Emmaline Darling is hiding out in a dumpy motel in Arizona after her abusive boyfriend went too far. Graham Harlan is on a road trip in his new Lamborghini, chasing elusive clues to a better future that he got from a near death experience on the field as a popular NFL tight end. After a meet cute has her literally leaping into his arms, then stealing his precious new car, Graham tracks her down in Manhattan with an ultimatum... marry him or he'll press charges for car theft.
I thought this was a cute fake marriage romance with a great cast of side characters, one of my favorite settings in a bookshop, and a grumpy hero who bends his own rules to make her happy while hiding his true feelings and wounded heart.

Emmy Darling is not a bad person. In fact she’s her siblings only parental figure, works multiple jobs and is a cat lover. But when she’s forced to make a split second decision to either confront her ex or steal the football players Lamborghini, she lands herself in hot water.

After a near death experience on the football field, Graham is taking some time for himself in his new car when the hot blonde in the hotel room next to him steals his car. At first he’s mad but then he realizes he can use this to his advantage. He needs a wife to fulfill an archaic clause in his grandmother’s will. He’s not interested in falling in love so Emmy is the perfect choice. But no matter what he tells his heart, it only wants her.

This book owns my heart now. This truly felt like old school Ilsa vibes. I truly feel she does her best when writing these complex characters with heartbreaking backstories. I fell in love with Emmy instantly. The girl has been through it and no one deserved an HEA more than her. And despite all of Graham’s denials it was clear he was gone for her from the start. I loved the subtle hints of fated love that threaded through the story as well with Graham’s vision and the connection to his brother.

I didn’t want to put this one down and if you love sports romance, fated love, main characters with heaps of emotional baggage and tragic backstories who more than deserve their happy ending then I think you’ll be just as captivated by this one as I was. Even if you’ve struggled with some of Ilsa’s recent releases this one really made me remember why I fell in love with her writing in the first place.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this early. I love Ilsa Madden-Mills books, but I had trouble with the issues the FMC had from her childhood and ex. I did continue on and thoroughly enjoyed the fun aspects on how the FMC and MMC met, it was so funny! Also how he saw her beforehand. Such an interesting storyline with relevant issues that come from playing not typically touched on. I respect the author for including them in the storyline making the MMC and his chosen profession very real. I loved watching the two damaged main characters change and grow together. The side characters were amazing in this story. For example, Babs is a hoot and Jane is a take no crap kind of awesome character! Some of the other bookstore patrons are quite interesting as well. I highly recommend reading this wonderful story. I look forward to seeing what comes next.

Such a wonderful and charming romance! Full of funny, adorable, and sweet moments, as well as a sizzling connection that will have you all in on this fake romance.

This is “Emmy” Emmaline Darling. and Graham
Harlan’s story and I couldn’t get enough of these two.

Graham Harlan, last play won his team the Superbowl. But on that same play he was hit hard enough that his heart stopped on the field. They used a defibrillator to bring him back. Now he is dealing with post concussive syndrome—headaches and dizziness, two things a football player does not need and worrying that this could be the end of his career. So he takes a ride into the desert in his new Lamborghini and that is where he meets her, Emmaline Darling. A beautiful woman and a meet-cute perfect for every romance book reader.

Emmy flees to the Arizona desert to get away from her ex-boyfriend. She uses Graham to get away from a guy hitting on her, but when he accidentally leaves his keys in her room and she finds out that Kian her ex has a tracker on her phone, and is about to arrive, she takes off with his new car to get away. But what she didn’t count on was that Graham would find her and give her an ultimatum…she either marries him,- or he’ll press charges for grand theft auto. But what he doesn’t count on is their sizzling attraction and the secret that Emmy is keeping about her health. Both have been burned by love before, but will the heat, desire and longing between them…change it all?

“Magic. You two have it. Few get it. Everyone wants it.”

I relished in their banter. I enjoyed every moment as fate brings these two together. I swooned hard for them as they both tried to figure out how to endure a marriage without, getting feelings, for the other, scared that they may be in over their heads. I was so invested in this story the more I read, that I didn’t want it to end. Such a beautiful romance! GET THIS NOW!!

I typically love a marriage of convenience story. However, this book felt a bit disjointed and somewhat chaotic. Just wasn’t what I was looking for.

