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The Lord's Unlikely Betrothal: A Regency Romance
He has a plan. She has a plan.
Neither plan involves the other.
Adventurous and carefree, Lord Christopher wants a life full of fun. Getting married, having that level of responsibility, is not for him. When he finds himself accidentally betrothed, through no fault of his own, he must get out of it as quickly and as scandal-free as possible. His betrothed may be beautiful and clever, but he is the last man in Regency England that she would want to marry.
After living with her rambunctious family, Sophia Jacobs has always wanted a gentle, level-headed man for a husband. Her unfortunate engagement to Lord Christopher looks set to upend all her carefully made plans. He may be handsome and funny, but he doesn’t have a sensible bone in his body.
The only way out of this disaster is to work together.
Things are about to get complicated...
Neither plan involves the other.
Adventurous and carefree, Lord Christopher wants a life full of fun. Getting married, having that level of responsibility, is not for him. When he finds himself accidentally betrothed, through no fault of his own, he must get out of it as quickly and as scandal-free as possible. His betrothed may be beautiful and clever, but he is the last man in Regency England that she would want to marry.
After living with her rambunctious family, Sophia Jacobs has always wanted a gentle, level-headed man for a husband. Her unfortunate engagement to Lord Christopher looks set to upend all her carefully made plans. He may be handsome and funny, but he doesn’t have a sensible bone in his body.
The only way out of this disaster is to work together.
Things are about to get complicated...
293 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 12, 2026
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5 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I have been looking forward to this book and I knew Ella Matthews wouldn’t disappoint! This is another wonderful book and I wholeheartedly loved it!
I have fallen in love with the Dashworth brothers from the start. This is book three in the series and although it can be read as a standalone, I highly recommend reading the other two books in this series as well. They’re all magnificent!
This one is about Christopher, the fun, seemingly carefree youngest of the Dashworth brothers. He is such a gem, such a loving and caring man! Sophia is great, too. She’s pretty, smart, and engaging but she thinks she’s the dull sister of the lot, but luckily Christopher quickly sees her fine qualities. Sophia also quickly saw that This was a man who hid his goodness and his genuine heart behind a mask of foolish antics.
Sophia and Christopher have great banter, good chemistry and the storyline is just perfect. Very realistic, wonderful flow and great character development. No frustrating, unrealistic scenes but honest emotions and good talks. True romance and so, so funny. I loved the always sensible Sophia ending up on the flour of the library, a bit foxed and unable to utter sentences. Christopher eating his first ice! The teasing between the brothers also never failed to put a smile on my face. Pall-mall. And Christopher’s nickname was just hilarious.
So the book is a lot of fun but again a perfect blend between the more serious emotions. Both Christopher and Sophia’s self-image have been formed by their experiences in life and that’s beautifully highlighted but without getting too heavy.
I liked that their relationship developed gradually and naturally; Ella Matthews’s writing style is amazingly good! I am so happy with that and enjoyed everything in the book. There is one intimate scene in the book and I think the story was fine without it but it does fit in that part of the book.
Two of my favorite quotes in the book:‘Do not shape your life believing it has to be a certain way, just because of past events. Open yourself to other possibilities.’ Very wise, Tobias!
And: Society was full of judgemental people who made snap observations about people and stuck to them.
I am so happy to know book four, about the enigmatic Duke, Tobias, will be released in July of this year. It will be titled “The Duke’s Unlikely Temptation” and I can’t wait to read it! And I am sooo curious to find out what happened to Sebastian. (I secretly am hoping he somehow didn’t die…!)
So, people, if you haven’t read all three books in the Dashworth series, you have four months to catch up! Do yourself a huge favor and get all three books. (Curious? I reviewed all of them.) They’re perfect to enjoy wonderful characters with romantic love stories, lots of fun and a warm and loving characters.
Thank you NetGalley and Ella Matthews for providing an advanced copy of this book. I voluntarily read and reviewed it; all thoughts and opinions are my own.
I have fallen in love with the Dashworth brothers from the start. This is book three in the series and although it can be read as a standalone, I highly recommend reading the other two books in this series as well. They’re all magnificent!
This one is about Christopher, the fun, seemingly carefree youngest of the Dashworth brothers. He is such a gem, such a loving and caring man! Sophia is great, too. She’s pretty, smart, and engaging but she thinks she’s the dull sister of the lot, but luckily Christopher quickly sees her fine qualities. Sophia also quickly saw that This was a man who hid his goodness and his genuine heart behind a mask of foolish antics.
Sophia and Christopher have great banter, good chemistry and the storyline is just perfect. Very realistic, wonderful flow and great character development. No frustrating, unrealistic scenes but honest emotions and good talks. True romance and so, so funny. I loved the always sensible Sophia ending up on the flour of the library, a bit foxed and unable to utter sentences. Christopher eating his first ice! The teasing between the brothers also never failed to put a smile on my face. Pall-mall. And Christopher’s nickname was just hilarious.
So the book is a lot of fun but again a perfect blend between the more serious emotions. Both Christopher and Sophia’s self-image have been formed by their experiences in life and that’s beautifully highlighted but without getting too heavy.
