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The Convenient Marriage
483 pages
A sparkling, witty romp through Georgian society where a pragmatic bargain slowly blossoms into genuine love.
What it feels like
Reading this classic historical romance feels like stepping into a brilliantly lit Georgian ballroom, where every conversation is a fencing match of wit and manners. The narrative moves at a brisk, effervescent pace, driven almost entirely by sharp, playful banter and delightful social maneuvering. It wraps the reader in a cozy, elegant atmosphere that balances farcical misunderstandings with moments of genuine, quiet tenderness. The prose is crisp and delightfully period-flavored, capturing the arch tone of high society without ever losing its affectionate warmth toward its flawed, endearing characters. It is a perfect comfort read for anyone who delights in the marriage-of-convenience trope, offering a joyful, theatrical escape where youthful folly is ultimately met with steadfast, amused devotion.
- Mood
- effervescent
- elegant
- cozy
- theatrical
- Tone
- wry
- sparkling
- playful
- arch
- Pace
- brisk
- Themes
- marriage of convenience · youthful folly · quiet devotion · coming of age · social maneuvering
- The writing
- Crisp and period-flavored, driven by sharp, witty banter and elegant turns of phrase.
- The arc
- Moves from pragmatic detachment and youthful misunderstanding to a warm, deeply felt romantic realization.
- Who it's for
- Fans of classic, closed-door historical romance who delight in sparkling dialogue, farcical misunderstandings, and a quietly amused, highly capable hero.
Content notes
- gambling
- mild peril
- period-typical attitudes
About the book
When Lord Marcus Drelincourt, Earl of Rule, the most eligible match of Georgian England, offers for the hand of the oldest and prettiest sister of the Winwood Family, he has no notion of the distress he causes his intended. Beauty Lizzie Winwood already is promised to Edward Heron, an also impoverished military, who she loves, but the wealthy Earl of Rule wants her as his wife. Lizzie's younger sister Horatia conceives a dazzling plan to avert a nuptial disaster, and offers herself, since he really wants to marry into this family. He has lots of money but they have an old family line. Everyone knows Horry isn't that beauty and has a stutter, but she'll do her best to keep out of the Earl's way and make him a good wife.
He agree, and dazzling Horatia married the powerful Earl of Rule. Their was a convenient marriage, she was only saving her sister from a loveless match, rescuing her family fortune, and providing herself with a life of ease. Hers was a marriage made not in heaven but in the coolly logical mind of a very self-possessed young. As her new husband's attentions fall elsewhere, Horry begins to feel increasingly unhappy. Then she meets the attractive and dangerous Lord Robert Lethbridge and her days suddenly become more exciting. But there is bad blood between Horry's husband and her new acquaitnance, and as complications and deceptions mount, the social tangle grows ever trickier to unpick.
She suddenly find -- to her own tremulous surprise -- she had fallen deeply in love with the man she had married for money. But was it too late, now that she was but a heartbeat away from betraying both him and herself? Her reputation was about to be ruined. But the Earl of Rule has found just the wife he wants, unbeknownst to Horatia, the Earl is enchanted by her. There's simply no way he's going to let her get into trouble. Overcoming some misguided help from Horatia's harebrained brother and a hired highwayman, the Earl plans to defeat his old enemy, and wins over his young wife, gifting her with a love that she never thought she could expect.
Description from Open Library.
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