My Darling Bride was another fantastic sports romance, this author is one of my favourites when it comes to this genre, her stories deliver all the good stuff and always put a smile on my face.

Graham and Emmy meet in the most crazy of ways that had me in stitches, I absolutely loved Emmy straight away her personality was eccentric, sweet and slightly scatty.

Graham came across as a bit closed off at first, he's had a tough time after a serious injury on the field so he's feeling a bit lost. Then he crashes into the whirlwind that is Emmy, she's a breath of fresh air and a welcome distraction.

I loved Emmy and Graham together, their story was complicated, heart warming, hilarious and romantic. An enjoyable page turner from beginning to end, a must read for sports romance fans.

As always there are some brilliant side characters that need their own stories.

4 stars

🏈 Marriage of convenience 
📚 FMC runs a bookstore 
🏈 Sports romance 
📚 Very different family dynamics 
​
This is not my first read from Ilsa Madden-Mills, but it may be one of my favorites. I enjoyed these characters. I loved that our FMC is working hard to ensure her siblings and niece are cared for. 
When we meet Emmy she is running from an ex, she meets Graham at the motel she's hiding out at. Her ex ends up tracking her there and left with no other option Emmy steals Grahams car to escape.
Of course Graham has a solution, marry her so he can get his inheritance and help his brother. 
The two couldn't be any different, but they learn to trust other and maybe even more. 
This has fantastic spice 👌 the tension between these two 🤭 
I absolutely adore the side characters! Hope we more of them in the future!

Rating : 3 out of 5
Blurbs :
On a normal day, Emmaline Darling isn’t a car thief. She’s just a simple girl who runs a bookstore and adores cats. But when she’s stranded in the desert and needs to get away from her dangerous ex-boyfriend, she picks her only option: swiping the keys to a famous football player’s Lamborghini and speeding away.

Football star Graham Harlan is in chaos. First he took a hit on the field that left him with a near-death experience, and now he’s promised his brother he’ll get married to secure the family inheritance. Trouble is he isn’t even seeing anyone.

Then a mystery woman steals his car. With his usual stubbornness, he tracks her all the way to Manhattan and gives her an ultimatum: marry me or I’ll press charges.

Her choice is obvious, only neither of them expect the sparks that ignite between them.

As the end of their arrangement looms, will Graham take a chance on love or let his darling walk away forever?

Thoughts : it's definitely Ilsa Madden-Mils' book! it's her style and I like it just fine. Highly recommend this book! Thanks Montlake and Netgalley for the ARC.

What happens when two people cross paths at a roadside motel they never should've been at in the first place? Fake, spur of the moment relationship and "borrowing" of a fancy Lambo for a return to home. But it doesn't end there for these strangers that have more in store for them.

Graham Harlan is a football player that recently died on the field with his winning score to win the Super Bowl. His life is in chaos and he is trying to figure it all out. From his brother and his rightful inheritance, to his ex and his half brother, to his next move on the football field, Graham has some decisions to make. Meanwhile, Emmaline Darling is running away from an abusive ex. She is the head of her family and more than anything, she just wants to help her brother, sister and niece stay in their home in New York while working at the bookstore that has become her life. But money and the life of the bookstore may have other plans for her. Graham has a proposal for Emmy that she can't refuse if she wants to keep her family and life together.

Emmy and Graham's first encounter in the desert is a whirlwind, but oh so fun. I wasn't sure where it was going to go from there, but with Ms Madden-Mills' clever writing and a fun twist on a fake marriage, these two land into one another's worlds with just the right chemistry to make it believable.
Graham loves his brother and will do anything for him and Emmy is very similar in the way she will do anything for her siblings. It's obvious these two have a lot of love to give, but they've been burned in the past.

I adore Isla Madden-Mills and the sports romance books she writes. She always gives us quirky and fun characters that connect on so many levels while also giving us heart. My Darling Bride had the sports, but actually leaned into some serious topics that Graham and Emmy had to navigate while keeping a facade of a fake relationship. And I LOVE fake relationships! There is something to be said for characters that can't admit their feelings and have to fight it all throughout the story. That was definitely the case here, but it also had a lot more built into that.

