To Swoon and to Spar
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Author: Martha Waters
GR: 3.68

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Atria Books and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Viscount Penvale has been working for years to buy back his ancestral home, Trethwick Abbey, from his estranged uncle. And so he’s thrilled when his uncle announces that he is ready to sell but with one major caveat—Penvale must marry his uncle’s ward, Jane Spencer.

When the two meet in London, neither is terribly impressed. Penvale finds Jane headstrong and sharp-tongued. Jane finds him cold and aloof. Nevertheless, they agree to a marriage in name only and return to the estate. There, Jane enlists her housekeeper for a scheme: to stage a haunting so that Penvale will return to London, leaving her to do as she pleases at Trethwick Abbey. But Penvale is not as easily scared as his uncle and as their time together increases, Jane realizes that she might not mind her husband’s company all that much.

My Thoughts: This is book No. 4 in The Regency Vows series. I loved the play on 1800s gothic romance in London. As so often in the Regency Era, this is an arranged marriage, or a marriage of convenience.

Jane made an amazing heroine, she loves to speak her mind, which in this time era did not happen much, most ladies were seen rather than heard. The characters were developed well, were swoony, witty banter, and overall well done. The characters from previous books were a tad more on point, but the characters here are still done well. The humor injected into the novel was great, I really enjoyed that aspect of it. There was a medium amount of steam and spice. While Jane is trying to “scare” Penvale away, it ends up bringing them closer, which was very meet cute. I also loved the little updates we got on the other couples, probably one of my favorite things about series books.

Overall, an enjoyable read. My only con was that the characters were not as luster as in previous books in this series. I would still recommend picking up.

It wasn't bad, but there wasn't much going on? Sure, the romance had a nice arc, it made sense, but it wasn't all that swoony and adorable and I wasn't here pining for them to be together forever.
The old writing also kinda fucks up with my brain. Personally, I just find it annoying to read.
A big part of this book is about fake ghosts, and I'm like, okay get over it. It's not interesting anymore lol

I was really excited to get an eArc of this book as I had never read a Martha Waters book previously but the reviews I had seen were very good.

I found that reading the previous novels wasn’t too necessary to pick up with this novel - especially since the heroine was not in the previous works.

I would recommend it for those who love historical romance but dont enjoy the sex scenes - as I know that is difficult to find in this genre and I will say the novel was surprising in that; not necessarily in a bad way, just unexpected. For myself, I’m fine with a historical romance book not being steamy but if its not then I need tension and longing! This book didn’t really have that. While there were some cute interactions there were not any real “swoon worthy” moments and that is something I need in a romance novel.

I also really didn’t vibe with the female lead, Jane Spencer. She is portrayed as “shy” but the author I think did a poor job of conveying awkward shyness and instead made Jane as a character insufferably rude. I can understand having a character be a bit reticent, even closed off, but the way Jae was portrayed wasn’t shy so much as mean. To everyone. The male lead, Viscount Penvale was okay; he might’ve been more interesting if he had been able to get with a less aggressively rude woman than Jane. But instead I found myself wondering how he could like someone who was so mean to him all the time. Jane’s behaviour to Penvale was a large part why I felt that as a couple, they lacked chemistry.

Overall, I can’t say there was anything egregiously wrong with the book but at the same time it wasn’t the romance book for me.

Gave up on this book, It’s cute, but so slow and boring. The characters have little personality and zero chemistry. thanks to net galley for providing me a copy of this book!

What a fun regency romance! I loved our characters, even with all their quirks, and found the ghost stories aspect of this novel hilarious!

Definitely add this to your tbr if you're in the mood for a fun regency romance!

Thanks to NetGalley for my gifted copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion and review.
To Swoon and to spar is a cute book, 4th in the series, about Jane and Penvale. They have entered into a marriage of convenience and end up with a whole lot of trouble.
This book was a little tedious at times and I felt like the banter could have been more on par with the other books in the series.
This can be read as a stand alone but has recurring characters. 3.5 stars rounded up.

A marriage of convenience that becomes swoonworthy. It was a fun and delightful read.
Many thanks to Atria and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

The latest in the Regency Vows series finds Lord Penvale marrying his uncle’s ward, Jane Spencer as part of the settlement to purchase his ancestral home. His uncle tells Penvale the house is haunted after the sale and wedding are finalized. But is the house really haunted or are the staff playing jokes? Will the two find love in their arrangement?

