Well, this book was awkward for me from the start, but not because of anything about the book itself. The main character and my husband share a name and that made for some awkward reading moments! Otherwise, I found The Importance of Being Scandalous to be a fun romantic romp!

Nicholas and Amelia have been in love with each other for as long as either of them can remember, but the problem is, neither one of them realizes that the other feels that way – actually they both are sure that the other only sees them as a friend. This and the fact that Amelia is in an engagement that she wants out of makes for an entertaining series of events. While this could certainly feel a little contrived or oft-done, Bell makes it feel fresh here because of her side characters, particularly Amelia’s sister Julia. Julia is one hot ticket and a good foil for her sister. And Nicholas’ good friend, Jasper, is a hoot and a half. He is the grandson of a Duke and is really the most scandalous of them all, and he doesn’t care for his reputation! I loved how Julia and Jasper participate in the attempts to get Amelia out of her engagement. Each attempt just gets more and more challenging and madcap. This was a fun and quick read that I think a lot of you will love. There are romantic moments, but it was more about an adventure.

I’m assuming that the second book in this series will be about Amelia’s sister, Julia. While there is no information available yet on the book, the series is called The Tale of Two Sisters, so I’m thinking it might be a safe assumption, and if so, I’m excited to see Julia in her own novel.

Oh this book. It has some very well done and clever banter (one of my favorite things) and it has a sister relationship that I adored. But it also has a “get rid of the fiance” story line that goes through the entire book and I got super tired of it.

Growing up on neighboring properties, Nicholas and Amelia or Mia, have been very good friends most of their lives. And while both families are wealthy, Nicholas’s family is extremely strict, all about appearances and would never involve themselves in a scandal. They had an heir, and a spare (Nicholas) and Nicholas’s parents want their sons to follow in their austere footsteps. For the past two years, Nicholas has left England and has traveled to Paris and beyond, getting rid of the strict confines of his family home for the first time and pondered about his life. He has loved Mia forever, but his parents do not approve of her family, so he never found the courage to go against them and declare for her. When his mother sends him a letter that his father is ill, Nicholas comes home, to care for his father and finally declare love for Mia.

Mia and her sister Julia are extremely close and have grown up in a warm, boisterous household. They love to play pranks and they do everything together. Julia has a spinal deformity, that makes her walk with a limp. Due to this, and their more outgoing behavior, they are shunned by the ton – whispered about, and not invited to society events. Julia has come to terms with the fact that she will grow old alone, and when Mia surprisingly gets an offer of marriage, from a titled gentleman, Lord Montrose, she encourages Mia to accept, so she can move above and beyond their scandalous household. Mia does accept, but when her betrothed starts to say negative things about Julia and her disability, Mia knows she made a mistake. With Nicholas back in town, their feelings for each other start to come to surface and Mia wants out of her engagement. But her fiance refuses to break it, threatening to bankrupt her family is she leaves him.

To start with the positive, Mia is super cute, Julia is super cute, heck – even Nicholas is super cute. The three of them are good friends having known each other forever and I enjoyed the three of them hanging out. Even when Nicholas hangs out just with Julia, I really enjoyed those scenes. Like when Julia and Nicholas are spying on Mia and Montrose…

“Shh!” Nicholas adjusted until he could see the couple standing on the terrace below. “What are they doing down there?”

“We don’t know. Mother’s in fits thinking Embry’s trying to call off the engagement.”

Hope surged inside him. He squashed it down. “Why would he do that?”

“Because we’re unmannered wantons.”

“Well, obviously.” Nicholas grinned as he dodged the elbow she tried to jab into his ribs “Bu surely he knew that before today.”

They were warm, with clever banter and just really well done relationships. Mia and Julia together made me smile so much. They get into trouble together, they fight, but they love each other so much and I loved how their relationship is portrayed.