My Darling Bride was a slow burn when it came to these two characters admitting their feelings and giving into one another. I enjoyed how their relationship grew, but got a little frustrated with Graham and how he ran on more than one occasion. I loved the side characters and the bookstore fiascos that helped bring Emmy and Graham together. I wasn't the biggest fan of the inheritance part of the story since Graham was already wealthy, but I understood where his brother was coming from. While the story wasn't perfect, it was sweet and held some very heavy moments that concerned physical health with both characters. Overall, this was still a cute, funny and full of some feel good family moments on both sides. I look forward to possibly reading a certain sister's story in the future. ;)

A fake marriage sports romance with a man who falls first but doesn't realise it? SIGN ME UP

After the breakdown of her relationship, Emmy runs away to the middle of nowhere. A random man harasses her, so when Graham stops by her door, she latches on to him. She fakes being in love with him. Graham is fine to help and realises why she is running. So when her abusive POS ex comes looking for her, Emmy steals Graham's Lamborghini. When Graham finds out what happened and finds it totalled, he comes up with a plan to help his brother get his inheritance and stop people from always questioning him. He needs to marry the mystery blonde from the motel. The blonde happens to be his brother's friend, and bookstore somewhat owner, Emmy.

This book is one of the best books I've read in 2023. The writing is amazing, the characters all have so much depth and you can feel all their feelings. The plot is well thought-out and the love story is somewhat realistic in a way. Ilsa Madden-Mills did a great job of explaining how medical trauma affects us after something like a heart attack, head injury, or even just going to the hospital. I also loved the way Ilas explains how abusive relationships don't always have to be physical for them to be abusive. While Emmy only leaves after it gets physical, we see how since she didn't have the best upbringing, she understands and knows that abuse can look different. Emmy deserved so much and watching her realise was so healing. Graham's fears of getting CTE and dying again are so refreshing to see. A lot of the time, books don't discuss the fear or impacts of a male character's illness or trauma to do with medical things. Ilsa did such an amazing job with it, I could understand everything he went through. I loved how we see the impact on close family members but also the way it can sometimes affect the way our families treat us.

This book has found family, fake dating/marriage, he falls first but doesn't know, a millionaire lover and it's a football romance. I can't wait for the day this becomes an audiobook, because I will be listening to it 24/7.

Thank you to NetGalley for this amazing read!!!!!

I adored this book. It was the football, marriage of convenience I didn’t know I needed— and now can’t live without.

Graham is a professional football player who’s having a bit of a life crisis after a major concussion that left him mentally bruised as much as physical. When he takes a road trip through the desert, he finds Emmy who ran away from her professional football player boyfriend who was not kind. Some funny antics, and they find themselves agreeing to a fake marriage.

The thing I loved the most was the energy of the book, it was dynamic, the relationships were pure, and everything felt organic. The issues were realistic and it was a joy reading Graham and Emmy overcome their fear of relationships.

The ending was perfection. So sweet, so romantic, so perfect. Truly cannot recommend this enough.

I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Arc, for an honest review.

Graham and Emmy were connected before they even met. I loved that. I loved the way the story played out. Perfect marriage of convenience story.
Emmy took care of her sister and brother since they were little. She has a lot on her plate. AND fate has other plans for her.
Graham doesn't trust anyone and acts like he doesn't care. Its all those little things.
I love all the dynamics, the characters, and everything in between.
I FLoved this story to its core

What’s better than marriage, why a fake marriage to the hottest sports star out there of course. Emmaline met her knight in shining armor, Graham, after fleeing a toxic relationship. She never meant to steal his car, she was just merely borrowing it. After discovering his brand new, top of the line sports car was stolen/ borrowed depending on your point of view and destroyed ( totally not Emmaline’s fault) Graham decides to get payback in the form of a fake relationship in order to get his inheritance. They both have some heavy hitting emotional and health issues that will have you empathizing with them ( and maybe reaching for a tissue) but add in some quirky siblings and some off the charts chemistry and this fake relationship soon starts to feel real pretty quickly. Those familiar with this author will be happy to see some familiar faces but you don’t have to read her other sports romance books to enjoy this one, although I do recommend them. This is a nice quick read that’s a good blend of light and heavy. 5 stars. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this arc. All opinions are my own

I have been waiting for another Ilsa book and I was so thrilled with this one! I laughed and felt the feels, the spice was so sexy and perfect, I enjoyed this book immensely. Fake marriage AND sports, both a recipe for a funny and heartwarming book. Emmy and Graham were a joy to read.

