Roux doesn't disappoint with her latest novel. I have a proposition that 5 stars isn't enough to rate it. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Clemency Fry has framed her opinion of marriage based on Jane Austin and other writers, seeing it not in the best light. She never saw herself as one to fall in love and get married, but when a Baron asks for her hand, she tentatively accepts in order to help support her family. Her sister, a widow, tries to help Clemency see that marriage is a joy, not a prison sentence. Enter Audric Ferrand, a very wealthy new neighbor who brings warnings of Clemecy's fiance not being who they say they are. Hatching a scheme to ruin the Baron before he can ruin Clemency, can Ferrand truly be trusted? And what will happen when matters of the heart get in the way?

Roux is one of my favorite authors. I fell absolutely head over heels for her writing style while reading her House of Furies series(which I HEAVILY recommend for supernatural fantasy lovers!!!!). This was my first novel by Roux that did not have supernatural elements to it, but she lived up to and surpassed my expectations. I'm not a huge romance reader....I like a little romance with my plot, but if the whole story revolves around it I lose interest quickly. Perhaps that's why I enjoyed The Proposition so much, there were many cogs working in the machine, not just romance that moved it forward. I really loved that Clemency was open to marriage to assist her family and wasn't bitter about it as so many heroines tend to be. Ferrand was witty and his scheming is second to none.

Five stars and glowing reviews for The Proposition. Recommended for readers looking for a light and fun novel that has surprising reveals and a small bit of fluff. Recommended for readers 15+ as there is light smut, but nothing too graphic.

Review to appear on Smexy Books:

The Proposition by Madeline Roux is set in the early 19th century in Sussex countryside, as well as London. It has a dastardly villain in Lord Boyle, who you will detest throughout the novel, especially for his ability to fool almost everyone. Clemency is the FMC and she is strong-headed, but a bit naive having grown up in the countryside. In the beginning of the novel, she is engaged to be married to Turner Boyle, despite having grown up under the influence of a treatise describing the cruelty and inequity of marriage. Not only did she save the treatise from the coals of a fire, but she turned to it throughout her youth as a source of both wisdom and comfort.

It is only through the arrival of Audric Ferrand to a local ball, and then serendipitously to the property next to her own, that she learns of Boyle’s duplicitousness and schemes. Like any good heroine, she does not trust Audric right away, but he is a dark, striking character who convinces her not only with his passion for remedying wrongs against women, but also by being absolutely right. Having a charming sister doesn’t hurt: a sister who has experienced the worst degradation at the hands of a man.

The way that Clemency and Audric both resist each other and are drawn to one another is everything I wanted. Their respective sisters also aid in that build-up through conversations and letters. But a lot of the interstitial writing really gummed up the flow of the plot. In fact, at one moment I was reading a description and wondered “is this level of detail necessary or is it artificially trying to delay the plot?” The fact that I pulled my head out of the narrative to ask that might be it’s own answer. I still enjoyed this novel, but I wish it had been tighter in places.

There were two aspects of the novel that that might require a suspension of disbelief. One is that Clemency fell for Turner Boyle at all, being so set against marriage. I think this can be explained away by both her families financial straits and also that her convictions against marriage were youthful and not really tested at all by experience with charming men. The other is Audric’s personal conviction that Clemency must be accepting of multiple sexualities. Interestingly, and without giving spoilers, there are gay, bisexual, and lesbian characters. Luckily for the trajectory of the novel, Audric realizes a country bumpkin like Clemency is mainly ignorant and not malicious, and seeks to educate her in a very unusual manner before he writes her off.

Grade: B-

This one was just ok for me. I thought the characters were interesting and their story had promise but it seemed like their feelings developed out of nowhere since all of their interactions revolved around making Lord Boyle pay for his misdeeds. And don't get me wrong, he completely deserves everything they plan but I wanted more development of the core relationship between Clemency and Audric.

I'm interested in checking out more of this genre from Madeleine Roux as I've read other books by her and she always has an interesting storyline. This one just didn't win me over fully.

This is the first time I've read Madeleine Roux and it won't be the last. She writes more in the style of traditional Regency, which is what hooked me on this genre many many years ago. Although I enjoy the newer versions of Regency romance, my heart is with the Regency's of old.