This book starts with Mia engaged to Montrose and she quickly learns he isn’t who she thought he was. After Montrose refuses to break their engagement, Mia, Nicholas, and Julia start to come up with elaborate schemes to embarrass and anger Montrose, so he will have no choice but to let Mia go. But this goes on the entire book. I got tired of it. Instead of giving Mia and Nicholas page time to court and woo, it’s silly events aimed to hurt Montrose that seemed very over the top. The love between Mia and Nicholas gets pushed to the back. Nicholas is still yearning for her, which is done well, but the two of them together – we miss out on.

I have to also mention Nicholas’s friend, Jasper, who comes to visit and adds to much to this book. He made me smile and laugh. He is truly devilish and naughty. Like when he catches Mia and Nicholas in bed together…

“Good evening,” he said, getting comfortable on his stomach. “You must be Amelia Bishop.”

She pressed her face into the carpet beneath Nick’s bed. “Unfortunately.”

“There’s nothing unfortunate about it. My name is Jasper and I expect we will become the best of friends.”

The man was ridiculous, and it must be catching, because Amelia couldn’t stop herself from asking, “Will we?”

“Oh yes. In my experience, it is extremely difficult to get our Nicholas to misbehave. And yet, here we are.”

This is a pretty cute book. I just wish that the fiance getting dragged through the book had been cut off much earlier.

Grade: B-

Red has always been my favourite colour. So the cover had my eyes transfixed and had me reading the blurb. Seeing that it has a friends-to-lovers theme, I was interested to read the book. This is the first time I am reading a book of Kimberly Bell so I was pretty happy to find that I loved it!

The characters are so engaging and witty. Amelia is strong and bold. She is such an innocent in certain ways. I loved her support of her sister, Julia. I didn't like Nicholas much in the starting. He seems more of a coward but he grows into the man he is supposed to be. As for the secondary characters, Julia made my heart weep with her plight. But she also got me in her corner because of her strength. Another person who had my attention is Jasper. Both of them were simply delightful in their roles.

A story needs a strong antagonist to make it a hit. In this case, I loved Embry's character because of the way it adds to the shenanigans in the tale. I hated him because of his psycho mind. In addition to it, the familial bond between Amelia and Julia is another highlight which had me invested in their tale. The story is also fast paced with the various antics which kept me entertained. The flow of scenes is smooth and the dialogue is easy to follow. The only part I didn't like much was Nicholas's cowardice in certain parts and there was also a certain discrepancies in connection with the Regency times. The romance was both sweet and hot in turns. I had no problem getting in sync with their love.

Right now, I am looking forward to Julia's story and I think she and Jasper will make a superb pair. Oh I can just imagine! All in all, this was a delightful story which runs the gamut of emotions.

My one line review : A delighfully witty romance with loveable characters.

My rating : 4.5/5

My reread factor : 4/5

I don’t often read historical romances, but was intrigued about one of the protagonists having spina bifida (although Julia isn’t mentioned in the blurb). The Importance of Being Scandalous is a fun read and I liked the sisterly relationship between Julia and Amelia, especially Julia's representation.

I would definitely read the sequel if it focuses on Julia.

Rating: 3.5

The Bishops have been excluded from society after the birth of their first daughter, Julia. She was born with spina bifida, presumably one of the more severe forms considering she required many surgeries and was immediately recognizable on birth. Basically, giving birth to a child with a disability was seen as a symbol of immorality or impurity and therefore enough of a reason to distance them from the upper classes of society. The only person who doesn’t abide by this is Lord Nicholas Wakefield, their neighbor who practically grew up with the two sisters and who is desperately in love with Amelia. He comes back from his trip abroad, ready to declare his love, but is caught by surprise when he finds out Amelia is now engaged to well-standing gentleman, Lord Embry Montrose.

As Amelia and Nicholas come to terms with their feelings for each other, Amelia realizes that Lord Montrose isn’t as wonderful as she thought he was. She concocts scandal after scandal to try to scare him off, but he is determined to see their engagement through. With the help of Nicholas and his new friend, the duke heir Jasper Bellamy, she just might be able to be with the man she truly loves.



