I read my first Amy Rose Bennett book last year (How to Catch a Wicked Viscount), I decided to skip the second book in her Disreputable Debutantes series and dive into book three. To be honest, I couldn’t resist the synopsis! Hot scot with an eye patch and scar? Shy heroine trying to escape her tyrannical family? Yes, please!

This book started strong! I enjoyed Olivia’s interactions with Hamish. He appreciated her for her quiet strength right off the bat, and Olivia wrestling with her crush on Hamish was adorable. When the plot slowly morphed into a marriage of convenience, I was like, YES, this is IT! Unfortunately, that’s when the entire book went off the rails.

Hamish’s self-incrimination about his time in the service quickly turned from manly and brooding, to whiny and self-indulgent. Yes, I am sure Olivia will be MUCH better off as a divorced social pariah than married to a Marquess with ~issues~. I guess it’s not entirely the book’s fault that it morphed from one of my favorite tropes to one of my least favorite tropes, but it felt like a bait and switch.

On top of that, this book is the slowest, slow, slowwww burn I’ve read recently. I was ready to throw my kindle across the room at points. I like a good slow burn, but this book was a slow burn solely because the hero was being a nincompoop.

Overall, I really like Amy Rose Bennett’s fast-paced and witty dialogue, but the book fell flat after the first half. I will be reading more books by this author in the future; I just don’t recommend this one.

**I received a free copy of this book in order to provide an honest review**

I received an ARC of "How to Catch A Sinful Marquess" from the fabulous Amy Rose Bennett. This is the third book in this series but can be read on its own fabulous merit.
Lady Olivia De Vere and Lord Hamish Sleat meet in a most delightful unexpected manner. From there, we learn of all the unfortunate circumstances that surround them and their growing mutual attraction. They try to battle their own demons, but eventually learn how instrumental they are in helping each other. A beautiful romantic story.

How to Catch a Sinful Marquess is a delightful Regency romp with some unusual and memorable characters, a strong story line and even some hot sex scenes.
Olivia deVere has admired Hamish, Lord Sleat from afar until he rescues her from their shared wall while she is chasing her friend’s cat.
Olivia lives with her aunt and uncle who mistreat her, and want her to marry their horrible son to keep her inheritance in the family. She despised her cousin, and hopes someday to marry for love. When someone dumps a toddler on Lord Sleat’s door with a note claiming the child is his, he’s on the verge of heading to Scotland to settle affairs in his own family. He hires Olivia to be nursemaid to the child and takes off with the pair to his home.
As they travel together, the couple fall in love, but both are hiding secrets from each other. When Olivia’s cousin shows up in Gretna Green during their trip north, Hamish rescues her and to remove any chance of a threat, marries Olivia over the anvil. But he insists that the marriage is name only and that he will never love her.
Can these two wounded souls find a way to overcome their pasts, their secrets and their circumstances to have a real marriage?
This is a simplification of a complex plot that includes a tutor who wants to marry Lord Sleat’s sister, his mother who wanders the house at night in black clothing, and the real reason Tilda’s mother left her with Hamish. It is all a lot of fun and a thoroughly enjoyable read.

How to Catch a Sinful Marquess, by Amy Rose Bennett. I enjoyed reading this book. I was impressed by the different subplots that intertwined with the main plot. These together, helped support the intense drama and the budding romance between Hamish and Olivia. The drama skirted the Cinderella story, but continuously remained original.
I was caught up from the beginning with the witty flirtatious humor that Olivia brought to her character. As you continue to read the story you will see her confidence build and take charge of her being. Olivia begins to realize that her feelings for Hamish is more than a innocent crush on her next door neighbor. Hamish introduces himself as her knight and shining armor. After he rescues Olivia from the ledge of her house, the two new relationship grows into a beautiful romance.
Before Hamish and Olivia get lost in the love that they have for one another, they will need to meet head on the demons that try to infect their lives. The two realize how much they will need each other to do this. Hamish comes home from the battle of Waterloo, intending to live a solitary life. An escaping cat artist has changed that plan considerably for him with the help of a little girl by the name of Tilda.
Hamish receives a letter from home asking for his presence. He calls on his neighbor for some assistance. Olivia, has been the ward under her non to loving uncle and his family. Wanting to gain access to Olivia dowry, her uncle tries to marry off Olivia to her cousin Felix. Olivia says, she’s having none of that and puts to plan an escape.
It just so happens that Hamish needs help with Tilda on his trip back home to Scotland. Halfway through their trip Olivia’s evil past catches up with her. Hamish puts forth a plan to protect Olivia. Little that these to realize that this plan unlocks the desire and passion, that unpredictability explodes at a moment’s notice, when these two are together. Hamish feels that he doesn’t deserve to be loved or cared for.
His suffering nightmares, leads him down an agonizing dark tunnel. Each time Olivia is there as his light, to bring him back. No matter how Hamish tried keep his distance from Olivia, her innocent and sweet seduction pulls Hamish towards her, with a burning desire to claim her as his. My fellow readers. I recommend this book. Until next time... read on! I voluntary reviewed this ARC after receiving a free gifted copy.

