Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: A Husband for Hartwell 
SERIES: The Lords of Bucknall
AUTHORS: J.A. Rock and Lisa Henry
LENGTH: 238 pages
RELEASE DATE: May 11, 2021
BLURB:
He must marry, or risk his fortune.
The whole of London Society has long assumed Lord William Hartwell will marry his childhood best friend, Lady Rebecca Warrington. After two Seasons, Hartwell remains quite content with bachelorhood–his parents do not. When Hartwell learns they intend to cut his purse strings unless he makes a match this Season, he resigns himself to a marriage of convenience with Becca, and yet he can’t help but be drawn to her younger brother, Warry.
He must marry, or risk his sister’s ruin.
The Viscount “Warry” Warrington is used to being viewed as the tagalong little brother. Now a grown man about to enter his second Season, Warry is desperate to be seen. When Lord Balfour, a handsome older peer, takes Warry under his wing, Warry thinks his dream is finally coming true. Until Balfour reveals his true intent–to make public a letter that will destroy Becca’s reputation, unless Warry agrees to marry him.
Time is running out for both of them.
When an injury forces Warry to recover at Hartwell House, the two succumb to a secret flirtation. But Warry’s sudden announcement of his engagement to Balfour drives Hartwell near mad with jealousy–and right into Becca’s arms. With the clock ticking for Warry to save his sister, will Hartwell discover the truth of Warry’s feelings before it’s too late?
A Husband for Hartwell is the first book in the Lords of Bucknall Club series, where the Regency meets m/m romance.
REVIEW:
Lord William Hartwell must marry. His family is not happy that he’s already been through two seasons and has shown no interest in making a match. As the eldest son, he needs to marry and produce an heir according to his father. He has no interest in marriage, but truth be told, if he were to marry, he’d prefer a husband. But that would not produce and heir, so he and his best friend, Lady Rebecca Warrington, have agreed that to get their parents off their backs, they will marry. They will each then continue on with their own lives.
Viscount Joseph “Warry” Warrington is also an eldest son – but is the younger brother of Lady Rebecca. Hartwell and Becca have been besties forever and Warry was always the tag along little brother that they teased mercilessly. Now that Warry is a man and going into his second season, he realizes that he must also make a match and as an eldest son, he also should marry a woman and produce and heir. He has some younger siblings, but it’s his duty. Unfortunately he has no confidence and also no interest in women. When Lord Balfour, another older peer, begins to pay him attention, he is flattered and thinks that finally someone sees him. And he revels in the attention, particularly since he’s furious with Hartwell and Becca for continuing to treat him as a child.
After a run in with some ruffians after some very bad decisions, Warry ends up at Hartwell’s recovering from a bashing. He is running out of options that will save his family from ruin, but he’s not sure that he will be able to do it. Then there is this simmering flirtation with Hartwell. But when he’s out with Hartwell, he runs into Balfour and discovers that he has indeed been played and now he really has no idea how he will be able to save his sister and his family’s reputation without giving up any possibility of happiness.
As time is running out and Balfour becomes more demanding, Warry is left little to bargain with. When he does hatch a plan, it’s not a good one for him in particular. Hartwell and Becca and others are not unaware that something is wrong, but can they help Warry or will they be too late?
Overall I really enjoyed this story. These two authors have co-authored one of my favorite series in the past and I’ve enjoyed their individually authored books as well, so I felt confident I’d get a good story here. This is a sort of alternative Regency where marriages between same sex couples is allowed, but not for the heirs apparently 😉 How refreshing 😀 Warry is such a gentle character and he has succumbed to his insecurities and unfortunately he latches on to the wrong person for approval and confidence building. It turns out that person is not trustworthy and has nefarious motives driving his attentions to Warry. Balfour’s manipulations and in fact behind the scenes machinations are a shock to all – Warry, Hartwell and the reader! What a bad bad man! Hartwell is just a bit oblivious 😛 He’s also a bit in denial and he consistently underestimates everyone – himself, Warry, Becca, his father, etc. Hartwell and Warry are both trying to protect themselves and Becca which ends up leading to misguided self-sacrifices that will make no one happy (and I think are kind of de rigueur of this period). But Becca is not one to be trifled with and in the end, it seems that no one really wants to miserable in a marriage of convenience or coercion. Definitely recommended for Regency fans with some poetic license! I cannot wait for the next book in this series, because Christmas Gale is probably my favorite supporting character in this one, so his story should be a doozy!
RATING: 
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