Oo abostly loved this book I do couldn't put it down at all
5 star book and I highly recommend it
Kept me pulled into it

The Marquess and the Runaway Lady is a Regency Romance full of wonderful characters, humor, and great intrigue. Author Samantha Hastings has once again written a story that I picked up and read in almost one sitting.

There is a small underlying Cinderella theme in the novel. The beautiful Lady Louisa has been treated poorly by her relatives ever since her parents died and they became her guardians. She escapes their ill-treatment for a better life and runs into The Marquess of Chestwick, or Wick as he is called by friends and family. The Stringham family takes her in and changes her life. I loved all of the Stringham sisters, along with their humor and quirkiness. They are such endearing characters. Wick tries hard to not fall for Lady Louisa but fails. He is harboring great heartache from the past and doesn't feel deserving of anyone's love. How they come together makes for so many great moments in the book whether at home in the Duke's castle, at a ball, or taking a walk together. It's a sweet romance where both Louisa and Wick can't deny their attraction for one another but has many obstacles standing in their way.

This darling story will capture you from the beginning. It is a quick read with all of the elements of a great romance with characters that are likable and relatable, a main character looking for love and truth in life, and enough sentimental feelings to make you laugh, cry, and at times feel a bit frustrated with the Hero of the story. Those that love a clean romance filled with adorable moments will definitely enjoy reading The Marquess and The Runaway Lady.

This book aligns three things I am a diehard fan of: Cinderella retellings, Regency Romance, and Samantha Hastings' novels. It was as lovely of a read as expected!

I abs0lutely adored the characters in this Cinderlla Retelling. Louisa is a sweetheart -- she's a very convincing Cinderella figure. Her circumstances are framed perfectly for the era, with her aunt, uncle, and cousins working to keep her as ignorant as possible in order to best take advantage of Louisa and her inheritance. I appreciated how she was given the Cinderella circumstances but with significantly more of a backbone than the average Cinderella figure. For me, I was better able to connect with Louisa given the greater depth added to her character; she was sweet and kind and loving but also not a doormat. I loved her choice to work to better her circumstances by removing herself from the household of her toxic relatives. Even with this courageous choice, however, Louisa does still have enough lingering doubts and areas where she lacks confidence (caused by said relatives) to make her character realistic.

Wick (the romantic hero), his sisters, and their servants make up a charming household and are an excellent foil for Louisa's continual character development. I love how Hastings knew that Wick's character could only be seen in full within the context of his family. His strengths and struggles are shown just as much through his interactions as through his thoughts. In addition to their important role in supporting our romantic male lead, I just love how endearingly quirky Helena, Becca, Frederica, and Mantheria (to a lesser extent) are. Hastings' depiction of the sisters is easily one of the highlights of the book -- they add so much color to the story and make the story feel very true to life. The dialogue between the sisters is witty and humorous; Louisa and Wick's dialogue with them is equally so.

I loved that the main obstacle to the HEA in this novel is the characters themselves. So often in life, that is the truth of the struggle in romantic relationships -- their flaws and insecurities make their journey relatable.

One aspect I noticed was a bit different than previous Samantha Hastings' novels was the depiction of the physical aspects of the romance. I'd certainly still consider it a clean romance, but I feel like the descriptions of Wick and Louisa's physical attraction to each other were rather more detailed than I'd expected. Not sure if that's related to the different publisher, or if it's just simply a different story requiring different methods, but I did note this. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either; I just felt it was noticeable enough to bear mention.

Overall, 5 stars and definitely a book I'll recommend! Thank you NetGalley, Harlequin Historical, and Samantha Hastings for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own

She's on the run from an evil aunt...

Lady Louisa has been treated like an unwanted pauper in her own home for over a decade. Now at twentyone, she wants to go to London to enter the marriage mart. Her evil aunt has been using her money to fund herself and her family on Louisa's dime for years and now plans to marry her off to her son, Louisa's first cousin. So, off to London she goes to escape that fate.

