Six dukes are in league together to force their sons to marry. Lord Edwin Hampton has cursed his father the day he received the letter from the old Dukes with their ultimatum for their sons to marry or lose everything. Edwin is determined to find a way around the document, marry or else suffer the consequence. Cassandra Knightsbridge, only daughter of Viscount Trebly is very independent, rides like the devil and is a dead eye shot with a gun. Cassandra is unlike anyone Edwin has meet before, she doesn’t want to marry a duke, and she’s not impressed by him or his status. He provokes her into speaking to freely and turns her life upside down. A captivating story and a great beginning to six dukes son’s ordered marry and the chase is on to see who will win the battle between the old duke’s, their sons and the woman they fall in love with. I have voluntarily read and reviewed this amazing story.

The Viscount’s Sinful Bargain by Kate Archer is the First book in The Dukes' Pact Series. This is the story of Cassandra 'Cass' Knightsbridge and Edwin Hampton. Edwin is a Viscount whose father is a Duke who along with his father's fellow Dukes have come up with a plan to marry off their heirs. Edwin and his friends have to marry or have harsh consequences. Of course none want to give up their bachelor lives so they start thinking of a plan to throw a wrench into their fathers plan. Edwin thinks that Cassandra's life of being a non-conventional women of shooting, riding and other non-womanly actives will be the gossip he needs to keep it away from him and his friends. Cassandra is the only daughter of the Viscount Trebly and has had a different type upbringing than most women and has activates she likes that would not be acceptable by the town. I enjoy reading how Cassandra and Edwin made their way toward each other.

Bemoaning that fact that none of their male heirs have married and given them grandchildren, six Dukes have decided to take matters into their own hands. They have given their heirs an ultimatum with a deadline: The Pact. Cassandra Knightsbridge is in London for her first, and hopefully last, season. What she doesn’t realize is that she has become a target of the six heirs-a diversion which proves very detrimental.

After setting the plan to divert the Ton gossips, Edwin Weston suddenly has a change of heart. The reason is that Cassandra has slowly made her way into his. But the old adage, of best laid plans is very strong with theirs. As Cassandra takes the brunt of their scheme, she must also leave London and her chance at a happy marriage. Or, does she? Great first book of this series.

The Viscount's Sinful Bargain by Kate Archer is an entrancing story in which six elderly dukes are sitting in their club one day discussing their recalcitrant sons when some one has the idea of giving the sons a timeline in which to marry with consequences if they do not. Now this may seem bizarre but they were getting desperate for heirs and their sons were not. Soon it was the talk of London: crafty mothers of lovely young, husband-hunting daughters were a flitter as were the six young men in question. They also met to map out a strategy: one quite different from that which their fathers had in mind. It began with showing up at all social events to which they were invited, so as to show their fathers they were taking the threat seriously, which, indeed, they were not. It was not long before another strategy presented itself in the person of Cassandra Knightsbridge, a lovely young woman from the country, attending the marriage mart reluctantly and wishing she were back in the country with her father.

Cassie had a background, which might be described by some as, shameful, when the reality was she had loved it. She had learned to ride and ride across the country she would...with no groom in attendance. She also learned to shoot, another pleasure denied to most women. In fact, she loved her life with her father and was not anxious to change it, but change it she must. One of the gentlemen heard of this shocking lifestyle and decided to verify it and then gossip about it. Off went a spy to Surrey to verify and he came home with and even more shocking story. He was immediately set to spreading the rumor among of the servant class in London...long the most efficient way to spread news. Meanwhile, Edwin Weston, Viscount Hampton, one of the six gentlemen in questions has had second thoughts. This is a marvelous story of how harmful gossip can be and how quickly it can spread and hurt innocents. Let us simply say, the gossip reached the wrong ears and soon there was hell to pay.

The characters well-written and interesting. The plot is excellent. The story is well worth reading. An utterly enrapturing novel. I highly recommend it.

