What made me interested in reading the book was because it had an appealing plot. This trope is usually common in romance regency books. I might be nitpicking because I have already read many regency books, but the language can be relatively modern. If you are okay with that, you might find it forgivable. There are also some plot holes which I was a little bit disappointed. I would have wanted more interesting conversations from both main characters, which was a disappointment. I would give this book 2.5 stars knowing that this is the author’s first regency book.

Thank you to Covenant Communications for allowing me to give an honest review of this arc. Got this from Netgalley. :)

What a great start for Karen Thornell! To Marry an Earl is a wonderful and unique regency novel about unrequited love. Katherine Cartwright comes from an unloving home. Her father wants nothing to do with her and sells her off, like one would sell livestock, to the highest bidder. James, the new Lord Bowcott, knows Kate and has been in love with her for years. Knowing some of the men that are willing to see her father for an engagement, he throws his hat in the ring. Kate has to learn to trust James after breaking her trust years prior. James has to prover himself to her.

I have always liked books where trust and forgiveness is a theme. There is always a depth in it. I really appreciated Kate's depth of character. She could have been created to be the most bitter person ever, but her tenderness is strength. I enjoyed how James was willing to put the effort in restoring their friendship. He put in the work.

I kind of devoured this book. It was one that was a read-in-one-sitting kind of book. There was not only romance, but a bit of suspense and mystery involved. Highly recommend this book.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was a fun and entertaining read. I enjoyed the story and thought it had a great ending.
This was the perfect book to read when you need a quick and easy read.
The romance was great and there was a bit of humor throughout which I liked.
It was a little bit predictable and there were a few loose ends that I felt weren’t tied up in the end, but I was entertained so I will still give it 4 stars.

I enjoyed this novella by Thornell. It was a sweet romantic story for an afternoon. I adored our heroine, and the antics she goes thru were tedious. The happily ever after was worth it.

Note: I am reviewing as a Christian reviewer, and providing opinions on that basis.

Christian Themes

Sacrificial Love
“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13)
“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” (Eph. 5:25)

I received a complimentary copy of the ebook from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.
Note: This is the second title I have read from Covenant Communications and I recently learned that this is an LDS publisher. I’m honestly not sure to what extent that has shaped the content of the books I reviewed— NetGalley groups them with Christian titles and both books have read like other titles I’ve encountered— but I am not a member of the LDS church, nor do I uphold their doctrines.
Spiritual Elements

As far as I can recall, there are no references to faith/ relationship with God. At most, the characters attended church. With that said, there were some Christian themes (addressed below), though they weren’t specifically “packaged” as Christian.

What I Liked

Something I did like is that the main character, Kate, is not wasting away, longing to get married. In fact, Kate actively avoids getting married, and would prefer to be single.
As an unmarried woman, Kate strives for purity and appropriateness in her interactions with her male friend.
I like that Kate undergoes clear character development along the way, and I also feel that the overarching message had more to do with love being a choice (vs. “marriage is what fulfills you.”).
The plot line was engaging, with some intriguing twists.
I certainly enjoyed the mystery component.
Overall, I feel that the book portrays a mostly healthy romantic relationship— except that it’s missing the spiritual component.
Content Concerns

This isn’t so much a “concern,” but I would have really liked to see more spiritual themes. I liked the progression of the romance and the character development that occurred alongside it, but would have liked to have read about the ultimate source of love, God.
For a regency novel, there were more kissing scenes than I expected, which was a bit disappointing, to me.
Overall Impression

This was certainly and interesting and enjoyable read, but I would categorize it as “clean,” rather than as Christian.

Interesting story description (and pretty book cover) but fell short once you read the book.
You can tell that this is the first historical fiction novel of the author. Because there’s some modern vibe to it, like how the characters sometimes interact with each other.
I actually like the hero and heroine at first but then as the story progress I notice the lack of character development with this two, especially their relationship. And there’s a few plot holes that could’ve been interesting if it was addressed (and I think it will probably help you forget some cliche scenes in the book).
Overall, if your fairly new reading historical romance and just want to try one about second chance romance that is clean, maybe this book is for you.