Wick is the oldest son of a handful of siblings, in particular, three sister who are constantly getting into good troiuble. Now, he's left to wrangle the girls and an unruly menagerie. His parents are on a trip to Africa to return animals. He's in over his head when the governess leaves. Enter Louisa. He's attracted to her and outraged on her behalf and aims to help her.
Recommend.
4.5

Who doesn’t love a Cinderella story. Louisa is taken in by her aunt and uncle after her parents passed away, when she was 10. She was left a Heiress, but it’s treated no better than a servant. Her aunt and uncle flaunt her money, and deny her even a London season. When she learns, they are going to marry her off to their oldest son she decides to run away, with the help of the servants.
Wick, Lord Cheswick, has a lot of weight on his shoulders. He is left in charge of his three younger sisters. When he learns that their governess has been scared off. He goes in search of her, little does he know he brings back the wrong lady.
A very fun and entertaining read. I liked Louisa right off, even after being ridiculed and shunned for so long, she still had some fight left in her. As the story progressed, she became stronger and more self assured.
The character of Wick, was a strong, determined, handsome man, but struggled with guilt. He felt responsible for things that were out of his control.
The attraction between the two is quite compelling and yet they continue to pull away from each other. There were some adventures and drama, lots of dancing, and some, entertaining practical jokes. I thought it was a charming and delightful story. I am looking forward to the sisters stories, as they are quiet extraordinary.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Samantha Hastings’ debut M&B historical is a delightful story of family, second chances and finding love when you least expect it.
Lady Louisa Bracken is tired of being treated as a servant by her Aunt and Uncle who are only interested in her inheritance, especially after finding out their plan to marry her off to their son, Barnabus. Escaping and planning to seek help from the trustees of her parent’s estate, she finds herself rescued by the Marquess of Cheswick who, mistaking Louisa for his sisters’ runaway governess, promptly takes Louisa home to his family and plans to help her start a new life away from her untrustworthy guardians.
What I love about the way this book is written is that as it starts with Louisa and her unfortunate circumstances, you immediately become invested in her attempts to get away from the Rockingham’s and take control of her own future, before the next chapter introduces Wick and his wonderful sisters, Becca, Helen and Federica, who steal the show every time they appear. Wick is likeable from the off, and, from the moment he meets Louisa and promptly discovers she is not the missing governess, the reader is drawn into the world of the characters as the Stringham family take Louisa under their wing and decide to help her solve the issue of her inheritance.
Wick and his sisters are far from the average aristocratic family; Helen is rarely found without a snake nearby and when they decide to show Louisa ‘Animal Island’ with it’s various exotic creatures in the grounds of their home, you immediately warm to the family and can see Louisa being happy with them in contrast to what she has left behind. Between them, there is lots of humour but also enough hints about past tragedy to intrigue the reader and make you want to know more about them.
The clever way that Wick meets Louisa is a good plot point and really starts the romance element of the story rolling. It’s clear from the off that the two work well as a couple, and, despite both having clear ideas about how their temporary arrangement will work and Louisa’s determination to get to London for her season, we soon realise that they are falling for each other, although Wick’s reluctance to act on his feelings presents an obstacle to the budding romance. On this note, I must praise the author’s writing style when delving into the back stories of her characters. The tragedy of Wick’s late brother and sister is well written and adds so much depth and understanding to the character and, as a result, you really do feel for him as he struggles with responsibility, grief and his desire for Louisa to be happy. The emotional revelation of what happened is sympathetically told and adds weight to the story.
Whilst the story is primarily Wick and Louisa’s, the secondary characters are a wonderful addition to proceedings with Becca, Helen and Federica providing entertaining moments, housekeeper Mrs May almost claiming the most memorable moment of the book by accidently on purpose releasing a snake in the house of another of Louisa’s less that delightful relatives, and eldest sister Mantheria and Wick’s best friend Sunny with their complicated attraction to each other and the missed opportunity to be together from their youth. Mention must also be given to the villain’s of the story, Barnabus and any of Louisa’s relatives who merely want her inheritance and don’t care what happens to her. To see how Louisa deals with this is a triumphant moment for her character and also adds an entertaining element to the plot as you almost want to cheer when she strikes out on her own. Also, aside from the romance elements, the book showcases the importance of friendships as Wick and Sunny struggle to communicate their feelings and Louisa finds a bond with Mantheria and proves herself as an ally when Mantheria’s errant husband, Lord Glastonbury reappears.
I won’t spoil the big twist that sets up the final section of the book, but it’s a situation where you have to keep turning the pages as you really need to know what happens next. Louisa’s ability to take charge of her situation makes her even more likeable as a character and shows her independent nature. Indeed, the character development as the book progresses is delightfully shown by this stage as the Louisa we see here is much changed thanks to her involvement with the Stringham’s to the person we met at the start of the story. The ending is strong and romantic and Wick’s barriers finally come crashing down and he realises what he is about to lose if he doesn’t act on his love for Louisa. The romance is well paced and the end of the story is well rounded and will leave the reader smiling.
Overall this is an excellent book from Samantha Hastings which I thoroughly enjoyed. Perfect for lovers of Regency romances, the story has a love story, humour, emotion and an engaging plot that keeps you intrigued and wanting to see what happens next. I was delighted to see there will be more adventures of the Stringham’s in future books and I shall look forward to reading what happens next for the family.