-I loved much agency Julia has. Her sister, father, and almost everyone who meet her, love her fiercely and protect her at great costs. Although I don’t really understand the implications of being excluded from British Victorian society, families with members that have disabilities do often feel excluded from everyday society so it does parallel. Yet, Julia is her own person that is defined by her disability as much as everyone lets her be. She is shown walking, running, and riding a horse, many things people with back or leg injuries or disabilities are not normally shown doing. She can make her own decisions and sticks by her own morals (even if they are somewhat misguided at times). She is a great character and I would read more things about what happens with her.

-I also love that there are soo many different kinds of women in this novel. We the typical rude and snobby women and the free-thinking and rebellious women. I particularly liked Ruby’s character and definitely want to hear more about her relationship adventures.

-I liked Amelia and Nick’s interactions and I do think they have good chemistry plus a long history. I liked that it was a slow burn and that they kept trying to “do the right thing” and weren’t very good at it. I didn’t feel like the scandals helped or were relevant to their relationship. I was getting tired of the random scandals by the end of the book.

-There were definitely several sexy times.

-I hated that I kept waiting for Julia to start her romance and it never came. I was honestly so excited for her to meet Jasper because I think their relationship would be great. Full of wit and spirit and even romance. I’m sad they didn’t have any scenes together.

Thanks to Netgalley and Entangled for providing me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Was ready for a regal in my novels. This centers around Amelia and Nicholas whom take us back in time with this tale. It will be a banter back and forth with seeing this one build from beginning to the end. The way things were makes for interesting reading with her trying whatever but it is to no end. Help will be on the way with this taking us along. I was really attracted to Amelia with her ways of being strong and intelligent for battling the nonsense of the times. Romance builds so sweet in the times which is what lacks some nowadays. Love also has a tall order in many ways in this one.

I absolutely love Amelia and Nicholas together!! I thought that the slow burn and lead up to the characters getting together was worth the wait. It wasn't your mama's historical!!  Thes two have been friends and neighbors since they were very young and secretly love each other, but have just never told each other. Nicholas goes away for his "Grand Tour" and when he comes back after a few years, Amelia is engaged to a tool. Amelia really doesn't want to engaged and tries everything to get out of it but her fiance is pretty pushy. Amelia's mother wanting prestige, wants her to marry the Earl. So, she keeps pushing her daughter to marry him.

What follows is a hero who now knows what he wants and will stop at nothing to get it...oh I loved that! If you love historical- you'll love this and if you don't, you'll still love this!!

I was provided an ARC from the publisher/author in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own and do not reflect anyone else's.

I loved everything about this book! The friends to lovers mixed with the how to lose a guy themes worked really well together as Nicholas helps Amelia create situations that will hopefully get rid of her fiancé. Their relationship slowly develops as neither is ready to admit their feelings for the other, but once it changes it is both sweet and hot. Of course you cannot have a great story without having great supporting characters, and there were plenty of those. I fell a little bit in love with Nicholas best friend, Jasper and I am hoping that he will be the perfect man for Amelia's sister. Can't wait for the next book!!

I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book. I was not compensated for this review, all conclusions are my own.

LOVED IT. LOVED IT. LOVED IT. I can’t seem to say it just once. I loved this read. I loved the boy next door. I loved the unacceptable girl next door. I loved that they were childhood friends. I loved they made it work for each other. I loved they found love with each other. I loved their romance. I loved the way their romance came about. I loved this read from beginning to end.

The Tale of Two Sisters series has gotten off to a wonderful start. I loved Amelia (Mia) and Julia the undesirable next-door-neighbor-girls. They were beautiful together and separate they still made an impact. The two were mischief, adventurous, and romantics. That made the read feel full of mischief, adventure, romance, scandal, fun and more. Nick being second in line has his own mind. His family wants nothing to do with the neighbors or scandal.

Getting to know Nick and Mia was fun. Their family dynamics added to the read. The other secondary characters made the read fuller and richer. The writing was smooth, clean, clear and enticing. I want more. I look forward to Julia’s story. I have some ideas. I want to see if they pan out.

