I read the first two books in this series as soon as I got this ARC. I enjoyed them but this is definitely my favorite!

Lady Emily Turner is now a six year veteran of the season but so far it has not been what she expected. Her family scandals, including her father’s significant debt, have made things challenging. She has retained her pristine reputation, but now her parents have strangely encouraged the owner of an infamous gambling hall to squire her to events.

Lord Julian Belfry is a known rake: the owner of a scandalous theatre, frequented by aristocracy out on the town with their mistresses or when they are in search of “amusements.” Julian may be the younger son of a marquess but his father has long disowned him for his questionable pursuits.

Julian is determined to make his theatre a respectable establishment, lauded by the ton. What better way to accomplish that goal than by taking a beautiful, competent, beyond reproach society wife?

Emily and Julian conspire on a marriage of convenience—she will be relieved of her family burdens and he will rehabilitate the reputation of his theatre (and his own as well).

But they both get more than they bargained for when their pact is complicated by feelings for each other.

This is a fun, enjoyable book. The banter is lovely and Emily and Julian are delightful characters. I enjoyed their care for each other, the obvious mutual respect they have for one another, their mutual attraction, and their insight. Emily is an engaging heroine; the way she comes into herself is a pleasure to read. Julian is a splendid love interest: he’s charming, funny, intelligent, and insightful. And above all he’s kind. There are moments of such tenderness in this book.

It’s witty and entertaining and was the perfect vacation read. Well paced and engaging. It was fun to see the characters from previous books as well.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I've read and loved all of the books in Martha's REGENCY VOWS series, but this one might be my favorite?!? I absolutely adored the banter between Julian and Emily, and I'm honestly not sure how Martha's witty dialogue just keeps getting better and better. I also connected with Emily a lot as a character and found her journey toward self-discovery to be as compelling as the romance. Plus, a marriage of convenience trope is just always amazing. Highly recommend this whole series!

On the whole I thought this was pretty good. Not as good as the second book in the series, but charming. Julian made for a good LI and watching him realize he’s fallen in love was fun. My one big complaint was that it didn’t seem like a marriage of convenience from the start. The terms of such a marriage were not well spelled out, and then the both take an immediate interest in each other negating the idea that this is just for convenience. It would have been better as a friend marriage rather than a convenience marriage.

This is an excellent third book in the series. I'm so happy that Emily and Julian finally got their own book! It was well-plotted, great characters, and so much fun! I hope West and Sophia are next!

I'm super bummed that I didn't pick up that this is the 3rd book in a series! I really enjoyed the book, but do wish I had read the first two before reading this one. This caught my eye because of the similarities to Bridgerton - and from that perspective, the book did not disappoint at all! I'll definitely be adding the first two in the series to my TBR, and that will hopefully fill in some details for me. Overall, though, I highly recommend, especially if you've read the first two!

I didn't realize this appears to be the second in a series of books? I've decided not to read this until I read the first one.

Thank you, Atria Books, and Netgalley for my E-ARC, in exchange for an honest review.
Release Date: April 05, 2022

This series reminds me a lot of Julia Quinn's Bridgertons. The story was also a beautiful historical royalty rom-com with some funny scenes. I enjoyed a marriage of convenience plot. I loved seeing the growth of Emily and Julian and how they grew to love each other. Emily and Julian have genuine chemistry. I like how they keep an eye on each other, whether It's to check reactions or simply to gaze. Julian and Emily cope with their various pasts and family conflicts in a way that emphasizes their growth rather than events that take place in a more action-oriented manner. Romance is everything, but I enjoyed Emily's path of self-discovery and Julian's support. Emily is a character I like a lot, and I've liked seeing her develop her voice. It was predictable at times, but overall it was a pleasant, straightforward, and enjoyable read.

Thank you so much for an advance copy of To Marry and to Meddle. This was such a cute read!

Star Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Historical Romance
Pub Date: April 5, 2022

This book was so cute! I absolutely loved the main characters, Emily and Julian, and I was so excited to revisit characters I already loved from the first two books in the series.

I thought the dynamic between Emily and Julian was really interesting in this one,, and honestly, it is the main reason I liked this book so much!, I found his rakish ways really charming, of course, and I loved that he represented an escape from her restrictive life. I usually love any historical fiction/romance that involves a lady breaking out her "confines," and this book delivers on that on several fronts. The romance, the steam, and the shenanigans abound between these two characters, and I could not put this book down. I think I finished the book in less than twenty-four hours, and it left me wanting more!