I recently read another Samatha Hastings book and I thoroughly enjoyed it, so I was eager to try this one. But this particular book wasn’t for me and while I enjoyed the writing style I had a hard time with the plot and characters. Looking forward to trying another book by this author at another time.

“You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. You will be surrounded by suitors in London—and not just because of your fortune and your title.”
Lady Louisa’s eyes were still focused on the folds of his cravat. “Will you be one of them?”

This is the most unique Regency romance I’ve ever read! I was immediately intrigued by the author’s note talking about a real Duke who kept an exotic animal menagerie and who the book is based on.

We enter their world as Wick takes responsibility over his hilarious, endearing sisters who are wilder than any animals in their beloved menagerie. Add in a case of mistaken identity and Wick accidentally brings a gorgeous runaway lady into his home.

The chemistry is off the charts and we get him defending and rescuing her, laugh out loud funny moments, steamy make out scenes… all the good things! There also aren’t even words for how much the sisters add to and make the story! They are witty, hilarious, and entirely lovable. I’m hoping we get ALL of their stories!! Pretty please @samanthahastingsauthor ?!

I had the pleasure of reading an ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

Content warning: frequent mentions of snakes and other animals, grief, infidelity of a side character, detailed French kissing.

Nothing sounds better than a man punching another man for me in a ballroom. Hahaha!

This is a fun book! A runaway lady and a marques who is just trying to take care of his family.

I loved the twists and turns and side plots along the way!

The Marquess and the Runaway Lady is another wonderful book from Samantha Hastings. I really love how she writes her characters. I knew I would love Louisa. I too have red hair and freckles. Lots of freckles. Louisa is sweet and kind and I love how she took control of her miserable situation and got herself away from her wicked family. I loved the Cinderella theme and as the book progresses, Louisa became a strong and needle welding force.

Wick is a dashing hero who loves his sisters and takes Louisa in. Those hilarious and clever Stringham sisters. What riots they are! As I read I would try to pick a favorite but I never could. They are delights. And Mrs May too was a joy. Just a wonderfully kind person. Mantheria and Sunny were also great.

The whole book is a pleasure to read. The author truly has a clever personality to write the way she does. It’s very enjoyable.

This book fell short for me. FMC Louisa has run away from her guardian's home upon coming of age, having long been subjected to harsh treatment from her aunt despite Louisa's status as an heiress and now being expected to wed her odious cousin Barnaby. She is rescued, albeit unknowingly, by MMC Wick AKA the Marquess of Cheswick. Thinking her a governess, he brings her home to his younger sisters, setting in motion events that will take him and Louisa to London for the Season and led to their HEA.

