The widowed Diana, Lady Templeton and Jeremy, Marquess of Willingham are infamous among English high society as much for their sharp-tongued bickering as their flirtation. One evening, an argument at a ball turns into a serious wager: Jeremy will marry within the year or Diana will forfeit one hundred pounds. So shortly after, just before a fortnight-long house party at Elderwild, Jeremy’s country estate, Diana is shocked when Jeremy appears at her home with a very different kind of proposition.

After his latest mistress unfavorably criticized his skills in the bedroom, Jeremy is looking for reassurance, so he has gone to the only woman he trusts to be totally truthful. He suggests that they embark on a brief affair while at the house party—Jeremy can receive an honest critique of his bedroom skills and widowed Diana can use the gossip to signal to other gentlemen that she is interested in taking a lover.

Diana thinks taking him up on his counter-proposal can only help her win her wager. With her in the bedroom and Jeremy’s marriage-minded grandmother, the formidable Dowager Marchioness of Willingham, helping to find suitable matches among the eligible ladies at Elderwild, Diana is confident her victory is assured. But while they’re focused on winning wagers, they stand to lose their own hearts.

Review

Wanted:
One (fake) boyfriend
Practically perfect in every way

Luc O'Donnell is tangentially--and reluctantly--famous. His rock star parents split when he was young, and the father he's never met spent the next twenty years cruising in and out of rehab. Now that his dad's making a comeback, Luc's back in the public eye, and one compromising photo is enough to ruin everything.

To clean up his image, Luc has to find a nice, normal relationship...and Oliver Blackwood is as nice and normal as they come. He's a barrister, an ethical vegetarian, and he's never inspired a moment of scandal in his life. In other words: perfect boyfriend material. Unfortunately apart from being gay, single, and really, really in need of a date for a big event, Luc and Oliver have nothing in common. So they strike a deal to be publicity-friendly (fake) boyfriends until the dust has settled. Then they can go their separate ways and pretend it never happened.

But the thing about fake-dating is that it can feel a lot like real-dating. And that's when you get used to someone. Start falling for them. Don't ever want to let them.

This is the conclusion of a beloved series and I was eager to read it but I ended with mixed feelings about it. There was some happiness but also sadness, some things worked great for me, others were annoying and I found them to be too much. It's how I feel about the series overall, some books have been amazing, other - just OK. It's been quite a rider and I mostly remain with fond memories of the Winston family and their partners in life.

I think these series all over should be approached with a specific mindset - it's a series of romances set in a small town in Tennessee, these are all het stories with some ethnically diverse characters, an MC gang, hillbilly shenanigans and their uniting motif is finding love and how the right person for you is not always the one you expect it to be.

Billy and Scarlet’s story is the most dramatic by far. The prequel with them falling in love for the first time as teenagers and being separated because of some horrific events in their lives - was heart-breaking and very emotionally intense, setting the stage of their eventual coming together years later.

I liked the idea of his family helping them get together but felt it was overdone, too much contrived encounters, too much pressure, not enough free will of Billy and Scarlet talking things through, and they did have a lot of things to discuss, to confess, to accept and move on in their live.

I had some issues with the plot, which at this point of my reading Penny Reid’s books, I’d say is a recurring feature in her romances - a weak plot, lots of forced elements just there to further the plot - eavesdropping on other people’s conversation (a plot device, I hate), too many secrets that are bound to come to light. I didn't like how Billy and Claire kept going back and forth in their relationship, they were acting like teenagers a lot of the time and the lack of communication was the main source of the conflict between them.

I appreciate that their past was told in retrospect and we didn't witness first-hand the abuse she suffered, the struggles they both had through with their own desires and conscience.

I was bothered with the way her dead husband was painted as the villain (he very much was one and we saw the beginning of that in the previous book). I absolutely understand how abusive and terrible he had been to her but still didn’t like that him being already dead, we couldn't see his point, it was just too convenient to show Billy as the awesome guy he was, a complete opposite of him.

In the end, the story has the loveliest epilogue where we see all the families together. I loved seeing how they all managed to rebuild their lives after the horrific events in their childhood and teen years.

Dating-ish, an all new standalone from the USA Today bestselling Knitting in the City romantic comedy series by Penny Reid is now LIVE!

Read Today!

Penny Reid is the USA Today Bestselling Author of the Winston Brothers and Knitting in the City series. When she’s not immersed in penning smart romances, Penny works in the biotech industry as a researcher. She’s also a full time mom to three diminutive adults, wife, daughter, knitter, crocheter, sewer, general crafter, and thought ninja.

Connect with Penny: