Another amazing book by Ms Michaels. Pippa and Rhys were two characters I wasn’t sure of in the first book of the series, but this book gleefully changed my mind. Rhys sounds amazing and I kinda wish that all sex scenes were written with a Rhys like character as the main male character.
I can’t wait to see the sparks fly between Abigail and Gilmore!!

The Defiant Wife is the second book in Jess Michaels’ The 3 Mrs. Series and having received the previous book from Netgalley and enjoyed it, I hopped at the chance of reading this one too!

The previous book in the series followed the third wife, Celeste, and her love interest Owen who was the investigator on the case. This book is about Pippa, the second wife, and Rhys, the brother of the bigamist husband.

I would definitely recommend reading The Unexpected Wife (the first book) first because, while this book can stand alone, it will make it much easier to get up to speed and understand what is going on. Furthermore, I think it provides a lot of relevant background that explains certain nuances throughout the book. There is also a lot of tension already growing between Pippa and Rhys in the first book, and I loved finally being able to read it!

As with the previous book, I liked this one too! In terms of characters, Pippa is such a well-written character. She is strong, passionate, and extremely likable. Rhys is also surprisingly likable! After reading the first book, I thought he was going to appear as more of a surly stand-offish type towards Pippa, but that wasn't the case at all! He is still trying to make amends for his brothers’ transgressions and that obviously plays a large part in the progression of their relationship--namely with the brother's love child who is a large plot point of this novel. I did however prefer the previous book as a standalone. While it still works, I think having read the first book I had a better understanding of their relationship and pull to each other, otherwise, I think to some it may feel that it just progressed too quick and maybe out of nowhere? I’m not sure. It was a fun, solid read, but I’m more excited for the next book in the series.

The Defiant Wife is the second book in the delightfully steamy The Three Mrs series by Jess Michaels. Each book can stand alone, but I recommend reading The Unexpected Wife first; you'll appreciate the background from the first book and the growing friendship between the three widows. Though not as compelling as book one, I still very much enjoyed this installment.

Phillipa "Pippa" Montgomery was married to Erasmus Montgomery; when he was murdered, she discovered she wasn't the only woman married to the swine...he had two other wives! Yes, the dearly departed was a bigamist with two other wives. He was also the father to an illegitimate child he had with Pippa's former maid. Sweet Pippa doesn't hold little Kenley's parentage against him; she loves the baby as if he were her own and she wishes to take care of him. Rhys Montgomery, the Earl of Leighton and brother of Erasmus, wants to make amends and reparations for the debts his brother left behind, and he, too, wants to protect and care for Kenley. Pippa and Rhys are passionately drawn to each other, but they each have enough scandal to deal with already because of his brother and they know they can't be together. How can they resist the love and passion they both feel?

This was a particularly steamy read, more so than the first book. Both Pippa and Rhys were both good, decent and passionate people. They deserved every happiness for all they went through, though both are being punished by society for the deeds of Erasmus. For this reason they believed they had no hope for a life together. They tried to resist being drawn to the other, but neither was particularly successful. This is where the book fell a bit flat for me; they resisted, then succumbed, lather, rinse, repeat. Yet they still made a compelling couple. I especially enjoyed the friendship between the three Mrs, plus the relationship Rhys had with the Duke and Owen. I cannot wait to get my paws on the next story of Abigail and the Duke. They seem to despise each other, but we know how that works out in Romanceland!

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley. I received no compensation for my review, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Second book in the series. It's a stand alone read. We get to know Pippa and Rhys, as expected. They were absolutely adorable together. Trying desperately to fight their attraction. The author wrote beautifully the magnetic pull between them. The fact that there was a baby involved, had me sold from the get go. I love my books very steamy and this one did not disappoint. Very HOT. Of course, we read more about the others wives. Big thumbs-up for this book.

Thanks the publisher via Netgalley for this ARC. The opinions here are all mine.

4.25 stars

While it is not strictly necessary to read the first book in order to read this one, I would strongly suggest it as the characters from this book appear often in book 1 (The Unexpected Wife) and the characters from book 1 are in this one quite a bit as well. If you have not read book 1, this review will contain spoilers.

Phillipa Montgomery ("Pippa" to her friends) was the second wife of the later discovered polygamous Erasmus Montgomery, the half-brother of the Earl of Leighton. Upon discovering that the man she believed to be her husband had fathered a child with the woman he insisted on hiring as her lady's maid, Pippa ventured to London from their home in Bath to track him down only to learn that she was never legally married to the man to begin with. Though devastated by Erasmus's treachery, one good thing that came out of the mess was the unlikely but strong friendships she made with his legal first wife, Abigail, and his third wife, Celeste. And while Pippa is ecstatic that Celeste has found true love with the man that was sent by the earl to investigate his half-brother's death, she realizes that because of her fallen woman status (through no fault of her own), she is not going to have her own happily ever after. This is especially difficult to take as upon her very first encounter with the earl, she experienced feelings she never felt for his deceitful brother. But with the scandal surrounding them both, there is no possibility that they can ever be together.

