Barely a Bride

Griffin and Alyssa are a wonderful couple whom you immediately fall in love with. I've read the entire series by Rebecca Hagan Lee and they are all excellent simple regency romances. There are no convoluted plots, the sensualness is not overblown, and the two characters are simply two charming people that come together to save each other.

Setting - England 1810 --- The opening in this first installment of the 'Free Fellows League' introduces us to three young titled adolescent boys who while away at school formed a secret brotherhood to become England's hero against the impending war with France. Furthermore, they would swear off the leg-shackling institution of marriage at least until the age of 30 or, unless it became absolutely necessary and never, ever, under any condition, fall in love. Years later, Viscount 'Griffin' Abernathy, follows his dream and buys a commission in the cavalry to go and fight the French. His father found out just in time before he left and more or less blackmailed him to find, marry, and beget an heir before leaving for the continent. Luckily, while attending Almacks, he did notice a young woman whom he thought just might suit him and gained an introduction. Unfortunately, she was one of the season's incomparables and her ambitious mother felt that no less than a duke would do for her youngest daughter. Lady Alyssa Carrollton, had formulated her own plans for her life and becoming a duchess just wasn't one of them. Finding herself eavesdropping on a private conversation between three young men discussing something called the 'free fellows league' she was curious to discover just who they were. Later as she realized that the handsomest of the lot was one of the gentlemen she had eavesdropped upon, she was more than interested in finding out who he was. Later introduced, and allowed a waltz then a private conversation she realized that Griffin would be more than an acceptable husband, especially when he offered her the one thing she 'thought' she wanted most - her very own garden to design. I say 'thought' because once she had been kissed by the very handsome young viscount, her thoughts on marriage to the young man became decidedly different. Now the biggest obstacle would be in gaining her fathers approval. I have to say that I loved everything about this book and smiled almost, from the first to the last page! Alyssa was the sweetest and most darling of heroines, Griffin who approached the whole marriage concept as a means to an end turned into a surprisingly wonderful hero! He was so sweet and caring, that you really wanted to hug and squeeze them both for being so perfectly matched up together! I laughed out loud over Griffins interview with Alyssa's father as he bargained for her hand in marriage - her father - what a hoot he was! With splendid secondary characters, wonderfully witty dialogs, hot and sensual seduction scenes, and with the heart wrenching emotions that had me sobbing - this was for me a most perfect read! Bottom line - This is a non-stop can't put it down kind of read that kept me reading way into the wee small hours! --- Marilyn Rondeau, Official Reviewer for www.historicromacewriters.com ----

All of the people in this book are fully explored, I enjoyed reading about their fobiles as well as their strengths. The Love story is told so beautifully, it was a bittersweet experience.Each scene flowed into the next and explained the feelings of all the main characters.

This was my first book by Rebecca Hagan Lee, but it won't be my last. Barely a Bride is a delightful read, almost impossible to put down.Griff is a wonderful romantic lead--so sweet & charming & thoughtful. Alyssa is a strong, capable woman who knows her own mind. Their journals & letters add insight to their thoughts and their developing relationship. Their brief honeymoon is incredibly romantic. Griff's time at war is heartbreaking, as is his return home (and his emotional scars). My only real gripe about the book is that Griff's war-induced emotional trauma is dealt with too quickly. Up until that point, the book was practically perfect. Thankfully, the next book (Merely a Groom) indicates that he's still dealing with it, though he continually improves. Both Christina Dodd and Teresa Medeiros recommended this book; they were right. It's utterly delightful.

A wonderful, happy story (at least most of it was happy) with characters you fell in love with. Even the "bad" guys earned our understanding so there was no real "evil" person. I loved this book. It was one of those "hard-to-put-down" stories - great from start to finish. One thing I really enjoyed was the wedding. For once an author just didn't say, "....and so they were married...." Instead, we get the wedding details, what they wore, more importantly, how the characters felt, etc. This book was a joy to read.