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3.66 AVERAGE
3.66 AVERAGE
Blinded in the Napoleonic War, Vincent has been smothered by his mother, grandmother and 3 older sisters. When they have the nerve to choose his bride for him he finally rebels and escapes with his valet. Returning to the home where he grew up he is saved from being trapped in marriage by Sophie, who is then kicked out of her Aunt's and Uncle's in the middle of the night with only coach fair to London. Hearing of her predicament Vincent feels obliged to offer her marriage and finally convinces her to accept as an arrangement.
What made this four stars for me is Sophie's ideas to give Vincent more freedom - in order to pay him back for saving her from destitution and worse. Love is not doing something for someone, but giving them freedom to do things themselves.
What made this four stars for me is Sophie's ideas to give Vincent more freedom - in order to pay him back for saving her from destitution and worse. Love is not doing something for someone, but giving them freedom to do things themselves.
Won this book as a First-Reads ARC. This was really quite a great book. I didn't know what to expect, having never read a Mary Balogh before, knowing ONLY that she writes Regency romances. It didn't take me long at all before I quite liked Sophia and Vincent.... Their heart-aches & struggles had me in tears, was nearly sobbing this morning, finishing up the book, while reading about Sophie's reconciliations with her Uncle and cousin, and quite frustrated all along with her maltreatment by her other uncle, aunt & cousin. What a dysfunctional family!! Not even putting the "FUN" in dysfunctional. Was so glad to see Sophie & Vincent grow & mature, gain confidence in themselves & each other, and finally admit that their feelings were not only those of fondness, but true love. I am looking forward to going back & reading _The Proposal_ and seeing what comes of the other members of the Survivor Society. Wishing them ALL a very happy ending.
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
I adored this book. The way Sophia worked to make the he estate accessible for her blind husband was so lovely.
I also loved the way that Balogh wrote Vincent’s POV. Vincent lost his eyesight during the Napoleonic wars and they way Balogh wrote his POV demonstrated his lack of sight by focusing on touch and scent.
This book was loosely tied to SIMPLY PERFECT as the idea for a service dog for Vincent came from Lizzie’s dog. Also loosely tied to the first two Bedwyn prequel books as Gwen played a prominent role.
I also loved the way that Balogh wrote Vincent’s POV. Vincent lost his eyesight during the Napoleonic wars and they way Balogh wrote his POV demonstrated his lack of sight by focusing on touch and scent.
This book was loosely tied to SIMPLY PERFECT as the idea for a service dog for Vincent came from Lizzie’s dog. Also loosely tied to the first two Bedwyn prequel books as Gwen played a prominent role.
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was really interested in reading Vincent's story. He seemed like an interesting and person, to me, in the first book in this series.
I thought of him as light hearted and charismatic.
Initially, I was a little let down when I began "The Arrangement" Vincent felt a little flat and not as dynamic as I remembered him. He is not at all the same vibrant person we meet in "The Proposal", I found him more interesting, in that book, than I found the hero and heroine to be.
Sophia was clearly the center of this book. She was interesting with a story that was believable but sad. WHen I realized her story would have a Cinderella feel, I almost lost interest. However, it was not overdone.
I would say that about halfway through the book, Vincent become a little more of the person I remembered him to be in the first novel but not to the extent that I expected.
I found it interesting to see Balogh incorporate ideas that I think of as 20th century concepts into this novel. The seeing eye dog and the panic attacks(being understood and accepted) may be more of a stretch than some readers are comfortable with.
As I said, I feel that this was purely Sophia's story, it was done well and I enjoyed reading about her drawings, especially the mouse. I initially gave this book four stars and it deserved it, as a stand alone novel. However, if you had read the previous novel, it is hard not to see how different Vincent is and that is a major distraction and let down, in my opinion.
My favorite scene has to be when Sophia and Vincent swim and spend time by the lake. I was so caught up in the story, that I was a little afraid for his safety.
I am so glad that Balogh did not take the easy and somewhat expected route of allowing them to have a failure to communicate and then a separation. I was nervous about that happening.
I also liked seeing Sophia come to an understanding with her uncle.
I have to say, I am pretty much over, almost every woman in historical novels flouting the social mores of their time, by wearing pants, it is not that I have an objection to pants. It is just that this is done so much in romance novels that is has begun to be tedious. I've read it so much, it is cliche.
I think a book about Agnes and her former in-law, the publisher, would be great.
I look forward to the next book in this series. I hope it does not take quite as long to come. It takes no time to read Balogh but it takes so long to get something new, sigh....
At the end of "The Arrangement" there is an exert from the next book, it is titled, "The Affair"
It is interesting that the next book's heroine does not even make an appearance in the first chapter, in the insert. This book may feel a lot like a novel about a wounded man who has family issues to deal with that happens to find romance. We will have to wait and see.