Clemency Fry is a contradiction of a character. She follows progressive women writers that are before their time in Regency England that believe women shouldn't marry if they don't want to, unfortunately unless you had a very wealthy family that believed the same, women didn't have much of a choice. And while she believes, she is swept off her feet by Lord Turner Boyle. In my opinion, she may have been charmed, but I believe her family pressured her indirectly as it's just what you do, especially considering their reactions throughout the book. Turner, however, has changed from charming to cold in a matter of weeks and Clemency doesn't understand what has happened at first.

Auric Ferrand is on a mission to avenge his sister, Delphine, and he's finally traced Lord Boyle to Round Orchard and uses his cousin's invite to crash a ball and start his plan of revenge, but first he has to find the woman engaged to him. If she's collateral damage, so be it, he figures she'll be better off in the end anyway. At least that's what he thinks until he meets her, they make a tentative bargain to work together after Auric produces some evidence for Clemency. Auric hand feeds Clemency bits of information because he doesn't completely trust her, but the more she learns, the more some things make sense. She starts investigating on her own which forces the whole truth from Auric and just how awful "Lord" Boyle really is. They put a plan in place to reveal him to society in London, but it all goes horribly wrong. As with all Regency romance, there is a happily ever after, although you will wonder how until nearly the end.

I loved the characters, Clemency and Auric, as well as Delphine and Ralston. I really wanted to slap Clemency's sister toward the end of the book and really wondered how stupid she could be after learning everything. And still was content to let her sister suffer horribly.

Thank you Random House - Ballantine & NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my fair and honest review.

Our protagonist, Clemency is a plucky hero who does not want to marry. She is firm in this belief, but ends up falling for Lord Boyle, who is only after her money. Her dowry and family money vanish, and so does her betrothed's feelings. Clemency feels trapped and like she should have gone with her initial instincts all along.
Audric comes along, wanting to seek vengeance for his sister, who has been wronged by Clemency's fiancé. He wants to ally with Clemency and expose Lord Boyle.
This is the first Madeleine Roux book that I have read and I liked the premise of it all. I was confused how we have a woman who doesn't want to ever marry, but then gets caught up by Lord Boyle for all the wrong reasons. Maybe it is this charm that he supposedly has, but we as the reader don't get to see that up front. The dialogue was nicely done, but I feel kind of like the reader did not get any feelings of triumph from most of the book being Clemency and Audric planning their revenge and the revenge not happening. The end was a bit quick for me and I would have liked a slower burn for that, especially with the book being on the slower side for everything else. It just felt rushed.
I don't feel like this was a wasted rush and I think this is the author's first book in the genre and there's promise! I'll read more from her.

Clemency Fry is caught up in an engagement she does not want. She vowed to not marry by following Miss Bethany Taylor's book ON MARRIAGE, but Lord Boyle is a very persuasive man. The man she said yes to is not the same man who is now cold and demeaning. Approached by Audric Ferrand with damaging information about Boyle, he offers her the proposition of revenge. Clemency is agreeable to Audric's plan, but there are secrets that can destroy people she loves. It means the wedding is still on and her dream of love is off. This book reads a little awkward with comments in the footnotes by Bethany Taylor. I understand the author using them, but I thought it took away from the pace of the story. The story itself takes a few twists and unexpected turns.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book.

This historical romance almost qualifies as a full-on pride and prejudice retelling, if Darcy was ambitious and cunning and Elizabeth wanted to help him take down Wickham in a plot of utter takedown and revenge. I found this compelling and unique.

I loved the writing, the footnotes especially. At first I thought they were weird, but once I realized who was the voice of the narrator/footnotes, I was sold. They offered such funny commentary. This book really seeks to examine what would happen if a woman who grew up skeptical of marriage gets trapped into a marriage anyway.

The details of the plot are complex, so this would be great for readers who like "The Importance of Being Earnest" and "Mr. Malcom's List."




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2.5 stars rounded up to 3

You can read all of my reviews at Nerd Girl Loves Books.

This is a historical fiction romance set in 1819 England. Clemency is a young woman who initially was dead-set against marriage, but finds herself engaged to a dashing young baron. Lord Boyle swept Clemency off her feet, but once they were engaged, his affection cooled and Clemency is confused. Audric Ferrand shows up in town determined to get revenge against Lord Boyle on behalf of his sister. He convinces Clemency to join his cause and help him destroy Lord Boyle.

