My latest review is of How (Not) To Marry A Duke by Felicia Kingsley.

One minute, Jemma Pears is a struggling theatrical make-up artist in London.  The next, she’s been left a vast fortune by her estranged grandmother.  The catch: she must marry a man with a title to inherit.  Jemma thinks this is truly impossible: she’s a romantic, searching for true love, not just a convenient marriage…and besides, where wicked she even find a titled guy?

Enter Ashford, the new Duke of Burlingham.  His legacy: massive debts that he must pay back immediately or risk the bank seizing his assets.  Or worse: his mother’s wrath!

When their lawyer hears of their situations, a secret match is made despite their mutual hatred of each other: through marrying Ashford, Jemma can inherit and Ashford can pay back his debts immediately.  Problem solved.  That is, until their marriage is leaked to the press and everyone finds out…

Now they have to play out the charade for at least a year or risk going to jail for fraud!

A hilarious pretence ensues and Jemma must battle against a crazy mother in law, a stuffy aristocracy, and finally, and most surprisingly of all, confusing feelings for Ashford…!

I was looking forward to reading How (Not) to Marry A Duke as it looked like it would be a light-hearted, opposites attract type novel.  Thankfully I was not wrong!  This is a novel about two people from two very different worlds, who find themselves married; Jemma in order to inherit a life changing sum of money from her grandmother, and Ashford to pay off the debts left behind by his dead father.

There are no surprises here – Ashford and Jemma could not be more different, and being forced into such a stressful situation only accentuates their differences.  You know what they say though, opposites attract!  I really enjoyed this novel, it was lighthearted and fun, following these characters as they essentially torment each other!  If I was to have one criticism though, it would be that the ending felt quite rushed.  A few months of events are crammed into a few short chapters before we finally reach our happy ending.  Jemma’s stubbornness was also a little too far-fetched for my liking.  However, these things did not detract from my enjoyment of the novel.  I am therefore more than happy to recommend it for a chilled out Sunday afternoon reading!

Rating: 📖 📖 📖

Thanks to Netgalley and Aria for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.