This book was such a joy to read! I loved the characters, their witty banter, and their chemistry and I was immediately invested in their stories and their relationship! It was a very light and easy read and is perfect to get anyone out of a reading slump!

There’s a lot to enjoy in this historical romcom. In this fake relationship story, Hugh hires Minerva to play the role of his fake fiancé to help sell a lie he’s been telling his mother for the past two years. As one can imagine there are plenty of inconsistencies and funny moments when Minerva doesn’t exactly fit the descriptions Hugh has shared.

Though the pacing dragged a bit at times and the writing was a touch too verbose, the plot was engaging and entertaining. As the first story in the Merriwell Sisters Series, this book sets the stage intoduces several captivating supporting characters ready for their own happily ever afters.

I received a review copy from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Fake engagements are always a fun storyline to read about! I really enjoyed this story and look forward to adding it to my book collection!

Thank you Netgalley, author, and publishers for this copy in exchange for an honest review!

Where to begin? This title was funny, entertaining, and sweet at points. Also, that cover? An instant draw -- it's adorable. Unfortunately there was enough spice in it that I am uncomfortable recommending it to friends. Let me explain.

I honestly loved the characters in this story -- as well as the setting. The humor was very well done; I found myself laughing out loud a few times. The story moves at a comfortable pace and has stellar supporting characters (especially Hugh's mother and step-father).

Okay, but what didn't I love?

There was way, way too much talking about Hugh's reputation. Yes, I get it. He's a walking scandal. After all of those passages, it felt like we were seeing a two-dimensional caricature of a human because we never get more than glimpses into the other facets of his character. I want to know more of his goodness. I want to know more of his depth. I want to sympathize with his agony, rather than roll my eyes at his obsession over what he could become. I didn't feel a strong connection with him, which was disappointing because there was so much potential. While I loved Hugh as a person, I felt cheated out of his story.

Same with Minerva. I felt like there was such an emphasis put on her world-weariness, I didn't get to fully understand her depth of character. We do get more glimpses into her life though, especially with her sisterly interactions.

And the romance. Er, was it romance? Or was it lust meandering down the road to romance? I was not thrilled at all with the emphasis on their physical attraction, mostly because it felt so hollow. Hugh spends so much time on his physical appreciation of Minerva (and Minerva with Hugh - to a lesser extent) but we rarely get glimpses into his appreciation of her strong, determined character. She has gone through so much, and has carried the weight of raising her siblings for years -- it felt like he was cheapening her, reducing her to a physical desire but not much more.

There were a few moments throughout the book that analyzed their physical longing in greater detail than was necessary. Combine that with a pre-marital, open-door bedroom scene at the end and you entirely lost my interest. [If you're interested in reading this, please know that you CAN entirely skip over this scene without losing any plot points. Just scroll on through.] This could have been a cute, sweet story that I would re-read for fun. Unfortunately, it didn't meet my expectations.

Thanks, publisher and author, for allowing me to read this work in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book and am so excited it’s the first in a series! Minerva is the oldest of three sisters who are living on their own and struggling to get by. She was advocating to get paid for services rendered when Hugh, an Earl, helped.

It turns out Hugh has invented a fake fiancée to stop his mother’s long distance matchmaking. But after two years, his mother is determined to meet her son’s fiancée and is on her way from America. Should Hugh tell her what he’s done or find someone to play the part? He wasn’t sure- until he met Minerva and knew she would be perfect.

I loved Hugh, Minerva, and all the side characters (especially the butler, Payne). Charming. Fun. Silly. Heartfelt. Lovely. This book just made me smile! I love the fake relationship trope and this had a bit of a slow burn as well. I hope you consider reading it!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book had just too many twists and turns for my taste. Hugh was ridiculous and many of the scenes in the story were just too hard to follow because of the lies.

I love historical romances. They often bring a smile to my face and Never Fall for Your Fiance is no different. From the beginning if the book this new to me author had me laughing. Although Minerva and Hugh came from different backgrounds they worked together perfectly. I loved their banter!
This would have been a 5 star read but it was getting a little long winded. It was very drawn out and the ending seemed to race with too much shenanigans.
I would have liked this edited down a little.