This book confused me. The first several pages of the book described how dead-set against marriage Clemency was, but then a few pages later, she's engaged with little to no explanation how that happened. Later she decides to stay engaged to help her family financially which makes sense, but that wasn't her reasoning at the beginning of the book, so again, there was really no explanation as to why she was engaged other than to say he wooed her. It seems if she really was that dead-set against marriage, she wouldn't have been so easily won over. Also, even after she discovers that Lord Boyle is a terrible man, she's still googly-eyed over Audric and wanting to marry him. Huh? What about thinking marriage is bad for women? I wouldn't be so irked about any of this if the author hadn't included the stuff about Clemency being against marriage. Then it would just be a standard romance novel and would have made more sense.

I also didn't feel there was much chemistry between Clemency and Audric, and their romance seemed rushed. I mean, they share one kiss, days go by with nothing, and then she's in love and wants to get married? Again, huh? The minor characters were ok and didn't offer much other than someone for the main characters to interact with.

Overall, this is a quick and easy story that can be read in one sitting. The story is pleasant and is a fairly standard historical fiction romance.

I received a complimentary copy from NetGalley and Random House. All opinions are my own.

A very modern take.

Clemency Fry has been aware that women loose their identities and freedoms the moment one is wed.
That doesn't mean that she falls temporarily for the wrong man and is engaged to him (money matters, too).
In sweeps Audric in a swirl of his great coat and deep pockets, He's an avenging hunter, his quarry being rakes. Oh, and he has tastes.

This was an entertaining, well-written book. It flowed well and was interesting. I would recommend this book to others.

The Proposition is an understated book that falls more on the Traditional Regency side of the genre. While there are plenty of romance tropes - Clemency is Engaged to the Wrong Man and decides to do something about it thanks to her relationship with Mister Right (But We Can't Admit It) - it also takes its subject matter more seriously than many current HistRom novels. The prose feels inspired by Austen or Heyer, although with less overt humor than either. Also while there is one explicit intimate scene, it verges on the flowery.

We want to mention that the book takes on queer characters and the strictures of the time in a really interesting way. At first, when a villainous character is discovered to be bi or gay, it seems as though the plot would naturally allow this to serve as a means of retribution. However, it's much more nuanced, and the way this plot point plays out is one of the best parts of the book. Recommended.

This objective review is based on a complimentary copy of the novel.

The Proposition by Madeleine Roux is a captivating read about a woman trapped in a loveless engagement who joins forces with a mysterious man bent on vengeance against her fiancé in this lively tale of intrigue, revenge, and romance. I was drawn in from the first page and could not put this down. A fast-paced romance full of mystery and intrigue.

Romance with a twist. Clemency is engaged to be married in an effort to save her family. Audric wants revenge on the man who hurt his sister. There are quite a few interesting characters in the story. It is a detailed story that is told from the point of view of main characters. It ends happily as Clemency finds that when you find the right person marriage is a happy state of being.

Clemency Fry has sworn off marriage after reading a forbidden pamphlet, written by a women who was shamed and dubbed a witch for her feminist views. Lord Boyle is the only man she’s let her guard down for and she agreed to forsake her views and gets engaged. She quickly realizes her atrocious lack of good judgment and madly wants to get out of this sham of an engagement.

Enter in Audric Ferrand, a man who is hell bent on taking down Lord Boyle. The two team up and shenanigans ensue.
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This was a solid 2.5 maybe 3 stars for me.

Biggest factor in this rating was the authors way of explaining the characters, specifically our leading lady Clemency. Roux uses a lot of tell me versus showing me sentences. This is a very big reading peeve for me! I don’t want be told that Clemency has an aversion to the idea of marriage, that she detests the way women are to be meek and mild. I want her actions to show me how she hates marriage, show me how she is different from the women of her time. We open up the story with a page of the author telling us how Clemency will never get married and then it’s followed a paragraph later about how she fell in love with Lord Boyle and is to be married. It might have helped if we get to see a bit of the relationship up to this point. Just so we are not getting whip lash from the back and forth in the first couple chapters.

It does pick up a bit when we meet Audric and if you’re not against insta-love, than you’ll love the romance in this story.

I think the part that saved this for me was the ending and the feel of the writing/story. It reminds me of reading Austen novels but mix in a wallop of Bridgerton.

Overall, not a terrible read and I really just think the score was so low because it has my biggest reading peeve in it. I would still recommend historical romance lovers pick this up.


Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing for approving me to read this ARC and give my honest opinion!!