I want to read it now, lol. I can't even put it on my "to-read" list here because it has not been added yet. I know it will be FOREVER before it is published, I'm sure.
I thought of him as light hearted and charismatic.
Initially, I was a little let down when I began "The Arrangement" Vincent felt a little flat and not as dynamic as I remembered him. He is not at all the same vibrant person we meet in "The Proposal", I found him more interesting, in that book, than I found the hero and heroine to be.
Sophia was clearly the center of this book. She was interesting with a story that was believable but sad. WHen I realized her story would have a Cinderella feel, I almost lost interest. However, it was not overdone.
I would say that about halfway through the book, Vincent become a little more of the person I remembered him to be in the first novel but not to the extent that I expected.
I found it interesting to see Balogh incorporate ideas that I think of as 20th century concepts into this novel. The seeing eye dog and the panic attacks(being understood and accepted) may be more of a stretch than some readers are comfortable with.
As I said, I feel that this was purely Sophia's story, it was done well and I enjoyed reading about her drawings, especially the mouse. I initially gave this book four stars and it deserved it, as a stand alone novel. However, if you had read the previous novel, it is hard not to see how different Vincent is and that is a major distraction and let down, in my opinion.
My favorite scene has to be when Sophia and Vincent swim and spend time by the lake. I was so caught up in the story, that I was a little afraid for his safety.
I am so glad that Balogh did not take the easy and somewhat expected route of allowing them to have a failure to communicate and then a separation. I was nervous about that happening.
I also liked seeing Sophia come to an understanding with her uncle.
I have to say, I am pretty much over, almost every woman in historical novels flouting the social mores of their time, by wearing pants, it is not that I have an objection to pants. It is just that this is done so much in romance novels that is has begun to be tedious. I've read it so much, it is cliche.
I think a book about Agnes and her former in-law, the publisher, would be great.
I look forward to the next book in this series. I hope it does not take quite as long to come. It takes no time to read Balogh but it takes so long to get something new, sigh....
At the end of "The Arrangement" there is an exert from the next book, it is titled, "The Affair"
It is interesting that the next book's heroine does not even make an appearance in the first chapter, in the insert. This book may feel a lot like a novel about a wounded man who has family issues to deal with that happens to find romance. We will have to wait and see.
I want to read it now, lol. I can't even put it on my "to-read" list here because it has not been added yet. I know it will be FOREVER before it is published, I'm sure.
I loved this book! Vincent and Sophie were wonderful characters, and I truly adored watching them grow and overcome their challenges and fall in love. It was so lovely to read about Sophie doing things to make Vincent's life easier and his desire for more freedom a reality. In return, it was wonderful reading about Vincent telling Sophie over and over that she is the most beautiful woman ever to him, even if he cannot see her. Now I'm going to have to go back and read the first book, and after the sneak peak I cannot wait to read Ben's book as well.
3.5* I like The Survivors Club series because the characters are very interesting. This is an easy and fast read, I liked it in audio format since I didn't have time to sit and read this week. This would be a good series to listen to and I hope I can find the other books on audio as well. I recommend reading this series in order, at least the first book first which explains well how the survivors club came to be and why the characters are members.
If you have ever had someone try to plan your future or come up with expectations for you to meet then you can relate to the main character Vincent. This is a man totally capable of taking care of himself despite his blindness. His mothers and sisters, and apparently the whole damn town are determined that he be wed. Vincent is not ready for marriage. When he first encounters Sophie he only hears her utter two words. These are enough to spark a curiosity within him that leaves him wanting to know more about her. At a ball in his honor Sophie rescues Vincent from the certain agony of marrying her cousin. He proceeds to show her attention in public which enrages her extended family enough to cast her out. In a desperate attempt to right his wrong and find something beneficial from the situation, Vincent convinces Sophie to marry him for their mutual gain. This arrangement allows Vincent and Sophie to explore one another in ways that they have never done with another human being. This book features some steamy sex scenes. My only complaint is that the book really lacks a climax of any sort.
Rating: 7/10
I liked this, but it's very, very low on stakes. Not a whole lot happens. It's much more of a cosy romance, if that's a thing, than a dramatic one. I don't mind the cosiness, but I would have liked the stakes to be a touch higher.
There is some good disability representation here, and some interesting character back stories, and I liked the way the dog was used to give the hero more freedom.
I liked this, but it's very, very low on stakes. Not a whole lot happens. It's much more of a cosy romance, if that's a thing, than a dramatic one. I don't mind the cosiness, but I would have liked the stakes to be a touch higher.
There is some good disability representation here, and some interesting character back stories, and I liked the way the dog was used to give the hero more freedom.