The Lady Tempts an Heir - Harper St. George (Penguin - Feb 2022)

Series: Gilded Age Heiresses (Book 3)

A fake engagement brings together a lady with bold and daring dreams, and the heir whose heart she captured.
 
Tall, dark, and brooding—to say that American Maxwell Crenshaw stood out in the glittering ballrooms of London is an understatement. He vowed never to set foot in England again, but when a summons from his father along with an ultimatum to secure his legacy has him crossing the Atlantic for the last time, reuniting him with the delectable Lady Helena March, he can’t deny the temptation she presents. Or the ideas she inspires…
 
Lady Helena March is flirting with scandal. Instead of spending her time at teas and balls in search of another husband, as is expected of a young widow, Helena pours her energy into The London Home for Young Women. But Society gives no quarter to unmarried radicals who associate with illegitimate children and fallen women, and Helena’s funding is almost run out. So when the sinfully seductive Crenshaw heir suggests a fake engagement to save them both—him from an unwanted marriage and her from scorn and financial ruin—Helena finds herself too fascinated to refuse the sexy American.
 
As their arrangement of convenience melts oh so deliciously into nights of passion, their deception starts to become real. But if Max knew the true reason Helena can never remarry, he wouldn’t look at her with such heat in his eyes. Or might the Crenshaw heir be willing to do whatever it takes to win the one woman he’s never been able to forget…
 
Maxwell Crenshaw's father is up to his old tricks, and even a heart attack doesn't slow him down. Not content to have married off his daughters August and Violet to a duke and an earl, Mr. Crenshaw is determined to secure Crenshaw Ironworks' legacy by forcing Max to marry. He doesn't go so far as to pick the bride this time around, but he refuses to listen to Max's objections. If Max isn't at least engaged by Christmas, Mr. Crenshaw will make sure that August's foundry project comes to a crashing halt. As long as he gets his way, he doesn't care what effect it would have on either August or the firm. Max is understandably furious for himself and August but can't figure out how to get out of it. Then he renews his acquaintance with Lady Helena.
 
Max and Helena met in The Devil and the Heiress when they joined forces to save his sister Violet from scandal. The sparks between them were intense, but their focus was on Violet. Plus, Max would head back to New York to resume running Crenshaw Ironworks. Helena would continue her work running an orphanage and getting her London Home for Young Women started. But the lovely young widow runs into a snag when her benefactors start pulling out because (gasp!) she is associating with fallen women. It seems that her father has been dropping hints behind her back about the unsuitability of her actions. But if she had a husband who supported her efforts, he would withdraw his objections.
 
I liked Max and Helena. Unlike their fathers, they are kind-hearted with great empathy for others. Max understands the needs of his company's employees and their families, fighting for fair wages and working conditions. As a woman of her time, Helena understands that women often have no control over their lives and futures and wants to help as many as possible take back some of that control.
 
After a few encounters with Helena remind Max of how attracted he is to her, he hits on the idea of proposing a mutually beneficial arrangement. He suggests that they enter into a fake courtship and engagement, thereby getting their fathers off their backs. This will give him time to solidify August's project before he returns to New York and give Helena the respectability required to raise the funds she needs.
 
I enjoyed watching the development of Max and Helena's relationship. Though their courtship is fake, their chemistry is all too real. It manifests early in their ability to push each other's buttons. Helena seems to get an inordinate amount of pleasure from riling up Max. Meanwhile, Max would like to find a way to get that passion into his bed. As they spend time together "courting," Max and Helena discover that they have quite a lot in common, leading to the admission that they like each other. The attraction between them continues to grow until they can no longer resist. And while the explosive passion they experienced convinces Max he'd like to make their engagement real, for Helena, it reminds her that marriage between them is impossible. I ached for Max as Helena put more and more distance between them to protect his legacy and her heart. Her reason was heartbreaking, and I ached for what it meant for her dream of happiness. Max tried to convince her that his love for her was strong enough to withstand the problem, but Helena's past wouldn't let her believe. August and Violet's solution to the issue was unorthodox but gave Helena the courage to go to Max with her heart open at last.
 
One of my favorite things about this book is the passion Max and Helena exhibit for the things they believe in. This is illustrated when they discover they both want the same property for their projects. Each is passionately eloquent in describing their plans, goals, and what they believe the results will be. For each of them, it's the first time they understand the full scope of what the other does. I liked how the issue was resolved. Helena also opened Max's eyes to the plight of the women she helped and stood up to his patronizing solution. I thoroughly enjoyed watching her convert his point of view. There are several good follow-up scenes also.
 
There is a teaser for the next book, and I can't wait to read it. My heart ached for Camille at the beginning of the first book. In this book, the twist involving her at the house party opened many possibilities, and I can't wait to see what she does.

The Heiress Gets a Duke - Harper St. George (Penguin - Feb 2021)

Series: Gilded Age Heiresses (Book 1)

Even a fortune forged in railroads and steel can't buy entrance into the upper echelons of Victorian high society--for that you need a marriage of convenience.
 
