A Marquess To Remember

by Jenni Fletcher

A wedding she can’t remember

A marriage to last a lifetime?

Florence awakens to find that not only has she lost her memory but that she’s married to the scowling and severe Marquess of Rainton—her best friend’s intended! Horrified, Florence can’t accept that she’d steal a suitor, though the evidence—and his quiet magnetism—is undeniable…

After she tricked him into a compromising situation, Leo Claridge was forced to marry Florence to avoid a scandal. Now she insists that there must be an explanation, and he’s tempted to give in to her surprising fire. But can he really believe a word his fortune-hunting wife says?

Perfect for fans

🔥 Enemies to lovers

⛅ Grumpy/sunshine

Genres: Romance, Historical Romance, Category Romance, Regency

264 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 18, 2025

About the author

Jenni Fletcher writes heartwarming Historical Romance and fun Formula 1 romances. She has won 2 Romantic Novelists' Association Awards and teaches creative writing at Bishop Grosseteste University. Originally from Scotland, she now lives in the north of England with her family and one extremely hairy dog.

Reviews

[Pam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Authors get one bite at the amnesia apple. It’s not a trope you can go back to again and again. If you’re going to write amnesia, you get one try, so you’d best go all out. Jenni Fletcher definitely did with A Marquess to Remember, writing one of the best amnesia books I’ve read in years.

Florence is thinking about everything she needs to get done before her best friend’s ball that night when she wakes up in a strange room, with a bump on her head, and no memory of how she got there. It turns out the ball she thought was that night was a month earlier, she’s in a different part of England, and the strange man at her door is her husband, Leo, the Marquess of Rainton. Florence is incredibly confused because the last thing she remembers is that the Marquess was about to propose to her best friend, Amabel. Florence was Amabel’s companion— she’s a farmer’s daughter, not marchioness material. But now she’s in possession of a husband who believes her to be a fortune hunter who trapped him into marriage at the very ball she can’t remember, and she has no way to refute him since all the evidence points to her guilt.

This book was so excellently constructed. Amnesia books can be tricky because the author needs to know where to begin the book and which POV is most appropriate. Do you write a prologue before the amnesia? Do you start the book in the point of view of the person with the memory loss, or do you go with the other character? These are all craft decisions that will determine the tone and pacing of the novel going forward. In this case, Jenni drops us into the action in Florence’s POV with no prologue. The reader is right alongside her as she realizes what’s happened and that not only is she married, but her husband actively hates her. We don’t switch into Leo’s point of view until that has been firmly established, and then we see, from his perspective, what led to their marriage.

The reason I loved this book so much is that not only do we get an incredible amnesia plot, but we’re also dealing with class differences and how those differences impact the dynamics in a relationship. At the beginning of the book, Leo firmly believes that Florence is lying to him— that she meant to trap him into marriage as a way to elevate her social status from that of a farmer’s daughter and companion into an aristocratic woman. He can’t possibly see that there may have been another motive for her asking to speak with him at the ball. He is so caught up in his own world of the ton that he believes someone of her class would do anything to become part of his. Meanwhile, Florence knows that she would never do something like that; that’s not part of her character, even if all evidence points to it being the truth. Leo has all the power in their relationship, both legally and socially, so Florence ends up believing that what he says must be true and that she needs to make amends for her supposed behavior. I was really drawn in by the power dynamics and how Jenni used Florence’s memory loss to explore them more fully.

I don’t want to give away the act three low moment, but I think Jenni Fletcher did a phenomenal job of letting Florence take up space in that stretch of the book. We start in Leo’s POV, so we don’t know how Florence feels as she learns the truth, but we move into her head after she’s had a chance to hear everything. I think it was a great technical choice to leave us with Leo for the revelations and then shift to Florence while she processes.

This book was so good. I say it all the time, but if you’re not reading Harlequin Historical novels, you are missing some of the best and most interesting work being done in romance today. Five stars.

