*I won a copy of this book through Goodreads FirstReads Giveaways.*
This book would have earned a solid four stars (or more) from me as marriage of convenience/forced marriage is one of my favorite tropes (and it features a beta hero!), but it also contained one of my least favorite tropes: The Big Misunderstanding (or in this case several misunderstandings) coupled with a complete lack of communication between the h/H.
That being said, I found this book to be a lovely way to pass the afternoon. The author's writing flowed beautifully without the prose becoming to florid or purple, and I found--despite a rather slow start--that I was flying through the book at a fast pace.
The lead characters were delightful, although at the beginning, I was so frustrated by Roxana's almost seemingly willful blindness to George's faults, that I wished I could shake some sense into her. It was especially frustrating, because while everyone around her could see his utter vileness, and even she herself on some level subconsciously realized it, she could not admit it to herself. I mean she was literally physically repulsed each time he touched her, yet when Ayersley, the hero, touched her, her reaction was quite the opposite.
However, her character experienced the most growth over the course of the book, and by the end I utterly adored her.
That brings me to the hero, Alex Winslow, the Earl of Ayersley. He was a huge plus for me in that while he was an Earl--titled and wealthy and handsome--was not a rake. Or a rogue. Or a scoundrel. Now, don't get me wrong, I love the alpha male type character--when done right, of course--but, a nice beta hero is a very, very refreshing change of pace. (There should totally be more of them, if you ask me) And this one was shy, socially awkward, and a bit tongue tied at times...all things I can definitely relate to, and I thoroughly loved him. Though, I also wanted to shake him several times as well. Mainly because he would just assume to know what Roxana was thinking or feeling and react accordingly, and instead of just asking her about it, he'd bury himself in work, ignoring her. Whereas so much of the conflict between the two could just be solved if they just would have. Talked. To. Each. Other. ARGH
Still, I loved how their relationship blossomed, nearly came apart, before fully solidifying over the course of the book.
A quick word on George Wyatt...while he was a bit one dimensional as the villain, and I totally called the reasoning behind his jilting of Roxana, I thoroughly, and I do mean thoroughly enjoyed him getting his comeuppance.
Overall, it was a very enjoyable book that I liked reading a lot, and probably would have loved reading had it not been for that whole 'total lack of communication' thing (which, you know, is totally personal preference, I realize).
And, I would definitely read this author again sometime.