I received an arc copy! I loved this book! At first the characters in the beginning made me so mad! I am not giving any spoilers but I loved how the main character became the new earl and how hard Odessa tried to repel him. I am so excited for the next book in the series!

Jordan & Odessa. I'm already addicted to the Sinclair family. Another home run by Kathleen Ayers. I don't think I've been disappointed with any of her books that I've read. Any who...

Jordan and his 2 sisters and twin brothers were the 2nd family of Earl of Emerson. His father was married and had a mistress. His wife was sickly and they had one son together, Bentley. She died and his father married his mother, an actress, causing a major scandal in society. She was shunned and they moved to the country estate to live their lives happily. His father passes away in an accident and the title passes to Bentley the oldest son.

Bentley is a douchebag and hates his half siblings. He shuns them like the rest of society and never forgave their father for remarrying even though it was love. He banishes his father's wife/Jordan's mom and all the siblings to a far away estate that was barely inhabitable. His mother died within a year of a broken heart and the living conditions. Jordan had to take over the care of his family. They weren't given adequate funds to live so he became a pig farmer to survive. They were barely surviving until a solicitor shows up and informs Jordan that Bentley had died in a carriage accident trying to impress one of his two mistresses. He also informed him that the Emerson estate was impoverished due to Bentley's gambling, drinking, whoring, etc lifestyle. But it was now Jordan's problem.

There was a solution though...Bentley's debts had all be bought up by a loan shark, Whitehall, that impoverished him. Whitehall had married into the ton (bankrupted his deceased wife's father and forced him to give him his daughter) but he still wasn't accepted by society (probably because his business practices). He wanted his only daughter to marry and be accepted into society and had forced Bentley's hand. He was to marry his daughter Odessa but died before the wedding (he had planned to call it all off before he died). Jordan was given the option of just stepping right into his brother's shoes. Having no choice he agreed.

Now, Odessa may be one of my favorite FMCs I've read in a while. She had no desire of marrying a titled gentleman. Her father and her were shunned by society and she didn't want to engage with them. Her dad thought differently and kept parading titled men about to wed her off. Odessa managed to run all of them off. She would eat onions prior to any of her calls and would be burping and tooting during the call. He also padded her figure so she looked rotund and would blacken her teeth with tar to make it look like she had lost teeth. If she had to, she would go to extremes by eating strawberries and triggering an allergic reaction that made her look like she had pox. Her antics had me dying laughing but they didn't fool Jordan who's mother was an actress and they would play act including padding their figures.

Even though she was repulsive, he would call on her. At a ball, she believed him to be out of town but ran into him as herself. He already knew but his hands were tied so he continued calling. He ended up falling for her and her for him. He was everything she wanted in a man sans the title and her father's approval. She was different and he enjoyed her quirkiness.

His solicitor shows up and informs him that the land that they were banished to had an excessive amount of coal. They were rich and he had enough money to pay off his debts to Whitehall and get out of the marriage contract.

Odessa overhears her father and aunt arguing after his aunt finds out about how her dad blackmailed Jordan into marrying Odessa. She is devastated and enlists the help of her "cousin" a Duke (and a strange one at that) to clean up all of the mess. He threatens Whitehall (who most likely aided in the death of Bentley though it isn't confirmed but implied) and has the marriage contract torn up and a witnessed contract indicating that Jordan's debts had been paid. Whitehall was PISSED but Odessa was more PISSED and she leaves with her aunt to her cousin's estate. She's heartbroken and then Jordan shows up. He tells her that he didn't want out of the contract and that he loved her, quirks and all. She also tells him that she loves him.

Granted, this book didn't have as much romantic interactions as some of her other books but I don't think that hurt the book. Thoroughly enjoyed and can't wait for the next book in the series.

The book starts eleven years ago, when Jordan's father had just been buried. His older half brother, the heir to his father, banished Jordan, his mother and his siblings to a far away, run down estate. They were given little money to subsist on and each of the five kids did different things to contribute to the household. Their mother died just a year after they were banished.
After Bentley, the horrible half brother, dies in a carriage accident, Jordan and his siblings moved back to London.
Bentley did not taken care of the Inheritance and was going to marry Odessa, an heiress whose father wants his daughter to be part of the nobility. Now, Jordan is expected to marry the heiress, because her father owns markers on the estate.
I liked Jordan, but it took awhile to like Odessa. While I certainly understood her motivation, Odessa's efforts in deterring Jordan's courtship became a little tiresome. I did enjoy her great aunt, Lottie, who also is her chaperone.
I feel like this book didn't get really good until the 80% mark. Too much time was spent with Odessa trying to deter Jordan by attempting to disgust him with her appearance.
I look forward to the rest of the series. I really liked Jordan's siblings and look forward to their stories.

"Sinfully Wed" is a good introduction to Kathleen Ayers new series "The Five Deadly Sins" which tells the stories of the five Sinclair siblings who were born to an Earl and his second wife and former actress mistress. Banished to misery in Scotland by their older half-brother upon their father's death, the siblings return to London when the half-brother dies and Jordan becomes the Earl, albeit one drowning in debt. Jordan is told he must marry heiress Odessa Whitehall as her moneylender father owns all the estate's debts and then some. Odessa knows nothing of the details of her father's desire for her to marry a title, she just knows she doesn't want to marry someone who is not her choice. She thus strives to make herself odious Odessa, not knowing that Jordan is someone who won't be scared off by anyone, especially someone he thinks is more than what she appears.

