Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot/Storyline: 📖📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡⚡⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥
Humor: Yes
Perspective: Third perspective from both hero and heroine

Should I read in order?
This is fine to read at any time – it’s a prequel novella to the series The Truth About the Duke but it’s about the 3 brother’s aunt and not necessary to read beforehand or anything.

Basic plot:
Margaret is finally not a poor spinster once her brother inherits a dukedom and rests 40,000 pounds on her for a dowry. Now she just must avoid all fortune hunters. Rhys is destitute and soon falls for far more than Margaret’s inheritance.

Give this a try if you want:
- Georgian time period (1771)
- Novella length
- Hero pursues
- Welsh hero
- Hero needs an heiress
- Self described as a ‘tall, flat chested spinster’
- Masquerade!
- A bit of forbidden love feel – the heroine’s brother doesn’t approve of the match

Ages:
- Heroine is near 30, hero is 30

My thoughts:
Oh this novellas has basically all my romance catnip wrapped up in one story and I adored it so much. So, so much.

We have a playful, Welsh hero that falls in love with the heroine first. He pursues. He brings her out of her shell and woos her relentlessly. There’s humor. There’s no crazy mystery or villain – it’s just the focus on the relationship building. Sigh. Swoon. Love.

Rhys was just perfection to me. I loved his sense of humor and I loved how much he loved Margaret. Margaret gives him multiple set downs because she does not want to be pursued for her fortune. And everyone knows Rhys is destitute. But it was just adorable to me how he convinced her he loved her.

I really loved this novella. The rest of the series was hit and miss for me, but this one is precious.

Quotes/spoiler-y thoughts:

“I am quite familiar with the concept of impossibility,” she snapped back. “I refuse to marry any man who needs money.”
“No, you’re going to marry me.” He lowered his eyelashes and gave her a wicked smile. “And we’ll be very happy.”
----
“My intentions?” His slow smile acted like a torch held to her skin. She felt prickly with heat and yet transfixed by the flowing allure of it.
“I intend to have you, Maggie, in every way a man can have a woman. I want your hand in mine when we dance. I want you laughing beside me in the theater. I want you lying naked in my arms at night. And I want you standing beside me in church saying I will.” His gaze scorched her.
-----
“How many kisses?”
“Just one will do.” She sounded as breathless as he felt. Good. Raw male satisfaction ripped through him. He was no green boy, undone by the sight of a woman’s parted lips, but by god, he wanted her to be as aroused by this as he was.
“How long a kiss?” He brushed his lips against the corner of her mouth.
“How long do you need?” She swayed against him, her hand resting lightly against his chest.
“To kiss you properly? A lifetime, Maggie.”

Content warnings:

Honestly I can’t recall any? Maybe a touch of controlling family members that manipulate others

Locations of kisses/intimate scenes:

50% - kiss
72% - kisses, missionary in the bed