Sometimes, I just need to curl up on the sofa with a sweet, easygoing, romantic story that makes me smile. To Marry and To Meddle, the third book in The Regency Vows series by Martha Waters was that book for me this past weekend. I love a good regency romance, and this one hit all the right notes.
Lovely and respectable, Emily has been a debutante for six seasons and should have married by now. But instead, because of her father's debts, her only suitor is the gaming hell owner who holds those debts. Rakish Lord Julian scandalously owns and operates a theatre, one where men take their mistresses but not their wives. Over the course of a house party, the two decide to enter into a marriage of convenience to get Emily out from under the constraints of her family issues and away from her loathsome suitor and help Lord Julian gain respectability among the ton. A business transaction that neatly solves their problems. Less convenient are the feelings that accidentally develop between the two of them.
Emily and Lord Julian are both charming, appealing characters. Waters writes such witty banter, and it's on full display here, as is the chemistry and steam in this immediate marriage but slow-burn romance. Their relationship is fun to see play out.
Lord Julian also hilariously faces a nemesis in his household, the naughty but adorable "demon" kitten, Cecil. Emily's best friends Diana and Violet are back and as feisty and fabulous as ever! This supportive core group of intelligent women and their friendship is a highlight across all the books in the series, and I love being in their midst every time. Even though this is the third in the series, it works well as a stand-alone. Delightful, distracting, entertaining, and funny, it's a historical romance that feels contemporary. Sincere thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read this ARC. I throughly enjoyed it!

TO MARRY AND TO MEDDLE
by Martha Waters
Atria
Pub Date: Apr 5

Lady Emily Turner, a seasoned "debutante" due to her father's ginormous debts, and Lord Julian Belfry, scandalous actor and theater owner, enter a marriage of convenience.

Emily is to bring a more reputable audience to the theater, and Julian aims to protect his wife from the dark crowd surrounding her father.

Soon, however, they find their goals differ. Emily becomes intrigued by the theater and Julian just wants her to be a "good" society wife.

A fun, sexy, compelling narrative grabs readers as the couple finds they do, indeed, have deep feelings for each other. Regency RomCom lovers will embrace this tale, as will fans of historical fiction with tender amour at its core. A lovely divertissement during uncertain times.

Thanks to the author, Atria, and NetGalley for the digital ARC. Opinions are mine.

#tomarryandtomeddle #marthawaters #Atria #NetGalley #RegencyRomCom #marriageofconvenience #bookstagramcommunity

To Marry and to Meddle was my favorite of the series, thus far. It contained one of my favorite tropes: fake relationship turns real.

Julian needs a scandal-free, upper society wife in order to impress his father and get his theater more upscale. Emily just wants to get away from her parents’ pressure to be perfect and her parents’ choice of suitor. And so, a marriage of convenience was born.

Except it never really feels like a convenience, as the chemistry between the two is electric and their friendship continues to transform into something more. Emily was a fantastic Heroine; she transforms from this polite and proper innocent into this strong and resilient wife. The banter between her and Julian was a perfect addition and there were multiple times I chuckled out loud.

I loved the character development for both Emily and Julian. It felt realistic and natural and it was wonderful seeing their relationship grow.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the review copy!

This is book 3 in The Regency Vows series and it is by far my favourite. Emily as a character shined in this novel and overtook Diana as my favourite. I laughed more than once, in particular where the ‘murderous kitten’ was involved. This does read well as a standalone, though I always recommend reading series in order. I don’t think you would fully appreciate the growth of Emily if you didn’t read the first two books. A quick, lighthearted, funny read. I’m here for book 4 if there is one!


Thank you Atria for the digital ARC.

To Marry and To Meddle is a cute historical romance at its best. Perfect for fans of Bridgerton, it hits every beat and is a frightfully easy read. I loved getting to revisit characters from previous books by Martha Waters, but it's not necessary to read her other works before this one. Martha Waters may be the new Julia Quinn with this one!

Every time I read a romance novel, the debate begins in my head about which romantic trope I like best. After reading "To Marry and to Meddle," it's gone back to being marriage of convenience.

Emily is a perfect young lady who would be considered the most suitable bride in the ton if not for her father's outstanding debts. Julian is a rakeish theater owner who is not taken seriously because of his messy reputation. When the two of them decide to wed, they're convinced it's only a business transaction meant to benefit the both of them. Emily will escape her uptight, unyielding home and Julian will earn attention from the more reputable members of society.

