Member Reviews

This book has Three different stories by 3 different authors.
Mischief and the marquess by Sylvia day
According to Justin and Sophie they are I'll suited to each other and they need it to prove that to others. I thought they were meant for each other and found each other. A sweet love story which brought a smile to my face.
The duke's treasure by Minerva Spencer
Minerva Spencer is my absolute favourite author. I look forward to read her books.i wasn't dissapointed. Jo and Beau were trapped in a marriage of convience. Jo has always loved Beau but he was attracted to her friend and was betrayed. I liked the way their relationship grows.
The inconvenient countess by kristin vaydan
Charles and Diana are as different from each other as night and day. Charles need a respectable wife and Diana wants a rich husband. How they muddle through and find their way forms the story

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The Arrangement
Sylvia Day, Minerva Spencer, Kristin Vayden
Release date 01/28/2020
Publisher Kensington

#1 international bestselling author Sylvia Day, hailed as "one of the most successful romance writers in the world," is joined by powerhouses Minerva Spencer and Kristin Vayden for a trio of sizzling historical romances that prove passion is timeless in...The Arrangement.

My Review in short : a set of three sensual tales, some with laughter and mischiefs, others with trust and faith tested, but all with wondrous heroes and heroines, each completing the other.

MISCHIEF AND THE MARQUESS
Sylvia Day

BLURB : Justin, the Marquess of Fontaine, and Lady Sophie Milton-Riley, are completely ill-suited to one another. But they will have to prove it in order to end to their mothers' insistence that they should marry. Yet the more they attempt to demonstrate how wrong their union would be, the more surprisingly, irresistibly right things feel . . .

MY REVIEW : Is there still a future possible for two childhood friends when circumstances and life have come between them ...
This is my first read by Sylvia Day, and I must say for such a short read, what a master of words she is, painting the many emotions the heroes went through. This novella is a rainbow of the senses, I smiled, laughed, cried, was sad, had hope.
Sophie was a wild creature but life made her more cautious, yet Justin still stirs strong sentiments she thought buried.
Justin is an awesome man, he made mistakes as a younger man but who did not. But now he has one chance to right what he should have done, he jumps in and for once, takes risks.
A special mention to the two sweet dowagers.
A poignant 5 stars story.

THE DUKE’S TREASURE
Minerva Spencer

BLURB : Plain, prickly Josephine Loman has loved Beaumont Halliwell, the Fifth Duke of Wroxton, since the first time she saw him. But the most beautiful man she's ever met had eyes only for Jo's erstwhile friend, who betrayed Beau's trust by marrying his brother. Beau hasn't been home in years, but when his brother dies in an accident, he must marry to save the impoverished dukedom. And Jo is the overlooked heiress who will turn his world upside down . . .

MY REVIEW : When circumstances bring them to the altar, can two persons that everything opposes find a way toward one another ...

I wanted to read this book because of Mrs Minerva Spencer novella, and oh my ... she didn’t disappoint.
At first, I was afraid I will read a very angsty tale, the wedding part was so full of anger and frustration. Then there is a shift and the true colors of the characters were brought up. From this point, it was a delight to read Beau’s and Josephine’s journey to one another.
Josephine while she appeared bitter at first light, is just longing for someone to care for her and herself only, not the amount of wealth she brings into her marriage bed. Yet, she wanted Beau and got him, even if it was not under the best of omen to begin an union.
Beau has every right to feel trapped as it is truly how he is. He is marrying under duress, to save his nearly destitute dynasty. Stil, he is more than an honorable man. Despite his wedding’s context, he is determined to make it work. And he aims in that regard.
I loved to see them interacting, once they get past their initial resentment, Beau’s rule to bring no fight in the bedroom will help them settle their burgeoning relationship on its right course.
5 stars for this heartwarming and touching tale.


THE INCONVENIENT COUNTESS
Kristin Vayden

BLURB : As the eldest in a poverty-stricken family of daughters, Miss Diana Katherine Lambson's only option is a marriage of convenience. Her only prospect is a rogue with a miserable reputation. Her only true desire: freedom. And that is exactly what Charles Brook, Earl of Barrington, is willing to offer, in return for the respectability their union will give him. He will even provide Diana with a contract. But does she dare entrust her future to a scoundrel? Does she dare not to? 

