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    The Bad Luck Bride
    The Bad Luck Bride
    The Bad Luck Bride
    Audiobook11 hours

    The Bad Luck Bride

    Written by Janna MacGregor

    Narrated by Rosalyn Landor

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    From an emerging new voice comes The Bad Luck Bride, a Regency romance that begins with a cursed bride and a plot for revenge. Alexander Hallworth, Marquess of Pembrooke, will not rest until he gets vengeance on the man who destroyed his family. Just one more piece needs to fall into place for Alex to succeed: he needs to convince the man's fiancee, the tragically beautiful Lady Claire Cavensham, to marry him instead. Lady Claire's "curse" has left her one step away from social ruin: her past three engagements have gone awry, and now her fourth one is headed the same way. Before anyone can learn of her latest scandal, she's caught in an awkward situation with Alex who then shocks everyone by announcing their engagement. Forced into marriage, Alex and Claire find themselves unexpectedly drawn to each other. But as the two of them grow closer, will the truth of their union shatter their fragile feelings or is love strong enough to survive?
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateSep 15, 2017
    ISBN9781501977855
    The Bad Luck Bride
    Author

    Janna MacGregor

    Janna MacGregor writes stories where compelling and powerful heroines meet and fall in love with their equally matched heroes. She is the mother of triplets and lives in Kansas City with her very own dashing rogue, and two smug, but not surprisingly, perfect pugs. 

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    Reviews for The Bad Luck Bride

    3.5/5

    42 ratings8 reviews

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    • 2/5
      I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

      Claire is on her fourth fiancé when her "curse" strikes again but Lord Alexander Pembrooke miraculously shows up and wants to be her fifth.
      Years of planning have finally put Alex in position to destroy his old friend Lord Paul, gaining the beautiful Claire is simply a bonus.
      Old hurts and lies by omission will work to keep Alex and Claire apart if they can't figure out how to open their hearts to one another.
       
      "Our marriage is based upon hate and revenge."
       
      First in the Cavensham Heiresses series, The Bad Luck Bride is Janna MacGregor's debut book. The prologue was intense, dark, and intriguing as we get introduced to our hero Alexander and his two friends, Lord Somerton and Lord Paul. There's betrayal, pain, anger, and hurt, all set in a swirling snow storm; I was instantly hooked. As the story went on though, the author had a tendency to overwrite (a bit too descriptive at times for my tastes), the cast of characters became a bit overwhelming, the story started to drag with repetitiveness, and the focus on the lead's chemistry faded away.
       
      Alex misinterpreted a suicide note left by his sister and blamed his friend Lord Paul for her death. This is the catalyst for the story as he works to destroy Paul and leads Alex to marrying Claire. If we would have just had this one misunderstanding, I would have went with it but Alex is a rush to judgment guy and the repeating of him getting angry and then saying oops (not the best apology man) was a bit frustrating.
       
      I liked Claire in the beginning as she seemed unfairly saddled with the "curse" talk but we lose her as the story goes on. The curse was brought up so much, I almost thought I was reading a medieval and it was a big deal because people wanted to burn the witch at the stake. I wish it would have been handled more as a bullying tactic the ton was using instead of the awkward heavier weight it was given, especially since it isn't fully explained until the very end.
       
      When our leads first meet, I loved the chemistry they had, their discourse had some great by-play but as the story went on, due to the overload of the curse talk, overly handful of secondary characters, and forced angst, Alex and Claire seemed to be kept apart more than they were together. Their fights and flushing out of feelings was less interactions and more in their own heads, I prefer the characters to interact more.
       
      I wish the editor had been heavier handed as trimming up side tangents that become repetitive or simply didn't add much to the story, could have made this stronger as more scenes and the focus would have been more on what worked, the chemistry between the leads. There's also some series baiting characters, I'll be interested to see if the author plans on trying to redeem Lord Paul as he seems to have gotten a raw deal but also had a tendency to tell some lies that make him pretty hard to like.
       
      As a debut though, I can see the hints of promise this author has and will be interested in trying her again.
       