American heiress August Crenshaw has aspirations. But unlike her peers, it isn't some stuffy British Lord she wants wrapped around her finger--it's Crenshaw Iron Works, the family business. When it's clear that August's outrageously progressive ways render her unsuitable for a respectable match, her parents offer up her younger sister to the highest entitled bidder instead. This simply will not do. August refuses to leave her sister to the mercy of a loveless marriage.
 
Evan Sterling, the Duke of Rothschild, has no intention of walking away from the marriage. He's recently inherited the title only to find his coffers empty, and with countless lives depending on him, he can't walk away from the fortune a Crenshaw heiress would bring him. But after meeting her fiery sister, he realizes Violet isn't the heiress he wants. He wants August, and he always gets what he wants.
 
But August won't go peacefully to her fate. She decides to show Rothschild that she's no typical London wallflower. Little does she realize that every stunt she pulls to make him call off the wedding only makes him like her even more.
 
Excellent book. As the book opens, August and Violet watch, horrified, as their best friend Camille is married off to an older British nobleman, her parents exchanging American dollars for a title for their daughter. Surely their parents wouldn't be so heartless?
 
Several months later, the Crenshaw family is in London, where Mr. Crenshaw plans to expand his railroad and ironworks businesses. August is well aware of the plans as she has been deeply involved in the business for many years, something very unusual for women of their class. August has made it clear that she is not interested in marriage, only in continuing to work for the business. August is brilliant, beautiful, and a supporter of all things progressive. Her outspokenness and bluestocking ways cause her to be unappealing to the aristocrats looking for brides, which is fine with her. That is until she discovers her parents' plans to marry Violet off to an impoverished Duke.
 
I will say right here and now that I detested Mr. and Mrs. Crenshaw. She is an out-and-out social climber who doesn't care whether her daughters are happy or not, as long as she can lord it over the "old money" people like Mrs. Astor back in New York. Her actions and attitudes throughout the book were appalling. Yes, I know it was typical of the period, but it was still terrible. Meanwhile, Mr. Crenshaw seems happy to have August working with him, her brilliant mind helping to earn more money for the company. I approved of how he involved her in the discussions about expanding to India. But when push came to shove, he was ready to pat the little woman on the head and shove her out the door to be a wife and mother. He was also a coward, leaving it to his wife to break the news of the death of August's dreams.
 
Evan, Duke of Rothschild, is trapped. He recently inherited the dukedom from his father, only to discover that he has crumbling estates, many bills, and nothing to pay them with. Though he attempts to keep them afloat by bare-knuckle fighting and gambling winnings, it's soon evident that it isn't enough. The only thing he can do is find a wealthy heiress to marry. He hates the idea of marrying one of the dim-witted debutantes, but he doesn't see any choice. But when his mother recommends Violet Crenshaw, Evan quickly realizes that he's much more interested in Violet's sister August.
 
I loved the first meeting between August and Evan. August, who is somewhere she should not be, encounters Evan in his "The Hellion" guise, an undefeated bare-knuckle fighter. She is horrified and intrigued by what she witnesses and grateful to him when Evan saves her from a nasty fall. He goads her into giving him a kiss that overwhelms them both. August never expects to see him again and is stunned to later recognize him as the man her parents want Violet to marry. A confrontation and another kiss later, and Evan knows that the only woman for him is August. Accustomed to getting what he wants, he doesn't expect any trouble. Meanwhile, August plans to spend time at the ball he's supposed to attend, convincing him to stay away from Violet. I enjoyed that scene as she earnestly steers him away from Violet while he's busy staking his claim on her. She's furious when she learns the truth.
 
This began a thoroughly enjoyable story of their courtship. August makes it plain that she doesn't want to marry him or anyone else. She likes her life the way it is and has no intention of giving up her freedom to live under any man's thumb. I loved that Evan is quite sympathetic to her plight and more than willing to meet her halfway. A visit to his main estate gives them a chance to get to know each other better and the attraction between them to grow along with it. There are some heartwarming moments between them as they share events that profoundly affected their lives. They make great strides toward a healthy relationship when left to themselves, but outside interference throws everything into turmoil.
 
Just when everything looks promising for their future together, an unexpected twist changes everything for Evan. His honor and love for August won't allow him to see her forced to marry him. I ached for him because all he wants is for her to want him for himself. Unfortunately, August only sees that she's no longer needed. Rather than talk things out, neither of them is willing to risk putting their feelings out there for fear of being rejected. It doesn't help that when August realizes the truth of her feelings and tries to do something about it, she misinterprets something she sees and runs. The scene at the end as Violet confronts Evan is fantastic, especially when she decides to help him. While Evan could have done a little more groveling once he caught up with August, he wasn't the only one who was in the wrong. August should have done a little of her own.
 
I liked the foreshadowing of the events of the next book. Evan's friend, the Earl of Leigh, has set his sights on Violet while she wants nothing to do with him. The sparks bode well for another fun story.