Once Upon a Marquess (The Worth Saga, #1)

by Courtney Milan

The last man Judith Worth wants to see again is Christian Trent, the Marquess of Ashford—the man who spent summers at her family home, who kissed her one magical night…and then heartlessly ruined her father. But when a tricky business matter arises, he’s the only one she can ask for help. With any luck, he’ll engage a servant to take care of the matter, and she won’t even have to talk with him.

But Ashford has never forgotten Judith. He knows she will never forgive him for what he’s done, but when offered the chance to assist her, he arrives in person. His memory of Judith may have haunted him, but it pales in comparison to the reality of the vivacious, beautiful woman he rediscovers. Throughout his life, he has always done what is correct. But now, he finds himself doing something utterly wrong…falling in love with the one woman he can never have.

• ISBN10: 193724850X
• ISBN13: 9781937248505
• Publish Date: 6 December 2015
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Nla Digital LLC
• Format: eBook
• Language: English

Reviews

[stacey_is_sassy]

When things go bad...

It's amazing how quickly the people who claim to care, will turn their backs when you've hit rock bottom. I found Once Upon a Marquess thoroughly entertaining and exactly how I would imagine things would go when the "Ton" turns their favour. The "good" people turn their backs while the "bad" will protect your back. But, there are always exceptions.

The characters were engaging, the storyline kept my attention and the connection between Christian and Judith jumped off the pages. This is a story with secrets and intrigues that you can't help hoping will fix the problems the Worth family faces. But, alas, in this instalment, we get some answers but not exactly the answer I was hoping for.

The narrating was done by one of my favourite in historical romance, Rosalyn Landor. Her voice is so easy to listen to and her talent for changing her voice makes her remarkable.

Courtney Milan writes her usual best and I can't wait for more in this series.

[Amanda]

You know that feeling when you finish a book and immediately want the next in the series? That is every Courtney Milan book, ever.

I spent my last afternoon of 2015 with Once Upon a Marquess and a glass of wine, and it was basically perfection. Without fail, Courtney Milan delivers a heart-wrenching and emotional novel with characters so real you want to reach into the pages and hug them.

There are really two stories here: the romance between Judith and Christian, and the beginnings of what I assume the series arc is, the Worth saga -- what really happened when Judith's father and brother were convicted of treason. Certain things were not unexpected, but I think that comes more from knowing how series work and what will pack an emotional punch.

Judith is struggling to take care of her siblings after Christian, her once upon a time love, ruins her father and brother, the latter of which had been Christian's best friend. And still, she turns to him when she has a problem. I adored Christian and Judith's relationship. Christian is "odd," but while others (including his mother and cousin) try to get him to change, Judith accepts him for who he is, even when she "hates" him.

As for Christian, I never quite hated him for what he did. Mostly because it's too easy to see how tormented he is by the entire situation, and how much he wants to dig into it, to determine exactly what happened and why. He's not as callous as it might seem on the surface. And Once Upon a Marquess only raises more questions about what's to come about the Worth family.

I really dig couples with history, and watching Judith and Christian come back together, learning to trust and love each other is exactly why. I also liked the message that Judith, despite her hardships after her father's ruined, is strengthened by everything she's had to endure. That she's a better, stronger person because of it, something she never would have been able to accomplish on her own. Tessa Dare had the same message with Nora and Dash in Lord Dashwood Missed Out, and like then, it's one I appreciate -- and it's likely the reason why both Courtney Milan and Tessa Dare are authors that I can never get enough of.

Her Every Wish, a novella featuring Daisy, Judith's friend, is set to release next, and I can't wait to get my hands on a copy.