I liked much of this book. Ayers is a good writer and I like the steam though the steam came at the end of a slower burn than I normally expect from Ayers. What I didn't like is how Odessa padding herself to make herself something other than thin was a large part of what made her undesirable to men. Anti-fatness is a common cultural bias but its over usage here is at least mildly insulting. And even though Ayers is a good writer, I did feel like the first 60% of the book was a regular pace while the remaining 40% felt like it was running downhill. I still look forward to reading the other Sinclair siblings' stories, especially Tasmin and the man I suspect will become her love interest.

3 stars. It would have been higher but for the anti-fatness. Thank you to Dragonblade and NetGalley for a complementary ARC of this book. The opinions herein are my own.

This short novella was everything that I could expect from Kathleen Ayers. Jordan and Odessa are both outcasts in their own way, but are perfect for one another. This story features both a strong hero and heroine. There were moments I laughed out loud and there were moments I sighed at their connection. It was a fast read, but Ayers has a way of making you feel that the H and h truly care about one another in that time. Thanks to NetGalley for providing this copy free in exchange for my honest review.

This series is off to a great start with this book! I really liked both characters and it was so much fun to follow along as they realized they were actually perfect for one another. The moment Jordan realizes how thoroughly fooled he had been by Odessa's actions was pretty humorous. I also really loved the part when Jordan kicks out Lady Longwood out of the London house - I was waiting for that moment from the first chapter and it was very satisfactory. There were three things I wished had been included in this book. 1) I wish there had been some interactions between Odessa and Jordan's family - especially since it was clear she and Tamsin would probably have gotten along and been fast friends. 2) I wish Odessa could have come to the conclusion on her own that the Captain was not as great as she had built him up to be. She had started to realize that but then Jordan came in and kind of took over the situation. And 3) I really wish there had been an epilogue or just one more chapter so we could have seen what happened right after the "I love you" scene. But I guess we will get to see these two in future books so I'll let that go. And I am very much looking forward to seeing what is in store in book 2!

Oh My Gosh, I Loved It! Sinfully Wed unfolds beautifully and will hold you attention from the moment you begin the journey with Odessa and Jordan until the very end! Kathleen Ayers has done it again with her new series The Five Deadly Sins which promises not to disappoint. As Odessa plots her way out of an arranged marriage and Jordan can't help being angry for being blackmail into marriage can both overcome their mistrust of each other and find their happiness with one another. And I fell in love with Aunt Lottie who make you laugh. The characters captured so many emotions that they come to life as you find yourself drawn into their story, with witty dialogue, sizzling passion, and a tension-building plot that will keep you reading well into the night or as with me into the early morning hours!

3.5/5 Stars

Summary:
Jordan, Earl of Emerson, has inherited an estate bankrupted by his half-brother. Now he owes an enormous debt to a loanshark, and marrying the loanshark's daughter Odessa is the only way the debt will be forgiven. Odessa does not want to marry a suitor of her father's choosing and has gone to great lengths to keep these men at bay. What she doesn't count on is that Jordan is far more clever than the others ever were, and what more, there's a very convenient attraction between them...

My review:
I am a recent Kathleen Ayers fan, so it was interesting to see how this book measured up to others I've read recently. I would say the chemistry and romance aspect of the novel was pretty solid, but there wasn't as much of a plot in comparison. I could be wrong but at a little less than 200 pages, it felt shorter than her other books. The plot can be summed up by Jordan adamantly continuing to court Odessa in order to save his siblings and erase the debt, while Odessa puts on a fat suit and blackens her teeth and eats onions (so many onions) to make herself as unappealing as possible. It's funny for a while until it isn't quite as much.

Jordan is an excellent example of a more jaded, world-weary hero who's not above fighting dirty when needed. The best way to describe Odessa is that in the modern era, she would deffo be a true crime girlie and possibly an occultist. She's probably one of those heroines some readers would find "annoying" but I liked her. You can't help but be sympathetic to a woman who's basically her father's pawn, despite how much she asserts herself or tries to outmaneuver him. I'd say the main draw of this book is the chemistry between Jordan and Odessa which is present from the very beginning despite Odessa's best efforts to make herself as unappealing as possible. It's a large part of what made the book work. Speaking of chemistry—

The sex:
Well done, and despite the length of the book, there were a few solid scenes. Here's what worked for me:

a) Odessa is a Knowing Virgin (thanks Aunt Lottie). Also a Ready Virgin because as Jordan comments she has a... "natural sensuality"? I think is what he said. But basically, she knows what's up and I loved that.

b) This deserves a note of its own: She has a hand fixation (hot) which Jordan quickly clocks and uses on her

c) There is some light choking during their first (proper) kiss. Also, they 100% would have gone all the way in the middle of that party if they wanted which, again, Jordan notes

d) This may be a bit of a spoiler but people in historical romances do..... Stuff in the place they had sex for the first time, but they don't often go all the way (especially because she was a virgin), so I was pleasantly surprised when they did, but also, it tracks for them as a couple.

Overall:
I would recommend it to anyone looking for a quick, light historical romance that doesn't skimp on the sex. It's also worth noting the book set up Jordan's siblings (the other "Sins" in this series): There's the sister who races horses against men who're partially there to see her in trousers, the brother who's probably a gigolo, another brother who's probably a spy, and their baby sister who's so sweet she deserves a dastardly hero of her own. I'm looking forward to reading all their books.

Thank you to Dragonblade Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.

I absolutely loved this book and was honored to have been able to read and review. It was such a phenomenal read and had amazing characters as well as an amazing story line. I just could not get enough of it and once I started reading it, I could not put it down.

A hilarious, steamy, romantic tale. There are tons of LOL moments, as well as Grrrrr! ones. An entertaining blend of wit and heat and the notion that onions are aphrodisiacs, maybe? The only disappointment in this book is that it ended. Thankfully, there are several intriguing secondary characters who will have their corresponding stories told!

I received an ARC from Netgalley and leaving my review voluntarily