This may have been my favorite book in the series. I read this so quickly. I couldn’t put it down. I’ll be sad to leave these characters. What an enjoyable series.

Martha Waters’ Regency Vows books have been a series of smart, sexy, and over-the-top escapades, and her final installment is no exception. To Woo and to Wed throws the Marquess of Weston and Lady Fitzwilliam Bridewell back together – once young fiancés, then long-time frenemies, West and Sophie dream up a harebrained scheme to feign a renewed engagement for the sake of both of their families. In their effort to convince the ton of their sincerity, stunts and capers abound.

Yes, the heart of West and Sophie’s problem rests on a misunderstanding. But I was able to get past this often used plot-device, given how sweet and fun this romance was to read. I felt Waters did a good job of presenting West’s physical disability and I appreciated that Sophie wasn’t hellbent on getting hitched and pregnant.

All in all, an extremely satisfying conclusion to a delightful historical romance series! Thanks so much to Atria Books and NetGalley for the advanced readers copy!

"The final installment in the "hilarious and steamy" (PopSugar) Regency Vows series follows the heir to a dukedom and a young widow, once very much in love, as they reunite years later to fake an engagement for the benefit of her sister.

West, the Marquess of Weston, and Sophie, Lady Fitzwilliam Bridewell, have lately been spending a considerable amount of time together. But West and Sophie are not new acquaintances. In fact, years ago, they had once been nearly engaged until West's almost fatal curricle accident and his meddling father threw them off course.

Now recently widowed, Sophie has put aside all thoughts of romance. But when her widowed sister, Alexandra, mentions a fondness for an earl, Sophie realizes that she may be holding her sister back. Alexandra won't move forward with an engagement until Sophie, too, settles down again, and so Sophie approaches West with a plan. They will announce their engagement and break things off once Alexandra is happily married. It'll be simple. After all, it's not like she is going to fall for West a second time, not when Sophie has sworn not to risk her heart again."

Sigh, Regency Romance!

This is a fun and entertaining conclusion to the series. I’ve been looking forward to reading West and Sophie’s story for a while now, and I can see why Waters waited until the last book to tell it. They have a swoon-worthy second chance romance, and there’s so much pining and angst and sexual tension that it was almost tangible.

West is a wonderful cinnamon roll MMC who will do anything to prove that he and Sophie are meant to be. I adored him. He is so sweet and kind and always in control except when with Sophie. She affects him in so many ways, and the way he fights for her… swoon! 

I found Sophie a bit more difficult to like. She’s bossy and stubborn, and she makes decisions for everyone without asking for their input. She could have saved everyone a lot of time and headaches by talking things out before making life-altering decisions. And some of the things that kept these two apart frustrated me – the miscommunication and false assumptions tropes are not my faves. Nevertheless, their chemistry is great, and I enjoyed the dual POV and flashbacks to their past. It definitely adds to the character development and shows how deep and unending their love for each other is.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.

This whole series is very well written with cute story lines and great character development. The fake engagement scenario made me question if this would be another boring storyline but in true Martha Waters fashion I was quickly invested in West & Sophie’s story.

📣 historical second chance with a big ole pining hero

📖 what’s your current read? I’m finishing up Jackie Lau’s Love, Lies, & Cherry Pie today.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the complimentary ARC. All opinions provided are my own.

To Woo & To Wed is the third Martha Waters book I’ve read & I really love the humor, heart, & mild absurdity of them.

The last one—where the heroine tries to stage a haunted house—is particularly inventive. This one is a bit more conventional, hinging around a fake engagement between two people who were close to being engaged seven years earlier.

Sophie & West have had quite the journey to a HEA. First derailed by his tyrannical duke father & a horrible curricle accident, Sophie and West are additionally hindered by Sophie’s feelings regarding the obstacles they face.

But the attraction between them holds steady, as does West himself, who has pined hard for our girl Sophie.

You know how I am about second chance & the execution of this one doesn’t quite win me over. The flashbacks feel kind of inserted into the narrative without the glue to bring it all together for me seamlessly. I felt like I was missing some of the emotional nuance necessary to really fall for the second chance arc.