This story is very surface-level. Louisa falls for Wick without real reason, other than he is the first man she has seen in years other than servants or her cousin. He is nice to her, therefore she must love him. Louisa has an air of naivety, almost annoyingly so. Wick's reluctance for love makes little sense, given the family surrounding him. Wick's reasons for falling for Louisa also seem nonexistent. She is pretty therefore he falls for her. There is little depth to the main characters or their emotions. I liked Wick's sisters better than I liked Wick or Louisa, but even there, the writing felt stilted.

Overall, this just missed the mark. It was also a (very) clean romance, which is generally not my jam. 2 stars. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book. The opinions herein are my own.

A regency Cinderella retelling. Louisa is treated terrible by her Aunt and Uncle and they want her money so she runs away after finally having enough. While on the road, the Marquess of Cheswick finds her and thinks she is the governess that has run away from his house so he takes her back to his house where his sisters tell him she isn’t the governess. Wick and Louisa are instantly attracted to each other. Wick and his sisters decide to help Louisa go to her other Uncle’s house. That proves to be a disaster as well so he takes her to his sister’s,who is a duchess, house. She helps Louisa with having a season. Wick likes Louisa but feels responsible for the death of two of his siblings so doesn’t want to fall in love and have someone else he loves die.

Overall this is a cute story, some good comedy. I absolutely love all of the siblings, they are great! Louisa and Wick are great characters as well. At first their relationship is more about attraction to the other than anything else(which I didn’t care for) but then gets better. I also personally didn’t like the kisses because they were too detailed for me, and made me uncomfortable but that is more a personal preference. There was some other little things I didn’t prefer as well. However, the overall story is good and well written. I liked all the characters. Character development is good as well.


Content: detailed kissing(sucking on lip, French kissing), talk of “tasting” women, cousin is fornicating with a woman off page,

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the author and netgalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.

Cute Cinderella retelling!
Well developed main characters, the sisters were especially entertaining.
A couple to root for but not my favorite book.
The pacing was a little wonky, there were a lot of random characters, and plot points that didn't make a ton of sense to me. I could see why people enjoyed it, it just wasn't really for me.

This was a quick and fun read! I enjoyed the characters and I really loved how Louisa grew throughout the novel. I also liked her relationship with Mantheria and Wick's other sisters. I also really liked the ending. Overall it was an enjoyable read! I would recommend for fans of regency romance.

The Marquess and the Runaway Lady is a Regency Cinderella. Lady Louisa decides to escape her cruel aunt and uncle, who expect her to marry their son, who has incredible amounts of gambling debt. Unwilling to face a dismal future, Lady Louisa chooses to seek refuge elsewhere. Circumstances land her in Lord Cheswick’s home. His sisters immediately take her in, even though Lord Cheswick has no desire to help her. Each of his sisters were each a funny character, and all obsessed with animals. The book explores the menagerie of animals that Lord Cheswick’s father owns, and it adds a fun element to the book. Both main characters had their own trauma to work through in order to allow each other to completely accept love and choose to move forward in life. Overall a great book!

Content Considerations: The kisses were quite descriptive. If I read this outloud, it would cause blushes all around.

Thank you to the Author for the ARC. All opinions are expressly my own.

This is a loosely reimagined Cinderella story. Lady Luisa has lived under her aunt’s mistreatment for years. With a little help from the servants, she runs away and gets confused for a governess. “Wick”, the Marquess of Cheswick, is taking care of his animal-loving sisters while his parents travel to Africa. When the latest governess quits he sets out to find her. A case of mistaken identity occurs.

My favorite part of this book was the siblings relationship. Wick is very protective of his younger sisters and they love and trust each other equally. The sisters were very fun to read, mischievous all around. I liked Luisa’s character growth from a naive, insecure girl to a confident and beautiful young women. I felt like Wick’s character took too long to figure things out.

I felt like the story moved in equal parts too fast and too slow. I felt like the beginning started off fast then it really slowed down in the middle. I loved the plot and the characters, even the despicable ones, were well written. The writing felt a bit simple and somewhat superficial, it was difficult to get immersed in the story. Overall, it was a fun, easy read.

*This is a closed door romance with some steamy kissing.

