I'm a huge Shupe fan, and I love everything she does, so I was a little disappointed when this one fell flat for me. The premise is great: a childhood friends to lovers story set in the Hamptons during the Gilded Age + a Bachelor style house party and lots of pining. I really enjoyed the first half of this book. I loved Harrison's intense pining and the fact that Madde is trying to be a professional tennis player. But once these two got together, it was a bit of a disaster. Harrison's obsession got a little controlling for my tastes, and I never felt like we explored the depths of these characters. At the end, all I knew was that Maddie likes tennis and that Harrison likes Maddie. I'm intrigued by the side characters, so I'll be continuing with this series.

After loving my first Joanna Shupe novels (Uptown Girls), I was really looking forward to sinking my teeth into another series from this author. Unfortunately, this one fell far short of my expectations. I found Harrison, the male MC, was unbearable. He never listened to Maddie, even when the happily ever after happened, he threw many temper tantrums and was overall just a terrible love interest. Maddie had potential and I really just wanted her with the Duke but she wasn't my favorite either. I will say Nellie intrigues me and I will probably continue to read the series, I just hated these two so much.

Like many other Bridgerton fans, I am exploring the world of historical romance. The Heiress Hunt was a great introduction to a new series from Joanna Shupe. Best friends to lover is such a fun trope, and I loved Harrison and Maddie's backstory. I also really loved Harrison's group of friends. I hope we get a book centered on each of them. I struggled a bit with the lack of communication between Harrison and Maddie. But overall this was a fun read, and I am looking forward to more.

I was excited for this book but, ultimately, didn't enjoy it. The dialogue felt very stilted and unrealistic. The heroine didn't really use contractions very much, and very little of it rang true as the way people would talk. I also don't love novels that start out with a Big Misunderstanding. Like, if Harrison had just gone to Maddie and told her how he felt, then so much could have been avoided! All told, not great for me.

ARC graciously provide by NetGalley, opinions my own.

I have read and enjoyed several books from this author in the past, but I’ve got to tell you, this one really missed the mark for me. The first and second halves felt like different stories entirely, and I didn’t particularly care for either one.

Let’s start with the first half. Harrison has returned to the states after spending the past three years in Paris. He had run away because the girl he was in love with only thought of him as a friend. Then, adding insult to injury, he was disowned by his father because he caught dad taking advantage of a maid and turned him into police. He was never appreciated by his family, blah, blah, blah. Now he wants revenge on his mother and brother and plans to engage in a hostile takeover of the family company. This is the reason he comes back to New York. Not Maddie. Revenge.

OK, so his family is now in dire financial straits and his mother wants him to marry an heiress to bail them out. She has no idea he is independently wealthy and he had no plans to marry, until he sees Maddie‘s name on the list. Then, he decides with 100% certainty that he will marry her. I repeat. He wasn't even thinking about Maddie until he saw her name on his mother's list and decided he had to have her.

He has no reason to believe it will work any better than it would have when he ran away. It makes no sense. but go with it, because that’s the plot. Maddie's upset, having no idea why Harrison ran away in the first place, but when he approaches her, saying he needs her help to find a wife, she agrees to host a party for all of her friends to find him a match.

The first half of the book is spent with him trying to woo her. She has no idea he’s been in love with her. She is, in fact, engaged to a Duke.

Let me digress for a moment to say how this Duke element detracted from the US Gilded Age setting. One of the things I generally like about Joanna Shupe's books are that they feel so different from other historical romances because of their settings. The Duke… dashed that for me. Anyway, Harrison just kind of clumps around trying to ruin things for the Duke and the only reason he ends up with Maddie is because they get caught after kissing.

Hard pivot to them getting married. Then the entire second half of the book is about him keeping secrets from her, and as a reader, watching him make an incredibly boneheaded decision which you know will blow everything up.

He loves her, yet he grants her no agency. And she allegedly knows him and cares about him, but cuts him no slack at all. They are both so incredibly immature and frustrating, it is a wonder that they made it to an HEA at all.

Maddie plays competitive tennis, by the way, which is kind of cool. But that could not save this mess. I was bored at times. I was frustrated at times. I felt like the big revenge thing with Harrison's family was underdeveloped and unsatisfying. And I felt nothing for the main characters or their relationship.