I liked that their relationship developed gradually and naturally; Ella Matthews’s writing style is amazingly good! I am so happy with that and enjoyed everything in the book. There is one intimate scene in the book and I think the story was fine without it but it does fit in that part of the book.
Two of my favorite quotes in the book:‘Do not shape your life believing it has to be a certain way, just because of past events. Open yourself to other possibilities.’ Very wise, Tobias!
And: Society was full of judgemental people who made snap observations about people and stuck to them.
I am so happy to know book four, about the enigmatic Duke, Tobias, will be released in July of this year. It will be titled “The Duke’s Unlikely Temptation” and I can’t wait to read it! And I am sooo curious to find out what happened to Sebastian. (I secretly am hoping he somehow didn’t die…!)
So, people, if you haven’t read all three books in the Dashworth series, you have four months to catch up! Do yourself a huge favor and get all three books. (Curious? I reviewed all of them.) They’re perfect to enjoy wonderful characters with romantic love stories, lots of fun and a warm and loving characters.
Thank you NetGalley and Ella Matthews for providing an advanced copy of this book. I voluntarily read and reviewed it; all thoughts and opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I received an ARC of The Lord's Unlikely Betrothal by Ella Matthews thanks to the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This is the third standalone book in the series and it was fantastic. There is a plotline that connects all the books but you do not need to have read the other two books to understand what is going on (subplot), however, that aspect does not get resolved in this book but will in book 4. It definitely intrigued me but if I didn't enjoy the writing and the characters that plotline would not be enough to get me to buy the 4th book. That being said, I'm definitely going to read it. This one gives off Bridgerton vibes in all the best ways. I loved the banter between the characters and how natural the relationship development was written.
This is the third standalone book in the series and it was fantastic. There is a plotline that connects all the books but you do not need to have read the other two books to understand what is going on (subplot), however, that aspect does not get resolved in this book but will in book 4. It definitely intrigued me but if I didn't enjoy the writing and the characters that plotline would not be enough to get me to buy the 4th book. That being said, I'm definitely going to read it. This one gives off Bridgerton vibes in all the best ways. I loved the banter between the characters and how natural the relationship development was written.
February 15, 2026
Lord Chaos meets Miss Control
Lord Christopher has a reputation for being a bit of a prankster, but even he cannot overhear a society miss hatch a plot with her mother to trap his brother. Unfortunately the person caught is Christopher himself, and the one sensible sister of the family. The eldest girl. What follows is a lovely helping of forced betrothal, fake engagement, reluctant falling in love but with the inevitably besotted characters of both hero and heroine shining through. I love that the reader knows they are in love before even they do. 5 stars! Cannot wait for the next book in this series!!
Lord Christopher has a reputation for being a bit of a prankster, but even he cannot overhear a society miss hatch a plot with her mother to trap his brother. Unfortunately the person caught is Christopher himself, and the one sensible sister of the family. The eldest girl. What follows is a lovely helping of forced betrothal, fake engagement, reluctant falling in love but with the inevitably besotted characters of both hero and heroine shining through. I love that the reader knows they are in love before even they do. 5 stars! Cannot wait for the next book in this series!!
February 16, 2026
Christopher is the Dashworth brother who always seeks fun but remains loyal to his family. When it looks like someone is out to entrap his brother, the Duke, he tries to intervene. Unfortunately, things don't go to plan, and he finds himself betrothed. Sophia plans to marry a local man when he asks. Unwittingly caught up in a scandal, Sophia finds herself betrothed to Christopher. The story revolves around their deepening relationship, as they negotiate their fake betrothal. I like the banter, the dynamics within the two families and the sweetly passionate attraction that ensues.
I received a copy of this book from the author.
I received a copy of this book from the author.
February 22, 2026
Absolutely loved the book after finishing it over two days straight. The characters are so well developed and it's more showing than telling when it comes to more sensitive topics like grief which the MMC holds. The steam was perfect for regency novel and by the time the characters are together you're as eager as them to see them into their HEA.
I read this as a standalone and the author does a good job of connecting the threads from the previous books so it's not necessary to have read the prequels. Having said that, that is precisely what I am going to do, go back and read the series.
Recommend to anyone looking for a great fake relationship read, you will enjoy this one!
ARC via Netgalley. The review is voluntary and the opinions are my own.
I read this as a standalone and the author does a good job of connecting the threads from the previous books so it's not necessary to have read the prequels. Having said that, that is precisely what I am going to do, go back and read the series.
Recommend to anyone looking for a great fake relationship read, you will enjoy this one!
ARC via Netgalley. The review is voluntary and the opinions are my own.
February 12, 2026
Caught together in a wrong place at the wrong time, strangers Sophia and Christopher become engaged. Christopher has no intention to marry and is known as a bit of a dare devil. Sophia is the only sensible person in her family. They decide to go along with the engagement until they can figure out how to break it off. After spending time together, they begin to question if they should break the engagement off. I received an ARC from NetGalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co -op for my honest review.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews