I received an advanced reader's copy of Rules for Engaging the Earl by Janna MacGregor.

I enjoyed this lover's reunited story. This is the second book in the series and centers around Constance. Jonathon had a lot of personal growth to go through and Constance was very patient with him. She kept reaching out to get him to open up, was vulnerable, and willing to take emotional risks. The scenes between Jonathon and the baby were heartwarming. I like the friendship between Constance and the other wives and how they are supportive of one another.

Overall, this was a lovely addition to the series.

This is not what I was expecting. It was an enjoyable read but the action (or tone) didn't have any movement. The story just seems to move at one pace throughout the book. The characters, plot and writing are good, but I would have loved some action.

I loved Coinsurance and Jonathan's story. Two former friends who come together broken and put each other back together.

Janna MacGregor continues to write wonderful Historical Romance readers will love.

After losing her unfaithful husband and having no money, a pregnant Constance sends for her first love to marry her. Jonathan has come back from serving his country and is not the same man Constance remembers. But he marries her for her child's sake. He tries to make it a marriage of convenience but Constance has other ideas. Jonathan cannot help falling in love with Constance and her daughter. It is very sweet how this couple care for each other and build a strong bond.

I actually really enjoyed this one! I haven’t watched or read Bridgerton but this felt like a similar vibe. Definitely would buy it for my friends who love that show.

Deserted by her first husband before she discovered she was pregnant, Constance Lysander was in a desperate situation. She sent an urgent message to her best friend Jonathan, now the Earl of Sykeston, begging him to marry her before her child was born. After learning that she was her first husband’s legal wife, and realizing her daughter would not have to bear the shame of being born illegitimate, Constance offered to release Jonathan from her request, but he agreed to marry her anyway, fulfilling his life-long dream of having Constance by his side forever.

Jonathan’s injury during the war made him feel inadequate, and when his superior officer stole his idea for a training course in marksmanship and other skills necessary to be a successful operative, followed by a potential scandal, Jonathan retreated to his estate, determined to clear his name before Constance was affected. He lived as a hermit, never going outside, and when Constance appeared in Portsmouth, eager to begin building their life together, he recoiled but did not know how to send her away.

Both Constance and Jonathan are strong characters determined to overcome the adversities they encounter, but their unwillingness to ask for help creates conflicts between them. They are obviously in love, but they allow their personal concerns to affect their relationship. I enjoyed this second installment in The Widow Rules series, and finding out more about the three strong women wedded and abandoned by the same man.

I have a master list of books where I know there will be a book two, and I want to read book 2 (if that makes sense). The Widow Rules trilogy is on that list, and I had been waiting impatiently for Rules for Engaging the Earl to be published. I didn’t think that I would get the ARC, so I planned to buy it once it was published. When I got the email from SMP asking to review it, I was thrilled, and obviously, I said yes. I am glad that I did because this book was excellent!!

Rules for Engaging the Earl is book 2 in The Widow Rules trilogy. Unlike other books in series/trilogies, readers can read this as a standalone. The author does a great job of going over the backstory and quickly summarizing the plotline of book 1. So go read without being afraid that you will be lost.

Rules for Engaging the Earl’s plotline starts off ten years before the events of book 1. The author introduces Constance and Jonathan and lays the foundation for the rest of the book. It then goes forward ten years, and we see a different Jonathan and Constance. A decorated war hero, Jonathan had been wounded and crippled in battle. He fears an upcoming court-martial over what his commander calls “dishonorable behavior” on the battlefield. That, along with his injury, has made him a recluse. But when Constance sends word that she needs him, he drops everything and goes to her.

Constance has been embroiled in a scandal where the man she married ended up being married to two other women. Constance is pregnant and due any day to add salt to the wound. So, she tells Jonathan about her predicament and asks if he could help by marrying her. Right before their wedding, two things happen: she finds out that she is the legal wife and gives birth to her daughter, Aurelia. But she still goes through with the wedding to Jonathan.

The book then jumps to a year later; Constance lives in London with her daughter. Jonathan has left her but writes constantly. So, she immediately accepts when he asks if she would move herself and the baby to his country house. But she wasn’t prepared for what she walked into.

Jonathan is a shell of himself. He has secrets that he is determined to keep from Constance. But, having Constance and Aurelia at the manor is soothing and helps Jonathan to start to overcome his depression. He starts to question what his commanding officer has told him. But there is a twist. See, Constance has a very successful ship-making business inherited from her parents. An influential peer is slandering her business, and she is determined to battle this individual herself. Things start to get interesting when both Constance and Jonathan realize a connection between Jonathan’s commanding officer and the person trying to bankrupt Constance’s business. What is that connection? Also, will Constance and Jonathan realize their feelings for each other?

