The Winter Bride by Anne Gracie
~"Delightful....A romantic
winner." --Kirkus
Four young women face a life of destitution—until a daring act changes their fortune and turns them each into a beautiful bride. In The Winter Bride, a compromising situation leads to an unexpected wedding and delicious temptation....
Four young women face a life of destitution—until a daring act changes their fortune and turns them each into a beautiful bride. In The Winter Bride, a compromising situation leads to an unexpected wedding and delicious temptation....
Damaris
Chance’s unhappy past has turned her off the idea of marriage forever. But her
guardian, Lady Beatrice Davenham, convinces her to make her coming out
anyway—and have a season of carefree, uncomplicated fun.
When Damaris finds herself trapped in a compromising situation with the handsome rake Freddy Monkton-Coombes, she has no choice but to agree to wed him—as long as it’s in name only. Her new husband seems to accept her terms, but Freddy has a plan of his own: to seduce his reluctant winter bride.
Will Damaris’s secrets destroy her chance at true happiness? Or can Freddy help her cast off the shackles of the past, and yield to delicious temptation?
When Damaris finds herself trapped in a compromising situation with the handsome rake Freddy Monkton-Coombes, she has no choice but to agree to wed him—as long as it’s in name only. Her new husband seems to accept her terms, but Freddy has a plan of his own: to seduce his reluctant winter bride.
Will Damaris’s secrets destroy her chance at true happiness? Or can Freddy help her cast off the shackles of the past, and yield to delicious temptation?
Published & Release Date: Entangled,
Scandalous, November 10, 2014
Time
and setting: 1816 England
Genre:
Historical Romance
Heat
Level: 1
Rating: 5 Gold Crowns
Vikki’s musings
I am so pleased I had the opportunity to read The
Winter Bride. A friend asked me to read it because she received it to judge for
the Rita. Since she is in the midst of edits, she feared she would not have
time. I immediately said yes. Historical Regency romance is my favorite genre,
and I have read other books by Ms. Gracie. I thoroughly enjoyed this wonderful
story. This is the second book in the Chance Sisters series, and I will definitely
be reading book one.
Freddie Monkton-Coombes is best man at Max, Lord Davenham’s
wedding. On the eve of the wedding, Max asks him to keep an eye on his bride’s
sisters. Freddie is the last man on earth that should be guarding tender young
misses. He is a known rake, but Max tells him that is the very reason he wants
Freddie, who better than a rake, to watch over innocents and keep them out of
the clutches of another rake. There is another problem. Damaris Chance disturbs
him in ways he prefers not to examine too closely.
While Freddie is a confirmed bachelor, determined to
never marry, Damaris is just as determined to remain single. When Freddie’s
parents plan a house party and invite all the muffins (eligible young ladies)
in town who are constantly chasing after him, he becomes desperate and hatches
a plan. If Damaris will pretend she is his betrothed, then he will buy her a
cottage in the country close to Davenham Hall, which is Damaris’ dream.
This starts a delightfully witty romp. While The
Winter Bride is a light-hearted read on the surface, the story has much more
depth than is usually found in romantic comedy. Freddie has a great deal of
emotional pain and guilt over the death of his brother and is estranged from
his parents, only visiting them one day a year on the anniversary of George’s
death.
Damaris has her secrets as well and these secrets are
tied to her determination to never marry. As the story unfolds, Ms. Gracie uses
a masterful touch as she sprinkles in what these secrets are. The pain Damaris
feels is deeply moving and when I learned what had happened to her, it moved me
to tears.
She also does an excellent job of building suspense
in the sense that I became thoroughly enmeshed in the story, turning the pages
on my Kindle as fast as possible, impatiently waiting for this
emotionally-charged tale to reveal the hero and heroine’s secrets. Most times
when I think of suspense, it usually involves situations of high adventure and
lots of action.
This is a beautifully written story that ran the
gambit of emotions for me. At times, I laughed out loud, especially at the
experimental Chinese swimming pigs, and at other times my heart ached,
especially when Freddie shows Damaris his family portrait gallery.
I do wish I had read The Autumn Bride first and suggest
that you start with it first, not that this is confusing, it is easily a stand
alone. I highly recommend this beautiful story and can’t wait for Jane and
Daisy’s stories. Happy reading!
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