I received a free copy of The Viscount's Sinful Bargain from Dragonblade, through Netgalley, in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions and interpretations contained herein are solely my own. #netgalley #theviscountssinfulbargain

This story had such potential. I loved the beginning and how everything unfolded and then it just got boring. A total snooze fest. How these two supposedly fell in love, I’ll never know. I’m all for sweet romances and have read several that I’ve enjoyed, but this was just painful in the end. And not the good, slow burn type pain; the is this over yet kind of pain. It’s a shame too because the actual writing is good and as I mentioned, this story has potential but it completely missed the mark for the last half of the book.

Six Dukes make a signed agreement to force their heirs to marry within a certain amount of time or it's cut off the funds. The heirs want a way out.
Lord Hampton convinces his friends they need to divert attention away from themselves. Really it's not time to marry. They follow his plan, but it
backfires on Hampton when he falls in love.
I really enjoyed this plot. Nothing like making six heirs repent and Hampton especially have to grovel. Nice play Dowager Duchess. Looking forward to reading the rest of the series. A clean romance.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book.

Cassandra Knightsbridge, only daughter of Viscount Trebly, is looking forward to her first Season. She is soon caught up in false gossip started by six ducal heirs who wish to take the spotlight off them and their fathers' decree that they marry or face a cutoff of funds. As soon as Lord Hampton thinks hard about what they've done, he tries to stop the gossip, but it takes off on a life of its own and ruins an innocent girl. She flees London under a cloud of suspicion. Can Hampton redeem himself and win the heart of Cassandra?

I enjoyed this book even though the plot point of six dukes getting together to form a pact to force their heirs to marry seem a little far fetched. Ms. Archer has created a strong heroine in Cassandra and her feelings are consistent when she refuses to accept Hampton's apology. I loved Hampton's grandmother, the Dowager Duchess. She was a great secondary character who added much to the plot. Even the inclusion of large breed dogs brought a levity to a serious problem for young ladies who suffer vicious gossip. The only thing I didn't like was the repeated mention of guns and how wonderful they are. I understand their role in the plot, but I thought it went a bit too far. All in all, this was a witty and clean regency romance.

Caught up in a disaster, not of their own making, six young men face having their bachelorhood curtailed by their manipulative fathers who are in cahoots with one another. In a society where public opinion is formed by a few and fuelled by the gossip of others, Miss Cassandra Knightsbridge finds herself the victim of the young Lords' plan to divert attention away from themselves and their fathers' pact. Taking Cassandra's penchant for reckless riding and shooting, they devise a scheme, thinking that it will distract society without it ever pointing back to them. Edwin, Lord Hampton, soon realises that the effects of their plan could be far-reaching and despite trying to limit the fallout, the consequences are far worse than he could have estimated. Of all the ladies he has had to dance with or sat next to at dinner parties, Edwin discovers that Cassandra is the most entertaining he has met. Apart from her unusual pursuits, she is intelligent, interesting, charming, and has a good dose of common sense. When the situation engineered by Edwin and his friends reaches its peak, he is dismayed to find just how much harm they have done. Whilst help comes from an unexpected source, it is Cassandra herself that wins the day and turns the tide of opinion. This book is well written, witty, and romantic. Although one would have liked to knock the young men's heads together, they are loveable in their own way. Cassandra makes an unusual but interesting heroine, and I loved her character from the beginning. She is no shrinking violet and even when under a heavy cloud of public opinion, she determines a way forward. This first book in The Dukes' Pact series is so entertaining that I am looking forward to finding out how the lives of the rest of the Lords unfold. I received a copy of this book through NetGalley and this is my honest and voluntary review.

Six dukes are in league together to force their eldest sons to marry. The old men had drawn up a formal pact, with severe consequences to their heirs included. Edwin Lord Hampton is determined to devise a way out of it, he has no intention of marrying any time soon. He’s also desperate to get his name off the ton’s lips. Mamas are circling like hunters round a wounded stag and every pert little miss is fanning herself. Cassandra Knightsbridge, only daughter of Viscount Trebly, has not had a very usual upbringing. She rides like the devil, & the times she does take a groom she leaves him far behind. More alarming, there would be few gentlemen who could best her with a fowling piece.
Might not a tale of a girl who shoots turn society’s attention away from the dukes’ pact? The whispers wind their way through drawing rooms and the talk about Miss Knightsbridge blooms.
This is the first book I’ve read by the author & I found it to be a well written book that flowed well. Whilst for the most part it held true to the early nineteenth century I found it very hard to condone the way the six friends especially Edwin & Dalton behaved & I certainly wanted Edwin to grovel more. I loved Cass who whilst an original certainly handled all that was thrown at her extremely well, I also loved the Dowager Duchess, both of them were far more forgiving than I would have been. I would have liked an epilogue so that Edwin could be seen to have completely redeemed himself
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