But the characters are entertaining, & I love Martha Waters’ writing style, which is shiny & bright & witty. To Woo & To Wed isn’t my fave of this series but I rec this author in general & really look forward to reading more of her books. They’re adorable.

3.5 ⭐️. 02/06.

Please see a trusted reviewer’s list of CWs.

[ID: Jess, a white woman wearing a yellow floral dress, holds the ebook while standing in a greenhouse.]

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for a review.

I've read all the others in this series, and thought that they were okay. This was the same. There was nothing in there that really wowed me, but nothing I hated, either. It was a fine book to read while dealing with Christmas stress.

I was thrilled to receive an advanced copy of this book because I have loved the others in this series and this did not disappoint. I have been waiting for Sophie and West's story and it was a good one. A great second chance romance with just the right amount of pining and backstories.

Loved that James and Violet got to have such a main part in the plot. Overall, very pleased with this book!

This was a really satisfying end to a series that I've really loved. I've been waiting for West and Sophie's story and I was not disappointed. There was so much great pining and I loved their mature relationship and how clearly they knew each other and how much their history kept them apart while also pulling them together. This book was sexy, sweet, and kept me wanting more. My only critique would be some of the flashbacks felt unnecessary—regurgitating information I already knew. But I also enjoyed getting to see a lot of the other characters from the earlier books, especially the epilogue with all the babies. I'll miss this world, and I can't wait to see what Martha Waters writes next.

Readers of the Regency Vows romance series have long awaited West and Sophie's reunion. These two characters have been hovering at the edges of the other stories, tragic figures whose fledgling romance was cut short by an accident that seriously injured West and killed his best friend. Although the series begins after the accident, that tragedy has shaped the lives of this group of family and friends, so learning more about it - and giving some of the characters involved their happy ending - felt like a fitting end to the series.

Of course, To Woo and To Wed contains all the usual hijinks - a fake engagement, some steamy love scenes, lots of tea and pastries - as well as the appearances by several characters from previous novels in the series. Sophie and West are both likeable protagonists, and it is easy to root for their reunion. Perhaps a little bit too easy - there is really no obstacle to their being together, which at least one of the characters (West) seems to realize two-thirds of the way through the book. Every time a new issue is raised, he simply asserts the he cares only about being with Sophie - a noble sentiment, but not a very interesting one. I would have liked to see more character development around Sophie to give her concerns about their relationship more heft, and/or more deliberation from West's side.

4.5 stars, rounded up. Somewhat more serious than its predecessors, but still a humorous and entertaining read. I can't wait to see what the author does next.

The plot moves slowly in this story as it winds through the present and the past telling the love story of West and Sophie. It has a cast of fun characters that get up to many adventures. The couple is fighting for a second chance at a happy life together. This calls for grand schemes and the help of good friends and family members. It is a good story worth meandering through and getting to know the characters.

The final book in the Regency Vows series, follows the story of the Sophie, Lady Fitzwilliam Bridewell and West, the Marquess of Weston. Sophie and West were once in love until an unfortunate accident and a meddling father changed the course of their lives. Years later, Sophie finds herself as a young widow. Her sister Alexandra has been dropping hints of her own interest in an earl as a possible suitor for herself. Fearing she is holding her sister back at the chance of finding love, Sophie fakes an engagement to her old love, West. They plan to announce their engagement and call it off once Sophie’s sister is happily married. Of course, this should be an easy plan to execute and there is no chance of the two falling back in love with each other.