MY REVIEW : When in need of a wife for a more proper image than his profligate way relays, can a rake find what he was truly looking for ...

This is my first read by Mrs Kristin Vayden, a very different tale from the two previous.
The hero is a philanthropist rather egotistical looking for his satisfaction and pleasure first. But now there is a dent on his road to success, he is ready to bend a bit his way, but only to reach his goal, nothing more is to be expected.
But he never expected his wife, she might be destitute and a country mouse but she is no damsel in distress, as she enters their marriage with few expectations except to have saved her family from poverty.
Diana is in appearance an obedient wife, yes even if she had few demands for her new husband, she hopes for a bit more, like friendship. It is her openness that intrigues and unsettled him. It makes him see her under a different light. But will it be enough for a man who was never contented with only one lover.
4 stars

I was granted an advance copy by the publisher Kensington.
Here is my true and unbiased opinion.

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I was pleasantly surprised to realize this is actually 3 short stories. All three were heartwarming and engaging and I binged this book in an afternoon. I loved Sylvia Day's Crossfire Series so this was a must read book when I saw it pop up. It was a perfect rainy afternoon book. It was a little steamier than what I have recently read, but the love stories are great!

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I did not realize when until I started reading that this is a compilation of three stories. It was enjoyable to read three shorter stories in one collection. Each of the stories is based off of the idea of an arranged marriage.

The first story in the collection is Mischief and the Marquess written by Sylvia Day. This was by far my favorite of the three. I loved the spirited relationship between the couple. The story had a great flow that left me wanting to know more.

The second story in the collection is The Duke's Treasure written by Minerva Spenser. I really love this story. I felt that the Beau and Jo had some amazing character qualities. Even though it is a steamy romance novel, I felt that the way they handle their arranged marriage was very inspiring.

The third story in the collection is An Inconvenient Countess by Kristin Vayden. This was a good story with two strong characters. I enjoyed it, but perhaps it was a bit overshadowed by the first story being so amazing.

I really enjoyed reading this compilation and would recommend it. Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for this advance copy.

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This book is a collection of three short, romantic, historical fiction stories.

I enjoyed the one by Sylvia Day the best. She was able to establish a fun plot along with wonderful characters (who had a whole lot of chemistry) in such a short story. The other two stories were also enjoyable, just not as gripping.

I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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I was a little confused when I first began reading until I realized there were 3 stories included in The Arrangement. I enjoyed Sylvia Day’s story the most. Engaging couple and I especially liked how the main male character loved his wife and gave her his devoted love and attention. She fully reciprocated his feelings even though she could have resented him as her father set her up in this relationship. The other two stories were ok but not as interesting.
#The Arrangement
#Net Gallery

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This anthology contains three stories, one of which by Sylvia Day was previously released in 2007. They are all historical romances with a loosely common theme of women who for varying reasons need a husband and men equally needing a wife, but none of their “arrangements” is quite traditional for the time period.

Mischief and the Marquess by Sylvia Day

Justin, the Marquess of Fontaine, and Lady Sophie Milton-Riley have known each other since childhood and unknown to Sophie, Justin wanted to marry her years before when they were much younger. Sophie has fallen out of favor with the Ton due to a scandal so she is not the appropriate wife for Justin. He, along with his mother and her grandmother, are determined to find a way to bring them together.

The Duke's Treasure by Minerva Spencer

Josephine Loman’s father has lot of wealth but no social standing because of his low bred, merchant background. His dying wish is for Jo to marry a man of high standing who is in need of a wealthy wife to save his heritage. Though they have a rough start, Beaumont Halliwell, the Fifth Duke of Wroxton, comes to see that this woman who has become his wife carries more value than purely monetary.