This is the 3rd review that I have had to put up, but there are a couple of trigger warnings in Rules for Engaging the Earl. Usually, I do this many over a couple of months. Anyway, the triggers that I noticed in this book are depression and PTSD. If these trigger you, I highly suggest not reading this book.

I loved Jonathan, but at the same time, I wanted to read through the book and shake some sense into him. He was in a deep depression for 85% of the book, and I got why he did some of his things. But still, it frustrated me. But once he came out of his depression and started looking into things, he was on FIRE.

I love Constance too. Throughout this book, she had to deal with so much, and she didn’t once have a “woe is me” moment. Instead, she rose like a BOSS and dealt with everything in her way. And the way she got her points across was fantastic. She had a backbone of steel, even with Jonathan.

Constance and Jonathan’s romance was super sweet to read. I liked that they were sweethearts when they were teenagers. That prologue was one of the sweetest I have read in a while. Their romance grew while they were separated after their marriage (but there was a twist). Seeing how much Jonathan cherished Constance was probably the best thing about the book. Of course, he had to go and almost screw it up, but I firmly believe a combination of depression and fear made him do what he did.

I do have to mention Jonathan and Aurelia’s relationship. Aurelia is Constance’s daughter with her first husband, and why Jonathan married Constance. I liked that the author had their relationship grow throughout the book. Jonathan’s interactions with Aurelia went from hands-off to hands-on. Plus, it helped that Aurelia called Jonathan “Da” from the first minute she met him. The scene where he called her “his daughter” made me so happy and brought tears to my eyes!!

There weren’t many sex scenes in Rules for Engaging the Earl. But the ones that the author wrote were amazing. I liked that Constance was very aware of what she wanted, sexually, and wasn’t afraid to let Jonathan know. I could think, “Well, at least her marriage did one good thing for her (other than Aurelia).” The author also kept the sexual scenes realistic. She had Aurelia interrupt by crying during the first one. All I could do was laugh and think, “Yup, been there.”

The storyline about Jonathan, his injury, commanding officer, court-martial, and depression was well written. I liked how the author had everything tied together. I also liked how she wrote about Jonathan’s depression and PTSD. I had a feeling the CO was up to no good. Mainly because of how he treated Jonathan and his injury. My Spidey sense kept tingling during those interactions.

The storyline about Constance, her dead husband, the will, her business, and the peer trying to ruin her business was well written also. As I mentioned above, she handled everything like a boss. I did like her detective work on the ship’s damage. I also liked how she was trying to figure out why this person was doing what he was doing while figuring out her dead husband’s will.

Once I realized who the common denominator was in both of these storylines, I sat back and waited for the characters to realize it. When they did (towards the end of the book), oh boy, did the fireworks explode!!! All I will say is that the person got what they deserved.

The end of Rules for Engaging the Earl was your typical HEA. The author sets up the romance between the last wife and Jonathan’s other best friend. I can’t wait to read that book!!

I would recommend Rules for Engaging the Earl to anyone over 21. There is graphic sex, language, and mild violence. There are also the triggers I mentioned above.

I really enjoyed this story! It was fun, sweet and oh my, so hot.
All the characters were lovable and but my fave was Regina!


Tropes:
Childhood friends to lovers
Marriage of convenience
Wounded Hero
Hot shower scene

Although not a fan of second chance romance, I found this to be quite endearing. One of my favorite part of this book was the way the meddling staff would get involved. I enjoyed the small intimate moments.

this checked off everything I look for in a book. Was not disappointed. Really enjoyed this book. I will read more from this author. Must read. Historical fiction oh yeah. Love me some of this.

Not for me, it was one big miscommunication trope and I just didn't enjoy parts of it. I liked the relationship between the three widows but the MCs relationship was very annoying.

I really enjoyed Constance and Jonathan's story. I loved that they were childhood friends that found their way back to one another as adults. Such a good read!

Rules for Engaging the Earl, was so much more than I was expecting. Yes, it was a passionate romance, but it was also a story of strength and resilience. Constance is a business owner, mother, partner to her husband, and manages to still have hope for a healthy relationship after having been betrayed by her previous husband.
Enter the both emotionally and physically scarred Jonathan, a man who still craves a purpose in life, to leave his mark on the world, even after all he has been through and continues to deal with.
Add a match making butler, a dog more empathetic than many humans, and an adorable toddler, and you have one of the most riveting reads I’ve picked up in a long time. Absolutely could not put it down.

This was very slow and I was very bored. The hero wallows in depression over his physical circumstances (war wound) for almost the entire book and it got old. The heroine never confronted him about ANYTHING. There was no passion. No chemistry. No tension.