Rhys Montgomery, tenth Earl of Leighton is horrified by the complete disaster his brother has left behind. Not only did he have 3 wives that he set aside no provisions for ongoing care in the event of his untimely death, not to mention the staggering debts that Rhys must now make right, but he left behind the child he fathered with the woman their father forbid him to wed. Rhys does not hesitate to accept responsibility for the child as he knows all too well what it is like to grow up as an outsider in the family, but he does not know how to go about it. The scandal is tremendous, and the woman that has been caring for the baby is temptation incarnate. But Rhys cannot resist Phillipa's kind and generous nature despite the hell his half-brother put her through, though both of them know they can never overcome the scandal Erasmus left behind and can certainly not have any form of permanent attachment. But as their passion grows into a love neither can deny, can they find any way to be together knowing that caring for the child will keep them in each other's paths for the rest of their lives? And what will happen when the mother of the baby returns in search of the child she never intended to abandon?

What I liked:
--- Both mcs were extremely likeable - you really wanted them to get their HEA
--- Great relationship development between the 2 main characters
--- Revisiting the characters from book 1 and solid set up for book 3
--- Steamy goodness (early, meaning before the 50% mark, and often!)

What I didn't like as much:
--- The story dragged a little with the "will they, won't they" and then with the "whatever shall we do now" debates
--- I felt like there could have been a little more build-up or action with respect to the return of the mother of the child than there was to make it a little more "edge of the seat"

Overall, this was a very enjoyable read with characters that you wanted to get their HEA, steamy goodness galore, and a great set-up for what I hope will be an explosive ending to this trilogy!

Plot --- 4.25/5
Main Charac2ters --- 4.5/5
Supporting Cast --- 4.5/5
Steam Level* --- 3.75/5
Violence --- none I can recall
Language --- not egregious
POV --- 3rd

*Note that steam level is not a rating so much as a how hot was it: 0/5 - clean; 1/5 - mild (nothing descriptive); 2/5 - 3rd base action/1 home run; 3/5 - now we're getting somewhere (a couple of full-on steamy scenes); 4/5 - yes please! (erotica territory); 5/5 - they did EVERYTHING in this one, y'all

I like a rake as much as the next person but it is sometimes refreshing to read a story with a strong man who is not a rake but just a nice guy. That person is Rhys. He is thoughtful, kind, has integrity and who would kick of them out of their bed. One problem, he is worried about his reputation. Pippa is one of the most generous people. She takes in her husband’s son he had with the maid (not a spoiler) and is kind, really like most heroines. Can these two people travel and keep their lust at bay? Hmmm…what do you think? But again, the reputation is hanging over Rhys head. This is a much tamer story that some that Jess has written in terms of angst. This is just a nice story all around.

Phillipa “Pippa” Montgomery thought she married for love, but soon she learns that her husband, Erasmus Montgomery is the father of her maid, Rosie’s baby. She follows him to London, only to learn that he was a bigamist, with two other wives and has been murdered! She teams up with Erasmus’s two other wives to clear their names and then gets another shock when she learns he is not dead, only to witness his jealous lover kill him. Unsure what his death means to her and his infant son, Pippa willingly accepts the help of Erasmus’ brother, Rhys, the Earl of Leighton, while trying to fight her attraction to him.

Rhys is horrified by Erasmus’s actions and vows to set everything to rights. He too fights his attraction to Pippa, as nothing can come of it, and being together would be a scandal. He tries to do the right thing by her and his nephew, traveling to Bath to settle his brother’s debts and to setup Pippa and the baby up in a house. But the more time they spend together, the deeper the attraction and they finally give in to it. Knowing a brief affair is all they can ever hope for. When it becomes clear that Bath is not going to be suitable, Rhys offers to set Pippa and the baby up in London – she accepts, but us clear, whatever happened between them must stay in Bath. Easier, said than done and when they learn that Rosie is still in England, Rhys cannot let Pippa deal with her alone. He knows that being together will cause a scandal – but rumors of Erasmus’ bigamy and death are already a scandal, so what difference will a bit more make? Now he just has to convince Pippa and hopefully do so before unstable Rosie turns up.

This was a well-written, nicely paced, steamyish book that picks up exactly where the previous book ended. Unlike the previous book that introduced us to all the players, this book was able to focus most of its attention on the relationship between Pippa and Rhys, which was great, but I did feel like they made a mountain out of a molehill about why they couldn’t be together and took a bit too long to realize that there was going to be a scandal no matter what they did. Overall, I enjoyed this story and am looking forward to the next installment.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own. *

Thank you for the ARC to read and review.