Amount of sex 3 / 5
How explicit 3 / 5
Story 5 / 5
Overall: 5 / 5
Review: What is Amelia to do? She's has a fiancé who boosts her family back into society after their fall from grace because of Amelia's sister, Julia, had the gall to born with a physical impairment. Then the boy next estate over returns home from being on the continent and gives her all the tingly feelings she thought went away! Ditching the fiancé is not an easy task as for some unknown reason, he really really wants to marry Amelia. Amelia's response - scheme with her sister to seem like the worst match ever.
The importance of Being Scandalous is a fun comedy romance of how to be as out there as possible in society in the 19th century. I mean pants and straddling a horse to ride it is positively over the top! With a great cast of characters - Nicholas (Amelia's true love), Jasper (Nicholas' less than pious friend and heir to a dukedom), and Julia (Amelia's sister) all help Amelia out in her scandals to find a way to leave behind her horrible-in-love-with-a-dead-woman fiancé. I really hope the next book finds love with Jasper and Julia. I soooo want Jasper and Julia to find themselves together despite never meeting in this book. While most of the book is pretty chaste, the last quarter of the book more than makes up for it.
Fall in love with the noble Nicholas and deliciously scheming Amelia!
** Voluntarily reviewed from an advanced copy **

A scandalous childhood friends to lovers trope! I immediately connected with Lady Amelia and loved her! Her sister Julia is also a great character and hope she gets her own happy ending!! Nick was likeable and infuriating at the same time but in a noble honorable way-overcoming familial obligations is hard in any time period. Lady Amelia's intend Montrose was indeed a monster and it was amusing to see how scandalous she was willing to get. With the help of a scandalous Duke (Jasper- I also hope he gets a story!!) and her sister Lady A created quite the talk among the ton.

reviewed on good reads, amazon, and bn.com (as lady c)

A horse race in trousers on Rotten Row. Visiting a gaming hall in a dress that would make her mother faint. Sneaking an invitation to a masquerade ball attended by only the wickedest, most debauched members of society…

None of these things are scaring off bookish but strong-willed Amelia Bishop’s stuffy, egotistical fiancé.

The only thing left is to entice childhood friend Nicholas Wakefield into a truly engagement-ending scandal. The Wakefields are the height of propriety, and Nicholas’s parents have made it clear a wife from the neighboring Bishop family would be unacceptable…

But Nicholas would give up his family and his fortune if Amelia would ever see him as more than just a childhood friend. He’ll go along with her scheme, even if it means ruining them both, because he’s got a plan that will change her mind about him being merely the boy next door.




Review:




Wow, talk about not talking no for an answer!




I don't know how much more Lord Montrose could have put poor Amelia through in his quest to keep her. It was a very entertaining journey to read about Amelia and Nicholas and their endeavors to keep Amelia from marrying Lord Montrose. This historical romance had lots of greats things going for it.... Characters who are interesting and you can really get behind and not just the main couple, but the secondary ones too. I have to say that I really want Julia and Jasper to be a couple. The lengths that Amelia goes through a thoroughly scandalous, the wearing of pants and racing horses and going to the naughty ball (sorry I cannot remember the official name) bring excitement to the story. Speaking of excitement, the intimate scenes between Amelia and Nick are very hot, they also have fun and tender moments woven into them. Then the dialogue is witty and just fun to read. Add into all those things a smart heroine, action and intrigue and you have a truly well-rounded story.




I have not read this Author before, but like I said above she created a engaging and well-rounded story. One last plug for a Julia/Jasper pairing!




4.5Stars

*I voluntarily read an advance reader copy of this book provided by the publisher.*

Lord Nicholas Wakefield has been summoned home by his mother from his grand tour. He has been having a marvellous time with a friend he made there. He can't wait to tell his best childhood friend all about his adventures , and let her know how much he missed her.
Miss Amelia Bishop is the youngest daughter of a very rich man. Unfortunately the money hasn't stopped them from being shunned by society. The oldest daughter has a spinal problem so the "ton" class her as defective. The sisters are the very best of friends and very protective of each other. Amelia has recently got engaged to be married but is having second thoughts.
This is quite an historical romp. Our sisters are so loving, but devious. Our hero tries very hard to be a responsible member of his family, but his very naughty friends keep throwing him in at the deep end. I giggled my way through this. It's great fun. I think I can see who is going to be the hero in Julia's story and I can't wait to read it.