First of all I love this book cover second if all how old are these characters I kept seeing the heroine as a 6 year old girl she talked like one and acted as one to give us all an information dump. Then later on in the book guns are talked about a LOT! What the heck is with this story guns don’t just save lives they end them especially in the early 1800s where the health care alone could kill you. This is not my favourite historical romance.

Such a great, clean romance. In my opinion, its not realistic but I did really enjoy reading it; as that isn't something that puts me off a book. It is the first book of the series and wow, what a way to start!
Six dukes, come together and "order" their sons' to marry or be cut off. It's leaked to the society sheets and has all the tongues wagging. They can't hide from it and it gets to be too much. Thinking that if they give society something else to talk about they will forget out them; they dig dirt on the one debutante,Cassandra Knightsbridge, who doesn't give them the time of day. But it all backfires, gets bigger than they ever planned; fixing it isn't working and to make matters worse, Viscount Edwin Hampton finds himself in love with her. The playful banter between Edwin and Cassandra sell me on their match, and makes the book really enjoyable. I love that it is clean but still feels romantic. They connect on a deeper level and have a lot in common; you see the love develop more than just being told they love each other. I am really excited to read the next book and this series is going to be so much fun!

This is my first book by this author, but I am looking forward to reading more of her books and series. I enjoy a good regency novel like this one.

Six Dukes form a Pact involving theirs sons and a big mistake is made and things go from bad to worse. I loved Cassandra, she was not a wallflower, but did the things she enjoyed even though they might not be in fashion and frowned upon by others. She stayed true to herself.

A mistakes is made, but is owned up and regretted. Lord Hampton is not perfect, but he is human.

My favorite character was the Dowager She had spunk

The Viscounts Sinful Bargain
Dukes Pact 1
Six Dukes-No grandchildren-Wastrel Sons
The Dukes have come up with a Secret Pact to bring their heirs to heel! They have 2 seasons to wed! Except of course, nothing in London is secret because from the scullery maid to the Prince Regent himself they all Gossip!!
Kate Archer brings to life how sad old people just want to see their children settled and want to dangle grandkids from their knees! The other thing she hits on is the speed of how quickly damage can be done by gossip!
But, these six young bucks are not going to allow anyone to tell them what to do even their fathers!
Kate Archer the author takes a serious topic and makes it a lighthearted approach and this book will have you laughing out loud in places! Because we all know that the more we tell someone what they have to do the more they will stick in their heels and drag their feet and fight you tooth and nail! Well, it’s the fighting tooth and nail that gets these 6 young Lords in trouble and do they ever find trouble!!! One of the young Lords finds love, but that extraordinary young lady also fights her destiny as well! So two clashes of wills becomes a true hilarious situation!!! Kate Archer will want you looking forward to the next Duke Pact book just to find out what antics she has in store for those characters! I know I cannot wait!
I received a advanced copy from netgally, but these are my own thoughts and opinions!! I liked this book and I truly am looking forward to the next ones in the series.

Enjoyable start to a new series. Fun premise older dukes conspire to have their sons marry and give them grandchildren.
Of coarse things can't run smoothly. Enter two stubborn protagonist, neither want to get married.
We has Chaos and Mayhem(May)
Look forward to reading about the other future dukes.

Six dukes decide to issue an ultimatum to their sons hoping to push them into marrying within the next 2 years or face being cut off from their funds. After the ton gets word of this dukes' pact, one of their sons, Lord Hampton, meets Cassandra Knightsbridge, the only child of the widowed Viscount Trebly, who hasn't had a typical upbringing. She lightly insults him by saying not every woman wants to become a duchess, then mentions having shot a gun on her father's estate. Because his pride is hurt, he mentions it to one of the others and a false rumor soon spreads that damages her reputation, but only after Lord Hampton realizes how unique she is compared to other debutantes and begins to fall for her.