I received a copy of this book for a honest review.

Hugh Standish has been lying to his mother for years. According to his letters, he has a beautiful and doting fiancée, who of course his mother has never meant, considering she doesn’t exist. But when Hugh stumbles across Minerva Merriwell, who is in need of money to support her family, he proposes that they fake their engagement to save face. A ruse that will bring them close together, and unravel true attraction to each other as they continue their web of lies.

I have only read one other regency romance in my lifetime, and I might have to open my heart to more after all! I am a sucker for a fake relationship ship trope, and this one did not disappoint. The utter chaos of orchestrating two years worth of lies in front of Hugh’s mother was very fun, and the touching moments between Minerva and Hugh were filled with just enough tension to keep me interested.

I will say, I don’t love the miscommunication trope, and it is exercised here, but the other elements of the book made up for it in my eyes. I sure hope we see more from the Merriwell sisters soon!

I feel like sometimes historical romances can feel serious, but Never Fall For You Fiancee was super fun. Hugh has invented a fake fiancee named Minerva to keep his mother from interfering in his love life. When Hugh learns that his mother is coming from America for a visit and meets a real life Minerva, Hugh feels like his problems are solved and offers to pay Minerva to be his fake fiancé. When Minerva (and her sisters) arrives at Hugh’s estate, things don’t go according to plan. I enjoyed reading about how Hugh and Minerva fell in love, and I’m excited that this is the first in a series.

Virginia Heath's wit really shines in this one! Fake engagement, a meddling and loving mom, and two people who absolutely deserve each other. Thoroughly enjoyed it!

If you love British historical romances a la Bridgerton I think you will love this book! It was adorable with a classic meet cute. Our love interest is swoon worthy. Overall I really enjoyed it.

Hugh doesn't ever want a wife. Ever. He just found out his mom is boarding a ship heading to him from America. He has told her he had a fiance, but of course he doesnt.

Meriwether barely has two pennies to rub together. She is a wood engraver and chance has her meet Hugh.

Enter a relationship of convenience. Gosh I adore this trope. I always get anxious when the truth has to be discovered because I absolutely do not condone lies of omission in my own life.

The drama here though is first class. I love watching this story unfold and was sad when it ended.

Thank you @smpromance and @netgalley for the advanced readers copy of this story.

I requested this book on NetGalley because I’ve been reading nothing but thrillers for the most part and this sounded like a cute break from that.

Minerva is struggling to make ends meet while taking care of her two younger sisters after her father abandoned the family. Hugh has plenty of money but is in need of a fiancée for his mom’s upcoming visit. He hires Minerva to pretend to be his fiancée with plans for her to run off with someone else as an end to the farce.

This book was fine. It’s exactly as described, but it does get a bit repetitive as far as the internal reflections throughout the novel. There are other romance novels I prefer over this one, but it was an okay read.

Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher!

This was such a fun delight! I don’t read as many historical romances as I should, since I adore everything about the time period.

There is nothing like a good fake dating, in this case, engagement, trope. The unavoidable attraction and banter? Sign me up. The book did not disappoint on this trope.

There were two POVs’, Hugh and Minerva. I love when this occurs because we get to really see the characters more deeply. Like how Hugh doubts himself so much because of his bloodline that he is so afraid to fall in love. And like how Minerva is scared of heartache and to let anyone in because they leave in end.

Minerva is seriously so admirable. She became a mother to her sister when only she was but a child herself. These types of characters are the true heroes that aren’t in fantasy books.

I laughed out a lot so much. The banter with Hugh, Minerva, Olivia (his mother), and Payne (his butler), was just too good and outspoken. It was a fresh of breath air.

The conflict was a little underwhelming but I was not expecting it at all!

Know, I was a little disappointed with the *spice* scene. I was expecting a tad more, especially with dialogue.

Overall, this was cute, and if you’re looking for something quick and fun, here is your sign to pick this beauty up.

