A Notorious Vow
2018 • 384 pages
Ratings6
Average rating4
15
Ratings6
Average rating4
Joanna Shupe returns to New York City’s Gilded Age, where fortunes and reputations are gained and lost with ease—and love can blossom from the most unlikely charade With the fate of her disgraced family resting on her shoulders, Lady Christina Barclay has arrived in New York City from London to quickly secure a wealthy husband. But when her parents settle on an intolerable suitor, Christina turns to her reclusive neighbor, a darkly handsome and utterly compelling inventor, for help. Oliver Hawkes reluctantly agrees to a platonic marriage . . . with his own condition: The marriage must end after one year. Not only does Oliver face challenges that are certain to make life as his wife difficult, but more importantly, he refuses to be distracted from his life’s work—the development of a revolutionary device that could transform thousands of lives, including his own. Much to his surprise, his bride is more beguiling than he imagined. When temptation burns hot between them, they realize they must overcome their own secrets and doubts, and every effort to undermine their marriage, because one year can never be enough.
Series
3 primary booksThe Four Hundred is a 3-book series with 3 primary works first released in 2017 with contributions by Joanna Shupe.
Reviews with the most likes.
Fake-relationship is one of my favorite tropes and this was a delightful twist on that premise. I haven't read many American-set historicals (an occasional cowboy or two, but I don't think I've read anything in the Gilded Age like this), so this was a nice change of pace from the usual Regency/Victorian settings (which I still love, but variety is good). I can't speak to the accuracy of the Deaf representation in this book, but it was fascinating to learn about the development of hearing aids and ASL during this time period. I also really liked the heroine and how she gradually learns to create and enforce boundaries for herself and learns that she's stronger than she thinks. I haven't read anything by this author before, but I definitely want to keep an eye on her!
(2019 summer romance bingo: “next door neighbor”; could also count for “heroine smells like a flower.”)
First book of the year and it's 5 stars! Yay!! So I told myself I would savor audiobooks this year but as you can see I'm already failing at that. But this was so good! I love a recluse hero!
This is my first audio with a deaf hero and I really enjoyed both characters and the romance dynamics here. I love how they each had their own reason to want to be isolated from society and how they worked through that separately and together. Also, getting to see Frank was a fun plus for sure!
