Review - To Wed an Heiress

Title:   To Wed an Heiress

Author:  Karen Ranney
Series:  All For Love #2

Genre:   Historical Romance

Publisher:   Avon

Format:  Kindle
No. of Pages:  400

Date of Publication:  March 26, 2019

My Rating:  5 Stars

DESCRIPTION:

Rebellion drove Mercy Rutherford to Scotland to escape the possessive grip of her fiancé. But it’s fate that lands her in the crumbling highlands castle of Ross Caithart. A dreamer with visions of inventing airships, he’s most certainly mad. Handsome beyond words, he’s also causing an irresistible flutter in her stomach beyond reason. When Gregory arrives to see their arranged marriage to its bitter end, Mercy desperately turns to Ross with an offer of her fortune—and her hand in marriage.

The Earl of Morton has a reputation for being a daredevil eccentric, but even he is hesitant to engage in such a rash proposition—no matter how utterly beguiled he is by the wildly independent American heiress. And yet, with so much at stake, how can he possibly say no? But when their unconventional union grows into a passionate and inseparable love, more than Gregory’s obsession threatens them. Now, Ross and Mercy will have to risk more than their hearts to save it.

Link to purchase the book

MY THOUGHTS:

When Mercy Rutherford escapes North Carolina to get away from her fiancé, Gregory, she didn’t expect to be run down by an air ship - which resembled a dragon to her – driven by Lennox Caitheart. She discovers later that he is the Earl of Morton and Mercy also learns that he is the enemy of her extended family. That really is too bad, as he makes her heart flutter.

Sadly, Gregory followed Mercy to Scotland, and when he shows up, he makes it certain that she knows he is determined to follow through with the marriage. Mercy has a plan – she asks the eccentric inventor to take her hand in marriage. She offers him her fortune for his inventions. Part of the reason Mercy approaches Lennox in this manner is that they do form an unlikely friendship. Of course, he refuses her money. But, Mercy must take this plan of action, as her marriage was arranged, much to her dismay. Furthermore, her family in Scotland is utterly abominable.

This is an excellent story. I loved Mercy. She knew what she didn’t want in life and discovered what she did. When this happened, she grabbed the bull by the horns. Lennox was absolutely wonderful. Most certainly a genius, he had a warm heart as well. There were other good characters, notably Ruthie and Elizabeth. Conversely, Mercy’s grandmother was of the worst sort. The was one negative person in the story that surprised me in the end. All in all, the characters played quite well into the story.

To Wed an Heiress is the second book in the All for Love series and was a terrific read. Not only did Mercy find love, but others did as well. The first book, To Love a Duchess, was also a great read. 

Many thanks to Avon and to Edelweiss for this ARC to review in exchange for my honest opinion.

Review for To Love a Duchess -
https://www.robinlovesreading.com/2019/02/review-to-love-duchess.html

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Odds and Ends
My name is pronounced Rain-ey, not Ran-ney. I know, odd, hmm? It’s a married name, but my real one.

Who I am
I read something the other day that moved me. It was a comment that people want what you do not because of what it is, but who you are. So I decided to tell you who I am, in as succinct a way as possible:

I believe that you can accomplish almost anything if you believe it and add your actions to your thoughts.
I believe that there are more nice people than there are ugly ones, and you should ignore the ones that bring you misery.
I believe in the magnificence of the human spirit, in the kindness and love of which we’re all capable.
I believe that character is what you do when no one is looking.
I believe that we are judged by how we treat those of us who need help, how we care for the innocents among us and the animals in our world.
I believe in the transformative power of love.

My story
When I was five years old, I decided I was going to be a writer.

I used to carry around this really big blue book, holding it in my arms much like I would a doll. I can still feel how heavy it was and recall the marks it made on my arms. I remember sitting on the front steps in Sherman, Texas with the book beside me. Sometimes I would sit with it in my lap and open it up, my fingers sliding on top of all those words. I’d try to match the ones I already knew to the ones in that magical book.

“I’m going to be a writer,” I told my mother. And she, in the way of most mothers, smiled and said, “That’s nice, honey.”

Little did I know it would take me a few years.

My oddities as a writer
I’m one of those writers who writes regardless of circumstances.  If there’s a hurricane, a flood, a death, an illness, I write through the experience.  It’s how I cope.  I can point to each one of my books and tell you if I was undergoing some trauma at the time.  The book itself has become a catharsis, and consequently, I feel a special bond to it.  Those books are Tapestry, My Beloved, After the Kiss, and The Scottish Companion.

But that’s not to say they’re my favorites.  I don’t have one. Or perhaps my favorite is the one on which I’m working.

I like throwing my characters into the deep end.  Conflict is one of those components of a novel that I adore. Just think about how much conflict we have in our daily lives.

I also tend to write books about people who are flawed, but not whiners.  The women don’t expect a man to rescue them and the men don’t blame women for everything wrong in their lives.

Hopefully, my characters always have a deep core of beliefs, but they do not always act in perfect ways.  In other words, they’re like real people.

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