Say Yes to the Marquess by Tessa Dare [Review]

Say Yes to the Marquess (Castles Ever After #2) by Tessa Dare
Format: paperback
Source: purchased
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: January 1, 2015

Castles Ever After
1. Romancing the Duke
2. Say Yes to the Marquess - Paperback | Kindle
3. When a Scot Ties the Knot

Tessa Dare
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Synopsis (Goodreads):

Your presence is requested at romantic Twill Castle for the wedding of Miss Clio Whitmore and . . . and . . . ?

After eight years of waiting for Piers Brandon, the wandering Marquess of Granville, to set a wedding date, Clio Whitmore has had enough. She's inherited a castle, scraped together some pride, and made plans to break her engagement.

Not if Rafe Brandon can help it. A ruthless prizefighter and notorious rake, Rafe is determined that Clio will marry his brother—even if he has to plan the dratted wedding himself.

So how does a hardened fighter cure a reluctant bride's cold feet?

• He starts with flowers. A wedding can't have too many flowers. Or harps. Or cakes.
• He lets her know she'll make a beautiful, desirable bride—and tries not to picture her as his.
• He doesn't kiss her.
• If he kisses her, he definitely doesn't kiss her again.
• When all else fails, he puts her in a stunning gown. And vows not to be nearby when the gown comes off.
• And no matter what—he doesn't fall in disastrous, hopeless love with the one woman he can never call his own.

Thoughts on Say Yes to the Marquess: As always, I am SMITTEN with Tessa Dare's characters and the situations they find themselves in. If nothing else, the cakes incident would have sealed the deal for how awesome Rafe was. Yet, there was so much more to this big, lovable rake.

Admittedly, I'm a sucker for couples who have to wade through a shared past before they can come to terms with a future. And Rafe? He certainly had some lingering issues about himself and his likability. It took a while before he was convinced Clio really might want him for who he was.

Then there's Clio. She of the eight year engagement. I have to admit I found her family a little unbearable. Not her whole family. Just Daphne and her husband. I totally get why she put up with her sniping and such, but I spent the majority of their interactions waiting for Clio to snap and tell her off. To be fair, Clio's veneer of politeness was mighty thick and I knew it would take a while for her to find the backbone to step up and deal with Daphne. (Also to be fair, Daphne's sniping worked given what we were told about their mother and that her actions were the ones Daphne learned from.)

Meanwhile, Rafe and Clio together made me smile. His roughness against her polite breeding. His kisses....oh, his kisses. I really, REALLY liked those. Not to mention Clio's cake noises. Because a good cake totally deserves cake noises.

*slow thumbs up*