Review: A Marriage of Inconvenience

As a poor relation, Lucy depends on her aunt and cousins to financially assist her and her younger brothers. And she doesn’t expect much from life, perhaps a job as a governess one day. But her cousin Sebastian shocks her when he asks for her hand in marriage. Lucy has mooned over him for years, so she is thrilled. But she must keep the betrothal a secret until her cousin Portia’s wedding is over.

During the family’s trip to see Portia wed, Lucy meets the handsome viscount James and his lovely sister Anne. Sebastian becomes obviously besotted over Anne, but since their engagement is a secret, Lucy says nothing. In the meantime, Lucy is becoming fast friends with James, and perhaps is feeling a bit too friendly, but she honors her committment to Sebastian. Until he betrays her. Then the road is clear for a relationship to develop between Lucy and the handsome lord who is worming his way into her heart.

This was a sweet little story. Of course, Lucy is a virgin, so we witness her indoctrination into the sexual realm. The love scenes are good, though not especially blush-worthy. The story development was solid and the main characters were easy to root for. You could see the big foil in the Lucy/James relationship coming from a mile away. I felt like his reaction was over the top and I wasn’t able to forgive him quite as easily as Lucy did. But all in all, I found it an easy, satisfying read, that left me with a smile on my face. Almost 4 stars.

P.S. We get a glimpse of Anna’s future in the epilogue. But I was pleased to find out we can read the rest of her story in her own book, The Sergeant's Lady.

*ARC Provided by NetGalley