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A review by justagirlwithabook
Never Fall for Your Fiancée by Virginia Heath
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Overview:
Hugh Standish, Earl of Faredam, is known as a bit of a scoundrel. Hugh is determined to never become like the Standish men who have come before him, who've made terrible husbands, and therefore has settled on remaining a bachelor the rest of his life. His mother, who has settled in America, has entirely different plans for Hugh and wants nothing more than to see him married. In order to keep her at bay, he's come up with a fake fiancée and a story to match that, so far over the two years, has worked to satisfy his mother's expectations. Now, she's on her way over the ocean to finally meet this woman, and Hugh has to scramble to keep the story up. Enter Minerva Merriwell, who over the last few years has found herself raising her two other sisters and trying to keep a roof over their heads. After stumbling across each other, they discover they could mutually benefit from one another's situation: Minerva can act as Hugh's betrothed, while in turn Hugh will offer Minerva a large sum of money, enough to put the Merriwell's in a much better financial position for the future. Will the plan ultimately work?
What I loved:
- There were a handful of side characters that offered up comedic relief at various times, and those parts made me smile and chuckle to myself (a friend of Hugh's hires an actress to act as Minerva's mother, and she's fantastic).
- In a handful of ways, the tone and voice of the story reminded me a bit of The Importance of Being Earnest. A bit witty, a bit quirky and humorous, but also includes a bit of a light love story.
What I didn’t love:
- Minerva and Hugh both weren't that loveable as characters. The side characters were more entertaining, quirky, and loveable.
- I wanted a bit more humor and wit. While there were parts that were humorous and witty, I was expecting more to be there than what there was. Descriptions of the book made it out to be a rolling-on-the-floor rom-com full of "one thing after another" and wit and charm, so I came into the story having high expectations for it to fully deliver in this regard but it fell short.
Overall:
Ultimately, I rate this book at a 3.5 star (for the sake of Netgalley's 5-pointrating system, I've rounded up to a 4-star). A 3-star rating for me is "I didn't love it but a didn't hate it," and I felt that I enjoyed it slightly more than just feeling neutral about it. But at the same time it wasn't a 4-star rating, which for me is "I really enjoyed this but it wasn't an absolute favorite that I could rave for days about." So, the rating falls somewhere in between: decently enjoyable, enough to finish and recommend to others as a light rom-com that has moments of humor and wit, but also not something to really write home about.
Hugh Standish, Earl of Faredam, is known as a bit of a scoundrel. Hugh is determined to never become like the Standish men who have come before him, who've made terrible husbands, and therefore has settled on remaining a bachelor the rest of his life. His mother, who has settled in America, has entirely different plans for Hugh and wants nothing more than to see him married. In order to keep her at bay, he's come up with a fake fiancée and a story to match that, so far over the two years, has worked to satisfy his mother's expectations. Now, she's on her way over the ocean to finally meet this woman, and Hugh has to scramble to keep the story up. Enter Minerva Merriwell, who over the last few years has found herself raising her two other sisters and trying to keep a roof over their heads. After stumbling across each other, they discover they could mutually benefit from one another's situation: Minerva can act as Hugh's betrothed, while in turn Hugh will offer Minerva a large sum of money, enough to put the Merriwell's in a much better financial position for the future. Will the plan ultimately work?
What I loved:
- There were a handful of side characters that offered up comedic relief at various times, and those parts made me smile and chuckle to myself (a friend of Hugh's hires an actress to act as Minerva's mother, and she's fantastic).
- In a handful of ways, the tone and voice of the story reminded me a bit of The Importance of Being Earnest. A bit witty, a bit quirky and humorous, but also includes a bit of a light love story.
What I didn’t love:
- Minerva and Hugh both weren't that loveable as characters. The side characters were more entertaining, quirky, and loveable.
- I wanted a bit more humor and wit. While there were parts that were humorous and witty, I was expecting more to be there than what there was. Descriptions of the book made it out to be a rolling-on-the-floor rom-com full of "one thing after another" and wit and charm, so I came into the story having high expectations for it to fully deliver in this regard but it fell short.
Overall:
Ultimately, I rate this book at a 3.5 star (for the sake of Netgalley's 5-pointrating system, I've rounded up to a 4-star). A 3-star rating for me is "I didn't love it but a didn't hate it," and I felt that I enjoyed it slightly more than just feeling neutral about it. But at the same time it wasn't a 4-star rating, which for me is "I really enjoyed this but it wasn't an absolute favorite that I could rave for days about." So, the rating falls somewhere in between: decently enjoyable, enough to finish and recommend to others as a light rom-com that has moments of humor and wit, but also not something to really write home about.