I’ll read from this author again, but this book will not be on my re-read shelf.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for the copy of this ebook. I really liked this book. There was a turn in the story I was not expecting. It changed the tone of the story and I liked it more.

Received an advanced copy in exchange for a fair review.

The latest Joanna Shupe contained the strong female lead I have come to expect from her, but unfortunately pulled my least favorite archetype from the list of available heroes: forces his will on the heroine in a way that makes me more annoyed than charmed. I've actually DNF'ed a past Shupe because of a hero that was so pushy and consistently ignored the heroine's stated wishes.

The story kept my attention mostly because of the details: a woman trying to be a championship tennis player, the friends of the main characters I hope to read about in the future, the NYC/Newport setting (Shupe continues to have so much fun in the Gilded Age New York world, a rarity among big historical romance authors).

The hero KIND OF learns his lesson and starts to respect the heroine's autonomy and desire for a true partnership, but not quite enough groveling happened for me to give this more than three stars.

This book is in a voice and style unlike Shupe's former books. The author has had help with this book, and I wonder if that has affected how the story was written and how it reads. It is disappointing. And...I had really been looking forward to it.

Maddie Webster is a high society girl in 1895 New York City. Used to attention and adulation all her life, Maddie is a strong, confident young woman. She convince her parents not to expect her to marry in her first season, but to give her three seasons or so to indulge in her love of tennis. Now, she's become a national championship player and is at the height of her sports career. However, she knows, that despite her parents indulging her wish for a few years, her only job is to get married. So she sets her cap at the biggest prize of the season, the British Duke of Lockwood, and he is slowly warming up to her. While he hasn't proposed, a proposal is imminent.

Into this lovely situation steps her old, beloved friend, who'd abandoned her in her first season and rushed away to Paris for three years. She had been heartbroken that he had completely broken away from their friendship.

Harrison Archer has been in love with Maddie for years. But one night, he overhears her confiding to her friend about him. Stung, he runs away to Paris, and throws himself into amassing a fortune and living a hedonistic life. He is fond of his delightful mistress, but parts with her when he decides to return to NYC when his father dies. His family had abused him as a child, always treating him as a worthless second son, so now, he is back to bankrupt them and ruin their standing in society. Oh, and now that he is back, he is determined to marry the love of his life, Maddie.

This entire characterization of Harrison is strange. Instead of rushing off to Paris, he could've had a clarifying conversation with his closest friend in the world, Maddie. For all that he claims to love her and her being his best friend, he does not even trust her enough to have one mature conversation. Of course, in that case, the book would've never been. Upon his return, he could've had that conversation, and yet, he never does. He could've have returned at any point in the three years he was gone if he was so much in love with her, but he never does. But now that he is back to wreak revenge, as a side benefit, he is going to pursue Maddie and win her. And while the romantic shenanigans are going on, the revenge plot is put on hold. Towards the end of the book, their relationship hits a stumbling block, and they decide to separate for a bit, and immediately, Harrison gets in touch with his mistress. Right.

At no point did Maddie think to talk to Harrison before he left or after he returns or send letters asking him why he had left so precipitously. Does she not want to solve the obstacle in the friendship with her best friend? She just accepts his abandonment. And then despite his having abandoned her and lived a hedonistic life, the minute she sets eyes on him upon his return, her previous friendship morphs into romantic interest. It's like a switch was thrown; there was no build-up to the new feelings. Maddie's behavior in the breakup of their relationship -- the requisite cliche'd black moment of the book -- is immature at best. I think this was a major peeve of mine: the protagonists' immaturity and inability to have an adult conversation with each other.

Overall, this was fun - it stayed relatively light, the plot moved quickly, and it was a pretty fast read. That said, it felt like the plot kept building up to dramatic events to build tension and allude to future drama, but then nothing really ever came of the build-up. It felt like something bad was constantly looming, and yet it never came, which led to a weird sense of being let down when the plot kept resolving itself relatively neatly.

Also, there's a small cheating plot. It didn't last for long, but it left a bad taste in my mouth, personally.

