Now and again I like a nice little romance to brighten my day. I thank TLC Book Tours for sending me Diamond in the Rough by Jen Turano at no charge for my honest review.
About Diamond in the Rough:
Hardcover: 352 Pages
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers (September 3, 2019)
To save her family from financial ruin, Miss Poppy Garrison accepts an unusual proposition to participate in the New York social season in exchange for her grandmother settling a family loan that has unexpectedly come due. Ill-equipped to handle the intricacies of mingling within the New York Four Hundred, Poppy becomes embroiled in one hilarious fiasco after another, doomed to suffer a grand societal failure instead of being deemed the diamond of the first water her grandmother longs for her to become.
Reginald Blackburn, second son of a duke, has been forced to travel to America to help his cousin, Charles Wynn, Earl of Lonsdale, find an American heiress to wed in order to shore up his family estate that is in desperate need of funds. Reginald himself has no interest in finding an heiress to marry, but when Poppy’s grandmother asks him to give etiquette lessons to Poppy, he swiftly discovers he may be in for much more than he bargained for.
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About the Author:
Jen Turano is a USA Today bestselling author and lives in a suburb of Denver, Colorado. Visit her website at www.jenturano.com.
Connect with Jen
My Opinion:
Poppy Garrison is basically blackmailed into a proper season in New York with her strong willed grandmother. Poppy’s mother ran away with a man that was not deemed appropriate and Poppy’s grandmother sees this as a way to get back what she lost. But Poppy is not exactly ready for society – nor is society ready for Poppy. And all of this is occurring as the Earl of Lonsdale is seeking an heiress to shore up the family estate back in England. All of the eligible young ladies want to win his favor, except for Poppy.
This was a quick, enjoyable read with a quirky heroine. Having been raised on a horse farm all she wants to do is go back to where she doesn’t have to wear constricting clothing and pretend to be what she is not. But her grandmother is determined that she become a “diamond of the first water” as is noted far more times than I could count. She is aided in this progression by the extremely charming and of course handsome, Reginald Blackburn who happens to be the cousin of the visiting Earl. He is also trying to be something he is not. How this all comes into play is something you will have to read the book to find out.
The romance progressed in a predictable but fun manner which made the ending satisfying if a little truncated.
A lovely read to distract from the everyday with fun characters and a quick moving plot.
Rating:
3.5
The Giveaway:
One lucky US reader will win a copy of Diamond in the Rough. Just enter as many ways as you would like on the Gleam Widget below. Good luck everyone!
