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A review by kayla_llbr
How to Survive a Scandal by Samara Parish
3.0
Marriages of Convenience are one of my favorite troupes. Especially if they are caused by a "ruining" of some sort. So I was excited that early on our characters Benedict and Lady Amelia are forced to marry after being caught in a compromising situation finds them in close proximity with each other. Lady Amelia wouldn't have been caught dead with someone like Benedict, a man with no title, when she has been raised her whole life of the promise of becoming a duchess.
These two individuals are ones that would never knowingly cross each others paths. Benedict, has no use or respect for the aristocracy. He is a man that works hard and takes care of his sister and resents a marriage that makes him look either like a scoundrel that compromised a lady, or a social climber trying to further his own agendas. Lady Amelia doesn't want to live in the country with some bumpkin when her whole life has been centered around being part of the ton.
What works so well is we see how limited Amelia has been prepared for life, as the life of a aristocratic woman, is limited to social skills and ladylike pursuits. Nothing about what it means to work hard, or read for fun. Things that most normal people do. And Benedict, it's easy to understand why he has such a disdain for society that he has been outside of, as the games the aristocrats play with one another are cruel. All of their life experiences shade how they treat one another and how difficult it is when they start feeling attraction to one another, as each represents a life they do not want.
But what would have made this a really good story would have been more scenes of intimacy. When we see Amelia and Benedict warming up to each other and ready to turn their marriage from sham into something for intimate, these details take place behind the scenes. Now, I am not saying I need graphic sex in a story to hold my interest or to enjoy it, but I feel like I missed out of the vulnerability of these two characters. Instead of seeing how it plays out, Amelia giving into her attraction to Benedict and vice versa, we are only told that they are making love to one another.
I think that's why I have to rate it a 3.5 because while I enjoyed seeing how Amelia and Benedict worked together within each others worlds and how they were trying to cope with that, I never got a sense of true intimacy from them as we were never privy to those private moments together. Had I been able to see and feel what it was like between the two of them letting their guards down and being intimate together I think it would have made all their strife and conflict towards the end feel much more impactful.
Saying that, I am very much looking forward to the next book in the series, as I have hope that these two side characters will have more history to make up for a possible lack in steamy scenes.
These two individuals are ones that would never knowingly cross each others paths. Benedict, has no use or respect for the aristocracy. He is a man that works hard and takes care of his sister and resents a marriage that makes him look either like a scoundrel that compromised a lady, or a social climber trying to further his own agendas. Lady Amelia doesn't want to live in the country with some bumpkin when her whole life has been centered around being part of the ton.
What works so well is we see how limited Amelia has been prepared for life, as the life of a aristocratic woman, is limited to social skills and ladylike pursuits. Nothing about what it means to work hard, or read for fun. Things that most normal people do. And Benedict, it's easy to understand why he has such a disdain for society that he has been outside of, as the games the aristocrats play with one another are cruel. All of their life experiences shade how they treat one another and how difficult it is when they start feeling attraction to one another, as each represents a life they do not want.
But what would have made this a really good story would have been more scenes of intimacy. When we see Amelia and Benedict warming up to each other and ready to turn their marriage from sham into something for intimate, these details take place behind the scenes. Now, I am not saying I need graphic sex in a story to hold my interest or to enjoy it, but I feel like I missed out of the vulnerability of these two characters. Instead of seeing how it plays out, Amelia giving into her attraction to Benedict and vice versa, we are only told that they are making love to one another.
I think that's why I have to rate it a 3.5 because while I enjoyed seeing how Amelia and Benedict worked together within each others worlds and how they were trying to cope with that, I never got a sense of true intimacy from them as we were never privy to those private moments together. Had I been able to see and feel what it was like between the two of them letting their guards down and being intimate together I think it would have made all their strife and conflict towards the end feel much more impactful.
Saying that, I am very much looking forward to the next book in the series, as I have hope that these two side characters will have more history to make up for a possible lack in steamy scenes.