Thanks to Dragonblade Publishing, Netgalley and the author for an Advance Reader Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book is a very sweet take on the marriage of convenience trope with the heroine and hero being married by proxy at the insistence of her overbearing father.

Cecilia never wants to marry as she has plans to use her considerable dowry to improve the lives of those less fortunate in a constructive way - she doesn't want to just donate and fundraise, she wants to be involved.

Heath has never really taken his position as a Duke's heir seriously and lives to antagonise his starchy brother by following his orders to marry but doing it in a scandalous way. When Cecelia's father proposes a marriage by proxy sight unseen he jumps at the chance. Little does he know how much he will like his new bride and how guilty he will feel for trapping her into marriage.

Although Cecilia is determined not to like her rake of a new husband she can't help but see the genuinely kind-hearted person he is. While Heath tries to make up for the way he married his wife and she tries to maintain her independence a scheming widow enters the scene and threatens to destroy their marriage before it has even begun.

I enjoyed the story although the steam factor was lower than I am used to. I look forward to reading what happens with the rest of the Knight clan.

A Knight can come in many forms... in armour ready to face any enemy, as a defender of the weaker, on a mighty stead showing strength or as a Vicar with the backing of the Knight family name. All are courageous but the hero in this story Lord Edmund is indeed a savior to Lady Isabella as she was being sold by her father for one night to the highest bidder! Oh yes, her disgusting father who lost money to the most degenerate of men!

Saved and brought to the Knight family outside of London, Isabella lives in disguise and hopes not to be found. But of course, her father becomes desperate to find her and as she and Edmond become closer, the stakes get larger.

Loved their story that took a slower pace but in the end the heart wants what the heart wants!

This author is a new one to me, and Black Knight is the second book in this series of hers. It was a well written tale, with my favourite Marriage of Convenience plot, but the convenience is only for the husband in this tale.

Heath, Lord Knight is a roguish wastrel and younger brother of the very overbearing Duke of Knighton, when he is involved in a duel he is issued an ultimatum - marry or be cut off.

Heath decides to confound his brother by marrying Cecilia Dudley, the very wealthy daughter of Sir Harold, a brash cit. Cecilia doesn’t want to Marryat all, as she can’t be sure she is not being married for her money, she wants to devote herself to charitable works. When her father reveals she has been married by proxy to Lord Knight she is furious. There is nothing she can do, and she is appalled to be married to a rake. Heath is pleasantly surprised by the beautiful and well mannered Cecilia - however they decide to live apart, Cecilia in London, and Heath, in the country restoring his estate, and determined to woo his wife by correspondence.

When the ton starts to cast aspersions on Cecilia, because he isn’t around, Heath realises that they need to present a united front. Can Cecilia bring herself to trust Heath and forgive his past excesses, and can they make it to their HEA? Lots of charming moments in this book, especially the little mouse Heath befriends, and his grandmother. However, I did find Sir Harold extremely annoying, and didn’t really like Cecilia treatment by both men at the start of the book.

I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book and all opinions are my own.

This is the second book in the Gentlemen of Knights series. I really enjoyed Heath, the second son, due to his wayward ways with his older brother and his sudden arranged marriage with a woman he never met. Cecilia Dudley is an heiress, with a large dowry, and never wanted to marry. Elizabeth Johns has developed wonderful characters, a grand adventure, and some wonderful supporting individuals along the way. I cannot wait until the next book in this series.

I have yet to devour a book by Elizabeth Johns that I did not love! She writes with depth, conviction and true talent. This is a clean, compelling historical romance that captivated my attention from start to finish. I was disappointed in the cover, as I did not feel it really reflected the tone and story of the book, but I am so glad I did not let this discourage me from reading it. A delightfully satisfying romance that I recommend for all lovers of clean, historical fiction. I received a complimentary copy from the publisher via NetGalley and all opinions expressed are my own and freely given.

Thank you netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This is a decent historical romance with a valiant hero wishing to be more than his reputation and an independent daughter of a cit wishing to escape the cruelties of respected society and live by her terms. They each have a lot at stake with this marriage of convenience but neither budge in giving up the upper hand.
I had a bit of hardship liking the heroine as she was very unyielding and doubted Heath's affection. As story progressed, she does warm up to his charm.
Overall, an endearing well written novel with some slow parts but enough characterization to be likeable.

This is a sweet romance (I thought the cover was more risqué than the book!) about a reformed rakehell and an independent daughter of a wealthy cit who enter an arranged marriage. The point of contention was that this arrangement was done between Heath (H) and Cecilia’s father, all without Cecilia’s (h) knowledge or consent. I found Cecilia’s character a little bit difficult to like in the beginning. Granted her future was decided upon without her input, but this was standard protocol for the ton during this time period. Even though he was off to a bad start since his agreement to the marriage was in rebellion to his older brother’s decree, Heath was an endearing character. His patience and valiant effort in making the marriage work was redeeming against his youthful protest. An entertaining read.

Elizabeth Johns’ second book in her Gentlemen of Knights series, Black Knight, is a wonderfully sweet and clean enemies to friends to happily ever after story. I loved the characters and the Knight family dynamics. I haven’t read the first book yet, but I look forward to reading it and the following books. Heath’s character was very interesting. I liked the vulnerability and his true self that showed through time and his changes in life. I also enjoyed Cecilia’s character. It was easy to appreciate her fear, anger, and feelings of betrayal. It was a very interesting, well-written, and fun story!
I received a complimentary copy of the book. All opinions are my own and are expressed voluntarily.

I enjoyed this book - the first I've read by this author. The characters are interesting a real and I enjoyed watching them learn about each other. Their growth and coming to understand was a charming experience. I will look for more by Ms. Johns.