Overall, I liked the book and the dialogue between the main characters, although it felt like the last 10% of the book dragged a bit.

An ARC of this book was provided free to me via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Cassandra (the female MC) is an unconventional lady that likes to shoot things with her beloved gun and gallop through the lands of her home. She arrives (or, more like, she is sent to London by her dear, old Papa) in Town for the Season. There, is when the most exciting of gossip starts circulating: 6 Lords, which are expected to become Dukes in the future, will have to get married posthaste, because their fathers (the current Dukes) said so!



Not particularly enjoyed this book - as shown - because of immature characters that can’t be honest with themselves first and foremost. *sigh*

Viscount Edwin Hampton and his five friends are furious with the new rules issued by their fathers. All of society is talking about them being forced to find wives. So being the spoilt brats that they are, they throw someone else to the gossips.

Cassandra Knightsbridge has had an unusual upbringing as an only child of an indulgent father. She can out ride and out shoot a lot of men, but that is not to be talked about when she has her first season in London.

Gossip once started, be it true or false takes on a life of it's own and can absolutely ruin lives. This was even more true in the Georgian period of this story.

This is a sweet historical romance with a strong and independent heroine and a hero that needs to learn that he is not the center of the universe. It's lots of fun and all the characters are great. I look forward to reading the rest of the series.

Firstly, thank you to Dragonblade Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC of this title. A review, honest or otherwise, was requested but not required.

I am of mixed feelings about this book. There was a lot to like. I appreciated the true-to-time period mannerisms and dialogue. I really liked the true-to-time period courtship - e.g., no groping in alcoves, no semi-private erotica-style sexual encounters with a surprisingly adept virginal heroine, nothing but public conversational encounters in which Hampton and Miss Knightsbridge actually get to know one another. I liked the idea of gossip as a plot device - it's absolutely period-accurate - and the contrast between the way gossip affected women vs. men. I liked that the h was a smart, strong woman (girl?) -most of the time- and I liked the way she owned her "nonconventional" hobbies. And this is very personal, but I REALLY liked the whole big dog situation. As a large breed owner myself I felt a kinship to Miss Knightsbridge on that one. All her big vs. little dog commentary was right on. (Side note: It is my personal belief that frequently small dog owners don't bother to train their dogs because they can just PICK UP the offending animal and cart them away. I have not met more than two or three little yappy dogs in my entire life that were actually obedience-trained. This is not an exaggeration.)

So: there was a lot to like here.

I felt somewhat unexcited about the six-heirs-in-a-pact plot as it seemed unrealistic vis-a-vis the rest of the plot, and frankly I thought their plans to first discredit Miss Knightsbridge and then later redeem her were both out of character for the men in general. But, whatever, I've read less credulous setups and been able to roll with them, no problem.

I also felt that both the h and H exhibited some questionable/childish behavior. Hampton obviously made the *Big* mistake; he realized it almost as soon as he'd done it and tried to undo it. (And got very little credit for it.) The rest of his group probably wouldn't have done a thing to help without his influence, but they were all punished equally which seemed somewhat unfair. Cassandra acted her age, I suppose; why I expect a teenager to act more mature is a perennial mystery. I can't really see a real regency teenager, country-bred lady or no, informing a Dowager Duchess that she imagined the clay discs she was shooting to bits were the "heads of the DD's grandson and his friends". I mean, really. Nonetheless, both characters were obviously coming around to more mature outlooks by the end and will probably be madly in love with babies on the way in cameos of future series installments.

So where I kind of got stuck was the whole "guns" subplot. At first it was charming; obviously some country-bred ladies went shooting, even then. Miss Knightsbridge agreed that she should not have brought it up: even her otherwise permissive father said so. She was then ostracized for her hobby (and other things) by the gossipy London ladies. OK, fine, I get it. But then the book kind of turned into a low-level NRA ad in which guns were brought up A LOT and in the most glowing terms. Guns are fun! Guns are great for recreating! Guns save lives! The heroine saved the Dowager because she had a gun! and she is also a great shot! Now everyone sees the error of judging a girl for liking to shoot things! and maybe it's a good idea to have guns around!! The H will buy the h lots and lots of guns as a wedding present!!! because GUNS, YAY!!!!