    • 4/5
      This is a debut book of author Janna MacGregor and as such, its prose and plot were surprisingly very good. If you’re expecting a contemporary telling of a historical fiction story, you’ll not get it. This authors voice is closer to Jane Austen than Manda Collins and I liked it a lot. As revenge tropes go, this was told well and while I’m not a huge fan of this particular trope, I thought the author handled the story well thus giving me characters I came to like regardless of their deception.Besides revenge, you’ll find deceit and betrayal as well as the “curse” that our bride was under, so get ready for a fast paced story with plenty of chemistry between Alex and Claire.If you’re on the lookout for a new author, I think you should give Janna MacGregor a try.Melanie for b2bComplimentary copy provided by the publisher
    • 4/5
      This is a fun romance. I loved Claire and Alex together. They begin their marriage with a curse but can it be broken. Will Claire remain a bad luck bride? This Is an easy read. I enjoyed the fun banter and how it goes. I received a copy of this from St. Martin's Press for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.
    • 4/5
      This book reminded me of why I love the historical romance genre. The scenery was very well written as we're the MCs. The story was exciting and at times sad, but mostly it was a wonderful read.Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.
    • 3/5
      Received an ARC for my fair review for netgalley. Alexander Hallworth, Marquess of Pembrooke, is out for revenge, on none other than his best friend. He has read the letter that his sister had left when she committed suicide, and could not believe his friend caused her to get pregnant and then left her destroyed, so he vows to destroy him. Unfortunately, he goes after the one person that had nothing to do with this Lady Claire, and while he does destroy his friend causing her to get another betrothal cancelled, and she was already dubbed cursed. So he advises her to marry him, so that she wont be tainted anymore. They do end up falling in love, but he never let her know why he was so adamant to marry her, and she is hurt. So she leaves him, and then the truth comes out, on what really happened to his sister, and he is heartbroken, and now he has so many people to make up for.
    • 4/5
      Tragedy, betrayal and love!Lady Claire Cavensham believed the rumours ... that she was 'cursed'. After all she had survived a tragic accident when her beloved parents had been swept away to their doom. Her first tue love had died just before their wedding. Subsequently Claire had become engaged for a third time. Now she was about to withdraw from a fourth. Yes, the curse she laboured under was well and truly alive!Lord Alexander Pembroke blamed his best friend Lord Paul for his sister Alice's death. His determined vengeful pursuit of the destruction of his former friend was alive, virulent and focused. And Lady Clair was now being dragged into this vortex of swirling antagonism.When Alex saw a chance to destroy Lord Paul he took it. That destruction lay via Lady Claire . Little did he know that the pawn he was about to use could well-nigh end up destroying him.The portrait of Alex in pursuit of vengeance is masterful. Claire is a tragic figure who courageously fights her memories and moves slowly and excruciatingly forward. Her grief is palpable and the methods she takes to confront her fears and guilt are admirable.I did like the character of Charles the footman. His loyalty to Claire is a touching segue.I was never sure about Alex's best friend Lord Somerton. Perhaps I'll like him more in the future as there are hints of something brewing here. He always seemed a bit wooden to me, although his advice to Alex was sound--even though Alex ignored it.I was not entirely satisfied by the way the story slid into final resolution. It's complex plot devolved too quickly. However, as I mostly enjoyed the love tangle Alex had tied himself and Claire into by his early Machiavellian manoeuvres, I was well satisfied. A NetGalley ARC
    • 3/5
      The Bad Luck Bride by Janna MacGregorThe Cavensham Heiress #1This romance is based on the idea of one man seeking revenge against the man he perceives to be the culprit in his sister’s suicide. The steps Alex Hallworth, Marquess of Pembroke, takes to bring his onetime friend, Paul, to his knees have repercussions that reverberate into not only the two men’s lives but the lives of others surrounding them. In an attempt to help Paul’s fiancé Claire Cavensham while at the same time working his revenge…well…Alex sets Claire up in such a way that she must marry Alex…though neither are in love. So begins a long drawn out plot with spying and miscommunication and avoidance of weighty or intimate topics or any real soul searching that might have led to a HEA much earlier BUT as is true of such stories there must be angst and drama and secrets shared and loss and separation and pain before all can be set to rights. What I liked: * The costumes* The atmosphere* The caring shown by Claire’s family* Some of the twists and turnsWhat I didn’t like:* Revenge concept – especially since Alex did not fully research before he implemented the revenge* The lack of chemistry between Alex and Claire* Lack of character development for Alex (little background if any) and the other men in the story. * Spice – I didn’t particularly find Alex or Claire to be interesting people with quirks or spirit or humor or…anything like that. So…I didn’t stop reading the book. And, as it is a debut novel, I can say that I believe this author has talent and will grow as she finds her way. She has the skill to develop characters I would want to call friends. I hope to see her growth in storytelling when I read book two in the series. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC – This is my honest review. 3 Stars
    • 4/5
      Alex, Marquess of Pembroke is heart broken over his sister's suicide, and he blames Lord Paul, a former friend, and he has planned to ruin the no good.....He's to announce his engagement to Lady Claire Cavensham, a wealthy only daughter of a Duke which Alex in tends to prevent from happening, then take the young lady to marry himself.Lady Claire has not had much luck where engagements are concerned, she's actually been engaged several times but they never came through. She's getting a little desperate, Pauls not her ideal husband...she doesn't love him but she wants her own family to care for. When he's a no show, Claire is found by Alex, and he asks to marry her.The plot goes on, and there's more. I think poor Claire is used like a pawn in this story, her feelings become secondary and Alex is a little arrogant in the beginning.She shows her strength though when his manipulations are discovered.A great story.