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Ivy H

November 02 2019

‘You’re not grasping what I’m trying to tell you here, yineka mou,’ Leo lamented. ‘A gorgeous blonde in biker leathers came into my office and blew my whole life apart in the space of a day. Within a week, I was more fascinated by her than any woman I have ever met. Within two weeks I was so hot for her I was performing mental acrobatics to persuade her into being mine, really mine...but I hadn’t quite come to terms with what I was signing up for. That was my mistake. I came at you like a bull in a china shop before I had thought it all through.’ <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://bookshout.com/store/books/2250183">https://bookshout.com/store/books/225...</a> In a storyline that's superficially reminiscent of <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/13261239.A_Deal_at_the_Altar__Marriage_by_Command__2_" title="A Deal at the Altar (Marriage by Command #2) by Lynne Graham" rel="noopener">A Deal at the Altar</a>, Lynne Graham delves into another marriage of convenience trope. It's a marriage that begins with very unconventional rules, that all fall by the wayside when passion rears its head and unexpected emotions begin to bloom. Leo and Letty are as different as chalk and cheese. He's the eternal pragmatist who's built an invisible wall around his heart, because Life's cumulative lessons have soured him to the extent where he scoffs at the notion that true love really exists. This is the H, Leo: <img src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1572688682i/28391364._SY540_.jpg" width='600"height=600"alt="description"/' class="gr-hostedUserImg" loading="lazy"> Letty, on the other hand, like many of Lynne G's beloved heroines, is a nurturing neo-martyr type of character who's happily sacrificed her own ambitions in order to assist her family. He's a workaholic who prefers to keep mistresses, because such arrangements don't interfere with the smooth running of his life. This is the heroine, Letty: <img src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1572688682i/28391362.jpg" width='600"height=600"alt="description"/' class="gr-hostedUserImg" loading="lazy"> Just like Sergio from <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/13261239.A_Deal_at_the_Altar__Marriage_by_Command__2_" title="A Deal at the Altar (Marriage by Command #2) by Lynne Graham" rel="noopener">A Deal at the Altar</a>, Leo's template for an ideal marriage is one that doesn't align with traditional standards. Leo's been raised to believe that wives serve a purpose that don't include true love and blissful domestic coupledom. He's seen nothing but chronic latent infidelity, in all of the marriages around him - from the time he was a child of 6, when his dad married a cheating golddigger named Katrina. His vapid stepmother had even crawled into his bed once, in an unsuccessful effort to seduce him ! Meanwhile, his oblivious, doting Beta-Cuck dad continued to lavish love and money on the undeserving and selfish woman. This twisted relationship created a skewed, unhealthy narrative that has subconsciously guided Leo's attitude to the institution of marriage. At the story's onset, Leo's forced to contemplate a marriage of convenience because his sister's death has left him with the guardianship of her 4 young kids. A fellow tycoon offers him a deal that he can't refuse: marry the tycoon's estranged, impoverished and illegitimate granddaughter Letty and merge both shipping empires. Letty is a 24 year old wannabe doctor who's put medical school on the back burner, because she's the sole breadwinner for her disabled, ailing mom and 2 younger brothers. Like most people who actually live in countries with *free public health care*, Letty's family knows that it's not the fluffy, utopian dream that it's often purported to be: Her mother was too frail to be left alone with two active boys until she received the double hip replacement she needed. Sadly, the waiting lists for free treatment were too long and private surgery was unaffordable. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://bookshout.com/store/books/2250183">https://bookshout.com/store/books/225...</a> That's why Letty eventually signs up for this weird, platonic marriage of convenience, where she agrees not to file for divorce if he has mistresses ! ‘But marriage is a lot more intimate in nature than an agreement to raise children together,’ Letty pointed out. Leo lounged fluidly back in his chair. ‘In our case, it would be less intimate. Sex wouldn’t be involved. I would satisfy my needs elsewhere.’ <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://bookshout.com/store/books/2250183">https://bookshout.com/store/books/225...</a> If she hadn't really needed the money from this marriage, Letty would've probably just sent him and his archaic arrangement, sliding back down to the ground where it belongs... <img src="https://images.gr-assets.com/hostedimages/1572689576ra/28391412.gif" width='1000"height=1000"alt="description"/' class="gr-hostedUserImg" loading="lazy"> But, in the tradition of Sergio, the H from <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/13261239.A_Deal_at_the_Altar__Marriage_by_Command__2_" title="A Deal at the Altar (Marriage by Command #2) by Lynne Graham" rel="noopener">A Deal at the Altar</a>, Leo's another duke of double standards, because he's flabbergasted and filled with a visceral jealous, possessiveness when Letty mentions her own rights to a personal life: ‘Your...sex life?’ Leo demanded as if those two words were an incompatible combination. ‘You won’t have one, unless it’s with me.’ <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://bookshout.com/store/books/2250183">https://bookshout.com/store/books/225...