[Selma · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5 stars.
I bought this after one single video on TikTok stated that this book contained the best use of the amnesia trope ever in a historical romance novel. On that, I have to agree – I think the entire set up and consequences of the memory loss worked great! Unfortunately, the story was a bit too light hearted for me so while this was a solid read, it’s not one that will stay with me.

[Jeannine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why is the world is Harlequin getting rid of their historical category when gems like this come out of it? So much is packed into this tiny package - amnesia, the hero suffering under the oppressive shadow of his father, class differences, and more. What a gem of a story!

[kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

⋆.𐙚 ̊ 4 stars.
found this gem through booktok! <3 i'm not actually a fan of the amnesia trope but the way miss jenni wrote it made me change my mind.

‘Florence…’
‘You know, I think I loved you too.’ She lifted a hand to his face, smoothing the backs of her fingers across his cheekbone before pulling them away again. ‘When I thought I knew who you were, but now… I can’t tell any more. Maybe I love and hate you at the same time. All I know is that now I’ve remembered, I can’t make myself forget, and I’m not certain if I can forgive.’ She pulled away from him.

[Frankie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jenni Fletcher is back in the Regency realm, and she’s come back with one hell of a bang!

My goodness, I’m on the cusp of a major book hangover after reading this. I finished it in a week over Christmas, and my thoughts are still full of Florence and Leo. I am in absolute love with this book, and in my humble opinion, this is easily one of Jenni Fletcher’s best – which says a lot from me, as I have spent years, yes years, being completely hooked on The Viscounts Veiled Lady. That book spoke to me on another level, and it’s no secret how much I loved it, but this one has really pushed itself forward.

I haven’t read many stories with amnesia as a central plot line, infact I can’t think of any at this minute, but I will admit that I did wonder how Florence’s memory loss would be portrayed in corporation with the romance, and I am immensly impressed by the whole story and how the subject is dealth with in such a compassionate and sensitve way. Florence’s memory loss isn’t overdone; it felt realistic, and the story surrounding it developed in a very natural way.

You really feel for Florence, her fear and confusion is palpable as is her frustration at not knowing what happened to her, she is steadfast and determined to stick to what her heart is telling her that she didn’t trap Leo, she knows deep down that she isn’t the manipulative gold-digger that people proclaim her to be, even Leo himself and yet all evidence appears to point in her direction of doing just that trapping him into a marriage he didn’t want, my heart broke for her, though did I believe it? No, I didn’t, and I did have an idea of where the story was going, the overall turn of events and big reveal surprised me.

The writing is fabulously engaging the slow buirning romance between Florence and Leo is perfect for them, I loved how they slowly fell in love with each other, how the layers of their personalities were slowly peeled away and the outer masks were removed until you had the bare bones of who they were and it’s their true, unguarded self that I loved the most.

Florence is very genuine, and true to her word, she isn’t a manipulator, she sisn’t a bitch shes a sweet, sensitve and compassionate young woman, she has a huge love for her family and is steadpast in her loyalty towards her friends, even though they don’t deserve it and when she is treated terrible by everyone, even her own husband she still tries to see the best in them and the situation.

Leo on the other hand…hmm, well it took me while to fully warm to him, he is so distant, cold and unsympathetic, yes he was hood-winked into a marriage he neither chose nor wanted, and he has a lot to deal with, and thats not just an unwanted wife who doesn’t know who is is, he also has commanding servants, who think they own the estate and his father giving him orders from the grave to deal with, but does he have to be so horrible towards Florence?

I did want to slap him wth his own ledgers at times, but he did defrost and rather surprisingly beneath that icy, aloof, very aristocratic exterior lies a generous, charismatic and very, very sensual man. Jeeze, does this guy know how to seduce and make a woman swoon or what?

This is an incredibly sweet and sensitive slow-burning romance, and undoubtedly Florence’s story, it’s her trauma and lost memory that needs to be revealed and then slowly healed. And as much as I do really like Leo, he is pretty much window dressing, but what glorious window dressing he is; he adds the tension and the healing.

