Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Readability: 📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡⚡⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥🔥
Humor: Yes, a bit, Niven has a deliciously witty writing style
Perspective: third person from the heroine and hero (and a bit from the heroine’s mother)
More character focused or plot focused? character
How did the speed of the story feel? medium
When mains are first on page together: It takes quite a bit – though they have a light history upon starting the story (a prior 10 minute meet up), they aren’t actually on page together until chapter 12 (of 35)
Cliffhanger: No, this ends with a happily ever after
Epilogue: Yes, a number of years later
Format: voluntarily read an advanced reader copy of the boxset The Collection which included this novel
Why I chose this book: I was gifted Niven’s box set for The Collection and had always been meaning to read book 3 of the series (I read books 1 and 2 years ago) so I took the opportunity to do so!
Mains: This is a M/F relationship between cishet hero and heroine

Should I read in order?
I think you should! You will get a much better establishment of these characters and their personalities and relationships. All the characters from the prior books are in this story so it’s helpful to know them. But at its heart the romance does stand alone.

Basic plot:
Arabella starts a new life in Scotland after being ruined. Years settled, the first crush of her heart, Doctor Alasdair Andrews comes to bring her home to assist with her sister’s pregnancy.

Give this a try if you want:
- 1820 for the first few chapters, then 1823
- English heroine / Scottish hero
- age gap – he’s older by 10 years
- dimpled hero
- strong family ties
- unrequited longing from both
- teacher heroine
- road trip
- never been kissed virgin hero
- doctor hero
- snowed in
- fake marriage
- short heroine
- low to mid steam with a slow burn – 2ish full scenes

Ages:
- heroine is almost 18 at the start of the story but for the ‘main’ part of the story, she is almost 21, hero is 31

First line:
Twenty-five-year-old Mary Lovelock Vaughan, the Viscountess Tregaron, leaned over and picked up a flat stone from the shingle.

My thoughts:
My god Niven can really pull on the heartstrings. I have never read a book with a ruined heroine that gutted me like this set up did. The entire first section of chapters was so, so emotional and such a deep set up for our heroine, Arabella.

I really loved both of these main characters. They were so real and I was rooting for them so hard. When the focus was on them I was sooo happy. I think my favorite was the carriage ride before they get snowed in because it was all about them.

My struggle with this book was the things that pulled us away from the mains. It takes a long while before the mains are on page together and then for the latter half of the book they are snowed in and together, but at a country manor with other guests that for me took away from the story a bit after awhile. I loved the twist of Arabella coming back to face her tormentor and coming out on top though. This was another totally unique HR read.

Few random reading stats for this author
# of books read: 9
Average rating: 4.67 stars
Favorite book: Bed Me Baron but don’t hold me to it.

Quotes any typos are my own! I am bad with typos, I apologize

He should find a way to sharpen his razor. In case, just in case, there was the slightest chance she might ever put her cheek to his again, he did not want to scratch her. He must have a smooth jaw for her.
And then he realized he was about to spend seven or more days in a carriage with Arabella Lovelock.
He must think of something to say to her.
He sat up.
Perhaps he should make some notes.
---
He shifted in his own seat. Foolishness. He would never have license to do what he wished. Not with her.
He attempted to read a letter in a medical periodical about a bladder stone surgery. He leaned forward, his forearms on his thighs, head down, trying to make sense of the words.
The air in the carriage suddenly seemed charged. His skin tingled.
He looked up.
Arabella’s eyes were open, and she was looking at him.
He looked back.
A smile curved her lips.
---
What did he want to be?
There could only be one answer to that.
“I want to be the man who exceeds yer expectations.” He was startled by how strong his voice was.
He willed himself to get up and was equally surprised to find his will had overcome his writhing intestines and he was, in fact, moving across the short distance between them.
“And I dinnae.”
He sat beside her.
“Want.”
He took both of her hands.
“To be appropriate.”
---
“We’re going back to Scotland.”
“Why?”
“Because in Scotland there isnae need for a license or banns or permission from yer mother. I am going to marry ye today, Mrs. Andrews, and then I am going to bed ye today, Mrs. Andrews, and give ye the beginning of a redheaded baby, and the issue will be decided.”
 

Content warnings: These should be taken as a minimum of what to expect. It’s very possible I have missed some.

- we get detailed scenes of a man taking advantage of Arabella – its all consensual but he knows what he’s doing and she’s innocent…
- death of a friend of the hero
- parental death
- estranged parent/child
- facing your abuser
- poisoning of a side character
- surgery performed on page

Author content warnings? I believe Niven has content warnings on her website

Locations of kisses/intimate scenes, safe sex aspects, consent, pregnancy/child in the story:

 
Safe sex: 

  Hero pulls out 

 
How’s the consent? 

  It’s good 

 
Pregnancy/children in story? 

  A side character might be pregnant in the story. Toward the end, his POV says he wants a child with her and they will try in the future 

 
Chapter 3 – kiss between Arabella (heroine) and Giles
Chapter 4 – kisses between Arabella and Giles that lead to sex in the carriage
Chapter 15 – kisses between Arabella and Alasdair
Chapter 16 – she touches him in the carriage and he spends VERY quickly (short)
Chapter 20 – kisses
Chapter 24 – kiss
Chapter 30 – 🔥 missionary, fingering for her, missionary again
Chapter 33 – 🔥 oral for her, bj for him, missionary followed by another scene 
Total chapters - 35