There were some blips but I totally loved it!

Sebastian Stanhope married the daughter of the Duke of Traherne to settle a gambling debt. He was completely shocked that the duke would offer his thirteen-year-old daughter as compensation for debts owed and after the wedding, he didn't lay eyes on Mirabella for six years. But now the time has come for Sebastian and Bella to start their lives together. They can either resist the match and allow resentment to fester in their relationship, or they can make the best of things and try to allow love to grow between them. 

 

This is the first time that I have read Diana Quincy and I enjoyed this lighthearted romance. In fact, it was a very quick read for me. I always love reading about arranged marriages getting their HEA and this one did not disappoint!

Mirabella and Sebastian were forced into marriage while she was 13 and he was 19 (is this even legal?). They did not know or meet each other beforehand and right after the ceremony was done, Sebastian was shipped back to school. Naturally, this was a marriage of convenience and for money.

Fast forward 6 years later when both of them meet by accident, each not knowing who the other was. Mirabella, “Bella” hasn’t met or laid eyes on her husband in those years and she has him pegged as a usurper to her fortune. Sebastian, on the other hand, has been literally acting the saint, claiming that it was his penance for what he did to Bella years ago.

I love ow the two finally found love. Although, I think that Sebastian’s “sainthood” is a little bit unbelievable. I see his perfect character as a flaw in the story and would have enjoyed it if he were a tad “bad.” Bella on the other hand, was quite a handful. And I guess this is why the author chose the hero to be this perfect because she is quite something: too independent for her own good but a little bit spoiled.

I gave it three hearts because of Sebastian being to perfect. Other than that, it is a fun ad refreshing lighthearted romance and I will be reading the first book of this series.

I received this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.When Bella was 13 she got married to Sebastian. They met up again six years later to make their marriage a reality.I liked the characters, well most of them and I thought the story was fun. At one point I did want to smack Bella upside the head because I thought her distrust of Sebastian had become annoying. I did enjoy the book though.

Review Copy Provided by PublisherI’ll admit, i’m a sucker for the arranged marriage trope…and even better, the forced marriage in order to settle a debt – so I got the double joy in Tempting Bella. Its interesting that I was reading this book and reading a thread on the Amazon forums about age differences in between characters in romance novels. And while there isn’t a significant age difference (7 years), it did make me think. Especially since at the beginning Bella was only 13 (yes, you read me right)…but thankfully the author did a nice job forward in time to when Bella was a bit older and more mature (although at times, I do say that tongue in cheek).I liked the idea of finding love with a couple that had actually been married for several years, although they had never officially been together. And how an individuals perceptions of one influences their behavior and beliefs (yes, that is the psychology geek in me speaking). While this is #2 in a series, it could easily be read as a stand-alone, but I am interested enough in going back and reading the first book, as well as later ones in the series. Overall, I gave Tempting Bella 3.5 stars and would recommend it to people who like historical romances with arranged marriages.