Overall, A Marquess to Remember is a tender and sensual romance; the highly original plot suits the slow-burning, steady pacing. I did think the ending felt rushed; it’s lovely and satisfying, but it all finishes rather quickly, which didn’t quite fit with the slow and steady romance.

I love the characters, Florence really is a wonderful and memorable young woman who you can’t help feel a little protective over, she is wrongly misjudged and unfairly treated, and I liked how she brushed off her tears and heartache and proved what a determined, intelligent and resourceful woman she is. Leo’s sister, Cassie, is another favourite of mine; she’s an exuberant whirlwind of honest opinions and fun. I thought she was great, and if she wasn’t married to put in his place George, I’d be petitioning for a story of her own.

Finally, I have to mention the cover. Just look at it, go on, take a moment to fully appreciate just how gorgeous it is. Personally, I think it’s perfect for Florence and Leo’s story. You can also feel the tingling tension and chemistry between the couple, plus it’s very, very pretty. I am very drawn to pretty covers, and his one is just gorgeous – it’s beautiful inside and out!

[Frustration-Free Romance (Happy Endings Only) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really good writing, and I was excited to read an amnesia plot with an extra layer behind it, it was really fun! Most of the book was a 4, but the climax was really, really tough for me because it felt so forced that I almost liked each of the characters a little less because of it. Especially because it happened after they’d both had a thorough and vulnerable heart to heart that should have preemptively explained/smoothed away any of the forced conflict afterwards. She knew his background of a painful upbringing, understood why he felt like a victim in the entrapment, and saw him reject his father’s approach (parting with the staff he relied on, approving and overseeing changes to the rules etc to the townsfolk and staff to ensure everyone was happier and more well taken care of) in a way that was *infinitely* more telling than his final act of proof that he was different from his father. It’s a good book that’s worth reading, I just feel like it deserved a better ending. But I admire this author and will be checking out other stories~

(Unrelated to review: Oh how I wish it was easier and more accessible to get Regency story book covers with period-accurate clothes and hairstyles 😂 I blame no authors for it, just wishful thinking hehe.)

[Tobbyisthebestdog · Rating 3 out of 5]

Saw a TikTok video recommending this book and I thought I’d take a swing at it. My experience with the story overall—it felt predictable early on. I even figured out what had actually happened at the beginning of the novel pretty quickly, but I stuck around hoping the execution would make the journey worthwhile.

Unfortunately, one of the biggest issues for me is that the book feels too short for the kind of emotional story it’s trying to tell. Many moments that should have carried real weight are rushed through. I kept wishing the author had expanded certain sections so the characters and their emotions could breathe a little more.

A big part of that comes down to the classic “telling instead of showing” problem. We’re told Florence is a farm girl, but we’re rarely shown that background shaping her behavior. We’re told Leo has emotional issues and behaves the way he does because of how he was raised, but again, we’re not really shown that in a meaningful way. It often feels like the story summarizes character traits rather than letting us experience them through the narrative.

The pacing also weakens the romance. Leo is supposed to deeply resent Florence at first. From his perspective, he’s been tricked into marrying someone beneath his title—an ambitious girl who has made him the laughingstock of the ton. Yet despite this, he’s already noticing her body and thinking about her lustfully almost immediately. It feels like the story skips over the resentment phase entirely. A slower progression—from genuine hostility to reluctant understanding and eventual affection—would have made their relationship feel far more believable.

I also think the story could have benefited from showing Florence’s isolation more clearly. If we’d seen her spend time searching for answers, being avoided by people she once trusted, and feeling completely alone in a new environment, it would have made her emotional struggles much more impactful. Similarly, I would have liked to see more of how society actually treated her. Even with a new title, someone of her background and situation would likely face serious exclusion, and seeing that backlash could have reinforced her guilt and the belief that she had ruined everything.

