Tag: Megan Frampton

Four Weeks of Scandal by Megan Frampton

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Four Weeks of Scandal (Hazards of Dukes, #5)Four Weeks of Scandal by Megan Frampton

Tracy’s rating: 3/3.5 of 5 stars

Series: Hazards of Dukes, #5

Release Date: June 28, 2022

When Octavia Holton learns of her father’s death, she thinks it might be the answer to her problems. As the co-owner of “Miss Ivy’s” a gaming hell, she went behind her sister’s back and borrowed money from a moneylender to make improvements to the club, but when business fizzled and she was not able to make the payments, Mr. Higgins began making threats. But now with the passing of their estranged father, Octavia believes her problems are solved, all she has to do is go to her father’s house, find his will, which will surely show that she and Ivy own the house, then sell it, pay off Mr. Higgins and no one will be the wiser. Simple right?

When Gabriel Fallon’s father passed away after burning down their house, Gabriel’s only solace is that in his father’s papers he finds a promissory note between his father and Mr. Holton, his father’s favorite gambling partner, that states that Mr. Fallon won Mr. Holton’s house just days before Mr. Holton died. It is the answer to his problems, he will move into the house and dedicate himself to his research of mythology. Perfect right?

As neither of them counts on anyone challenging their claim to the house, both are shocked to find the other in residence. They make a deal, Octavia will have a month to find proof that the house is actually hers and in the meantime, they will both work on fixing it up. Simply perfect right? Along the way, they will collect a houseful of servants, convince everyone that they are engaged, and try to resist the attraction that is simmering between them. Perfectly simple, right?

I really wanted to love this book, especially since Gabriel is such a wonderful hero who just wants a home and a family, but honestly, I was underwhelmed. The story is a bit bland, although there are several steamy love scenes and quite a bit of humor, in the end, it just didn’t have enough conflict or drama to hold my attention and I found Octavia to be too selfish and self-centered to be a great heroine. Don’t misunderstand, I didn’t hate her, but I didn’t love her either – I basically tolerated her and wondered what it was about her that Gabriel found so desirable. Overall, I liked the book and am glad I read it as it is well written and it was nice to catch up with Ivy and Sebastian, but I don’t think I would read it again. This is the fifth book in the series, but it could easily read as a standalone title.

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

Gentleman Seeks Bride by Megan Frampton

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Part of a Series, Victorian Era (1837-1901)Leave a comment

Gentleman Seeks Bride (Hazards of Dukes, #4)Barbara’s rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Series: Hazards of Dukes #4
Publication Date: 11/30/21
Number of Pages: 384

We met Lady Jane Chapel in the previous book in this series – and goodness – I think she had a personality transplant. What a difference two years can make. In that book, she was so meek, mild, and backward that her younger sister had to step in and save her from a very unwanted marriage. She mostly didn’t want the marriage because she was in love with someone else and they were secretly betrothed. That, of course, ended when her younger sister’s marriage caused a huge scandal. Somehow, after all of that chaos, she has grown a spine of steel, a will of iron, a longing for illicit events, and the temerity to state all of those things. The only part of her I recognized from the last book is how exceptionally beautiful she is.

Thomas Sharpe loves his family and will do whatever it takes to save them. Yes, they need saving. Thomas’s father lost all of his fortune because of a bad investment. I’m not sure why he’d invest money he couldn’t afford to lose – and certainly not enough to bankrupt them, but he did. The only way Thomas can save them is to marry an heiress who has enough money to support them all. He’s been looking for two years and hasn’t been successful because he is so very charming, witty, and handsome that none of the heiresses believe he’ll take a marriage commitment seriously. (I know, we all buy that one.)

Thomas is best friends with Jane’s illegitimate half-brother, Percy, but has spent very little time with Lady Jane who now lives with Percy. However, the two of them make a bargain – Jane will help Thomas find his bride IF Thomas will show her some of the more illicit things in society – those things she’d never normally be allowed to see. Of course, we all know where that is headed – toward a HEA – right!

The story blurb sounds good, doesn’t it? So, why didn’t I rate it 5-stars? While I generally enjoyed the story, there was a couple of things that just wore on me – but I will still read the next one.

• It was plainly and firmly established early on that Thomas had to save his family by marrying for money. Yet, we had to read it and re-read it and re-read it ad nauseum. Enough already.
• The writing often felt a bit choppy and repetitive.
• We heard over and over that Thomas was the most handsome and most charming man in London, yet I saw little of that exceptional charm demonstrated anywhere. He was charming and witty, but no more than anyone else.
• Many of the conversations and actions just had a very modern feel to me.
• It annoyed me that Thomas’s first thought to save his family was to marry for money instead of exploring all of the options that might have been available to him. His best friend is a whiz with numbers and accounting and works for the queen – so why wouldn’t Thomas seek advice from him? Why would Thomas not consider what sorts of other things he could do – especially since he was so very handsome and charming. Surely someone in his vast array of friends could offer some assistance. Thomas isn’t titled and it is the Victorian age – so – surely there was something else to at least consider.

This author is always hit-or-miss for me, so I always have to read the next book to see where it will fall. This book seems to fall into the ‘meh’ category, but the last one was a firm 5-star read. There is a fair amount of wit and steam in the book, so that isn’t ever a bad thing. Overall, I am happy to have met Thomas and Jane but wouldn’t read this book a second time.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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