This story had real promise and I was engaged...for a little while. But when ten years passed and they meet up again, only for her to be literally giving birth, it was a bit awkward. She asked him to marry her to give her baby a father, and then there was this moment when she reveals she doesn't need to marry him...but they both still want to marry...sorta. Really the big pain point for me was the hero. He was extremely wishy washy. One moment he wanted to be with her, the next he was pushing her away. He legitimately, as one reviewer put it, "ghosted" her for a year. She thinks he's been corresponding with her the whole time, then it turns out it was his servant sending her letter. How heartbreaking is that? And he doesn't even try to make her feel welcome in her own home.

Ultimately it dragged on, and it took way too long to see the hero show any sort of heart at all. I wasn't impressed by him, I didn't feel connected to her...so while I enjoyed parts of the story, it was overall not a strong read.

Can I adore secondary characters? I LOVED Mr. North and Regina! The ever-dispensable and interfering butler and the giant lovable mastiff. I loved the hero, Jonathan and the heroine, Constance and the baby and all the other characters, too. This was a second-chance romance, Jonathan and Constance were best-friends growing up and loved each other, then he went off to war. A decade later, Constance needs his help, asking him to marry her before her baby's born illegitimate. Constance was married when she became pregnant or so she thought... her first husband is dead and turns out he was a trigamist. Jonathan was injured during war and considers himself barely a man while an acquaintance plays into his self image for his own gain. With the help of the secondary characters will Constance and Jonathan repair all the damage done? Of course, there's an HEA, but these characters definitely are put through the ringer and us with them. This is the second installment in the Widow Rules series and although the author does an excellent job of explaining what happened previously to bring you up to date, I believe you need to read these books in order.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Constance is pregnant with her dead husband's child. He left her with no money and had two other wives. She's friends with the two wives and runs a shipping company in addition to handling a pregnancy alone. Jonathan, Earl of Sykeston is her best friend returned from war with dark secrets. He has always had feelings for Constance. He comes to see her at her request and proposal that they marry for her baby's sake. The two have issues but when things turn intimate the couple run white hot. A good read.

I received a copy of this book via Netgalley and am leaving a review.

Constance Lysander and Jonathan, Earl of Sykeston grew up together and were childhood best friends. When Jonathan joined the war effort, Constance promised to wait for him, but he wanted her to be happy. He left her with a list of suggestions of what to look for in a man.

Constance may have had the list, but she definitely chose the wrong man. The scoundrel is dead, Constance learned she was one of three women he had married, and she is expecting his child! She needs a savior and turns to the only man who can help her - Jonathan.

Jonathan returned from war a changed man in body and mind. He survived terrible injuries and has closed himself away from friends, family and society. He offers Constance the protection of marriage but has no plans to be a true husband or father.

Constance is not a shrinking violet and handles her own shipping business. She is a loving mother to baby Aurelia and a true friend to Kat and Beth, the other wives. She wants a true marriage with Jonathan and fights for their second chance.

Jonathan finally realizes he has a lot to live for and stops feeling sorry for himself. He becomes a true, loving partner for Constance and helps her fight their common foe.

MacGregor has written a romantic, steamy story with well-developed characters. The supporting characters are wonderful also, including Jonathan's loyal staff - most notably "Cupid North" - and Regina the mastiff.

A delightful marriage of convenience story. An old fashioned sort of romance…
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

A regency romance with heart and substance, RULES FOR ENGAGING THE EARL by Janna MacGregor is the perfect read to curl up with.

Constance Lysander has always loved her best friend Jonathan and they have always been there for each other, but when he left her behind all those years ago, she married an unworthy man who was also married to two other women at the same time. Now she finds herself alone and about to have a child and she needs her best friend one final time. And this time she needs him to become her husband.
Jonathan has always loved Constance but he is not the boy she once knew. His injuries have changed him to the core and he cannot be the man she deserves. But he will marry her and protect her in any way he can. As Constance tries to grow closer to her husband, Jonathan fights her at every turn but when someone evil threatens to destroy them both, will he be able to trust himself and Constance and the love that flares between them before it is too late?

Well-paced, with plenty of sizzling tension, likeable characters, and action to keep you hooked, RULES FOR ENGAGING THE EARL is an historical romance that you will get lost in. Constance was my favourite character because she is strong, intelligent, and unwilling to settle for anything less than everything from those she loves, just as she gives her all. Jonathan is a more complicated character but as we slowly peel away some of his layers, we begin to understand why he is the way he is, and watching him love Constance's daughter was simply beautiful.

RULES FOR ENGAGING THE EARL by Janna MacGregor is a wonderful read and is sure to please Regency romance readers everywhere.