After finishing a couple of other books in this series, I was primed to wrap the series up with this final installment. Nicholas was the brother I knew the least about as he was the youngest and I don’t know that I was looking forward to this one perhaps as much as the others simply because I didn’t know enough about his character from the previous books to really be interested in him.
But as I have said before, Julia Quinn is the master at historical romances so I was happy to see what Nicholas Rokesby got up to in this one. Not to mention this one was a marriage of convenience troupe and I love the marriage of convenience troupe. That alone made me really excited to read this one. Plus this had a very ‘girl next door’ feel to it so based on these two facts alone, I looked forward to the last Rokesby brother getting his HEA.
While I might love some of Julia Quinn’s books better than others, I have never felt fully disappointed in one of her romances. Romances for me are such a great escape and I find myself reading them more and more simply because I know I am going to get a happy ending and I love watching love bloom between two unsuspecting people. Romances always deliver that happy ending and during these stressful times, I find myself turning to them more and more simply to read something happy! No one does romance like Julia Quinn and she does always deliver on the HEA.
Summary
She was given two choices…
Georgiana Bridgerton isn’t against the idea of marriage. She’d just thought she’d have some say in the matter. But with her reputation hanging by a thread after she’s abducted for her dowry, Georgie is given two options: live out her life as a spinster or marry the rogue who has ruined her life.
Enter Option #3
As the fourth son of an earl, Nicholas Rokesby is prepared to chart his own course. He has a life in Edinburgh, where he’s close to completing his medical studies, and he has no time — or interest — to find a wife. But when he discovers that Georgie Bridgerton — his literal girl-next-door — is facing ruin, he knows what he must do.
A Marriage of Convenience
It might not have been the most romantic of proposals, but Nicholas never thought she’d say no. Georgie doesn’t want to be anyone’s sacrifice, and besides, they could never think of each other as anything more than childhood friends… or could they?
But as they embark upon their unorthodox courtship they discover a new twist to the age-old rhyme. First comes scandal, then comes marriage. But after that comes love… (summary from Goodreads)
Review
Admittedly, I liked this one the least in the series. While I liked the marriage of convenience troupe and yes Georgie and Nicholas were cute, their relationship was lacking in conflict. When I say conflict I don’t mean like arguments or things like that but there just didn’t seem like there was anything driving it or anything that they needed to overcome together. For example, in the proceeding books there were conflicts lies that needed to be uncovered and addressed, or maybe there were enemies and they became lovers. Between Georgie and Nicholas it felt like the only thing they needed to overcome was the brother/sisterly affection they thought they had for one another only to discover that they actually did feel something more. Overall it felt lukewarm for me and not enough for me to be fully invested in their relationship.
Now that said, I didn’t feel like it was a terrible book or anything. It just didn’t carry the same impact or tension like some of the other books had. Nicholas was a refreshing hero though. He was supportive of Georgie and her decisions and he trusted her to know her own mind and body. And he also wasn’t the typical ‘rogue’ or experienced of lovers that are often in so many romance novels. For that reason this book set itself aside and I really enjoyed that part of the book. It was nice to have a more unconventional hero to explore even if that isn’t my favorite type of hero in romances, it was still a nice refreshing break to read Nicholas’s story.
This story has all the charming Julia Quinn dialogue and outrageous scenarios that I love though. I laughed so hard about Freddie (one of Georgie’s other suitors) and I just loved Nicholas’s reaction to his parent’s outlandish request. I adored the early parts of the book but in the end I didn’t feel like there was enough drive to finish the story with the impact it was meant to. For me this one felt like the after thought. Like hurry up and get this one done to wrap up the series and on to another. It wasn’t bad it just didn’t feel as well done as some of the others in the series. It was still a charming book and I am glad I read it but I would have liked to have a little something more to carry it through to the very end and cement their love.
Book Info and Rating
Format 288 pages, Hardcover
PublishedApril 21, 2020 by Avon
ISBN9780062975065 (ISBN10: 0062975064)
Review copy provided by personal collection. All opinions are my own and in no way influenced.
Rating: 3 stars
Genre: historical romance
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