This Earl of Mine

Where to start...Oh, right. I'm reviewing This Earl of Mine by Kate Bateman as a part of a blog tour put together by the amazing folks at St. Martin's Press and SMP Romance. The FTC requires this disclaimer even though every person who has ever met me knows that I am way too opinionated for a free book to sway my opinion. Let's get to this before the coffee runs out!
I was hooked into this book right from the start. The opening scene was all the sketchy a girl could ask for, a cloaked figure, nocturnal sneaking, mystery and intrigue (those are different!), and, marriage for reasons that don't involve love. Georgiana "Georgie" Caversteed is being 'hunted' by her creep-o cousin who wants to marry her for her money and he's not being subtle show more about it. Her plan is to marry a man sentenced to be hanged and live her life as the woefully ignored wife of an always travelling husband. Girl, yes! Georgie is kind of next-level if you ask me, in a time where 'proper' women basically had to be married, she had her plan all figured out on how to be her own woman. Marry a man sentenced to death, boom! instant secret widow and freedom to do as she pleases! And her husband of (in)convenience? Not actually a ne'er-do-well convict bound for Tasmania in the morning. He's a war hero, a member of the ton, -coowner of a gambling hell, and an undercover Bow Street Runner. Benedict "Ben" Hyde is given two options from the prison warden, marry mystery lady or die right there. Ben's Not Happy about this situation and completely dumbstruck when he finds out the identity of his new bride, the wealthiest woman in London. And I am telling you the book, huh? Just slap my name on this book, I love it!
The dynamics between Ben and Georgie are stellar. Ben gives Georgie the ability to be herself, enjoy herself, and have adventures (because adventures should be shared). And, Georgie gives Ben a better sense of self-worth little by little, she shows him how to feel, and she helps him out with his case! Reading this, you can feel the sparks between Ben and Georgie from the start, not the instantaneous 'love them, gotta have them, be with them forever' deal, but that warm butterfly feeling that kind of makes you want to vomit but also makes you want to skip everywhere and it quickly gets out of control and OHMIGOSH I LURV THEM! These two understand each other wonderfully and, even when they have a misunderstanding, they don't flounce off for an eternity and a half or break things off, they talk. They're magical unicorns.
Character Time! My favourite character aside from our leads has to be either Georgiana's younger sister, Juliet, or Benedict's little street urchin friend, Jem. Juliet acts like an airhead, but she's pretty on the ball. She's not as fierce as Georgie, but she has no use for the puff-shirts and one of my favourite conversations in this story is between Georgie and Juliet where they ridicule a man, who's after the Caversteed fortune of course, who has sworn to slay dragons for Juliet. And she's head-over-heels for a preacher's kid from their hometown and subtly sticks it to her matchmaking, title-hunting mother every chance she gets it seems. And Jem is just, well, you have to meet Jem to understand. I love that kid. I like Pieter, the right-hand man Georgie inherited from her father, he's overprotective but also knows Georgie can take care of herself. We love a man who gets that zen balance. I like the teasing camaraderie between Ben and his co-owner friends (and fellow runners), Alex and Seb. My dork babies. My least favourite characters? Georgiana and Juliet's mother and their cousin, Josiah. Josiah is a drunk, a gambling addict, and so many other creeper things that involve me digging out my taser.
I flat-out snorted at Starbucks while reading one passage. The only thing I'll say is, Georgie and Ben actually have the same sense of humour. Poor Mother Caversteed, she never stood a chance. There are some things I didn't see coming in This Earl of Mine and I do love a book that keeps me on my toes. I liked that we had consistent historical accuracy in our content, I'm a trifling little chit about this, I will full-stop on a hist-rom that doesn't give me accuracy for days. I'm at peace with this aspect of my personality, don't judge me.
I just really hated Josiah. His entire whole character was human trash. I also learned that reading the word "coitus" just ruins a love scene for me. It's right up there with "moist", y'all. I also wish there had been some friendship out there for Georgie. That girl needs a friend.
I'm giving This Earl of Mine four stars and three flames. I enjoyed this book and it was a great series opener and I cannot wait to read the next book! I think I've covered everything in my notes, it sure seems like it, so this is the end of my review!