In a literary world abounding with regency romance titles, Karen Thornell's writing is a breath of fresh air. To Marry an Earl is a lovely story with relatable characters, beautiful settings, and a well-paced plotline. The relationship between Kate and James had me smiling and cringing. Did I stay up late to finish this novel? Yes, yes I did.

Ok so I love a good regency/duke romance novel, but this was not it. It was kind of boring personally. The synopsis had me HOOKED. I had read a similar book by Sophie Jordan and it was amazing so I wanted to read another like it. However, the main hook of the girl being "sold" into marriage lasted about five pages, and then the story was moved on pretty quickly. Also, there was a shockingly small amount of dialogue between the two love interests. Like what? So of course, when they fell in love it felt very, very forced to me. I felt zero connection and heat between the two. It felt exactly like the arranged marriage that Kate from the novel was trying to avoid. The book also felt quite dragged out. I always enjoy a little bit of heart racing or action in romance books and the very very little that was present in this book didn't come until the last 20 pages or so.
This book was not horrible but neither was it amazing. I had such high hopes after reading the synopsis and it just fell quite short. The cover is very pretty though.

This was a sweet historical romance story with a strong, perserverant female character who's endured cruelty from her father since childhood. When her childhood friend hears of her father's wish to marry her off to the highest bidder, he steps in. I enjoyed the development of theses two characters as they learn to trust their hearts and each other throughout this story. I really appreciated that the synopsis blurb for this story doesn't spoil or give away the entire plot of the book.

If you enjoy books with themes such as
🌿 Secret identity
🌿 Forced proximity
🌿 Mystery and intrigue
🌿 House parties
🌿 Great, steadfast friednsips
🌿 Sweet, wholesome romance

then this is a book you do not want to miss!

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Kate has never felt truly loved by her family. Her father is an angry, vengeful, emotionally abusive person and her mother has already succumbed to the numbness of living with such a tyrant. Kate's only saving grace during her difficult growing up years was her best friend James. Until James left without warning and she was truly bereft of all love. Years of struggle later and her father abruptly arranges a marriage to an earl she has never met. But surely marriage is better than living in her father's house.

James has never forgotten Kate. When it is passed around Society that Kate's father is essentially auctioning off her hand in marriage, he decides that saving her has always been his destiny. But with the engagement ensured, he worries that maybe Kate can't forgive him for leaving her before.

Will the two work out their differences? Of course--this is a romance!! This was a light read that was somewhat slow moving and mildly predictable. Recommended for Regency romance/Hallmark fans.

Rated G
--clean romance
--no violence
--no language

I received this ebook free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A big thank you to NetGalley and Covenant Communications for the ARC. First, I have to give a big shout out to whoever created this cover; it is absolutely beautiful! This is the second book I've read by this author, and she is a very good writer. James has a good heart but an unfortunate situation in his past. Kate comes from a horrible family situation. The two come together, but there are many miscommunications that create unnecessary sadness. If you removed how often Kate mentioned her trust issues and James mentioned his past, you'd cut out a third of the book. Plus, I dislike weak female characters who wait around to be saved by a man. This book has a hea and you feel content at the end, but there's a lot of slogging through to get there. I will definitely read more books from her, especially if they are about some of the supporting characters in this book, however, this one was not my favorite.

I am always anxious to try a new author! I was interested in the plot of this book, however it wasn’t an instant favorite. I found myself wanting a bit more from the relationship and the characters. I wanted more chemistry and dialogue. The plot was somewhat sweet with the characters having a background of being childhood friends, but I didn’t feel that spark I was hoping to. Kate was hard to like for me. She wasn’t in a position to be condescending or withholding forgiveness, however she struggled to move past James so called mistakes. I’m was confused as to why she felt abandoned as a young girl when they had no understanding and he had to travel with his family. I think this book just wasn’t for me, however I would give this author another try as I do love historical romance and perhaps this particular story was just not my taste.