These characters took a bit to grow on you and there was a late-stage miscommunication and breakup leading to a sweet reunion. I also liked the nods to fiction as escapism and it heavily drew on the love of gothic novels of the time.

All Viscount Penvale wants is to buy his ancestral home, and he is finally getting the chance. The catch? He has to marry Jane. All Jane wants is to be left alone, so she (and the staff) haunt the house, but Penvale isn’t easily scared off as she hoped.

I’m super picky about historical fiction, and I’ve enjoyed all of The Regency Vows. I’m sad there is only one more left! This was just as funny as the other books. While Penvale and Jane weren’t my favorite couple, I was delighted that there were cameos from all of the couples (plus book #5’s couple). The audiobook was really good!

This series is just so cute. Each of the couples always ends up being a favorite, and this one was no exception. Penvale and Jane were absolutely bananas, but that’s ok, because it worked.
He gets his family home back if he marries her, so he does (big fan of the marriage of convenience trope!). But she was happy on her own, thank you very much, so she stages some hauntings to scare him away. What ensues is hijinks and chaos and longing(?) oh my!
A fun, quick read with some light (fake) spookiness!

I was so looking forward to Penvale's story after falling in love with him as a side character in earlier books. Waters did not disappoint. To Swoon and to Spar is such a romp. There are heavy topics but it always feels fun and light, even when chasing ghosts around the country manor. I very much enjoyed seeing Panvale's growth throughout the story away from the usually gang of friends but was of course thrilled to see them all arrive later in the story. Loved it.

As a person who isn't generally into historical or regency, this is the worthwhile exception. It's adorable, has great banter, and the premise of a fake haunting to chase off an inconvenient husband had me kicking my feet. I loved seeing how things shifted, and always love seeing new ways to that happy ending.

I've said this before and I'll likely say it again: I didn't realize this was a later book in a series. Luckily, each book appears to stand alone. I enjoyed Jane and Penvale greatly. The hijinks of haunting were marvelous. Best of all? The angst lasted barely a chapter. I'd heartily recommend this book to anyone who enjoys regency romances.

A fantastic addition to the Regency Vows collection. Charming, hilarious, with the perfect balance of romance to storytelling and character building. While I can’t wait for the next one, I’m sad that it’ll be the last in this series.

a cute historical romance book, i really enjoyed this one

Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for the review copy.

This was a delightful mystery that fans of the previous series entries will love. Lots of witty banter and a growing genuine affection between our protagonists. Fans of Bridgerton and Evie Dunmore will be sure to enjoy this one.

This was a very cute enemies-to-lovers romance. Penvale has been desperately trying to regain ownership of his childhood home, so when the chance to obtain it comes with the price of marriage, he jumps. Jane is determined to do anything to stay in the house she has grown up with since her father's death left her a ward of Penvale's uncle. But she will stop at nothing to get rid of her new husband so she can live in peace. But what neither realized is that they could just fall in love. Thank you, NetGalley, for the eARC. It was a very fun, witty, swoon-worthy story. 4 stars.

DON'T BE AN IDIOT LIKE ME AND GO IN NOT REALIZING THIS IS PART OF A SERIES!!

"Viscount Penvale has been working for years to buy back his ancestral home, Trethwick Abbey, from his estranged uncle. And so he’s thrilled when his uncle announces that he is ready to sell but with one major caveat—Penvale must marry his uncle’s ward, Jane Spencer."

Because I know this is a series, I had to DNF so I could start from book 1. However, it was a lovely cozy read until then and I enjoyed it.

I was able to read this book thanks to NetGalley sending me a free eARC. All of the statements above are my own opinions!

Viscount Penvale's uncle wants to be rid of responsibility for Jane, and rid of his apparently-haunted estate, so he tells Penvale he’ll sell the house only if Penvale and Jane get married. The two get married, even though they initially dislike each other, and move to the estate. Jane decides to continue the haunting so she can be left alone. Penvale tries to live there and take care of the estate, get to know the villagers, and really settle in. They gradually build respect for each other, and fall in love despite misunderstandings and assumptions.
This isn't quite a case of fake-married (since the couple gets legally wed), but Jane and Penvale's relationship begins as just a matter of appearances. As they get to know each other, and develop feelings, there is a bit of angst/drama around each one wondering if the other returns their feelings. Dramatic gestures abound, and the couple ends up happily and lovingly married, in a no-longer-haunted country estate. This was fun to read!

Whomever doesn’t love witty banter and well played remarks needs to get their priorities in order and then cure themselves with this book. I loved every page of it and can’t wait to read more by Waters!