Did the author intend this effect? I don't know. Is this a personal quibble? Probably? I don't know. It bothered me, though, and it bothered me more and more as the book went on. Maybe I'm being oversensitive but the tone felt wrong to me. The language kind of went from "shooting a fowling piece as a hobby" to the terms guns/firearms/arsenal. I believe the H even says at the end that he would purchase the h an "entire arsenal" to ensure her happiness.

I have no problem with a woman (or man) who wants to hunt and who intends TO EAT what she/he has killed, or a woman (or man) who likes to shoot clay discs or other targets as a hobby. I'm finding it difficult to articulate why exactly I was so bothered and I guess I felt like the book was trying to sell me on the wonderfulness of guns, and I would rather have been sold on the wonderfulness of the h and H and their relationship.

This review is getting way out of hand, lengthwise, so let me just say: this was an enjoyable book overall and I would recommend it to a historical romance reader who wants a "gentle" (read, not spicy) and unique romance, and, uh, likes guns. I'm interested to see where Ms. Archer takes this series, especially because I found myself very interested in the resolution of the attraction between Lady Sybil and Lord Lockwood.

Let me start off by saying, “This ain’t your regular regency romance!” Never before has the heart of a historical novel been rooted in the plotting of six dukes with one clear goal “Marriage and Grandchildren.”

This was a surprisingly witty and interesting read that took a pleasant turn from the usual storyline of this genre. I loved the gun-toting, big dog-owning, unconventional heroine with her bold statements and even bolder outlook on life. More novels should follow the trend of making the men sweat and plot while the women chart a clear path away from loveless marriages. I adored all the broken stereotypes!

Thank you to Dragonblade Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with his arc in exchange for my honest review.

When tricked to marry, a group of heirs engage in a game to avert the ton’s gaze from them, but at what cost ...

First is to be said, this book is a gem in itself. While I enjoy any kind of historical romance, when reading this one, I was transported back in time and like I were sitting in a drawing room savoring tea and scones and conversing with the Bennets, with a dash of adventure thanks to the brave heroine’s personality.

What a delightful read Mrs Kate Archer offers us, witty, clever and so very Regency like. It was so very different than the usual historical’s. I felt like I went back to my early twenties when I discovered Barbara Cartland and then Sense and Sensibility. The wording, dialogues and situations were so “Austenian”.
And the more I forayed in this tale, the more I smile and laughed. I discovered so many new words I can’t even remember them all, my vocabulary appeared as so limited while this book is a treasure to be adored.

I thought it would be the classic tale of the peer refusing to marry and shouting it high and mighty, then trying to win back his lady’s heart when he went to far, I never once dreamed this complexe tale of the ins and outs of the Regency’s society.

Mrs Archer has narrated more than only a romance , it was a show of the human comedy.
The London’s society is shown under such a dim light, more a snakes nest with its farmyard of hen-witted geese and their wagging tongues than a court of proud eagles, lovely doves and innocent fawns.
Why what has begun as a lark turned as a sour poisoned jab. With the two sides of the revenge, when truth is exposed, some are caught in a fire of their own making awaiting the second shoe to fall off. All the culprits get their right set-down, it was so rewarding and fun.

I usually discuss my thoughts about the main characters, but in this story, there are sure the young couple torn apart by the hero’s ill advised plan, a honest and strong heroine and an equally kind hero once he understood the wrongness of his deeds, there are also all the protagonists navigating around them, a Dowager Duchess, a handful of Dukes, the heroine’s father, a bunches of servants, a duet of dogs and so on...
Why I could go on and on, just read this tale loaded with quips and finesse.
5 stars as I can’t give more.

On a special note, I naively thought all the courtesy titles for a Duke’s heir were to be a marquess, but here the hero is a viscount. How we learn everyday something new.

I was granted an advance copy by the publisher Dragonblade Publishing, here is my true and unbiased opinion.