76 reviews for:

The Reluctant Wife

L. Steele

3.56 AVERAGE

breads14's review

0.25

Terrible. Listen I like bad books but holy hell this was bad. Just donโ€™t do it.
adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: N/A
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I am a proud supporter of marriage of convenience and bodyguard romances!

This book was big on miscommunication and a constant reluctance surrounding an ex-lover, but overall the chemistry was there and the suspense left me excited to continuing reading! Aurelia and Ryot were an intense combination and though they had their faults, they make it work in the end. The twist was a bit predictable, but regardless, I did enjoy the read.



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daisyreadsromance's profile picture

daisyreadsromance's review

4.25

๐€๐‹๐‚ ๐‘๐ž๐ฏ๐ข๐ž๐ฐ

๐ŸŽง๐ƒ๐ฎ๐ž๐ญ ๐ง๐š๐ซ๐ซ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง:
Shane East & Ava Lucas
โžก๏ธProduced by ๐„๐š๐ฌ๐ญ ๐‡๐จ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ž ๐๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฎ๐œ๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ

๐Ÿ‘‘๐๐จ๐๐ฒ๐ ๐ฎ๐š๐ซ๐ ๐‘๐จ๐ฆ๐š๐ง๐œ๐ž
๐Ÿ’๐Œ๐š๐ซ๐ซ๐ข๐š๐ ๐ž ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐‚๐จ๐ง๐ฏ๐ž๐ง๐ข๐ž๐ง๐œ๐ž 
๐Ÿ‘‘๐†๐ซ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ฒ ๐’๐ฎ๐ง๐ฌ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ž

โœจ๐’ฏ๐’ฝโ„ด๐“Š๐‘”๐’ฝ๐“‰๐“ˆโœจ
๐‹. ๐’๐ญ๐ž๐ž๐ฅ๐ž delivers yet another great addition to the Davenports series. Billionaire Ryot Davenport, a former Marine who now works as a bodyguard, is given the task of protecting Princess Aurelia, who is in danger. From the moment they meet, there is an intense attraction between Ryot and Aurelia. Despite that instant connection, their relationship is forbidden, as she is promised to another and he is hired to protect her.

๐“๐ก๐ž grumpy-sunshine dynamic between the main characters was so much fun, and it was their contrasting personalities that made the spicy scenes very hot!

๐“๐ก๐ž cherry on top was the amazing duet narration. Shane East is always a treat to listen to, while Ava Lucas impresses with her flawless accents. If you enjoy royal romances featuring a brooding bodyguard, this is a story you won't want to miss.

โœง๐‘๐š๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ : ๐Ÿ’.๐Ÿ๐Ÿ“โญ๏ธ โœง๐’๐ฉ๐ข๐œ๐ž: ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ”ฅ โœง๐๐š๐ซ๐ซ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง: ๐Ÿ“๐ŸŽง

The Reluctant Wife by L. Steele is a bodyguard marriage of convenience romance that I listened to on audio narrated by Shane East and Ava Lucas. This is the fourth book in The Davenports series and can be read as a standalone. 

I was hooked from the very beginning and couldn't to see how it would all play out. I really enjoyed the relationship between Ryot and Aurelia. I loved that we got both of their points of views throughout the book. It really brought the story to life. 

Shane and Ava did an amazing job on the narration. They both really know how to bring a story to life. I look forward to listening to more of their work in the future. 

I would recommend this book if you're looking for a bodyguard romance, marriage of convenience romance, or a billionaire romance. 

maddiecpaul's review

1.5
emotional slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Where can I sign up?! Everyone needs a growly man in their life. Ryot was so freaking steamy! Aurelia knew what she wanted and went with her gut. This angst filled bodyguard marriage of convenience is not for the faint of heart!

๐‘น๐‘ฌ๐‘จ๐‘ซ ๐‘ฐ๐‘ญ ๐’€๐‘ถ๐‘ผ ๐‘ณ๐‘ฐ๐‘ฒ๐‘ฌ:
โ™ก bodyguard x princess romance
โ™ก virgin FMC
โ™ก marriage of convenience (x2?)
โ™ก who is threatening her??

๐‘ป๐‘ฏ๐‘ฌ ๐‘ป๐‘ฏ๐‘ถ๐‘ผ๐‘ฎ๐‘ฏ๐‘ป๐‘บ:
If youโ€™re in the mood for a spicy audiobook, I would recommend this one! We follow a princess who ends up wanting the one man she canโ€™t have: her bodyguard. Which is fine because sheโ€™s engaged to a prince for the sake of her country, but it turns out he wants her too. 

Thereโ€™s danger in this book which causes a lot of tension and kicks her bodyguardโ€™s protectiveness into overdrive. Youโ€™re also trying to figure out who the danger is and that reveal took me be surprise!

The spice was often and hawt. We also had some really sweet moments as well that made me kick my feet. My only issue with the book was the reason for the third act breakup. Iโ€™ve accepted that third act breakups are kind of inevitable in books, but the โ€œI need time away from you because I love you so much it scares me,โ€ reason just seems silly to me. We did have a HEA that I loved though!

The narrators did an amazing job. We love a man with an accent and the female narrator did such a great job bringing her character to life!
sarahheems's profile picture

sarahheems's review

3.0
adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This book was a joyous rollercoaster ride! My first dive into this author's world, and boy, did it hit the mark! I have a serious soft spot for those swoon-worthy bodyguard romances!
Meet Ryot Davenport: ex-military, billionaire, and all-around protector extraordinaire. Then there's Aurelia Verenza, the princess from the charming little Italian isle of Verenza.
Their worlds collide on a wild night out when Aurelia, dodging a pesky admirer, bumps into Ryot. Naturally, she claims he's her husband, and the sparks fly like fireworks! But, plot twist โ€” she vanishes without spilling any names. Surprise, surprise! The next day, who shows up as her new bodyguard? You guessed it, Ryot!
The sizzling chemistry between Ryot and Aurelia is off the charts from their very first encounter!
Need an audiobook that'll sweep you off your feet? Pop in those earbuds and let Shane East and Ava Lucas enchant you with their stellar storytelling!

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bookednbougie's profile picture

bookednbougie's review

5.0
adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Thank you @hambright_pr @authorl.steele for this audiobook copy of The Reluctant Wife. 
This was an amazing ride that I never wanted to end. I absolutely adored Aurelia & Ryot. (Seriously I need more!) The fact that a little mystery/death threats went on behind the love story pushed this one in 5 star status for me. The spice is SPICING & will surely not disappoint. ๐Ÿ”ฅ๐Ÿ”ฅ๐Ÿ”ฅ Getting to know the characters as well underneath the spice & angst, truly made me fall in love with them. 

If you love:

๐Ÿ›๏ธ Only One Bed

โค๏ธโ€๐Ÿ”ฅPossessive Bodyguard who calls you โ€œmy wifeโ€

๐Ÿ‘ธ๐ŸฝCurvy Princess Who Turns His World Upside Down

๐ŸฉตFound Family That Will Make You Cry

๐Ÿพ Champagne-Drinking Great Dane Who Steals the Show

๐Ÿ’ Guaranteed HEA Thatโ€™ll Leave You Swooning

This is the book for you!!! ๐Ÿ’‹