`Forbidden love for two good people in circumstances out of their control. Pippa was married to a bigamist who's death is shrouded in secrecy. His brother, Rhys, is picking up the pieces of the mess his brother made out of the lives of three innocent women. He can't keep away from Pippa, is strongly attracted to her, and their love story is a joy to read.

This book had lots of romance favorites: road trips, characters with intriguing pasts and happy endings. However, as a whole, it fell short for me due to the mystery/thriller aspect. While 90% of the book is a delightful romance, the last little bit is a quick and disjointed sprint to include some part of the trilogy’s central theme into the book. Had this story been merely tangential to the series plot, or contained more interwoven aspects of the series plot, it would have been a five star read. As it stands the ending feels rushed and unconnected to the rest of the plot.

I am still excited to see the third book in the series, and overall this was a nice read, this one just felt unpolished.

Another great addition to the series that was sexy and also managed to pull at my heart strings. This book didn’t have as many twists and turns as the prior but I love Pippa and Rhys. They care for each other but due to Rhys’ brother, Erasmus, they shouldn’t be together. I’m so mad at how because of Erasmus’ actions in the prior book and beforehand, that the rest of the characters have to deal with the aftermath and consequences. He really screwed them over. Pippa and Rhys have a great connection. They feel they shouldn’t be together but thank god Owen is such a logical person. I couldn’t wait any longer. The ending was very satisfying and I was happy of the outcome.

*Received via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

Rhys and Pippa’s story was imperfectly perfect!
*****
Rating: 5 stars
Steam: 3 flames
Genre: Historical Romance
*****
Pippa was the second Mrs. Montgomery, and she has so much more to her story, Erasmus had moved his true love into her home under the guise she was Pippa’s maid and then conceived a child with the “maid.” Once Erasmus and the maid took off, Pippa was left raising her husband's love child. Talk about a scandal, but Pippa’s heart is too big to let a small baby pay for his father’s sins.

Pippa is a strong, intelligent woman that understands what is expected of her and hasn’t experienced much kindness. Her parents only used her as a stepping stool to climb the social ladder, her husband had his lover living in her house while caring for his love child, the only people she has are the ones affected by the scandal. Rhys, Owen, Gilmore, Celeste, Abigail, and dear sweet Kenley.

Rhys is still cleaning up his brother’s messes and the next mess to clear is in Bath. Rhys must clear up Erasmus’ debts and decide what to do with Kenley (and Pippa for that matter). Rhys needs to repair his family's name and that won’t be easy especially with the fireworks exploding around him and Pippa like it’s the Fourth of July. Pippa understands that she cannot drag Rhys further into scandal by being with him, he will never be able to clear his family’s name if he is forever tied to her and his brother’s son. Maybe just a little taste would be okay...right? What could go wrong?

The Defiant wife caused me to tear up twice, these two characters’ just had so much pain and both were so intent on doing what is right at the expense of their hearts. It was heartbreaking at moments. Once again, I stayed up well past my bedtime quickly turning the pages needing to know how Rhys and Pippa would end up, and what of baby Kenley. There is suspense, love, friendship, and more twists to the story. Pippa and Rhys’ story was beautiful and the HEA hard earned but so worth it! I can’t wait for the last installment to see how Abigail and Gilmore fall. This book/series gets all my recommendations.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I was looking forward to reading Pippa and Leightons book, since the characters first appeared in the previous book, and I was not disappointed. There is off the charts chemistry between these two decent people who are both the victims of ugly circumstances. What brings them together is their mutual love for a baby. Who can resist a baby? Lots of agonizing and angst over doing the right thing-almost too much, at times. Still, in the end It was a completely satisfying read and I am anxiously awaiting Annabelle and Gilmore's book next!

I am a huge fan of this author but this was a rare miss for me.

Pippa Montgomery is wife number two of a man who was discovered to be a bigamist, only after he was murdered. Besides the three wives, her late husband also had an illegitimate child whom Pippa has been caring for.

Attempting to right the wrongs of his villainous half-brother, Rhys Montgomery, the Earl of Leighton, plans to bring his nephew to London to see after his needs. He travels with Pippa to assist with the move. Things get hot and heavy on the trip but because of the scandal, they could never be together.

Supposedly, sometime during her marriage, Pippa and Rhys met and each thought the other attractive. Neither, however, told one another of this attraction or dreamed of acting in it. This was where the miss was. I never understood the instant connection and only had this brief mention of of "he's hot" and "she's hot", to draw from. It just wasn't enough for a believable romance.

I have no doubt that the next pairing will be a winner though.

