ARC Review: How to Train Your Earl by Amelia Grey

About the Book:

Title: How to Train Your Earl

Author: Amelia Grey

Series: First Comes Love – Book 3

Page Length: 352

Publication Date: April 27, 2021

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

Synopsis: A roguish earl must fight using his honor and not his sword to win his lady’s hand in How To Train Your Earl, the third book in the First Comes Love trilogy from bestseller Amelia Grey.

Brina Feld has settled into a life devoted to helping others since the sinking of the Salty Dove left her widowed. She has no need for a man in her contented life. But when the notorious and handsome Lord Blacknight returns and awakens her desires, her peace and serenity vanish. If she agrees to an alliance with him, she knows she will have to battle her heart to keep from being snared under his spell.

Zane, the Earl of Blacknight, was never supposed to inherit the earldom, so he didn’t much care to lead a respectable life before then. Fistfights, card games, and drinking are the order of the day. Now he’s determined to change his rakish ways and he knows the proper lady who can help him. There’s just one problem: He’s already bet he’ll win her hand before the Season is over. With her resolve to out-scheme him, how can he show her that his love is true?

LINKS:     Goodreads    |       Amazon     |     Book Depository

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My Review:

Opposites attract in this wonderful historical romance about two people who bet on love! Zane is adjusting to life as an Earl, a role he never expected or wanted, and knows that marriage to a suitable woman is the best way to show that his rakish days are over. Enchanted by Brina, a widow who is not interested in love, Zane places a bet that he will win Brina’s hand by the end of the season.

Brina is shocked, angry, and dismayed by Zane’s bet and makes a bet of her own that will ensure she remains single. With her bet in place, Zane must refrain from gambling, drinking, swearing, and philandering for Brina to agree to marriage. However, Brina didn’t account for Zane’s feelings and his determination to marry her. Thus begins a whirlwind courtship that blossoms into a beautiful love story.

Brina devotes her life to helping others and is a very compassionate person. However, she does not want love or marriage. She is afraid to open herself up to love again because she knows the pain of loss and can’t imagine going through that again. However, she finds it hard to resist Zane, especially once she gets to know the man behind the rake. Trina also struggles to trust Zane because of his rakish past. However, Zane does everything in his power to prove he is a reformed man, and he is very convincing!

I love that Zane has to work so hard to win Brina’s love. He is a man used to getting what he wants until he meets the untouchable Brina, who tries to refuse his advances. They seem like such an unlikely pair. Zane is a rake, while Brina is above reproach. Brina follows the rules of society, and Zane loves to break them. However, for many reasons, they work. Brina and Zane challenge each other and bring out the best in each other, and it is together when they seem most happy.

Though the focus of the story is the romance, the novel touches on issues like grief, guilt, and regret. It also focuses on more positive messages like the power of friendship, embracing love, and giving to others less fortunate. Though this is the third book in the series, it is easily read as a standalone. Thanks so much to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Amelia Grey for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

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Rating:

Favorite Part:

• The romance! Brina and Zane have a fabulous opposites-attract love story!!

Favorite Lines:

Society had made them acquaintances. Tragedy made them widows. Friendship made them strong.

I recall everything about you, Brina. I remember how you taste, how you feel in my arms. At night in my dreams, I hear your sighs. When I wake, your scent surrounds me like a garden of sweet-smelling flowers. I am never without thoughts of you and that make you always with me.

She was a temptress, a curious mix of defiance and vulnerability.

Recommendations:

This is a great story for readers who like historical romance!! It will also appeal to readers who like the opposites attract trope.