RATING: 4/5

This Regency Romance is just a romping, fun read! I am absolutely ecstatic to learn that this is marked as the first in a series about these three Merriwell sisters because I had such a fun time reading this one! Earl Hugh Standish invents a fiancee to stave off his mother's romantic machinations. After two years of detailing the dramas on his fictional romance with "Minerva," he learns that his mother is en route from America. A chance encounter on the street with an actual woman named Minerva seems like the perfect solution. Minerva agrees to pose as his fiancee - but only for the promised money that she can put to good use to support herself and her two younger sisters. It's soon apparent though, that there are some real sparks beneath the farce.

Funny and genuinely charming, I really loved all of the characters - from the cheeky butler, Payne, to the banter and exchanges between the hero and heroine. The plot may not be surprising, but it's certainly entertaining! I enjoyed this one from start to finish and I already can't wait to read more from Heath in the future!

Never Fall for Your Fiancé by Virginia Heath was frothy and delightful like a delicious cappuccino! I loved stepping back in time in this sweet romance! Minerva agrees to help an Earl who’s let a lie to his mom go on for two long years. Now she’s coming to meet his fiancé and he desperately needs a stand in. Minerva has two younger sisters to take care of and agrees for money that can change their lives. You can probably see the ending coming but I loved seeing how Heath would lead us there!

Never Fall For Your Fiancée is a new historical romance written by Virginia Heath. It is the first in a new series The Merriwell Series. Actually it is a romantic comedy and it is so funny. The storyline and characters kept me entertained from beginning to end.

There were two things that drew me to reading Never Fall For Your Fiancée were the historical romance aspect (regency 1800s) and the faux dating aspect. I can never resist a pseudo dating storyline! In this case, the pseudo dating involves Hugh Standish, Earl of Fareham, and Minerva Merriwell, a struggling woodcut engraver. The two meet unexpectedly one night and by chance Minerva has the same name as Hugh’s fabricated fiancé. He created the fiance to get his mother off his back with her match making and new everything is about to blow up in his face as his mother comes to town. He strikes a deal with Minerva to pretend to be the woman his mother believes him to be engaged to in exchanged for a large sum of money. And thus begins our adventure…

Hugh and Minerva thought they would have plenty of time to create their dynamic and have all the explanations for any discrepancies. Like the fact that Minerva has been responsible for her younger sisters when their mother died and father ran off. Or that in Hugh’s version of the courtship, her mother is very much alive forcing him to hire an actress to play her and changed it so that it was the father who actually died. Her sisters are not on board with any of this plan and freely speak out against it multiple times. And then there is a glaring detail that Minerva and her sisters are from a lower class and thus do not know how to be proper ladies of society. All of this creates so many funny moments, especially when Hugh’s mother and her husband show up way earlier than expected.

As Hugh and Minerva spend more time together trying to smooth out all the rough edges, the attraction between them grows. There are obvious differences between them but they have found a connection with each other. They find themselves being protective of each other even though they just met. Their both experiencing internal conflicts over these feelings as it something they are not used to in their individual lives. Hugh feels that his family name is tainted and therefore he should never commit to anyone. Minerva has never really had a committed relationship due to her home responsibilities. These internal conflicts of course lead to multiple misunderstandings between them but the sparks also fly as well.

Never Fall For Your Fiancée is filled with sarcasm, banter, and chemistry. I really enjoy the growing dynamic between Hugh and Minerva and was cheering for them to actually be together the whole time. I also really enjoyed the other characters in the story and am glad I get to spend more time with these sisters. Not one of them is the same and that makes me excited as a reader! And I think think next book in the series will follow Minerva’s younger sister Daisy’s and Hugh’s best friend Giles. And guess what…they can’t stand each other. Bring on the enemies to lovers, please!

Rating: 3.5 Stars

"What a pointless and wholly avoidable mess."