</a> <img src="https://images.gr-assets.com/hostedimages/1572688682ra/28391365.gif" width='1000"height=1000"alt="description"/' class="gr-hostedUserImg" loading="lazy"> (Hmnnnn...I'm in a wicked mood and I just couldn't resist poking a little bit of harmless fun by using this gif, so please don't go and report me to the climactivists and their climate police ! LOL ! ) Leo's relatively less assholish than Sergio, though, because at least he attempts to rationalize the hypothetical situation from Letty's perspective: He wasn’t one of those outdated men who believed that women had a smaller appetite for the physical pleasures of life. But the thought of his wife getting into bed with another man, the thought of another man touching and enjoying what Leo instinctively saw as his property alone, genuinely appalled him. He paled below his bronzed skin. It was hypocrisy, complete hypocrisy, and he knew it and sealed his wide sensual mouth closed before he said something he knew he should not say. That feat of control established, he breathed again. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://bookshout.com/store/books/2250183">https://bookshout.com/store/books/225...</a> Lynne G doesn't allow this issue to create any distasteful meandering minor storylines, however, because there's no infidelity in their marriage and the H isn't even tempted by other women. It's only a core hypothetical conflict, because of the H's stubborn notion that since true love doesn't exist, he can't bind himself to the type of relationship that Letty wants. He's not entirely scornful of her idealistic values, but he's reluctant to embrace it: ‘I consider marriage to be,’ Letty murmured levelly, ‘a sacred bond between two people.’ ‘Yes, you are a practising Christian.’ Leo acknowledged that detail, shifting his expressive hands again. ‘But you are practical as well and you must know that sex causes a lot of grief in relationships. Take the sex out of the marriage and you have a working, reasonable partnership.’ ‘And an unfaithful husband,’ Letty chipped in, again inwardly denying that she was having such a dialogue with him while wondering how she could possibly be intrigued by his attitude. Leo shrugged a wide shoulder. ‘Is that so important in the grand scheme of things? It’s not as though you’re in love with me. It’s not even as though you know me.’ <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://bookshout.com/store/books/2250183">https://bookshout.com/store/books/225...</a> <img src="https://images.gr-assets.com/hostedimages/1572688682ra/28391363.gif" width='1000"height=1000"alt="description"/' class="gr-hostedUserImg" loading="lazy"> The most hilarious part of the story is the fact that it's Leo himself who breaks all his own pre-determined marriage rules. He's the one who's so filled with lust that he suggests they consummate their relationship. But the heroine doesn't melt and surrender that easily. It's only after a huge honeymoon night argument, where Letty gives him a well deserved, verbal scolding, topped off by a glass of wine thrown at his handsome face, that the heroine compromises: ‘I don’t want to enter into a “try before you buy” scenario, Leo. I’m worth more than that,’ Letty assured him, throwing her head high, her honey-blonde tresses blowing in the breeze, her clear gaze reflecting the light bouncing off the sea. ‘I won’t come cheap or easy. I’ll make demands. I’ll have expectations. I have no idea how a mistress behaves but I would imagine that if a woman is dependent on a man’s continuing interest she has to refrain from demands and expectations.’ <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://bookshout.com/store/books/2250183">https://bookshout.com/store/books/225...</a> I must also add that the author included a pole dancing scene, but unlike the one in <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/13261239.A_Deal_at_the_Altar__Marriage_by_Command__2_" title="A Deal at the Altar (Marriage by Command #2) by Lynne Graham" rel="noopener">A Deal at the Altar</a>, this tipsy heroine engages in a seductive public display at her bachelorette party. It's actually quite entertaining, because the jealous H turns up in time to *rescue* her from the sight of prying eyes: ‘ Incredibly sexy,’ Leo purred, threading a straying strand of hair back behind one small ear. ‘But if you dance like that again in a public place...well, you won’t like my reaction. I don’t want other men perving over your body like that.’ <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://bookshout.com/store/books/2250183">https://bookshout.com/store/books/225...</a> There's a lot going on this novel, with the 4 cutiedorable kids and with the MC's respective relatives. Letty's also a sensible and strong minded heroine, who's determined to graduate from medical school. There's some minor angst added to the mix, by a few other women who are all fawning over the H and tend to turn up and make spiteful, bitchy comments just to annoy the heroine. But Letty proves herself capable of handling these rejects. But I bet the heroine wished she had this handy spray when these OW turned up, especially when one was her jealous aunt ! <img src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1572689254i/28391399._SY540_.jpg" width='600"height=600"alt="description"/' class="gr-hostedUserImg" loading="lazy"> The sex scenes aren't as numerous as in some of LG's recent novels, but the steam factor is still high, due to the MC's intense chemistry. But it's all balanced out by the fact that these MC's spent more time engaging in verbal communication. The resolution of the conflict occurs just before Christmas and it's a heart-warming setting, because the joy of the season and the importance of family, play a huge role. In the epilogue, set 6 years into the future, Letty's a doctor and the MC's have a young son who's universally adored by his 4 cousins and grandparents. There's even a little doggy named George and Letty's mother is now married to Leo's dad ! Safety: No cheating but there are a couple of former OW and 2 other wannabe OW, who all make nuisances of themselves. The H is not interested in any of them and he'd dumped his last mistress before marrying the heroine.

