I love this series! This is the final book in the Merriwell Sister series and they can be read alone but should be read in order. She ends the series with the same kind of sass and chemistry that leaps off the pages. Venus is the youngest of the trio of sisters and has had the hardest time finding a trustworthy suitor. This caused many heartaches and put a damper on her many seasons. Gal is the foe she didnt know she needed. Their chemistry has been evident since book 2 and their story delivered all the romantic feels. They're both from less than ideal circumstances and this shaped how they think and feel. This push and pull troupe gives you just the right amount of love and hate, I usually hate these but this was a perfect balance. I hope we get to see them again somehow.

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Virginia Heath brings her wonderful trilogy about the Merriwell Sisters to a close with the third and final book in the series, Never Wager with a Wallflower.

As a teenager, Miss Venus Merriwell had once dreamed of falling in love with her own knight in shining armor. As an adult, however, Venus had soon realized that the prince charming she had envisaged for herself wasn’t going to make an appearance in her life anytime soon, so instead she had channeled all of her time, energies and efforts into the orphanage she runs in Covent Garden, which is bursting at the seams and crying out for expansion. Venus has her eye on the vacant building next door which would be absolutely ideal for her orphanage. However, there is just one tiny snag: Galahad Sinclair also has his eye on the building and he is willing to do whatever it takes to secure it.

Venus might loathe and abhor gambling due to her father’s addiction to gaming hells, but for Galahad gambling is his entire life. Having learned everything there is to know about games of hazard in the taverns of the Hudson River, Galahad had been forced by circumstance to come to London where he had set up shop in the East End of London. Galahad has always yearned to have his own pleasure palace in Covent Garden and when a building there becomes vacant, he is determined to move mountains to make it his. However, he hadn’t counted on the redoubtable, infuriating and beautiful Venus Merriwell, the youngest sister of his cousin’s wife, whom he has avoided like the plague since she flattened him five years ago.

There’s no avoiding each other now and with fate – and impish orphans – seeming to conspire to throw the two of them together at every turn, Venus and Galahad find themselves getting closer and closer. But will they find the courage to gamble their hearts on a lifetime of happiness? Or will they continue to let their past history come between them?

Opposites attract in the irrepressible new Regency romantic comedy from Virginia Heath. Never Wager with a Wallflower is a hilarious, uplifting and charming historical romance where the banter zings, the one-liners come thick and fast and the love story will melt every reader’s heart.

Venus and Galahad are simply delightful and readers will be cheering them on to their happy ending and keeping everything crossed for them as they fall head over heels in love with one another.

Enchanting, enjoyable and entertaining, Virginia Heath is at her superb best with her latest Regency romance, Never Wager with a Wallflower.

The third and final installment of the Merriwell sisters from Virginia Heath. This is the story of Galahad Sinclair cousin the Giles Sinclair who is married to Diana the middle Merriwell sister. Galahad owns a gambling den and has high hopes up opening up another once he is able to buy a space for it. He has located a space which contains 3 buildings which he is wanting to buy only he finds out the buildings are in close proximity to an orphanage where Giles sister in law Venus works. Giles and Venus don't have the best of relationships and he wants to improve it before she finds that he is trying to buy the building next door to the orphanage. The story is a slow burn as Venus and Gal get to know each other better; but will they be able to continue exploring their feelings for each other if their secrets are revealed? Venus thinks she has had enough of heartbreak and is no longer looking for love but instead would settle for a decent gentleman who she can have a family with. Gal has secrets from his past that he hasn't even shared with his cousin and is not prepared to open up to anyone. A fantastic end of the series. Looking forward to the next release from this author.
I received an ARC from NetGalley and I am voluntarily leaving a review.

Virginia Heath’s writing makes me want to live in the time of the Merriwell sisters! I already miss these characters. Never Wager with a Wallflower was the perfect read. I love when a book makes me laugh out loud and this one did not disappoint.

A wonderful ending to a charming trio. Vee’s story has been built up through the previous books and it does not disappoint. Though Giles and Diana are my favorite from this series, Galahad and Venus are just as good.. From enemies to friends to enemies again and finally lovers, Heath weaves a tale that is exciting, sexy, and funny by turns. I enjoyed Vee and Sinclair’s banter as well as the riveting whist scenes. This was a fast-paced read that was over before I knew it. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed this series and look forward to Heath’s next book!

Venus is the youngest of the three Merriwell sisters (her sisters' stories are in the first two books.) It's been four years since Venus had a contentious first meeting with Galahad. They've avoided each other over the years as much as possible. Now, without realizing it, Galahad has purchased the buildings next to the orphanage Venus devotes all her time to. An elderly benefactor verbally left the orphanage one of the buildings next door but Galahad swooped in and bought it from her dishonest nephew. He plans to open an elaborate gambling den as his life-long dream. They both had terrible fathers and terrible childhoods, making it hard for either of them to put their trust in another person. When Venus discovers Galahad's duplicity, she is devastated since was starting to care for him and now she feels tricked. I loved Venus's diary entries at the beginning of each chapter revealing her thoughts as a teen to a twenty-something. As they interact with each other they both realize they need to evolve from their pasts and compromise and make changes if they want to have a future together. There is a very enjoyable epilogue detailing how the three sisters lives changed in the last decade.