This has been a review from Once Upon a Time, I Read a Book and I hope y'all enjoyed it! If you're looking for more of them, I'm a dot-com away! show less

I looked past the really gross premise to try this for one of the outlets I review for. I shouldn’t have.

The heroine believes that being rich and chased after by fortune hunters is just as bad as “having nothing.” She bribes the guards at Newgate Prison to set up a wedding to a condemned prisoner.

So I thought, maybe there’s something in it for the prisoner? Maybe she’ll be giving a bunch of money so his family doesn’t starve after his death or something? NOPE. The prisoner is threatened with a brutal murder if he doesn’t comply. This is described as her “madcap scheme.”

Seriously. If your main character does not consider poor people or people who have committed a crime (the original guy was a coin forger) to be fully show more human? I don’t want her to have an HEA.

THE END.

Oh wait, there’s also an evil man with “piggy eyes” and “flabby cheeks,” because all fat people must be evil, stupid, lazy, or all the above.

I made it through 16 pages and I hated the heroine so much that I could literally not be paid to keep going.

I received a copy of this book for review. show less

Well that was fun!

An usual woman, a former soldier (ex Rifles, ah Sharpe!), and a hurried marriage at Newgate Prison ensure this tale opens with a bang. Fortunately the pace doesn't waver and the beginning frames the subsequent action superbly.
Georgiana Caversteed, a fabulously rich young woman who controls a shipping empire has decided to do away with importunate odious cousins, fortune hunters and other such sycophants that haunts her every step. Her plan is failproof! She will buy herself a husband, one who's about to depart this world, and then present herself to society after a time as a widow. Unfortunately her target died of jail fever and the only other candidate was to be shipped to the other side of the world. Not to be show more thwarted Georgina goes for plan B and decides to make do with the replacement.
What she didn't know was that the dubious character, her prisoner husband was actually Benedict William Henry Wylde, second son of the late Earl of Morcott. He worked for the Admiralty and currently Bow Street gathering intelligence. This time his search sent him to Newgate.
Imagine Georgina's surprise when a few weeks later her husband turned up at a ton function. This was not going to do! Oh, no! Never!
Well of course things became more complicated in all sorts of ways. And our Georgina is a feisty, intelligent woman. But ah! Those complications!
A lively read filled with an interesting array of characters and situations that please.

A St. Martin's Press ARC via NetGalley show less

I'm a big fan of historical romance so I was delighted to read about a romantic story line that included an investigation into a plot to smuggle Emperor Napoleon off the island of St. Helena in a British-built submarine designed by the American, Robert Fulton. How cool is that?!

According to English law, as soon as Georgie married, all that would instantly become the property of her husband, to do with as he wished. That husband would not be Josiah.

Georgiana Caversteed (Georgie), heiress to the Caversteed Shipping Company, is worth a fortune, and is tired of men sniffing after her money, especially her idiot cousin Josiah. Her plan? To marry a criminal in Newgate Prison who will be forced to sign a pre-nuptial agreement and most likely show more be sentenced to death the next day making Georgie a widow and free to do anything she liked. However, her plan backfires and the man she forced to marry her is not who he seems.

Benedict Wylde is penniless from his father's gambling debts. He is the "younger son, the 'spare' as opposed to the 'heir', shipped off to receive a decent education without the stifling expectation of one day inheriting a title or having to take their seat in the House of Lords." However, his luck changed when Ms. Georgie Caversteed traipsed into Newgate Prison forcing him to marry her for a price. Will he find the price too high?

I loved the characters in this story! Georgie is a strong, competent woman who knows how to run a thriving company better than most men, but she also has believable insecurities about herself as a woman. Her wealth overshadowed true friendship and trust in others. Benedict is a dashing rogue who is charming and honorable with a passion for intrigue. His respect for Georgie as an entrepreneur and as a companion is pleasing to see, especially in a time period where it was unusual to see a woman running a company on her own.

If you like historical romances with intriguing mysteries, stolen moments, and passionate love scenes, give this book a try.