V

Vintage

April 17 2021

For starters, Ivy's review is far more entertaining than the book itself. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3032484177?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1">https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...</a> We have another Lynne Graham besotted hero. Unfortunately he's mainly besotted with his own awesome self for much of the book. When he’s not complimenting himself on his sexual prowess he’s trying to convince the heroine he’s the much better option from anything from celibacy to other men. The heroine isn’t too impressed with his thought processes having already seen her mother’s poor choices and saddled with the typical HP Greek grandpa. Gramps will pay for an OTT wedding for the heroine to marry the tycoon of his choice, but won’t spend a tuppence for the life changing surgery. The h is in <s>lust</s> love and puts up with the H's hot and cold, all about me routine for just so long then she's out of there. He wakes up long enough to give her and the plot moppets a Christmas HEA. A three star for the bog standard Lynne Graham. Good but not great.

Z

Zubee

November 18 2019

I loved, loved, loved this h!!! She was smart, kickass and ran rings around the H H was LG's trademark H; very intelligent, supposedly emotionally distant; of course the distant part went out the window when he met the h ... h had loads of self-respect I love the way LG is incorporating the modern dressing and attitude of 21st century women while retaining their old-fashioned goodness and decency ... Total keeper ...

A

Aou

November 03 2019

I loved Letty and Leo and will re-read A Deal at the Altar, again.

C

Chi

November 07 2019

I really enjoyed reading this! The heroine, Letty, makes a nice change from Lynne Graham's signature heroines: usually slightly vacuous, impoverished, and taken advantage of by their relatives. Letty was still an impoverished heroine, but she looked after her mother and her two brothers, and she had brains that she actually used! I loved watching her go toe to toe with the Hero, Leo. While she still fell head over heels for his looks, it made a nice change seeing her willing to stand up for herself (especially for his outdated double standards outlook), and she made certain that he treated her as his equal. This was definitely a winner!

r

reeder (reviews)