The Proposition is the story of a young girl, Clemency Fry, who finds the remains of a treatise written by Miss Bethany Taylor aimed at convincing other women that the institution of matrimony was both humiliating and cruel. Clemency cleans the discarded copy and reads it. As she grows to be a young woman of marriageable age, she has become quite outspoken against marriage, until she met Lord Boyle and was taken with the man. After proposing Boyle appears to have changed in the way he addresses Clemency so much so that she is sure she has made a huge mistake. She is debating what to do when she meets Audric Ferrand and learns what kind of man her betrothed really is.

Audric Ferrand is on a mission to avenge his sister, Delphine, and others that Boyle has seduced, ruined, and then abandoned by Lord Boyle. He convinces Clemency to help him and they begin to plot how they can bring down the vile Lord Boyle. But Clemency has reservations about this since her families fortune is diminishing and she may not be able to disentangle herself from Lord Boyle.

The book is interesting and is somewhat entertaining but it is a little stiff in the writing. I felt as if it was not as inviting as I expected. As the plot unfolds and we get to know our characters better it is less stilted. I was engrossed in the story until the end. The resolution of the story was not what I expected as I hoped to see Lord Boyle's unmasking in a more embarrassing way for the entertainment of it all. Still a good story and worth reading.

2.5 Stars! I really liked the premise of this book but just wish it had worked out better than it did. The ending was pretty anti-climatic and the whole book seemed to drag on. The main characters, Clemency and Audric, didn’t seem to have romance or chemistry. I had to keep rereading chapters because some of the wording was confusing. Some of the secondary characters were LGBTQ which considering the era this book takes place in, seems unlikely that everyone would be ok with it. The reasons why Clemency almost does something big in the book was pretty weak, especially considering the secrets she has on Boyle. Plus I still have so many unanswered questions. All in all, it sounded better than it was.
*I received this at no charge & I voluntarily left this review.*

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Propostion blends historical England with some modern sensibilities.

There were many things to love in this book. The writing and characterization is excellent.

I related to Clemency, jaded by men and even the idea of romance. She feels tricked but also bound by her decision. I adored her.

Audric is such a classic Byronic hero, brooding, self-absorbed, a tragic past. Very gothic! And so much fun in his manliness.

And then the modern thoughts enter with a gay club and the characters' attitudes of love and acceptance. The elements of these relationships are interwoven through the plot.

There is a spicy scene, and I didn't know if this book would.

I would like to thank NetGalley and random house publishing group - Ballantine for this ARC, and this does not influence my review. My review will be published in NetGalley and Goodreads on July 25, 2022.
This book was written in a 3rd person dual-POV (which I hate, but oh well). There was great regency writing style, I loved the historical references to famous women writers (such as Mary Wollstonecraft), and the mentions of bow street runners. I loved the romance! They had great banter and this was a hilarious read! One of my favorite moments was when <spoiler> her arm was injured after falling in the river, and he said “undoubtedly we shall have to amputate.” And when she walked away and back to the edge of the river, he said “I wouldn’t suggest a second go,” he called after her, “you were soundly beaten the first time.” </spoiler>. The trope this book belongs to is hate to love.

Couldn’t get into the writing style of this one. It attempts (poorly) to pastiche 19th century literature, pointless footnotes and all, but does so unconvincingly.

Clemency Fry did not believe in marriage, that is until she met Lord Boyle and was charmed and completely smitten, so much so that when he proposed a mutually satisfying union, she accepted with no qualms. But soon after they became betrothed, tragedy strikes and her relationship with the once charming Lord Boyle turns sour and she is sure she has made a huge mistake. She is debating what to do when she meets Audric Ferrand and learns what kind of man her betrothed really is.

Audric Ferrand is on a mission to avenge his sister, Delphine who was seduced, ruined, and then abandoned by Lord Boyle. He convinces Clemency to help him and they begin to plot how they can bring down the vile Lord Boyle. But the proposition is not without risk, to both their reputations and their hearts.

When I read the blurb for this book, I was excited, but sadly the reality of the story was not nearly as satisfying as I had hoped. This is my first time reading this author and I found her writing style to be a bit slow and drawn out for my taste, and when you add to that the numerous historical errors regarding Regency-era etiquette, fashion, and even actual historical events, not to mention the actual comeuppance of Lord Boyle being carried out by someone other than the protagonists, I was disappointed. But overall the story had good bones and likable characters, so while it was a slow read with an even slower-burning romance and not a book I would read again, I am not sorry I read it.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own.*