Thank you to Ms. Bateman for giving me the opportunity to review this book with expectation of a positive review. show less

A fun start to the series. Georgie is being threatened by her cousin. She fears he will purposely compromise her to force her to marry him so that he can have access to her money. She decides to take her fate into her own hands and marry a condemned prisoner so that she could be a widower. However, things don't work as she plans and the only prisoner available when she needs one isn't set to die. But she rolls with the punches and adjusts her plans, marrying him anyway, still expecting to never see him again. But again, things don't work out like she plans and she's very shocked to see him out in London society. And once again, new plans have to be made. But along the way, the two actually fall for each other. But Georgie has never had show more a man interested in more than her money. How does she know that Benedict is for real? And Benedict never had plans to marry. How can he prove to Georgie he isn't out for her money, even though he's dead broke? Throw in a sister with an aspiring, but terrible, poet for a suitor and this book had good bits of comedy. I loved Benedict and Georgie and their adventures. This was a fun read. show less

This was a really nice introduction to Kate Bateman! It looks like her books have pretty hit-or-miss reviews, but this one was a hit for me. I found it fun right from the get-go and sped through it. While he isn't strictly a blue-collar hero, Benedict does have to work for his and his brother's money because of their father's profligacy, and he was absolutely wonderful. I love a marriage of convenience (or rather, inconvenience, as it were). I appreciated how Georgie flips the gender tables on him when he says he can't marry her because everyone will assume it was for her money. Regardless of whether her owning a shipping business would have even been possible at the time doesn't really matter to me. I liked that Benedict gets his dues show more in the end, as does Georgie. I also loved that they respect each other before they fall in love, even if they do realize it at a most opportune time. And Georgie carries a knife in her boot. I always approve of a woman prepared to protect herself and realizing that "romance was a strong man standing aside, letting her fight her own battles, and only stepping in if she needed help" (120). show less

Well, this new series certainly got off to an exciting start. The premise is unique, the romance is lovely and the mystery is a good one. I don’t feel the mystery overshadows the romance at all – I actually think it enhances it. The story is well-written, well-plotted and well-delivered. I loved both of the main characters – both were strong, intelligent and competent. What I liked most about the characters though, is that they were very honest with each other – no big secrets to come out and bite them. She even told her mother and sister what would have been a big secret in any other book. So – thank you to the author for providing us with two main characters who were honest and forthright with each other and others.

Georgiana show more Caversteed is a very, very, very rich young lady who is very intelligent and is definitely in charge of her own life. She makes her own decisions and then acts upon them. When her sludge-pot of a cousin, Josiah, makes a nuisance of himself and makes it plain that he will compromise her in order to marry her and gain control of her fortune, she makes her own plan to thwart him. Her plan? She’ll go to Newgate prison and marry a man who is to be executed the next day. That way, she can marry and then become a widow in short order. That will work for her because widows have more leeway in society and her cousin shouldn’t be able to compromise her and force a marriage.

Benedict William Henry Wilde is the poor brother of the poor Earl of Morcott. Their profligate father ran the earldom into the ground and it has been all Benedict’s brother, John, can do to keep afloat. There are massive debts and Benedict helps to pay what he can – which leaves him with little money for himself. He used the money he got from selling his Army commission to open the Tricorn Club, a gambling hell, along with his two friends Sebastian Wolff and Alexander Harland. They all vowed to make their fortunes together.

Benedict, Alex, and Seb supplement their income by working for Bow Street on special cases where access to the ton is needed. Benedict is currently working on a case involving the possible rescue of Napoleon from St. Helena and he’s undercover in Newgate prison. He’s certainly surprised when the jailer comes to his cell and drags him out to marry a woman he’s never seen – but he has heard of her. It isn’t like he can refuse – at least not if he wants to live to get out of the prison, so he goes through with it.

Georgiana expects her new husband to be on his way to Australia the next morning as he was being transported. Only – she soon finds out that it didn’t happen. When she sees him in a ballroom her mouth drops open. Obviously he isn’t gone and now they have some serious matters to discuss.

I liked watching the two of them work through their issues by discussing them openly and honestly and then coming to a solution for themselves. They quickly came to respect and admire each other and, of course, love soon followed.

It was a lovely read even though it was a totally improbable tale. Women weren’t allowed to actually own property at that time, so there would have had to be a male trustee, guardian – something.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. show less