Unfortunately, I think this quote sums up the book too well. I found it a frustrating slog rather than the intended slow burn.
This fake engagement is based on tall tales and an intricate, fabricated backstory. Hugh hires Minerva to fill the role of his fictional fiancee of the same name, and chaos ensues. I had several general issues with the book:

 • There's casual slut-shaming in regards to who is wifely material. Reference is made to a marriageable woman's "pristine sheets" in contrast to the unworthy legion of lovers in Hugh's past.
 • It gets worse when Hugh's "primal, wholly male, and visceral" jealousy (a different beast from bargain brand jealousy) causes him to seethe about her potential past with a sweetheart despite his own promiscuous past, particularly dwelling on the question of what degree of physical intimacy they enjoyed.
 • A conversation on body image suggests that women know their own "faults" as a ...positive?
 • Any comments describing the US as a land of freedom and fairness make me gag.
 • The actress hired to play Minerva's mother provides comic relief, and her apparent alcoholism causes her to be characterized as a "drunkard" with her embarrassing, potentially incriminating behavior as the major concern rather than her well-being. All alcohol is removed from the premises with Lucretia as a passive recipient of the decision. Nothing is done to actually support her or treat her with any degree of empathy.

Characterization relied on telling (sometimes repeatedly) more than showing. I also disliked Hugh, both his faults and supposed strengths. Please enjoy my list of Hugh-shaped complaints:

 • Philanthropy is used as shorthand for his inherent goodness (lazy).
 • Acknowledgment of his rich white man privilege goes no further than discomfort and guilt, and it was exhausting to see it play out in slow motion on the page.
 • The man has an actual knight-in-shining-armor complex. Hugh's top-secret (but why?) desire to "rescue" the downtrodden results in his offer to pay Minerva enough to entice her from her clear poverty for her role while knowing it is a pittance in his own terms. Minerva's view of him as her personal knight fans the flames of his instalove for her as he sheds a lifetime of adamant refusals to settle down. That dynamic was cringey.
 • I was irritated by his nonsensical fear of biological programming towards infidelity. I shouldn't hate on another's mental health issues, but he goes in circles at a mind-numbingly unproductive pace. He also never actually moves past this block, just rewriting history to be happy with his believed inherited character.

Despite some brief comedic bright spots, I don't think that makes it worth the read. I wouldn't recommend it.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. From the cover, I was anticipating a contemporary romance, but was pleasantly surprised when it was set in 1825. I love historical romances. The trope of fake fiancé was fun, the story was definitely entertaining. The wit and banter enjoyable. The characters were easy to like and feel a connection to. I like my books to be PG style and I thought this was a prefect fit. 2 kissing scenes with some heated passion. But about 85% into the book there was a bedroom scene, that was quite detailed and descriptive. I am a grown woman, I don’t need graphic, love making dialogue to make a book more enjoyable. But I’m sure I’m in the minority. This is my first book by this author and I really loved her writing style and would love to read more from her. But I may be skipping parts of it.
I am torn on how to rate this book. I truly enjoyed the story.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Title: Never Fall for Your Fiancée
Author: Virginia Heath
Genre: Romance
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

The last thing Hugh Standish, Earl of Fareham, ever wants is a wife. Unfortunately for him, his mother is determined to find him one, even from across the other side of the ocean. So, Hugh invents a fake fiancée to keep his mother’s matchmaking ways at bay. But when Hugh learns his interfering mother is on a ship bound for England, he realizes his complicated, convoluted but convenient ruse is about to implode. Until he collides with a beautiful woman, who might just be the miracle he needs.

Minerva Merriwell has had to struggle to support herself and her two younger sisters ever since their feckless father abandoned them. Work as a woodcut engraver is few and far between, and the Merriwell sisters are nearly penniless. So, when Hugh asks Minerva to pose as his fiancée while his mother is visiting, she knows that while the scheme sounds ludicrous, the offer is too good to pass up.

Once Minerva and her sisters arrive at Hugh's estate, of course, nothing goes according to his meticulous plan. As hilarity and miscommunication ensue, while everyone tries to keep their tangled stories straight, Hugh and Minerva’s fake engagement starts to turn into a real romance. But can they trust each other, when their relationship started with a lie?

This was such a fun read! I enjoyed all the characters---except Vee---and found it quite funny as well. Hugh’s voice really had me laughing. He’s so dramatic and dry at the same time—and he thinks he’s destined to following his father’s footsteps, which is ridiculous. Minerva is a wonderful character, too, and I enjoyed her point-of-view very much. I’d definitely be interested in reading more about these characters.

Virginia Heath Lives in London. Never Fall for Your Fiancée is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)