The Importance of Being Scandalous by Kimberly Bell

What a delightful romp this book was! Friends from childhood meet again when Nicolas Wakefield returns from a few years abroad. He has decided that Amelia Bishop is the woman for him only to find out that she is betrothed to another. His return and subsequent events gives them a chance but only if the betrothal is broken. With Amelia’s mother and Embry the fiancé working together to keep the wedding on track and Nicolas and Amelia doing all they can to derail it the situation is filled with wonderful events for the reader to enjoy. Throw in Jas, a duke in waiting, who is friends with Nicolas and rather decadent but delightful; Julia, sister to Amelia who has a physical problem that has put her on the shelf when all she wants to do is be normal and enjoy life; parents of the H/h that help and hinder; situations Julia helps instigate to help Amelia find herself free…and so many fun interesting things that happen throughout the book and it is one story that if you pick it up you won’t be able to put it down. I really want to know who Jas and his twin sister end up with, who Julia will end up with and…just wonder if this might be the first book in a series?

Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for the ARC - This is my honest review.

5 Stars

I absolutely LOVED Amelia and Nic's story! Nic is a man on a mission to not only help his childhood friend, Amelia, get rid of an unwanted suitor, but he also wants to make Amelia realize that he is the man for her, despite what his snobby parents think. Amelia is a woman who does not want to be married. The lengths to which Amelia goes in order to try to run off her stick-up-the-rear fiancé are not only clever, but more-than scandalous and uproariously hilarious. This cast of characters was vivid and full of life. The plot line was interesting and moved along at a rapid pace. There wasn't anything that I didn't thoroughly enjoy about this book.

*I received a complimentary ARC of this book from NetGalley & Entangled Publishing, LLC in order to read and provide a voluntary, unbiased and honest review, should I choose to do so.

'THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING SCANDALOUS" by Kimberly Bell is the First Book in the new series "Tale of Two Sisters Series ". This story is about Amelia Bishop and Nicholas Wakefield.
Amelia and Nicholas have been friends and neighbors since they were young. Secretly they both love each other but have never express those feelings. Then Nicholas went away for his "Grand Tour" but now he is back after being gone for a few years. But Nicholas feared he is back to late because Amelia is engaged to someone else. Amelia does not want to be engaged and tries about everything to get out of it but her future husband still seems to want her. Amelia's mother is set on this marriage to the Earl so that is where she is pushing her daughter to marry him. Amelia does have a older sister but do to a physical health issue she stays in her room and doesn't come out to see strangers. Nicholas is having some family issue too. Amelia is a strong heroine who tries to change her path. I enjoyed reading how these two worked things out to get together. I hope to read more from this author soon.
"My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read."
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Lord and Lady Wakefield of Wakefield Manor are welcoming their second son, Nicholas, home after an absence of two years. He has been enjoying his tour abroad. As usual, their welcome is formal and cool.

Nicholas and his neighbor, Amelia Bishop, have known one another since they were children and have loved one another for years. But even with Amelia’s large dowry, his parents feel that the Bishop family is tainted as they made their money from trade. Even so, Nicholas has missed Amelia and is ready to declare himself to her…until his mother informs him that Amelia is engaged to Lord Montrose.

It appears that Lord Wakefield may be sinking into dementia. The man is aware of it but he and his wife have chosen not to worry their oldest son, Philip, with this as he is busy with his wife, children, and his work in the House of Lords. Therefore, Nicholas is to act on his father’s behalf until the time comes to tell Philip.

Amelia is not happy about her engagement to Lord Montrose even if he is an Earl. He is arrogant and already telling her how she should and will live her life. She begins to try things to turn him against her.

Amelia’s sister, Julia, is a beautiful young woman but feels she is destined for spinsterhood as she is crippled. But, she is spunky and helps Amelia plot to get rid of Lord Montrose so Amelia and Nicholas can be together.

