Review: To Tame a Lady (The Reluctant Bride Collection #2) by Megan Bryce

   

Print Length: 115 pages

Publisher: Megan Bryce (October 27, 2012)

From Goodreads.com: Lady Amelia Delaney is known for her sharp tongue, no-nonsense attitude, and a rather sizable fortune. Numerous suitors have tried to win her hand-- for the money, for the challenge, and for a rather unfortunate bet. She knows the unflattering reasons behind her numerous proposals; can she ever accept that a man would want to marry her just for herself?

Jameson Pendrake is a devil-may-care dandy who cares for naught but fun and fashion. But behind his laughing green eyes lies a dark history, and he calls off his wedding because of his fear of repeating the past. He can not simply give up on the idea of marriage; a wife is the best defense against the yearly crop of scheming mothers and their frilly daughters. But to allay his fears he needs a woman strong enough to laugh in the face of his past. A woman unflappable, unwavering, and unbroken. He knows just the woman. The trick, it seems, is in getting her to accept.

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My Rating: 3 stars out of 5

On the whole, this does not have to be read as part of the series in order to be enjoyed for what it is. And what it is is a quick friends to lovers romance that doesn't require much thinking on the part of the reader. This is also something of a clean romance, while there is some kissing before (and after marriage), all acts taking place in the marital bed are inferred rather than written out in explicit detail. 

Now, I really enjoyed the banter between Jameson and Amelia (especially when it bordered on the insulting). It made their prior friendship seem more real, and showcased just how much they meant to one another that they could speak freely that way without the other truly taking offense. In fact, more than once during their scenes together, I found myself laughing out loud.  

However, aside from that banter? The characters seemed shallow and lacking some other crucial element. Even the secondary story-lines seemed to be nonexistent - between people following Jameson (only to apparently end up just being blokes who wanted to accuse him of cheating on a stupid bet), to Clarice first being mad at Amelia for "lying to her" and marrying Jameson herself, to suddenly marrying Amelia's brother... there were so many opportunities for the author to expand upon this world and these characters that were just missed out on. 

There is still one more book left in the Reluctant Bride series for me to read (as I read books 1 and 3 a couple years back), so I will at least finish this series before deciding whether or not I will continue on with this author.  

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                                                    To Tame a Lady is available from Amazon.com

                                   (for free if your subscribe to Kindle Unlimited)