Never Wager with a Wallflower by Virginia Heath is a story you surely don’t want to miss! I loved everything about this story and seriously didn’t want it to end. This book focuses on the youngest Merriwell sister Venus “Vee” Merriwell and we are reintroduced to Galahad “Gal” Sinclair who is the cousin of Giles Sinclair the hero in book two of this series “Never Rescue a Rogue”. These two MCs have a love hate relationship and their encounters are filled with banter and sniping, there is no love lost … or is there?

Heath is a master at creating a historical romance that is both serious and lighthearted. She is able to blend sadness and comedy in a way that allows the reader to really connect with the story. Not to mention the chemistry and friction she creates between her MCs that leads them on a path to pretty explosive passion …ahem, sex.

I don’t want to spoil this story for anyone so I am not jumping into the details of the plot. I will say that you can get away with reading this as a standalone but I recommend starting with book one, you will have the chance to get to know all the characters better.

Overall another 5 Star story ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | Heat 🔥🔥🔥🔥 | Series Rating 5 Stars | Top 10 contender for 2023 🏆🏆

📚Disclosure: I received a review copy of this #book from St. Martin’s Press publishing via #Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, comments, and interpretations of the story are my own and bias free. I did not receive any money in exchange for this review. Thank you to the publisher for allowing me the opportunity to review. Reviews are cross-posted to social media, goodreads, and blog. 🦄 @StMartinsPress
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Never Wager With A Wallflower is the third and final novel in The Merriwell Sisters trilogy by Virginia Heath. This is by far my favorite book in this series. I instantly fell in love with the larger-than-life, lovable Galahad and Venus!

Galahad is my new book boyfriend! An enigmatic, American gaming he[[ owner? Yes, please! Gal had so many layers and self-protective devices. My heart ached for Gal’s complicated history, yet I found his drive and passion extremely attractive.

Poor Venus! She has the uncanny ability to choose the worst men! When Vee discovers she might have feelings for her enemy, Gal, she doesn’t trust her instincts, which earns her a lot of heartache and trouble.

I felt there was a point in the last third of the book that could have been condensed. The couple’s ironing out of an overblown misunderstanding took too long for me. However, the highly sensual tension and playful competitiveness between Gal and Vee sold the entire book for me. The couple’s dynamic was romance perfection. Virginia Heath’s mastery lies in her extreme talent for weaving an unforgettable romance between two fallible, relatable, organic people. You demand Gal and Vee to get their well-deserved happy ending!

I have utterly enjoyed the Merriwell Sisters, and I am sad to see this delightful series end. I highly recommend the entire series. Galahad and Venus’ journey warmed my heart; I loved watching these lonely, deserving people find their soul mates!

Release Date: November 7, 2023

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book through Netgalley and the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was the third instalment in the Meriwell sisters series, although I feel that it could also be read as a stand alone novel.

It was cute and well written, I especially chuckled over the entries from Venus’ teenage diaries as she becomes somewhat disenchanted with men.

I enjoyed this book, but wish there were more scenes that illustrated the authors sense of humor (like her previous two books).

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martins Press for providing me with an ARC of this book to read and review.

A being deceived and let down by men multiple times Venus Merriwell has hung up her hat and decided she is no longer looking for a love match. Any intelligent man who listens will do. When Venus runs into Galahad
Sinclair in Covent Garden she does not realize things in her life are about to get turned upside down. Galahad is buying the buildings next to the orphanage where Venus teaches, meaning they will be seeing a lot of each other much to Venus’s chagrin. After a very lively game of cards, Venus begins to realize there is more to Galahad than the charming businessman persona. But unbeknownst to Venus Galahad is planning to buy the orphanage as well. Will he be able to show Venus he is more than just a sly businessman or will Venus end up hating him for displacing her and the orphanage?

With Virginia Heath’s classic wit and charm this story is more than just a romance. It delves into poverty and coping mechanisms people previously and currently endure in order to survive. This gives the main characters so much depth and connectivity. I absolutely adored this third book and look forward to Virginia Heath’s next romance coming soon!

The final book of the Merriwell Sisters trilogy, focused on the youngest of the sisters, Venus. Of the three books, I found this final installment the most challenging to hold my interest. I had high hopes for the Venus - Galahad pairing, but their unfolding story felt a bit lackluster. There were some fun and heartwarming scenes, but I never felt that there was a moment when the story really took off. The first book, <i>Never Fall for Your Fiancee</i> remains my favorite in the series.