Full of favorite romance tropes, To Woo and to Wed is the perfect conclusion to this series. Fans of the first four books will not be disappointed with the final book.

thanks to NetGalley for the eARC

⭐️=4.25 | 😘=5 | 🤬=2 | 😭=0.25 | 18+

summary: second chance historical romance. fake engagement. yearning. they’re in love your honor!!!!!

thoughts:
- 1-65%: teehee swoony second chance fake engagement romance yes my fav tropes we love her slay it’s giving
- 66-85%: oh ok so they’re both literally dumb and the conflict is feeling fake?????
- 86-92%: act five of every Shakespeare comedy ever
- 93-100%: well-written romcom resolution!

anyway. from my exploration of the Regency Vows canon—I’ve read four of her five published works—I conclude that Martha Waters is very good at writing romance (seriously) and especially at using the social boundaries of Regency society to create romcomedy shenanigans. it’s great. it’s fun. this felt slightly slow for a bit during the middle, but by the end it was a really sweet and sentimental conclusion to the series. banter. yearning. second chances. I eat that up for every meal in a borderline unhealthy manner, and Martha delivers!

I absolutely love this entire series but this is by far my favorite of all of the books! I adore a swoony second chance romance and this book delivers a heart wrenching back story that makes you physically ache for the characters. After four books of wondering what happened in their past, we finally get answers and it’s heartbreaking.

Seven years ago when they are super young, West and Sophie meet at a musicale and immediately hit it off. They court throughout the season and are madly in love. West is heir to a Dukedom and his father is a real prick. His father the Duke threatens to ruin Sophie’s sister’s reputation if she agrees to marry his son. Being an eldest daughter of 5 she can’t ruin her sister’s future prospects so she takes his threat seriously. West gets wind of his father’s machinations and is PISSED! He does what any reasonable 24 year old gentleman would do and gets foxed and challenges his best friend, The Marquess of Willingham to a curicle race. The race ends in tragedy. His best friend dies, West is left with a broken leg and while he is convalescing, Sophie marries one of his childhood friends leaving him with a shattered heart. Not only is he grieving his best friend but the woman he loves. I mean…this story is physically painful! Sophie is now widowed and lonely. Her also widowed sister is in love again but hesitant to remarry without seeing that her sister is happy and settled too. Sophie obviously wants her sister to get her HEA and asks West to pose as her betrothed so her sister won’t worry over her and there are SO MANY FEELINGS!

Two people with a tragic past embark on a fake betrothal while they are still desperately in love?! How are they going to work this out!? Martha Waters injects loads of witty dialogue, a meddling valet and butler, unhinged siblings and clever jokes that will have you laughing through all the heartache. If you want to see how this story plays out, you will have to get the book. It’s a wonderful read!

Martha Waters does it again! Loved every minute of West and Sophie’s story! Very sad to see this series end but excited to see what Martha Waters bring us next.

West and Sophie’s relationship is wonderfully dramatic, filled with tension and classic misinterpretation, I loved the way their feelings evolved! The ending felt especially well done to me, a great end to the series.

We finally get Sophie and West's story! I liked getting to learn more about their relationship in the past while also watching them fake-date in the present. I liked seeing the hijinks we've enjoyed throughout the series play out with both the original friend group as well as with Sophie's sisters. This book was a great way to tie off a sweet and funny romance series, and I'm looking forward to reading more from this author in the future. I'm grateful to have been able to read this ARC on NetGalley.

To Woo and to Wed is the last in The Regency Vows series and I feel like I’ve been anticipating Sophie and West’s story since the very beginning.

West was the adoring, cinnamon roll that I can’t resist. He fell for Sophie hard seven years ago and has never recovered. Sophie…was harder to love. She was stubborn, obstinate, and uncommunicative. She blatantly made choices that affected West’s life as well as hers without his opinion or input. I truly wanted to jump into the book and shake some sense into her.

Overall, To Woo and to Wed was an emotional journey with a lot of lighthearted moments. Sophie’s twin sisters were hilarious and I couldn’t help but laugh at her antics. And Sophie’s parents? #couplesgoals

A good ending to a wonderful series.

Thank you to Atria Books for the review copy.

To Woo and to Wed is a second chance romance and it delivers. This is the fifth in the Recency Vows series and will conclude the series. You don't need to read these in order to enjoy any of them. Start anywhere you like, but if you are like me you'll want to read them all.

Thank you to NetGalley for the digital ARC.

I received an ARC of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I've read several of the books in this series, and they're enjoyable. This one is no exception. It's not earth shattering in anyway but it's a good choice for a light, dessert read when you need it.