**I received a complimentary e-book from the author through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This book was just so fun! I really enjoyed the lightheartedness of the sisters and can’t wait for their stories! I loved the Hero and Heroine … great chemistry and swoony scenes between them! I truly enjoyed the storyline and felt like it moved along nicely! I will read more by Ms Hastings!

I’ve loved Samantha’s books and looked forward to this book very much. The storyline was interesting and the characters were endearing, funny, and lovable. I really enjoyed the Stringham family and look forward to the sisters’ stories. I also really loved the dual point of view, for me that *always* makes a story better.
Perhaps it was because of this publisher, but I felt the book too simple. While there was conflict and the plot moved along at a decent pace, I felt like it was too easy. It just seemed like the writing skimmed the surface, you don’t get too deep into the character’s feelings and thoughts. And I completely understand that for a lot of readers that isn’t an issue at all, but it was for me. Having recently read another book by Samantha (through a different publisher) I know what she’s capable of and by the time I finished this book, just felt a bit let down.
This is an interesting historical romance that is a great easy read.

In a Cinderella retelling set in the Regency period, Lady Louisa escapes from her horrible family only to be accidentally rescued by Lord Simon also known as Wick. Louisa blossoms away from her family and how accepting Wick's family are of her, as she gains confidence and realises she is indeed worthy of love.

I enjoyed the way Simon cares for his little sisters even though they clearly try him with their love of animals and the housekeeper was very funny.

My honest review is given in exchange for receiving a free copy of the ARC from Netgalley.

"Sometimes being a wreck brought you to the right shore" - The Marquess and the runaway lady by Samantha Hastings

Set in 1810, this Regency Era novel features a grief stricken nobleman trying to care for (and keep out of mischief) his animal loving little sisters and when I say animals I mean a whole private zoo full of animals including an elephant, giraffes and A LOT of snakes!! When their latest governess quits without notice for reasons that may or may not involve snakes Lord Simon Anthony Peregrine Stringham, the Marquess of Cheswick AKA Wick, son of the Duke and Duchess of Hampton leaves his family estate to find the wayward governess and beg her to come back but in a case of mistaken identity the woman he finds walking down the road and brings home ISN'T the governess.

Lady Louisa Bracken, daughter of the late Earl of Rockinham is being Cinderella-ed and treated like a drudge by her horrid Aunt and Uncle who intend to marry her off to their equally horrid son Barnabas in order to gain her Inheritance. With a little bit of help from the servants the orphaned heiress runs away and of course gets mistaken for the runaway governess.

Wick and his sisters then decide to help Louisa take control of her fortune BUT because her late father's will requires her to marry now or wait another four years before she can access her fortune they all head off to London to stay with Wick's married sister The Duchess of Glastonbury so they can help get Louisa presented to Queen Charlotte, have her attend balls and find a suitable husband.... even if it means marrying for financial reasons instead of love like Wick's oldest sister.

Wick's animal loving sisters are extremely entertaining and the married sister's loveless marriage and lack of legal agency as a woman is handled well and highlights how rarely women got to have both financial security and love in the Regency Era.

Louisa soon has several potential suitors plus her awful cousin Barnabas is still intent on marrying her but the man Louisa is truly interested in definitely does not want to get married (and is definitely NOT in denial about his feelings for Louisa).

Will Louisa settle for security like the Duchess or will she get her love match?

The book features balls, dresses, found family, snakes, romance, scheming relations, a dastardly villian, Star-Crossed lovers, did I mention snakes!


I often wanted to give Wick a good shake but he is dealing with or rather avoiding dealing with grief, guilt, self acceptance and a fear of vulnerability.

I would love to read more books about the Stringham siblings. The three youngest animal loving sisters would make excellent main characters, their brother Matthew could make an interesting leading man and I so want to see the oldest sister the Duchess of Glastonbury get her happy ending.

There is also a prequel novella The Duchess contract which is set approximately 27 years earlier and is about Wick's very unusual parents and how they came to have an animal sanctuary at their castle. I read it for free on Kobo a few months ago. I recommend reading it before The Marquess and the runaway lady.

Having read and enjoyed several historical novels by this author , mostly historical mysteries I jumped at the chance to read and review this novel.