Pings the heart and adds to the laugh lines…

And both of those are a very good thing. Emmy and Graham’s story was filled with equal parts of humour and love as their romance took quirky curves at every stage. From their wild first meet that set the stage for all that followed. To the epilogue that squeezed my heart one last time. This was a fast-paced, kick at the heart as the hero/heroine dealt with life’s curve balls in a way that made me believe love could conquer all…

With a quirky bookstore in New York at its center, the characters that walked in and out of the doors were crazy and lovable (mostly). Add a layer of same from both sets of family - who were caring, supportive and good at decorating and handling an axe (that would be a brother and sister, respectively) - and I not only fell in love with the leads but the whole lot of them!

Told in this author’s wonderful story-telling ways, this is another story firmly on my ‘pick me up’ shelf. I didn’t want this to end so definitely have high hopes that Jane will have a story of her own. Soon…

This was SO CUTE!!! Emmy and Graham have a lot of fears in letting people in. When Graham dies on the field briefly after taking a hit, he sees his life flash before his eyes. But he doesn’t just see memories and the past, he sees what his future could be if he lives.

So when he recovers, he takes a trip to Arizona similar to the visions he had. That’s where he meets Emmaline Darling, before she steals his car. When he tracks her down, his proposed solution is a fake marriage.

Marriages of convenience can be tricky, but this was done spectacularly!! I loved how their relationship grew throughout this and was a great sports romance as well. Definitely recommend!!

My Darling Bride was a good sports and marriage of convenience romance. Emmy Darling who was in the desert hiding from her ex boyfriend steals a Lamborghini to get away from him. Little does she know that the car belongs to a famous football player. Graham Harlan recently took a bad hit on the field and had a near death experience and now he has promised his brother that he would get married to secure the family inheritance, even though he isn't seeing anyone. Graham tracks Emmy down in Manhattan and gives her the choice of marrying him or he'll press charges. The two had sizzling chemistry but it was definitely a slow burn romance with them. I loved them for each other! Fingers crossed that Jane gets a book with a certain football player!

This was such a fun fake marriage book! From the epic first meeting to the ending I enjoyed it. Graham and Emmy had great chemistry that heated up this slowish burn. Their banter was amazing, hilarious and the side characters were just chefs kiss. If she ever wanted to go back and write Brody and Cas’s story I’d appreciate it! Emmy’s allegiance to her family was well written and Graham’s protectiveness and caring for Emmy was nice to see since he’s so closed off emotionally. I really appreciate she thoughtful writing on CTE’s for football players and how scary it is to not know. I also really appreciated how she approached Emmy’s parents abusive relationship including the effects on their kids as well Emmy’s abuser.

Such a good romcom. I cannot wait for Jasper’s book and there better be one preferably with the sassy Jane!

I have always been a fan of Ilsa Madden-Mills books and this one was no exception! This is a funny, sweet, standalone sports romance that just made me smile.

Bookstore owner Emmy Darling and NFL star Graham Harlan have quite the meet cute when Emmy steals his Lamborghini to get away from her troublesome ex-boyfriend. Following some hilarity that ensues following their meeting, Graham then decides to give her a choice, he can either press charges for stealing the car, or she can marry him! You see, he had promised his brother he would marry so he could get his hands on the family inheritance, but he wasn't even close to dating anyone!

With her answer being an easy one, the two of them embark on this arranged marriage. The question is, will these two fight the sparks flying between them or will they give in and see what actually develops between them?

Both Emmy and Graham were great characters, but the other supporting characters were fantastic as well. They really helped to bring the story to life, which I think is a strength of Madden-Mills. I really enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it!

**I voluntarily read an early copy of this title courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review**

My Darling Bride by Ilsa Madden Mills is a marriage of convenience, sports romantic comedy. This book had the perfect combination of wit, banter, and drama, which made it the perfect read! Graham was kind of serious and grumpy, while Emmy was fun, full of life and optimism, even though she had just gotten out of an abusive relationship. I couldn't help but fall in love with both of them. Their feelings were so real to me, which is what made me feel like I was actually watching the movie instead of reading the book. I'm always a sucker for the MoC trope, and this is one of the best I've ever read! Loved, loved, loved it, and highly recommend it with a million stars! Excellent read!