DNF at 27%. I really struggle with romance when the source of conflict is poor communication/misunderstanding. I just want to yell at them to have a conversation! In this case - Harrison had been in love with Maddie for years and after eavesdropping as she told her friends that she thought of him like a brother, he left the country without saying a word to her. It’s been 3 years and he’s back and needs a wife. Maddie was hurt he left without a word and she’s soon to be engaged to a Duke. It just feels like a lot of really obvious back and forth of them both being jealous and hurt and not talking about anything and I’m not here for it. Thank you Avon and Netgalley for the advance reading copy.

Harrison has never felt accepted by his family, and has spent the years abroad amassing a secret empire. He returns to New York with a plan to buy his family's failing company out from under them, but an intriguing prospect presents itself. His mother tells him that in order to save the family, Harrison must marry a wealthy heiress. His childhood friend and long-time crush, Maddie, is still one of the most eligible bachelorettes of the season. Even though a proposal from a Duke is rumored to be eminent, Harrison can't help but feel like this is fate. A last chance to win the heart of the girl who broke his.

I loved the chemistry between Maddie and Harrison as friends, but their own stubbornness got in the way one too many times. When Harrison and Maddie are caught in a compromising position, Maddie begs Harrison to set the record straight.... even though he has clearly stated he wants her. Maddie's lack of awareness is jarring since she is supposed to be this intelligent, independent woman. For the entire book, Maddie prefers to deny her feelings for her best friend. I never really felt like she was as in love with Harrison as he was with her.

And then the third act conflict could be seen from a mile away. Harrison, despite his promise to Maddie, behaves like an overbearing ass instead of showing Maddie that he is trustworthy and keeps his word. It was a forced plotline that I didn't care for at all.

This had all the trappings of an extremely satisfying story

Friends to lovers
Romantic and in love hero
Reluctant heroine
Super intriguing side characters
But unfortunately it fell flat for me. While I enjoyed parts of the book like Maddie and her tennis career, and Harrison and just how deeply he loved Maddie, I couldn't get past the the feeling that these two just weren't good together.

I am willing to overlook characters that fail to have good communication (ahem Whitney, My Love) but it's another where the same conflict is used over and over again throughout the novel and it feels as if there is no true growth or resolution. In this case, Harrison has a nasty habit of not being completely upfront with Maddie. There are certain situations that I could somewhat empathize with why he kept things hidden from her, but it felt so highhanded. And it left me frustrated as hell.

And then Maddie. While I understand her justified frustration with Harrison, the way she handled it was no better than what he did. It felt like emotional manipulation and I just could not get passed it. By the time I was finished, I didn't really care for their HEA cause they just came off as such a terrible couple together.

But as much as I didn't like this particular story, I am still very invested in some of the side characters we were introduced to, as I hope their stories have a better source of conflict and more depth.

This was my first Joanna Shupe book and I don't know why it took me so long to give her a try. This book was fantastic. Harrison Archer has always been treated like a misfit in his family. Luckily for him, Maddie Webster, the girl next door, treated him as the brother she never had. As they grew, Harrison fell in love with Maddie, and was destroyed when he found out that she did not share his feelings. He ran away to Paris for three years, and only comes back when summoned by his brothers because his estranged father died. This sets off a chain of events where Harrison has to find an heiress to wed, and even though Maddie has an understanding with a duke (!!!!) he has his sights on her.

There were SO many secrets in this book, it made my head spin. But I'm already looking forward to Kit + Alice's book that is coming out in the fall. I'm hooked on Joanna Shupe, just from this book. Thanks to NetGalley + Avon for the ARC in exchange for this review.

There’s virtually no plot to this. In a nutshell, it’s about immature love between Maddie, a self-absorbed and selfish female protagonist, and Harrison, the male protagonist, who is plotting revenge on the family that treated him like dirt, and who has been hanging on to a childhood love, thinking he can disrupt her life and coerce her into marriage based on past friendship and scorching chemistry. For a book that has no real plot, it’s amazing how much happens too quickly: Maddie’s forgiveness of Harrison’s abandonment 3 years prior without a word to her before, during or after his absence; Harrison amassing a fortune in just a few years after leaving for France with nothing; the lightning speed of his courtship and proposal; her acceptance of the Duke’s offer of marriage, knowing she had growing feelings for Harrison; and then, just one day later, being found in a compromising position that forces a broken engagement and hasty marriage. Harrison’s plan for revenge is totally anticlimactic, and even the threats towards Maddie have no heat behind them, a storyline that could have introduced tension that this book is sorely lacking. Shupe usually writes engaging, sexy historical fiction that is totally engrossing, usually with some tragedy or threat that propels the story. This one is weak.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Avon through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

I love the Gilded Age time frame, and I really enjoyed taking a trip to Newport and seeing the female as the athlete, but unfortunately this is probably my least favorite Joanna Shupe novel to date. Part of that could be personal taste - I’m not a huge fan of revenge plots in general - but I also just didn’t love the two main characters.