December 26 2019

Two surprises, two disappointments. The Surprises I was surprised to discover a story with more of the old LG spirit than her recent by-the-numbers efforts. I credit this energy to the plethora of wannabe OW: <blockquote>• Elexis Livas - the heroine's aunt, who could have married the hero six years ago in a business deal, but he balked when she insisted on fidelity. She's bitter and spewing jealous poison. • Katrina Livas - the hero's stepmother, a gold digger who has been trying to seduce her stepson since he turned 21. • Mariana Santos - the hero's latest mistress, who shows up as an uninvited guest at their wedding. • Dido Bakas - an actress and former lover who swarms all over the hero at the opening of his latest nightclub on the heroine's birthday.</blockquote> Following 21st century HP protocol, each of these is more an issue in the heroine's mind than in the hero's actions, and each is bloodlessly dismissed. (Though what kind of man allows a former lover to ignore his new wife completely while pawing him up in public? Manners, dude.) I'm not a fan of randomly tacking "Christmas" onto a story's title in an attempt to make it seasonal. This is in no way a Christmas story (basically, there's decorating for Christmas in the final chapter and the epilogue takes place on Christmas Eve six years later), so I was surprised when the hero cites the heroine's Christianity as an explanation for why she considers marriage to be "a sacred bond" and not a business arrangement. It was a little awkward, but it felt like an attempt to build a foundation for the barely-there Christmas bits. The Disappointments I went into the story blind, only knowing that the tycoon needed a convenient spouse to mother his dead sister's children and the heroine's name was Letty. So when the hero mentioned his failed potential engagement to "Elexis" six years earlier, I thought Letty could be a nickname for Elexis and we were going to see a classic LG second-chance romance. It was a little weird and incestuous for the heroine to turn out to be Elexis's illegitimate niece. Then, when the hero is presenting the businesslike terms of their marriage arrangement in which they won't have sex and he will seek "satisfaction" outside the marriage, the heroine briefly thwarts him by pointing out that she will have sexual needs as well. Although the hero acknowledges that he's being hypocritical, he immediately rejects the idea of her taking extramarital lovers. I thought this was going to become an interesting battle, but LG diverts the heroine's attention by introducing her to the kids, and the next thing I know, she has signed a prenup that specifically declares the hero's infidelity will not be grounds for divorce but says nothing about the heroine's equal rights. I was sooo frustrated.

S

StMargarets

April 13 2021

<a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/13261239.A_Deal_at_the_Altar__Marriage_by_Command__2_" title="A Deal at the Altar (Marriage by Command #2) by Lynne Graham" rel="noopener">A Deal at the Altar</a>-lite. H/h marry to take care of hero's orphaned nieces and nephews. The tycoon hero and medical school heroine are wildly attracted to each other, so the angst comes from their conversations about the hero possibly cheating in the future. Yes, the angst is based on a hypothetical. *sigh* Still, this is Lynne Graham so it is enjoyable. Ivy's review has all the details.

J

Jenny

November 06 2019

It was decent but nothing special. I couldn’t warm up to the heroine. I was bothered by her reluctance to have kids with the hero. I just didn’t feel the love. LG has written amazing books I’m sure her next book will be better!

R

Raffaella

March 04 2022

This is a light and fun reading from LG. Usual trope. - Greek billionaire needs a wife because his sister and husband died and left him 4 (!!!!!) children. Heroine’s grandfather offers his granddaughter (h) and adds a sailing company. - heroine is poor and needs money for her mum’s surgery Heroine accepts MOC but the hero as soon as he sees her has insta lust and changes his mind. - a lot of bickering about a prenup where the heroine can’t divorce the hero if he’s unfaithful. - a lot of ow that make things worse. - usual tabloid with ow and hero photograph together and big misunderstanding. - usual grovel and declaration of love of the hero. Nothing very surprising here but it was cute all the same. - the heroine is not the usual LG clueless heroine, she’s studying medicine and she’s tough, tougher than the hero. - the hero is the usual idiot trademark hero LG, who can’t see past his nose. He thinks he will keep a wife and a mistress but is surprised when the heroine asks the same. His stupidity is limitless. Seems that in LG a hero the more is handsome the more is stupid. A male bimbo. This one is very very handsome. So have a guess. He doesn’t want to fall in love with a woman because his father is smitten with a cheating and gold digger wife. So he doesn’t want to make promises that he can’t keep. But of course this will backfire as soon as he has sex with the heroine and she asks him to change the prenup and delete the clause about his infidelities. His refuse would be offensive and annoying if he did it with the purpose of really cheating, while we know he is besotted with the heroine since he first saw her on his office and had an instant hard-on. It is more a declaration he makes to himself but we know he’s only digging his grave. Because the heroine is a sensible and smart woman and doesn’t accept his mistreatment and gives him the cold shoulder. So if the heroine is smart and understands very well her feelings, she doesn’t trust the hero, of course since the prenup is always there to remind her his intention to keep his bachelors ways after their marriage. And too many ow around are not the best way to win her trust. I found those many ow really distasteful and shabby, especially his ex mistress at their wedding, even if not invited, but anyway I don’t think a woman should cope with dozens of ex around her husband. The hero was not bad or mean, and he really didn’t cheat or was interested in any other woman after meeting her, but he was so idiot. Unfortunately the heroine here was much smarter than him and so the comparison is very unfavorable. The heroine was able to debate every single stupid thing he said and he didn’t come out well. I’m sorry I can’t find stupid men sexy. Whatever. The book is a safe and nice reading, fast and not too angsty.

A