This is a great book with lots of humor that will keep readers smiling and rooting for this couple. I loved it and found the characters to beautifully written. Be sure to read this one.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

in the importance of being scandalous, nicholas wakefield has loved amelia bishop since, well, since forever. but they've also been best of friends since forever. away from england in part to grow up, in part to come to terms with his feelings, nick is intent on revealing all to mia and hoping for the best.

except she's about to announce her engagement to someone else. the thing about mia is that her entire life has been shaped by her sister's disability. born in a time where birth defects were considered a mark of sinfulness, amelia's family has been shunned by polite society due to her sister's infirmity. and now mia has the chance for normalcy and her family is determined that she take it.

but when mia realizes her fiancé isn't as accepting of julia's condition as she had assumed, she realizes she cannot marry him. there's also the matter of her pesky feelings for nick to contend with. she'd thought she'd put her girlhood crush behind her when he left, but now that nick is back, her feelings have returned and they are stronger and tinglier than ever.

the problem is, no matter how hard she tries to get rid of her fiancé he isn't budging on the matter of their engagement. his single-mindedness is fascinating, because initially he doesn't seem like a terrible person, but by the end of the novel it's clear that he isn't firing on all cylinders because why would he want to be with this woman who a) doesn't want him, b) comes from a family that has been tainted through no fault of their own and c) goes out of her way to humiliate and embarrass him.

it takes a while for nick and mia to find themselves on the same page, but once they get all their feelings out in the open, things start to fall into place. one thing that i really enjoyed in this romance is the friendships that the lead characters form. it's not just nick and mia. nick and julia have their own friendship with a rich history. nick's friend jasper is a breath of fresh air, and he proves to be a good friend to both nick and mia. amelia and julia are more than sisters, they are true friends too. and even nick's brother, who one might expect to be disapproving, is supportive of his younger brother and is kind and generous. honestly, the moms are just the worst in this novel. and the fiancé who will not give up.

one thing i wanted to know more about was julia's condition. it's described as a spinal issue, and she walks with a limp. so i wondered if it was spina bifida or something similar. the version i read did not have an author's note explaining things, so perhaps it's something that is pending for a future book, or it was meant to be purposely vague.

I am about 30% into The Importance of Being Scandalous. This is my second Kimberly Bell book. I loved A Convenient Engagement and am enjoying this book, as well. But,

Nicholas is speaking with his friend, Jasper. Jasper's words, "with a properly deviant partner, it can be quite ...." in response to Nicholas's statement of about leaving Paris in time if sodomy was involved. --- This is not necessary in a book of this type. Please leave such topics for those who want more hard core erotica or for LGBTQ. Thanks!

I will continue reading, but if this topic comes up in more detail, I will not finish your book or place a public review. Thank you for allowing me to be honest with you.

I have completed the book and just so you know I am not a prude, the Sinner's Ball seemed appropriate for the book. Just consider leaving out specific mentions.

My Review -
The Importance of Being Scandalous takes you on a journey with two mischievous sisters. Amelia is engaged to Lord Montrose. He is still in love with his deceased fiance, but now that he has Amelia, he will not let her go. Julia has a disability that affects her tremendously, including fevers that could cost her life. These two delightful ladies grew up with Nicholas, a neighbor and younger son. Nicholas and Amelia are in love, but she has allowed herself to become engaged to Montrose during Nicholas’s absence.

Amelia and Julia’s family is considered ‘tainted’ by Julia’s disability. Nicholas’s mother does everything she can to keep him away from them, including sending him away. Now her husband is ill and she needs his help. She does not want to bother his brother, the heir, in dealing with her husband’s illness.

Amelia’s mother is no better as she is a social climber and has missed being part of the social scene. She sees Amelia’s marriage as an opportunity to better her place. Amelia’s father seems to be in the dark about what is going on in his house.

Nicholas is a gentleman beyond what could be expected, but he loves Amelia. Yet, over the years he has done whatever it took to make his parents happy. I was glad to see him step out of his comfort zone and take his life back.