Of course we all know where the story is going- they are going to fall in love despite agreeing that their marriage is not a love match. But the author does a fantastic job making the story original, heartwarming, and surprisingly witty.

Throw in a cute, yet incredibly possessive kitten, and you have all the elements of a solid romance.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinions.

While it wasn't my favorite out of the series, To Marry and To Meddle is still an excellent installment into this series. I loved reading about Emily and her finding love, as she has been one of my favorite characters the entire story. I only wish that there was more of a slow burn between her and Julian. It seemed that they moved really fast in terms of falling in love and all that and I think this book would be greatly improved if that was slowed down a bit. But even despite that, I still really enjoyed this book!

4.5

In many ways this is my favorite book of the series. I simply loved Julian and Emily's story. After two books of build up this was certainly worth the wait. I also really enjoyed how effortless this book felt - I love tension and pining and the whole feeling of "will they or won't they" in a romance but sometimes it's nice to simply luxuriate in banter and swoon-worthy romance. While there was certainly conflict between the two leads I never felt stressed as I am often wont to do, and I really needed that right now. Instead, this book was more about the individual character's journeys - Emily finally becoming the person she wants to be versus who she is expected to be, and Julian confronting his relationship with his father - and how they each encouraged the other on those journeys, and it was so lovely to see. I also feel compelled to mention this book has one of the best first time scenes I've ever read in a genre that often features virginal characters. It was tender and awkward and endearing and hot.

I do have to knock off a half a star for what felt like a very shallow attempt to include representation in this novel. This is a brief, blink-and-you've-missed-it moment featuring a character of color in this book that left me a bit uncomfortable, not only because this character's very fraught backstory was given a mere paragraph of discussion but also because this character seemed only to exist as a sounding board for Emily to discuss her own somewhat similar but mostly critically different issues. It's a small but unfortunately not insignificant misstep in an otherwise great book.

All in all, Waters's writing just keeps getting better and better and I really feel like she is hitting her stride here. Very much looking forward to book 4!

Thank you very much to the publisher for an advanced copy. Instagram review to come closer to pub day!

I have enjoyed all the books in this fun and light Regency romance series but I have to say Julian and Emily’s story is by far my favorite for a whole host of reasons. Emily and Julian have such an easy flirty vibe in <i>To Have and to Hoax</i> and <i>To Love and to Loathe</i> and they lived up to that chemistry and then some here. The novel starts with a marriage of convenience between Emily, who is chaffing under social expectations and her parents’ need to use her as a prop for her father’s sagging reputation, and Julian, who is desperate to improve his own reputation and prove to the <i>ton</i> once and for all that his theater and his life work can be respectable. But as it turns out, their marriage of convenience is becoming less convenient by the day as Emily discovers she rather likes having a say in her own life and won’t bend to her husband’s expectations and Julian discovers that perhaps his own stubbornness is preventing him from achieving what he really wants. I continue to adore the friendship between Violet, Diana, and Emily (MORE REALISTIC LADY FRIENDSHIPS IN ROMANCE PLEASE) and Julian and Emily have such great chemistry, I loved spending time with them.

As with the first two books, I flew through this and can’t wait for everyone to get their hands on it!

This is a light, Regency romance about a confirmed bachelor, Lord Julian Belfry, whose ownership of a <gasp!> theater has estranged him from his aristocrat father. He decides that the way to respectability is to take a wife <gasp again!> and he's set his sights on Lady Emily Turner, whose family is facing financial struggles (due to her father's poor choices). To raise his credibility among the "ton", Julian proposes marriage, or should we say a business arrangement? He'll pay her father's debts if Emily will marry him and sweet talk society ladies to raise his theater's profile,. But, as Julian and Emily find that marriage and the "marital act" suits them both, what is that they're catching? Feelings? Hmmm...in a marriage of convenience? How inconvenient!

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a digital ARC in return for an honest review.

To marry and to meddle was a quick read. This is the first time I've read a regency romance so I think they're just not for me.

Thank you netgally for providing me an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review

Anything historical mixed in with romance? Sign me up. I absolutely adored this relief filled romance. I discovered recently that something I throughly enjoy is historical romance and this didn’t let me down. The entire story, from page one to the very last page had everything I could have hoped for in this particular type of romance. I was smiling widely and my heart was close to bursting with so much happiness and joy! 5/5!