to panic attacks, she is nothing like her twin Mercy or her older sisters Pru and Nora, who have all married and are all happy and in love. Felicity has secretly longed for romance, but doesn’t believe she will be as lucky as her sisters, so she will re-enter society and consider marriage to a titled man – but just the thought of society makes her break out in a cold sweat. And if that wasn’t enough, someone is threatening her and even went as far as to accost her on the street! Not wanting to bother her family, she has decided to hire a personal guard to protect her, a prospect that is almost as upsetting as re-entering society. But when she runs into Gareth Severand in her courtyard – she knows she has found the perfect man for the job!

Gareth Severand is actually Gabriel Sauvageau, a ruthless gangster and former leader of the Fauve gang. He and his brother Raphael have given up the life and “died” after the incidences last year involving the Goode sisters. In fact, his brother Raphael “Remy” eloped with Felicity’s twin Mercy and is currently waiting for Gabriel to join them abroad. Gabriel, who was horribly disfigured in his youth, stayed behind to have Titus perform reconstructive surgery on his face and after a year of surgeries and healing, he is ready to go – but he can’t resist one more glimpse of the woman who captured his heart and when he learns that someone has threatened her, he agrees to protect her, thinking that his former nemesis is responsible – but never reveals his true identity.

As they spend time together and Gabriel tries to figure out who is behind the threats – Felicity begins to fall for her scarred protector, but when her sister and Remy return unexpectedly – Gabriel’s secret is revealed and the connection he formed with Felicity may be irreparably damaged, but he can’t leave until he knows she is safe and unfortunately, he is no closer to finding out who is trying to harm her or why than the day she hired him.

OMG – I loved this book – LOVED. IT. I’m going to go as far as to say, this is the best book I have read this year! It is a well-written, nicely-paced story that is practically perfect. I have always loved Ms. Byrne’s antiheroes and this features the perfect antihero in the form of Gabriel, it is impossible not to fall in love with him. This story is a perfect recreation of Beauty and the Beast; it has secrets, steamy love scenes, some pretty graphic fight scenes, a shocking twist, and some eye-popping revelations, a make-you-cry declaration scene, and heart-lifting HEA complete with an epilogue. This the fourth book in the series and could be read as a standalone title – but the books are closely connected and I would recommend reading the series in order for the best reader experience. I really loved this book and can’t recommend it highly enough – Read it, you can thank me later 😊.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own. *

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