Amelia and Julia decide to find a way out of the engagement through any means possible. Thus, the importance of creating scandal. Of course, things do not always turn out as they would like. As a secondary character, Jasper, Nicholas’s friend, is a huge help in assisting Amelia with creating scandal. He seems to thrive on being scandalous, too, with the exception of knowing when to set up boundaries when it is truly important.

This is truly a good book with a sweet love story. Just a bit of a warning – there was one brief conversation that could have been left out. It did not add anything to the story. Had it not been there I would have loved to see a future for Jasper and Julia. But, not after that couple of paragraphs. Once you get past that, it continues to be a read worth your time. The H & h are precious getting to their HEA.

I am quite partial to a good historical romance, and this one more than met my expectations. Part of the main topic being about the Heirs and the Spares is a real bonus. "The way it used to be"!

Nicholas is the second son in the Wakefield family. His parents are the epitome of the snob tons and everything has to be done to perfection. For the family name. Nicholas has spent some time in Paris, where he met Jasper, a noble, who is now his best friend. He is "summoned" to return home and although he is not too thrilled to be back in the family fold, he has a something to look forward to. Rekindling with his neighbour!

Amelia Bishop is from a prominent family who has been shunned by society, including the Wakefields. Her sister, Julia has a disability which is very much frowned upon. When Amelia receives a proposal from Embry, Lord Montrose, her family, mainly her mother sees this as an opportunity to get back into the good grace of society.

Upon his return, Nicholas is informed of Amelia's engagement and he is disheartened as he has been in love with her forever. He has never been brave enough to tell her and even if he intended to reveal his feelings, he is a little too late. They have been best friends since childhood and he has to respect the situation.

Embry starts showing signs that he is not who he appears to be and Amelia wants to rethink her decision. He doesn't take the news very well and refuses to listen to anything she says. Instead he resorts to blackmail! The Bishop sisters protect each other and together they go through various plots with the help of Nicholas to deter Embry but, it's like water off a duck's back. The mother doesn't help as she doesn't want to lose the opportunity of staying in the limelight . She does her own plotting with Embry!

I love the camaderie between Julia and Amelia. Some of their mischiefs are hilarious and had me in stitches. As for Amelia's mother, I felt like screaming at her for the way she discards her daughters' happiness. Disgusting! I love the interactions between Amelia and Nicholas. The ideal couple. Friends turn into perfect lovers. It's a heartfelt story with tons of fun, despite all the unpleasant situations. Jasper makes a wonderful contribution to the whole story and I hope that we get to read his story. With Julia maybe? That would be quite something.

I was kindly issued with an eARC from the publisher and the views expressed are my personal opinion.

Amelia's family have been outcasts in society since her older sister Julia was born with a disability. That didn't stop Nicholas, the second son of Lord and Lady Wakefield, from becoming friends with both sisters. Nick and Amelia have always liked each other but were both too afraid to admit it. Now Nick has been summoned home after two years abroad to find his father losing his mind and Amelia engaged to Embry. Amelia thinks Nick could never be attracted to her and is surprised when just being near him gives her tingles. She doesn't feel that way when she is with her fiance. Speaking of Embry, he is older and was previously engaged to the woman he loved but it ended when she tragically died. He is trying to make Amelia fit the image of his beloved and will go to any means to marry her including blackmail. Amelia tries to call off the engagement after Embry insults her sister but he will not have it. What follows is hilarity at its finest with several attempts at causing a scandal to become single again. Of course Amelia will need help from her sister, Nick, and Nick's friends and we also get introduced to Jasper, the heir to the Duke of Albemarle, who is quite scandalous himself.
 
I really loved this cast of characters except for Embry and Lady Bishop but seeing as one is the villain it's not surprising. I felt that Amelia went through a lot during her engagement and I loved when she finally put her foot down and stopped letting her family tell her what to do. Nick was quite swoon-worthy but could be a real jerk at times. He was dealing with a lot as well though and did eventually fix his wrongs. Julia was so fascinating. She didn't let anyone pity her and if they tried she made sure they saw the error of their ways. I cannot wait for her story. I loved Jas and hope to see more of him in the next book.