Rhys Montgomery, the Earl of Leighton, has the thankless task of cleaning up his half-brother's mess including his shocking behavior in marrying 3 different women. The financial aspect of the clean up is a financial burden on the earldom, but it's his attraction to Pippa Montgomery, Mrs. Montgomery #2, that is his biggest hurdle. How can he desire his dead brother's wife or not wife as the case may be. Pippa Montgomery was shocked to find out that she wasn't legally married. On top of that, she has been caring for her dead husband's child with his lover. She's worried about her financial future, but most of all, she fights against her attraction to Rhys.

This was a good story although not as captivating as the first book in the series. Rhys was a stand up kind of guy and will do whatever he can to compensate the women who were wronged by his dead half-brother. I felt bad for Pippa especially when she returns to Bath. The reception she receives from her parents and the shopkeepers is terrible and absolutely undeserved. When Rhys suggests she return to London, she jumps at the chance to escape the censure in Bath. These were two upstanding people and I was glad to see them get their HEA. I realize this book was an ARC, but there were numerous typos and wrong names in some conversations. That detracted from a smooth read. I can't wait to read the next story in the series. That one should absolutely be full of angst and fireworks.

I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.

Ever since the events that led up to the three Mrs Montgomery's meeting, and their husband's subsequent death, life for Pippa Montgomery has been a challenge. She only came to London to find her husband and make sure he stands up and supports his bastard son - the son of her own maid, who was abandoned into Pippa's care. Instead, she meets her two fellow wives, uncovers a plot to frame them, and meets her 'brother-in-law' Rhys, Earl of Leighton. Now that they know that Kenley's father is dead, and his mother the cause of it all, both Pippa and Rhys return to Bath, to ensure that he is safe. However, the news of Pippa's 'marriage' has spread, and she's persona not grata, no one even more so than by her own parents. Being with Kenley is all she wants, to be happy and secure, but her growing affection for Rhys, and his returning her feelings may soon cause a stir. But Rhys is shouldering the scandal as much as anyone else, and with paying off Erasmus' debts, the earldom will need his to soothe all scandal, and likely marry well. Any entanglement with Pippa will go against this, but neither of them can fight their feelings for much longer.

After enjoying The Unexpected Wife so much, I couldn't wait to read book 2. Pippa was a feisty character from the moment we met her, and the attraction between her and Rhys was plain for everyone to see. Even so, reading their own story was even better than I could've imagined. Pippa had such a vulnerable side, which she hid behind her fiery persona, and no matter what her marriage was like, she still believed in marriage, and wanted a family. Though Kenley wasn't her own child, she loved him like a mother, and would do absolutely anything for him, even if that meant giving him up to Rhys' guardianship. That added layer just improved the story so much, and the moments we saw Pippa, Rhys and Kenley be a pseudo-family was utter perfection. Rhys was someone who had had a very difficult childhood, and had been jealous of his brother, but felt immense guilt at his feelings for his 'sister-in-law'. Even so, the chemistry and sheer affection between the couple was wonderful, and I think I enjoyed this book even more than I did the first. Now, I'm so looking forward to the final book, and Abigail and Gilmore's story.

The second wife in the series was steamier, more mature but a bit less entertaining story than the first one. The mystery in the first book was really good and created an intriguing story. The second book is good too, but a bit more subdued. Pippa and Rhys are nice enough to keep your interest and make you wishing for their HEA.. However, I must confess that I can't wait for the third book. Abigail and Gilmore, have been really interesting characters and the animosity between them will create fireworks for sure.
I consider Defiant wife as an in between story, that just paves the way for the 3rd and final book.

Pippa Montgomery's life took a shocking turn. Her "husband" was murdered and revealed to be a bigamist. Now she's fighting another complication: an attraction to his brother, the Earl of Leighton. Rhys and his brother couldn't have been more different, but he can't help but want Pippa for his very own. However, the scandal that surrounds them is a tough mountain to climb.

This is the second book in The Three Mrs series. In the first story, the duplicity of Erasmus Montgomery is revealed and the three "wives" come together in an unlikely friendship. The books need to be read in order to avoid spoilers.

This is a wonderful story and my favorite by Jess Michaels! I loved Pippa and Rhys and, because their connection was already established in book one, their chemistry and relationship built beautifully throughout. It was well paced and very sexy!

Tropes: Forbidden Romance, Widow (sort of), Road Trip

An excellent story.

Rhys has set to make things right after his brother is killed and all his secrets came to light. Pippa is trying to restart her life after her "husbands" bigamy and affairs are revealed. It was love at first sight for these two, but will society's expectations ruin it?

So, this is the second book in the series, so it did feel like I was jumping into the middle of the story, but it didn't effect the understanding of the story.

Plenty of spicy scenes if that's what you're looking for. It was quickly paced and only took me a couple of hours to read, which is a big plus to me.

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC.

The Defiant Wife, takes place where book one ends. If you've not read book one yet you might be confused as the story goes on.
I love how Phillipa loves her exes child as if it were her own. So many innocent people hurt by one person's lies. Rhys and Phillipa make the best of it though.