The following review is scheduled to be posted to my blog on August 20, 2020 at the link supplied. The review will also be cross-posted to Goodreads on the same day.

My Rating:  4 stars

Library recommendation: Recommended for public library historical romance collections.

Warning: Hereafter, you chance spoilers. I will try never to reveal major plot points, but to review any book, you must reveal some parts of the story. 

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Number of titles I have read by this author: 3

Love story speed: Medium burn

Relationship dynamics: The Marquess Rakehell (H) / The Orphan on the Run (h) 

Physical descriptions: Hamish: 6'3" (1.9 m), broad and muscular, with dark hair, grey eyes, an eye patch, and facial scarring (injured at Waterloo) ; Olivia: slight figure, with mahogany hair and brown eyes


Sexual content: Some; both “on-screen” and explicit

Triggers: PTSD (H - war; h - abuse); descriptions of domestic violence (not of/by H or h); verbal, physical, and emotional abuse (of h, not by H)

Grammar/Editing: My ARC had a few typos and word choice issues.

Review: This is a moderately paced novel set in 1818 London and the Isle of Skye (Scotland). Both settings are well described, including the use of well-known era-specific historical landmarks, and the research that went into the settings is of a consistent quality with the previous books. 

Hamish and Olivia are the main characters in this installment. Hamish is someone who saves people, but also has deep-seated issues that makes him distance himself from people. Olivia is someone who needs saving, but she's not entirely helpless, nor is she spineless. Their relationship starts with mutual need and progresses fairly quickly into a marriage of convenience that sees our heroine trying her hardest to take the marriage past that. The transitions in their relationship didn't feel entirely smooth, as if too much tension was built before changes happened, which made any slight difference feel a bit exaggerated and overstated. The supporting characters, most of whom are new (i.e. not recurring) are well-enough developed for the story's needs, but no one really stood out. The recurring characters really just have cameos and see little to no development and, while the villains are despicable, they are ultimately ineffectual.

Overall, an enjoyable read, and an improvement over the last book. I will read the final book but, alas, there was no sneak peek for it. 




Full disclosure: I received a free advance review copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Disreputable Debutantes series has been a mixed bag for me. But with each book, I have liked the series all the more, and How to Catch a Sinful Marquess really ticked all the boxes for me. Olivia was a delightful heroine and I loved how she really came into her own throughout the novel, and Hamish was, of course, quite the dashing hero (even if his reasons for resisting the whole love thing seemed a touch out of proportion). This was a fast-paced and delightful marriage of convenience story, filled with fabulous secondary characters. It was exactly the light and romantic read that I was looking for!

4.5 Stars
How to Catch a Sinful Marquess is the third book in the Disreputable Debutantes. This has been such a fun series with four ladies being expelled from a ladies’ academy and now they are trying to find husbands. This book caught my attention on the first page and it was so easy to read.
Olivia de Vere (aka. Lavinia Morland) was an orphaned heiress living with her uncle and his family. They had been trying to convince her to marry her cousin, Felix, so they could control her money. When she overheard Felix discussing with a friend about stealing her money and his threats towards her, Olivia knew she had to escape London. Discovering Hamish’s dilemma and traveling to Scotland with him was her only solution. She felt guilty for not telling Hamish the truth about her identity but she was afraid he would return her to London if he knew who she really was. Discovering her identity, Hamish marries her with the plan to divorce after she receives her inheritance.
Hamish MacQueen, Marquess of Sleat, never planned on getting married or having children, afraid he would become abusive like his father. When a screaming child, with a note claiming him as her father, is left on his doorstep, he has no idea what to do. Discovering she was Olivia de Vere instead of Lavinia Morland shocked him, but he wanted to help her. He tried to resist her believing that he wasn’t good enough for her, but as her self-confidence grew so did her determination to stay married to him.
I love this series and all the wonderful characters. I look forward to the next book about Charlie’s story.

I enjoyed this book and these characters so very much! Am hoping there will be many more by this author. Settings, storyline and characters were all entertaining.

Olivia is a wealthy orphan. An heiress trapped trapped in the home of her guardian Uncle and his family. They are living off her money and plan for her to marry their cruel son so the family can keep her money. She daydreams about her neighbor Hamish, Lord Sleat. A Scotsman with a scarred face and eye patch. He gets word that his sister in Scotland plans to marry beneath her and he plans to travel there to stop her. Unfortunately a young girl is dropped on his doorstep who might be his daughter. Olivia needs to escape her family and they hatch a plan wherein they have a marriage of convenience. Olivia will care for the child on the trip to Scotland and they will divorce when Olivia gets her money. Their road to happiness is marred by her low self esteem and his fear of harming her while he sleeps during his violent dreams. There are gothic overtones, a crumbling castle by the sea, a mysterious woman in black wandering the castle at night. We get to briefly see the characters from the previous books in the series and I’m looking forward to reading Charlotte’s story.

How to Catch a Sinful Marquess by Amy Rose Bennett is the third book in a series and I kind of wish I had read the others before diving into this book. Don't get me wrong, it isn't necessarily required but there are characters referenced from the other books that I think I wanted to get to know...or at least know more about their relationship to the main characters of this book.