The climax with Florence regaining her memories also felt a bit off to me. I wasn’t entirely convinced by her reaction to Leo afterward. He treated her poorly because he genuinely believed she had tricked him into a lifelong marriage—a pretty serious accusation from his perspective. He only learned the truth at the same time she did. While he certainly could have apologized more for how he treated her, the intensity of her anger and her decision to leave their shared home didn’t fully land for me. It felt like the conflict was pushed a bit too far considering the circumstances.

Overall, the story has the bones of something compelling, but it reads like a condensed version of a book that needed more space to develop its characters, relationships, and emotional stakes. With a longer length and more attention to showing rather than summarizing key moments, it could have been far more impactful.

[Laura Black Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Marquess to Remember is a tightly written category romance with likeable characters and a satisfying HEA, but while I mostly enjoyed it, I have a big caveat because the book contains an amnesia plot, which is something I struggle with.

Florence wakes up in a strange bed in a strange house, and she doesn’t know where she is or how she got there. Last she knew she was in London with her close friend Amabel, now she is at Rainton Court in Dorset, being called ‘my lady’ and she is told that ‘today’ is a month later than the last day she remembers. She had an accident, fell off a horse, hit her head and has no memory about anything that happened afterwards. Then in walks Leo, the Marquess of Rainton who is cold, haughty, disdainful and apparently her husband.

What Florence does remember is that she is the only daughter of solid country folk. She has hardly any dowry and a happy and comfortable country life with no expectations of an advantageous marriage. Florence remembers visiting London with her best friend, Amabel, who is husband-hunting, and that she had tagged along for the spectacle. Amabel quickly caught the attention of the tall, dark and glowering Marquess of Rainton, but on the cusp of his proposing to Amabel, he and Florence are caught alone and Florence is well and truly compromised. Rainton agreed to marry Florence, but is so enraged at being trapped he is unable to even speak to her other than to blame her. Leo feels wronged but even so, his behaviour toward Florence is shameful.

From there the story unfolds in the ‘present’ as Florence tries to piece together what she was doing the night she was compromised – what was she doing riding a horse in a storm? – and what is next for Florence and Leo? There is also some domestic drama at Rainton which needs addressing, a trip to London and more drama where Florence and Leo take on the ton, and Leo is constantly surprised at how much he likes and admires his wife. Once back in Cornwall things come to a head when Amabel reappears.

What I liked: Florence is no pushover. She is feisty, intelligent, brave and stands up for herself in a way that is believable, even for Regency times. With dual point of view, we can see Leo’s change from resentment to admiration to love for Florence. Secondary characters have some nuance, and do their jobs around the push and pull of attraction between Florence and Leo.

What I didn’t like: A Marquess to Remember contains enough conflict and miscommunication between Florence and Leo and doesn’t need the amnesia plotline to keep the story interesting. So while I liked the characters and the setting, I can’t grade it higher than 4 stars. But if you like Jenni Fletcher’s writing and don’t dislike anmesia plotlines as much as I do, maybe you’ll enjoy this one more than I did.

Thank you Jenni Fletcher for the ARC. Opinions are my own.

Review also posted on All About Romance.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this well enough, but overall it was just fine.

"Enemies to lovers" my ass, though. People will call anything where the characters slightly dislike each other for two seconds "enemies." Not to mention, almost all of Leo's dislike for Florence happens off-page, in the past, which she doesn't remember. Pretty immediately, the reader is informed that Leo was always attracted to Florence, but never learned anything more about her because he wanted to marry her friend for money. Then, once Florence apologizes for "trapping" Leo into marriage at the beginning of the book, all his hostility is gone, and he starts treating her kindly.

We really needed to see more of Leo's coldness and hatred for Florence/their situation. This whole book, while I still enjoyed it, felt like a speedrun of a complex story. Especially considering how, once Florence regains her memories and remembers how horribly Leo treated her, she basically runs away again because she can't forgive him. Except, ya know, she does.

I'm not mad about how this was written, though I can picture all the ways it could have been better.

[Georgiana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was a short, fun read. I felt the reactions were realistic and relatable, and I liked that it didn’t fall into the trope of “moody becoming sunshine” - Leo is shown to be not-moody, but obviously frustrated with the circumstances. I thought the “let’s make the best of it” approach was a great choice as it felt the right choice for the characters and sped the story up.