The Inconvenient Countess by Kristin Vayden

Charles Brook, Earl of Barrington, has quite a poor reputation as a rake to the extent he is having trouble finding a wife. Brook’s main desire to wed has to do with a business proposition. His neighbor in the country, Miss Diana Katherine Lambson, has a family in dire straits after the loss of their father. With younger sisters to care for and a crumbling country house, Diana decides to accept the rascal’s proposal. Much to Brook’s surprise, he finds that having a fine wife such as Diana is decidedly a better thing than he could have imagined.

As to be expected with Ms. Day’s writing, this story has steamy scenes and strong passions. Ms. Spencer’s tale was my favorite of the three as her characters are the most disparate and interesting. Ms Vayden’s hero was a bit hard to take because of his seamy ways, but I liked her heroine’s strength and fortitude.

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I received an ARC of The Arrangement from Netgalley. This book is made up of three fabhlous stories. Sylvia Day's Mischief and The Marquess is a fun loving sweet humorous love story between two childhood friends. Minerva Spencer's The Duke's Treasure is a story about a marriage of convenience between a Duke, Beaumont and a cit's daughter, Josephine and their developing love.
Kristin Vayden's An Inconvenient Countess is the story of Brook, an Earl, also called The Devil's Bachelor, and Diana, a strong but poor young lady wanting to take care of her family. Thiers is a marriage of convenience that turns out to be inconvenient when emotions get involved. What I loved most about each story was how quickly they flowed and came to their HEA conclusion. Great stories!

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I liked Sylvia Days story. A second chance at love. Characters were enjoyable. In the second tale. I did not like Beau as much...too bossy, tho he was very kind to Jo. Diana and Charles stoty was ok, just not earth shattering.

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I liked Sylvia Day's Mischief and the Marquess the best out of the three. It's apparently a reissue and tells the second chance story between Justin and Sophie.

The other two stories in this compilation didn't wow me. I didn't care for The Duke's Treasure by Minerva Spencer. The heroine was too passive and I really didn't care for the hero who I felt was very superficial.

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Mischief and the Marquess by Sylvia Day
Justin has adored her for years but she is not for him any longer. Sophie, living in scandal, thought he always disapproved of her but now finds him disturbingly attractive. Can anything happen between them?

Coming to the end of this short story gave the same sense of completion as readings a full length novel. The character development and unraveling of plot gave the fullness of feeling of inhabiting the lives - and falling in love - of Sophie and Justin. The sex scenes were just plain hot. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The Duke’s Treasure by Minerva Spencer
Penurious, His Grace Beaumont, is forced to marry Cit heiress Josephine to save the duchy. Josephine has yearned for five years for this handsome duke but he doesn’t even remember her. She knows he is marrying her for her money so she is defensive and prickly. But Beau is determined to have a real marriage. Will Josephine be able to put aside her attitude and allow herself to freely love the duke, to become his treasure?

This short story was satisfying, realistic and hot, hot, hot. The characters were believably drawn and the bickering scenes were fun and realistic. I would recommend this book to my patrons.


The Inconvenient Countess by Kristin Vayden
Brook needed a wife for business reason. But he wanted nothing to do with love. He wanted a marriage of convenience. Diana needed a husband to rescue her and her family if five daughters and no father or dowries. She expected nothing else form this marriage if convenience. Neither expected friendship let alone love. But what did they get?

I loved the plot trick of ending most chapters with a question: X (liking your husband, etc.) isn’t possible. Is it? Brilliant! Ms. Vayden has breathed new life into the marriage of convenience trope. Both Brook and Diana were lovely well drawn characters. The plot did not seem hurried even though it was a short story. And the loves scenes were excellent. I would recommend this book to my patrons.

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This book was received as an ARC from Kensington Books in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

At first I was a little confused by the approach to this book and did not realize it was a collaboration of authors coming together and writing short romance stories that had their own plot, characters and theme. My favorite one has to be the one by Sylvia Day called Mischief and the Marquess. Their families feel they are not a fit and should not be together but nobody is to judge the love and bond that they share for one another and they will stop at nothing to be together no matter who approves or not. All of these stories were so breathtaking that you can't help but to get lost in the book. I know it will be a refreshing pick for our community and our romance collection.

We will consider adding this title to our Romance collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

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