This was a very enjoyable clean story. The main characters had strong morals. The other characters in the story were well written and you got a sense of how much this large family cares for each other. At times I felt that the romance dragged and I would have liked it to progress faster.

Black Knight was a fascinating historical romance by Elizabeth Johns. Good writing and excellent descriptions. Enjoyed

This was a good read. It had an interesting storyline and good characters. It felt a little mediocre but I did read from first to last. Light historical.

Lord Heath Knight is strongly encouraged to wed by this brother, the Duke of Knighton. So when he is approached in Italy with an offer, he weds heiress Cecilia Dudley by proxy.
I love this series by Elizabeth Johns. Her characters are strong and well developed. While marriages are often arranged, a proxy marriage where the bride has no prior knowledge brings an added dimension to the story.
I did not want to put the book down once I started reading it. I highly recommend it!

Nice read. Heath was an interesting character 🤔

His brother sometimes was irritating, but I guess his actions were kind of understandable...

A Rake, an Independent Woman, and a Marriage of Convenience

If Heath does not change his ways, his brother the duke will cut him off without a penny. To irk his brother, what does he do? He marries a woman, not of his class, by proxy. Does such a scandalous marriage have a chance of success. Cecilia did not want to marry. What happens when she meets her husband? Is he simply a rake and a scoundrel, or is there, perhaps, more to him than meets the eye?

I found this story to be charming and entertaining. I enjoyed reading about Cecilia and Heath’s shenanigans while they got to know each other. They had quite a few obstacles to overcome. Would their story end in divorce, or can a charming rake and an independent woman stand a chance against gossip and other mayhem? Will Cecilia be able to tame the scoundrel? If you like historical romance with wit, you might enjoy this charming tale.

Lord Heath Knight has spent his life doing whatever he wants when he wants. When he almost loses his life in a duel his brother the Duke has had enough and gives Heath a choice, either find a wife and settle down or he will be cut off. When Heath is offered a a bride who comes with a dowry so huge no man would refuse. Heath knows his brother would never approve so he marries by proxy.

When Cecilia finds out her father has married her by proxy to a many she has never met she is beyond angry, but she may as well make the best of a bad situation and decides to set herself up a household and live her life as an independent woman! That is until her husband shows up.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book! It is the second in the Knights series but also a stand alone. Cecilia has been left feeling abandoned by her father, married to a man she doesn’t know or trust and is thrown into the one thing she never wanted, the ton! Cecilia is such a strong woman but still manages to maintain her humor. I loved Heath and loved watching him fall for Cecilia! Such a wonderful story, you defiant to read this one!

This story is about Lord Heath Knight who sometimes was called the Black Knight. Lord Heath is a rogue to the fullest degree.
Now he is recovering from a wound that he received in a duel.
He has gone to recover!
While heading back to England de meets a Sir Harold Dudley. Sir Harold presents Lord Heath a proposition that sounded to good.
So he married Celia Dudley by proxy.
Now all he had to do is win her heart and love.
Now is a good time to read this book and enjoy it!!

A rake and a scoundrel Lord Heath Knight older brother the duke has dictated he marry or he’ll be cut off financially. He’s approached by one of the wealthiest merchants in London and a marriage is arranged to the most unsuitable lady he can in order to vex his brother. Cecilia Dudley is an heiress and has no plans to ever marry. Her father has married her by proxy to the “Black Knight” known for his wild and rakish behavior. A marriage of conscience or is it when they meet and sparks start to fly, the chemistry and attraction is sizzling. How can he ignore his beautiful and independent wife as they both quickly realizes a marriage of convenience is not so convenient? I have voluntarily read and reviewed this amazing story.

Black Knight by Elizabeth Johns is the second in the Gentlemen of Knights series. Heath's brother, the duke, has determined that it is high time Heath is married if he wants to keep his stipend as the heir to the dukedom. In fact, he has given him a deadline. Given that Heath is recuperating on the Amalfi Coast in Italy, it is asking a bit much...until Sir Harold Dudley floats the idea of Heath marrying his daughter. His daughter, Cecelia, but Sir Harold is able to arrange a marriage by proxy. Cecilia is not the least bit happy with this turn of events when her father returns to England and tells her his happy news. She does not want to be married, certainly not to a notorious rake.

This is a good plot. It is the first proxy marriage I have read in some time. It also starts as a marriage of convenience, but all romance readers know what that means. It is the second one read recently where gossip gets out of hand and threatens to ruin lives. There is also a wonderfully independent grandmother, who takes things in hand when they threaten to get out of control. Even the duke eventually admits he overstepped. The Knight brothers are nothing if not charming, as well as very good looking. Heath, for all his days as a rake has determined that that part of his life is over and he is going to make something of the property left to him by his mother. It is fun to read how that goes, including Cecilia's standoff with a Gypsy woman. This is an entertaining book with good characters and a charming story. I recommend it..

I received a free ARC of Black Knight from Dragonblade, through Netgalley, in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions and interpretations contained herein are solely my own. #netgalley #blackknight

Black Knight by Elizabeth Johns is book Two in the Gentlemen of Knights Series. This is the story of Cecilia Dudley and Heath Knight. I have not read the previous book, so for me this was a standalone book. Heath is a rake along with a few other things and when he gets injured in a duel his brother informed him that he will be cutting him off if he does not marry and start cleaning up his life. So Heath thought is to marry the most unsuitable women he can find. Cecilia's father is a very wealthy man who has set on her a high dowry to make sure she marries but she and her father are looked down upon the town because he isn't one of them. Cecilia really just wants to use her money for helping other and is not interested in marring but her father strongly has other ideals. This leads her to become the wife of Heath. But Heath starts to want to change but between his past that keeps come back to him and Cecilia not letting his past go it isn't gonna be easy...not to mention the feelings he is starting to have for Cecilia. Enjoyed their story.