I also greatly appreciated the lack of miscommunication or handwringing between Leo and Florence - they told each other how they were feeling, and that was that.

My only critique is that I was surprised by the lack of spice, given the Mill’s & Book reputation!

[janela · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

synopsis: florence wakes up married to a marquess, lord leo, who was planning to propose to her close friend at the ball. she doesn't remember anything from the past month and how she came to wed the person who was supposed to be bethrothed to her best friend.

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this is great! one of the best slow burn historical romances i've read. the mystery is also compelling and the side stories are interesting as well.

the only problem that i have is the third-act conflict, which is why i didn't rate it 5 stars, but this was a short and heartwarming read.

[Luc · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have some points to make about some stuff, but as Florence I would be hella mad too about some stuff after the reveal.

I’m glad is clarified that Leo was attracted to her earlier on so we as readers knows this, cuz after some complicated judgement we concede about how this character that was claiming innocence accepts her “errors” and they start to built something

They were taking so well and then PUM I’m glad for his sister cuz this dumb man was thinking too much, and he needed to act act.

[Samantha Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

This might be my first amnesia romance and I think it did the trope really successfully. It allowed for Leo and Florence to explore who they are seen as and who they truly are. There is a lot of typical tropes at play such as the haunting ghost of an aristocratic father and his expectations that plague our tortured male lead, and they are done ok. The main conceit does the heavy lifting of the story and I’m satisfied with the result. This poor girl earned her happy ending omg.

[mélodie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ne pas juger un livre à sa couverture n'a jamais été plus vrai.
Une très bonne romance historique. Je crois que c'était la première fois que je lisait une romance avec une héroïne amnésique et j'ai trouvé que c'était bien fait et bien ammené.
Le développement de la relation entre Leo et Florence est progressif mais pas trop long.

Une très bonne surprise !

[Ayshwarya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don’t usually like the amnesia trope but this book got me. If you don’t know historical romance is one of my favorite genres but one thing I hate about it is that it has a lot of restrictions in the way the fmc can retaliate/ be a human being. I love that this fmc was very strong and grounded in her beliefs. 4.5⭐️

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic! Wonderful characters with an entertaining plot. Florence wakes up to discover she has no memory of how she came to be married to the Marquess of Rainton. Leo thinks she tricked him so their marriage is already off to a rocky start.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this one! There was plenty of opportunities for Misunderstandings throughout, but, aside from the issue at the beginning, they did a good job of hearing each other out, so I liked that.

[Amanda Giles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jenni Fletcher never disappoints. I enjoyed this book so much and read it in one sitting. Original plot, delightful characters. I felt rather bereft when I reached the end. Lovely!

[Monica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great use of the amnesia trope. Wish it was longer.

[Dim Slim · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a little out of left field for me but less than 300 pages? Easy read.
I have a love hate relationship with the amnesia trope because I find it personally frustrating but I also love the angst. The great thing about this book is that it never got too melodramatic so the lost memory never because too annoying. Everyone acted like actual people and had normal reactions to the information they had. I love when people are reasonable.

[AJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was amnesia done well.

[Belle · Rating 4 out of 5]

No excuse for this one… an absolute banger nonetheless.

[nina · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 amabel can go rot

[Wiss · Rating 3 out of 5]

Had to finish this one real quick 🫣

2.5⭐️ It’s pretty bland,,missing a little toxicity for my taste.

[A☀️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Realmente es en 3.5

Lo leí porque me salió en TikTok, la muchacha hablaba que hacía un buen uso del trope de la amnesia y la verdad que sí

[Fy]

Well, before reading, I already know the reason how. It’s a very easy read.

[Blair Freeman · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Daenerys Targaryen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A misunderstood heroine with amnesia and a grumpy marquess with snoopy nobles, a backstabbing friend and a village party to top it all.

[naz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Never knew historical romance was a bit of me …