Olivia de Vere is basically a prisoner in the home she lives in with her aunt, uncle, and cousins. It's pretty obvious that they all dislike the fact that they are beholden to her and by keeping her locked away, they are hoping to marry her to her cousin (a VERY despicable character) so her money stays in the family. When she sees a chance to escape, she jumps at it.

Hamish McQueen, Lord Sleat, lives next door to Olivia's guardians and when he comes to find a child dropped at his front door and a young lady from next door offering to be his nursemaid, he decides to take her up on the offer. Since he has an urgent family issue he needs to resolve, Hamish packs them up and heads to his Scotland estate to figure out what his sister is up to.

Along the way, Hamish and Olivia find themselves drawn to each other and I enjoyed how their relationship progressed.

Overall, I enjoyed this book and the characters. I do think I will go back to read the other books as what was mentioned of the other characters, made the stories seem interesting. If you're looking for a new historical romance that has solid characters with an interesting story, check this one out.

This book was so much fun to read! Maybe I kind of felt like reading a perfectly matched romantic couple that get all things well done together. Perfect match. AT least for me. The book was read by me in about 3 days and I enjoyed it a lot! Highly recommended!

Beauty and the beast retelling with marriage of convenience. This book was fantastic. I really loved the romance, the friendship, the child. I interviewed Amy Rose for the podcast. I will also mentioned this book in an upcoming podcast episode.

Beauty and the Beast retelling with marriage of convenience and a scene at Gretna Green? Yes please! I really love this series. The friendships, the conversation about marriage after a scandalous reputation. I interviewed Amy Rose Bennett for the podcast. I will also feature this book in a historical romance book recommendation show.

Hamish MacQueen, Lord Sleat, is a battle scared hero who suffers from more than just his physical scars. He keeps to himself fearing his nightmares are a danger to anyone who gets close to him. Having a toddler dumped on his doorstep with a note claiming that Hamish is the father is just one issue that he's dealing with. Olivia de Vere has been admiring her neighbor Hamish for months and when the opportunity arises for her to escape her evil cousin, she agrees to accompany Hamish to his seat in Scotland to deal with a family matter and to act as a nursemaid for the child. What neither of them expected is the strong attraction growing between them, but will Hamish let go of his doubts and embrace Olivia's growing affection?

I really liked Olivia. Her transformation from a shy and timid young woman to become more self-confident and value her own worth was delightful. Her quiet and comforting presence for Hamish transforms the rugged Highlander who finally realizes that he is deserving of love. The twists and turns in the book kept me turning the pages quickly to find out how everything would be resolved. All in all this was a delightful story.

Olivia de Vere is an orphaned heiress that has just been kicked out of her fancy ladies academy. Her horrible cousin Felix is threatening to marry her off to someone of his choosing against her wishes, so Olivia decides to take matters in her own hands. She's developed a little crush on her neighbor Hamish MacQueen, Lord Sleat, and he seems like the perfect solution. Hamish needs help with an unexpected daughter, young Miss de Vere is a good enough solution. Soon feelings of attraction bloom between the two, but is it enough?

This was a surprise hit for me as I've never read this author before and immediately began enjoying the story. This plot was very reminiscent of classic novels from Johanna Lindsey or Judith McNaught with a young hoyden for a heroine and an older embittered hero. I found myself immediately pulled in to the story line as we root for Olivia to get away from Felix and find true love. Hamish was such an excellent grumpy hero, and I loved the way he loves Olivia.

This was such a super fun and easy read. I loved the wacky plan by the heroine to keep her safe from her evil cousin, the slightly weary and scarred hero, the forced proximity, the marriage in name only, the secret heir. It's all cat nip for me.The chemistry between our main couple was excellent and the passionate love scenes were very well written. Frankly, I could have done with even more than the few we got. The love story worked well for me and I liked the tough yet vulnerable hero. This is the 3rd in the series so I will for sure be picking up the other books.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

As usual, when I received this book I dropped everything else I was reading to pick this one up! I have been absolutely delighted with the Disreputable Debutantes and have love both books released before this one. I loved this one just as much as the ones before it! Olivia and Hamish are so precious and the quiet strength of Olivia even after all that she has been through is admirable and beautiful. Hamish is such a kind man with very human insecurities that made me fall in love with him along with Olivia. I cannot wait to read more about Charlie in the next book as I have been most intrigued in the leader of this troublesome group of outspoken young women!

I LOVE THIS SERIES and Hamish and Olivia were perfectly matched in every way. Another thoroughly engrossing addition to Bennett's stellar titles.

Wow! Excellent story I couldn't hardly put down! A young lady meets the neighbor, a well known Marquess, whose known for being wild, and she has to leave because her cousin has threatened her. So they leave and they get married days later. It's undoubtedly an exciting and excellent romance. However, it is ridiculously vulgar at points of the story. Quite descriptive in the intimate scenes, which I didn't expect. And honestly, it kind of ruined the whole story. The author could have simply said "They made love" but no...she describes it all in full detail. So I personally did not like that, even though I enjoyed the story as a whole, You may like it, but I did not.