Thanks to #netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the complimentary ARC e-book.

This is such a cute read I haven’t read the 2 book but I did read the first one but I thought this was a really interesting book. So this is book I believe take place 4 year after the first two ? Not quite sure but Venus is 22 and she has grown a lot since then. But a very good ending for the merriwells . Will have to go back and read book 2 to get a little more information but I like it

This was a delightful read. I didn’t know it was the third book in a series, so I’ll definitely have to go and read the other two!

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

'Never Wager with a Wallflower' is the third and final instalment in this series where each book focuses on the life (primarily romantic life) of one of the three Merriwell sisters. I've read all three and feel that each can be read as standalone novels. While I enjoyed the book, it didn't work well as a conclusion to the series for me as I preferred the other two novels to this one.

The author's writing makes reading about this historical time period fun. I really liked that this was a character driven novel focused on the romance of two people who have had life knock them down quite a few times that they're afraid of trusting the other. It has the classic enemies-to-lovers trope (more so on the part of Venus (hehe) than Galahad). The reason I didn't like the book as much as the others was that I felt that plot-wise, more happened in the other two books with each female main character overcoming more than in this novel. Additionally, having seen Vee as a young girl, it was difficult to picture her as the "desirable woman (with glasses)" that the author pushes her to be in order to make Galahad falling for her believable - why couldn't he have just liked the nerdy young woman that she is? It would have been more in line with how she was painted in the previous two books. Galahad, on the other hand, I completely understood.

First I would like to thank the publisher for providing me an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

This is the story of the youngest Merriwell sister Venus who is determined to set herself up with a man she can marry that she doesn't care for and continue to work as a teacher at the orphanage. In walks Galahad who loves to push Venus' buttons and forces her to rethink her future in terms of a loving husband.

What I loved:
- Gambling, I love that this family loves to complete so much so that the family butler tries to stop them from playing cards against each other
- Orphans, Venus and Galahad being around the orphans forces them to "behave" but it also is how Galahad slowly shows her his true self. Not to mention the group of boys are troublemakers and I got a good giggle about some of the pranks they pulled
- Family, as this is a series about sisters I love the family dynamic in this story and how its the anchor of everything including family members who love to meddle in romantic affairs
- Venus, she is a smart woman who (thinks) she knows what she wants and will fight to keep it including the orphanage and how she wants her future to go
- Cards, cards play a big part in Venus and Galahad's relationship and how they use them to tempt each other and distract the orphans its a fun items that pops up throughout the story

I loved this series and this felt like a perfect ending of the Merriwell Sister's story. This book had a great connection with the second book in the series (without needing to read the one before it) and brings the Venus and Galahad relationship full circle. If you are looking for a historical romance with a lot of heart, family, and shenanigans then I would recommend you get your hands on this book ASAP, bonus its a series and there are two others you can read after!

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

The Merriwell Sisters trilogy concludes with youngest sister Vee, a hopeless romantic who takes a gamble on love and Gal, a businessman building a gambling empire.

Vee and Gal butt heads and spew insults during most of their early interactions all thanks to their first meeting in book two. She had a lot of prejudice against him and couldn’t see him in a different light. Gal was trying to escape his past and build his reputation. The enemy aspect to their relationship really relied on this and Gal was eventually able to break down some walls and Vee was finally able to see him as a good guy.

Although their history is rocky, they are forced to spend time together because of family connections. We liked spending time with the extended family and visiting old relationships. Can we just take a moment and laugh a little at the ridiculous names? Galahad? Marmaduke? Gethin? It kind of took us out of the story just a little bit.

Overall Never Wager with a Wallflower was exactly what we want in a historical romance. It is a slow burn romance where enemies fall in love and a great conclusion to the series.

Many thanks to @smpromance + @netgalley for the e-book ARC in exchange for our honest review. Never Wager with a Wallflower is out NOW!

Read if you like:
▪️Regency romance
▪️Second first impressions
▪️Enemies to lovers
▪️Dual POV

3.5 stars

I thought this book was quite good but not great. I have found Vee aka Venus to be quite judgmental of her older sisters throughout this series. Of course, that is because she was younger and her sisters both did what they could to protect her. What I did love about this story was seeing the growth Vee goes through to realize she was naïve and shouldn’t have judged her sisters’ actions so harshly in the past.

Vee and Gal have never understood why they don’t get along, but they just rub each other the wrong way. They have their surface reasons they tell themselves for the animosity, but it’s a romance book so we know it’s because they are trying to deny their attraction. They have some fun banter, but Vee may have matured when it comes to her sisters and others in the world, but she will always jump to the worst conclusion when it comes to Gal.

