It started as a marriage of convenience, but falling in love has made it anything but convenient.
Fresh from the humiliating annulment of the love match she always wanted, Lady Anne Vincent meekly agrees to the marriage of convenience her father has arranged. She feels hopeful that this marriage can be one of cordial indifference, protecting her from the hurt she knows so well.
Tobias Cosgrove … knows so well.
Tobias Cosgrove isn’t meant for marriage, free spirit that he is. And yet, as the only son, marry he must. He is thus relieved when his father reveals his future wife to be the calm, collected Lady Anne Vincent, for he is confident she won’t plague him with neediness or hysterics like so many of the other young women in society.
But when Lady Anne’s past reappears on their doorstep, she and Tobias are forced to confront whether a marriage of convenience is the type of marriage they wish for after all.
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Book four in the Families of Dorset series a well written story that kept me turning pages. Lady Anne Vincent agrees to marry Tobias Cosgrove it is to be a marriage of convenience. There is suspense, drama, danger, a villain, shooting, and romance. I enjoyed reading this story and hope there is more to come in this series. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Can a marriage of convenience become something more?
The twists start from the start for poor Annie as a bride of just three months what her brother comes to find out and tell her would shatter anyone. In the end, all the blame for what happened was placed on her shoulders and she was made to feel even more humiliation. Now she was being forced into an arrangement that suits her family, auction off you may say. What I found in this story was some very realistic events and emotions being played out. All the characters were so interesting and there was such drama at the end. This was a very good story that I highly recommend. I did receive a free copy of this book and voluntarily chose to review it.
Anne was ruined by her polygamous thief of a husband and her father’s answer to that was a swift marriage to Tobias Cosgrove. I didn’t like him at first as he seemed to think more about his freedom and spending time with his friends than he did about his wife and the condition of the estate his father gave him. Anne didn’t want to open her heart to love again after being hurt so badly, so at first she was ok with his indifference, but she wanted more for his tenants. I liked what they did with the abandoned building to help other women in situations like Anne.
Wow! This was amazing. Such a great idea… it was totally different from other regency books I’ve read. I loved the characters and had a hard time putting it down when it was time to get to bed. I’ve read most of the other books by this author and I’m always shocked that she can find such unique plot lines. I would recommend this to my friends.
I received an ARC copy of this book but that did NOT influence my review.
I loved the characters. I always enjoy in a series when past characters make a cameo or are mentioned. It’s like a bonus epilogue and helps the story come more to life. Eventhough the story and people are fictional when an author writes a story well the reader makes a connection with the characters and you grow to love them! Martha Keyes does this well. The book had a great villian. The way the love blossomed felt natural. There was good dialogue. The book had a nice flow and arc. Nothing felt rushed. The story was firmly set in the Regency era and I didn’t notice anything jumping out as too modern.
I stayed up way too late last night to finish this book. I didn’t want to want until morning to see how it played out. I’m paying for it now but it was worth it. 🙂
I liked Lady Anne’s calm demeanor and her ability to go on with her life despite the horrible circumstances. It took me a while for Tobias to endear himself to me but he did eventually. Once again a lot of angst could have been avoided by some communication but there was some early on as Anne gently invited Tobias to spend more time with her. But the non-communication added to the conflict angle of the story.
The villain in the story reminded me of Mr. Wickham of Pride and Prejudice fame but he might be even worse than Wickham in many ways. It wasn’t clear to me if he truly felt driven to see his son or if that was an excuse to be in hiding. Wanting to see his son was perhaps his only redeeming quality and yet I question his sincerity so maybe he is just villain all around.
I have enjoyed this series and look forward to more.
Sex: no
Language: no
Violence: yes. Not graphic
*I received a complimentary ARC of this book and voluntarily chose to review it.
Lady Anne Vincent thought she was marrying for love, but she found out that her marriage was not even legal, as her “husband” was married to another before her. Given the strike to her reputation for an annulled marriage, her father has arranged a new marriage for her to a family acquaintance, Tobias Cosgrove. Anne agrees to this marriage of convenience and hopes she will have peace and independence. Tobias Cosgrove always knew his parents would arrange a marriage for him, and he feels that a marriage of convenience with Anne will suit him just fine; he would be free from his overbearing parents and free to do whatever he liked.
As they come to know each other, will a marriage of convenience be enough for either of them? Will Anne be able to overcome her bruised heart and trust again, and will Tobias be willing to give up his freedom?
Hazlehurst was a very pleasant read for me. I really enjoyed Anne’s caring character, and overgenerous spirit. There are twists, turns, surprises, and a villain, making for an interesting read. A sweet, and longed for, happily ever after was the icing on the cake. It is a clean read, which is a big plus in my book.
Hazelhurst is a masterfully written story about two individuals who come together in a marriage of convenience only to discover themselves and true love for one another. It’s also SO much more! This book seriously is one of author Martha Keyes finest works yet. The way she developed Anne and Tobias’s characters was so well done, they felt incredibly believable as people and the way their relationship develops felt natural and real. This story had more heartache in it than some of the other books in this series, yet the way the characters overcome the “wrongs” in their lives is inspiring. Tobias was a breath of fresh air and I love how his carefree attitude stemmed from something so much deeper. This was a wonderful book; I read it in one sitting I was so invested in how the story was going to end. I definitely recommend it along with the other three novels in the series (side note it was fun to have the two families come together through Tobias and Anne).
I did receive an advance reader copy of this novel, but I loved it so much I’ll definitely be purchasing my own copy in paperback.
This is the fourth Families of Dorset book. I believe it is also the final book in the series, and this was a lovely conclusion, a sweet story about two people learning to help heal each other’s wounds and the pain of those around them too. The heroine is Anne, sister of William from the first novel in the series, and the hero is Tobias, brother of Isabelle and Cecilia from books 2 and 3. I loved them both, and I especially loved them together.
Anne’s life had come crashing down around her, but though she was still hurting herself, she was not insensitive to the pain of others. Instead, she would do her best to relieve it. Neither did she minimize the pain of others. For example, Tobias thought that the pain he suffered from his father’s treatment was nothing compared to what Anne endured from her father, but Anne made no such comparisons. Instead, she did what she could to erase her husband’s pain.
After briefly meeting Tobias in the previous books, it was nice to see him fleshed out here. Most of this story took place after he was married, and I appreciated seeing the way marriage caused him to grow. I was especially impressed to see him get to know himself better, feeling certain emotions heightened as never before, and discovering parts of his personality (including undesirable parts) that he hadn’t realized existed in him. It was very realistic for someone newly married, but it’s not something I see much in fiction.
Despite being part of a series, this could be read on its own, but the characters in the other books are wonderful too, so if possible I suggest checking them out as well.
Please note: while I did receive an E-ARC to read and review in advance of publication (Thank you SourceOrigin!), I enjoyed this enough that I pre-ordered my own copy.
I had an ARC copy of this book, but this is my voluntary and honest opinion. I really enjoyed Martha’s new book. The characters and plot are both interesting. I enjoyed reading about their problems and the solutions. A marriage of convenience and the way the main characters misinterpret each other adds to the story line. Great Job Martha!