Hudson has trained his whole life to inherit his title and land after the death of his grandfather—a man he never met. He's also never even set foot in England, having been raised in India in order to keep him safe from a jealous uncle. Now that Hudson has arrived, he finds the change in climate and culture to be more dramatic than he expected, and he feels very alone as he assumes the role of Lord Stildon.
There's only one thing that has ever thrilled Bianca's heart: horses. And Lord Stildon's horses in particular. She had an arrangement to make use of his stables, and she hopes that won't change once the new viscount arrives. Meanwhile she's busy rebuffing her stepmother's attempts to marry her off to the first available gentleman, generally content with life as a single woman. Until her stepmother raises the stakes.
When Hudson arrives, it becomes clear that he needs to secure his estate as quickly as possible. This includes finding a bride. The unconventional woman he stumbled across in the stables agrees to help him navigate their social circle if he will in turn point other eligible men her way. This arrangement seems reasonable—until their hearts begin to have a mind of their own.
I enjoyed this story! I liked the different twist on the Regency setting, and felt like the author did a great job helping us feel how off-balance Hudson was as he entered life in a new country. The nature of his friendships also lends an informal air, which was different for this time period. There was one pretty major plot point which I felt could have been developed further, but overall this was an interesting and entertaining read that I would recommend to fans of historical romance.
I received my copy of the book from the publisher. All thoughts in this review are my own.![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