This ended up being a “big secret” book, and you know that’s not my thing. It started as unintentional and when the reveal came I thought Vee’s reaction was over the top. I knew Gal’s intentions were never sinister and he had the best of intentions when it came to Vee and the orphanage. But I also knew Vee would not take it well when she learned the truth and it made reading this story tense for me. I don’t enjoy that unless I’m purposely reading a thriller or suspense; I go in knowing there will be tension. It wasn’t terrible because of the nature of the secret, but it still kept me from sinking into the story.

There are some wonderful things about this story. All of Gal’s interactions with the orphans gave me a soft spot for him. And when Gal and Vee finally have their first kiss, I absolutely adore their reactions. Priceless!

Overall, this is an enjoyable series. There are ups and downs, but in the end, I’m glad I read these books.

This is such a fun read, filled with favourite characters from the previous stories in the series, but with the delightful twist of a now-jaded Vee, and the hilarious and delectable banter with Galahad, the presumed evil, but ultimately okay cousin met in the previous book.

I loved the way each story began with a diary entry from a younger Vee, and how they are juxtaposed with a less frivolous and romantic version - or at least the version she aspires to be. This helped me as the reader reconcile with much more subdued Vee from the other books.

Virginia Heath is such a good storyteller. From the characters to the plot, there’s a quirkiness that hooks you in as the reader. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed this series.

Never Wager with a Wallflower is the third and final book in Virginia Heath's historical romantic comedy series The Merriwell Sisters. I hated to see it end, but we've run out of sassy sisters! However, at least I had my favorite hero of the series in this last book, so there was some comfort in that.

Miss Venus Merriwell (she prefers to be called Vee; who in their right mind wants a name like Venus?!) has been waiting for her Prince Charming since she was fourteen. She wants a smart man, very caring and without vices like her father had; dear Papa lost their money gambling and left his girls destitute to fend for themselves. She hasn't had much luck in the romance department, however. Now, at age twenty-three, she pours all of her love into an orphanage in Covent Garden at which she volunteers. It's bursting at the seams, and she desperately wants to expand the orphanage into the empty building next door. Galahad Sinclair has gambling flowing in his veins; he learned the business at his grandfather's knee in a tavern he had in New York. But fate took it all away and Gal ended up across the pond in London. In five years he made a big success of his gaming hell at the docks in the East End. He's been so successful he now has the funds to build the pleasure palace of his dreams, and what better place than sinful Covent Garden? The only problem is the perfect property on which to build it is right next door to the orphanage where by his cousin’s wife’s youngest sister works at! They haven't gotten along since Vee flattened him five years ago, though he does find the siren rather appealing. Vee wants his property and her orphans are trying to destroy his lifelong dream. Will they ever learn to love thy neighbor?

I loved the heroes of the first two books in the series, but they both paled in comparison to Galahad Sinclair! I absolutely adored the man. Gal learned the tavern and gambling trade from his beloved grandpa, until his grandfather was murdered; then Gal had nothing and was a child on his own for years until he received an inheritance from his grandfather when he came of age. Circumstances forced him to go to London, where he worked hard and made quite a success of his gambling hell. Gal was now at the point where he could build the pleasure palace he always wanted. He was smart and a hard worker; he was also a private man who didn't share his past and troubles with many people. Then there's Vee... I liked her; she was whip smart and did all she could for the orphans, plus she was very close to her family. She didn't have much luck in love; the last love of her life took off with another women. So now she's spending time with a stuffy lord who lectures everyone. At least her heart isn't engaged! Gal and Vee locked horns ever since they met. It's quite clear that Gal is smitten with her, and she begins to fall for him. But then IT happened: Vee found out that Gal bought the property that she wanted to expand the orphanage into. And that's when Vee lost me as an ally for a while. She went stark raving bonkers! Now Gal didn't tell Vee he had already bought it, and of course he should have, but it wasn't the huge betrayal she made it out to be. The orphanage received a very large bequest from a deceased donor, so she would be able to provide for the orphans. But she treated poor Gal like an enemy, though she still cared for him. Of course, their feuding made things quite comical, especially when they were playing cards. When she almost lost Gal she realized he meant everything to her, so of course we got a happy ending. Supporting characters were great; I enjoyed seeing the couples from the first two books, and I still loved butler Dalton. The orphans were quite entertaining too, especially the mischievous Claypole twins and Billy, the newest orphan. (Gal's interactions with the orphans turned my heart to mush!) So even with Vee being rather self-centered and dramatic, it was a satisfying romance with an awesome hero. I can't wait to see what Virginia Heath comes up with next!

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.

I've read all the previous books in this series and loved them dearly, this third novel continued to keep me smiling. There is something about the way Virginia Heath writes that just cracks me up. Her stories show the strength of women while showing a more vulnerable side.

Venus is the little sister I've always wanted. I love her and enjoyed reading her romance. I think she's just a brilliant character.