Archer withholds a lot from Maddie, which is frustrating not angtsy. And then the way Archer goes about “winning” the Maddie is so unapologetically underhanded. He really subscribes to the mantra of “all is fair in love and war,” and that’d be more acceptable if his “competition” was a villain. But while the villain might not be ultimately right for heroine, he’s not a bad guy. Archer really views getting Maddie as a competition: “Lockwood’s a sore loser, I suppose.” “This is not a game.” Lifting a hand, he brushed the backs of his knuckles along her jaw. “Wrong. This was most definitely a game and you were the greatest prize.” ... Ick.

And then Maddie, she's just so oblivious for someone who keeps saying her and Archer know each other SO WELL, they can read each other‘s minds. Everyone EXCEPT Maddie is aware he loves her.

I enjoyed many of the side characters and would like to see Kit or some of the other ladies get their HEA, but I usually fly through Joanna‘s books, and this one was such a struggle to the point I took a month-long break before forcing myself to finish it.

2.5 stars?

*CW: sexual assault, infidelity


“I’m not sure that I love you, but the sex is phenomenal”
— Maddie, definitely


BRO

I’ve become such a big fan of Joanna’s (she writes the best historical romance sex scenes WHEW) and perhaps my hopes were just *too* high. Also, have you seen that cover??!?!!

The story started off strong, but then...
Look, I hate the friends to lovers trope. It’s pointless. But I was holding out for a little something, because again JOANNA, but I got nothing! The flashbacks that were sprinkled out in the beginning suddenly just stopped. The whole tennis thing just came out of nowhere and wasn’t fully fleshed out, IMO. I didn’t even believe the romance AT. ALL. And then that conflict?? Why bother? It shouldn’t even have been mentioned, because a conflict like that takes years to get by but suddenly everything’s just okay

THIS MAN WAS ALREADY CALLING ON HIS MISTRESS AGAIN WTFFFF

I’m heated now LOL buuuuut I did enjoy the sex scenes so sue me or whatever

Shupe NEVER disappoints! As expected the story was excellent and the storytelling was spot on and a joy to read. I can't wait for more in this series.

We covered this book in our weekly new release round-up and shared it on all of our social media channels multiple times during release week.

When Maddie's best friend asks for her help in finding a spouse, she quickly puts together a house party and invites all her eligible friends. While Maddie and Harrison were best friends growing up, Harrison has been gone a long time and it would seem that Maddie's feelings for him now are more than just friendship.

Harrison has returned from being abroad for several years. But he knows what he has always wanted...Maddie as his wife. He asks for her helping in finding a wife, just so that he can spend time with her. Can he convince her that what they feel for one another is more than just a lifelong friendship?

I loved Maddie and Harrison's story!! I love reading friends to lovers stories! I loved that they knew either other so well and the bantering between them had me laughing out loud. I can't wait to read the next book in the series!

This book was so entertaining. I was drawn into the story from the beginning and was involved until the end. The characters were complex and interesting. I found the story to be well paced and engrossing throughout the whole book. I was invested in the couple throughout the book and felt all the emotions through both the highs and lows of the story. If you want an entertaining and well written book this is it for you.

Thank you for the ark copy. I can't decide if this Shupe book should have a 3 or 3.5. Some parts were really wonderful: great chemistry between lead characters, interesting historical background, very steamy, good vengeance.
My most of my frustrations with the novel stem from the lack of reality in the female protagonist. Her expectations were too modern for a Victorian woman. I know she was pushing for autonomy, but it just didn't work for me.
The lead male is extremely focused on what he wants and a bit in flexible. But I've known many men like this over the years.
I found myself asking why too many times in this novel.