This sweet regency romance was such a roller coaster ride. From the beginning where Kate's father is talked down by her father, to an unwitting proposal, and a blast from the past. Karen Thornell illustrates the emotional turmoil that Kate goes through as the story progresses. There was definitely some suspense added in as a force threatened to tear apart the romance that was just starting to flourish which made for a perfect read.

I love how authors like Karen Thornell are able to make each of their stories such fantastic stories without having to add anything that would make me uncomfortable reading or listening to around my children. From beginning to end, the story and characters speak for themselves.

I enjoyed this lovely story from a new-to-me author. The time period is, of course, a fave and the characters were delightful. Looking forward to reading more from Karen Thornell!

To Marry an Earl is a sweet romance. The heroine is being forced to marry by her father - who is selling her, essentially, to the highest bidder in order to gain funds to pay off his debts. The hero, who "buys" her hand is, unbeknownst to her, a long-ago love who has unexpectedly become an earl. There are quite a few twists and turns in the storyline - and the story kept my attention. An enjoyable read.

#netgalley #tomarryanearl

This is a beautiful regency tale with strong female lead. it was a light romance and fun read, I enjoyed the different POVs. This was such a feel good romance novel. I loved Karen and how growing up in such a toxic household never stopped her from doing what feels right to her. The ending was pretty statisfying for me.

I loved how there was something going on at all times! It kept me on my toes wanting to know what was next and also thankful for multiple solutions in one book! Enough going on to keep you interested and enjoying the book yet subtle enough not to be a stressful or intense read.
I enjoyed watching Kate learning how to trust when she’s had so much weighing against her. With the parents she has and other life events, even including James, she struggles to open up. James has to be the sweetest man! He might have made mistakes but he admits it and tries to make things right. His heart is so big. The love story was paced fantastic and it was beautiful watching love grow!
The side characters were a great mix and I hope to see more of his friends in upcoming books?!? I easily disliked the people who didn’t treat Kate well and loved the friends.
Overall this was a beautiful laid back book that is perfect for snuggling up in a warm blanket and surrounding yourself in the regency world of house parties and crazy engagement situations.

This was a sweet story, a blend of marriage of convenience and friends to lovers. You quickly come to care for the characters and want their engagement and marriage to work out. I always love it when authors add a bit of mystery or intrigue to their stories, and this book delivered that as well.
The supporting cast of characters was also enjoyable and I hope to see their stories in the future!

This was a really enjoyable first novel from the author!

Here were some of the highlights for me:

- The author generally does a great job of describing scenes, both visually and emotionally. It was easy to picture the scenes and feel a balanced weight of emotion behind them. I think many writers in this genre tend to miss the mark here, and Karen's take is refreshing.
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- The characters have a distinct flavor from the get-go, and the protagonists are likeable and imperfect and...people.

- The premise is a fun twist, and while a few of the turns are predictable, I still thought it was highly enjoyable.

- There is quite a bit of attention to detail in small interactions between characters in ways that still drive the plot forward. I had a hard time putting it down just because the author keeps the story going at a nice pace, and even small moments aren't wasted.

- The time period felt natural and well-researched, rather than an artificial backdrop for a romance novel.

I do think the author showed her hand a little too much in the character development department. I hate stories with little to no character development, and this definitely doesn't fall into that category, but there is a surprisingly amount of self perception and character change over a fairly limited timeframe that wasn't quite believable for me. I also felt almost like there were one or two scenes cut near the end because the resolution was very fast. But overall, this was a really fun read that I would highly recommend to anyone looking for a clean romance novel. I will happily look for more books from this author in the future!

Kate and James have a beautiful love story in spite of trust issues and devious family members. As they grow to love and trust each other their bond is strengthened. And I love that the book points out that sometimes trust is a choice.