THE RUTHLESS GROOM (Arranged Marriage 2) by Monica Murphy-Review Tour

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date June 14, 2022

I didn’t plan to marry a reclusive heiress. Lucky for me, I find myself attracted to my beautiful new bride. Our arranged marriage connects two powerful companies. That we’re compatible between the sheets is a bonus, but I didn’t bargain on her ex showing up at the wedding reception uninvited.

That pushed me right over the edge.

I protect what’s mine, and Charlotte is now mine, whether she likes it or not. Our honeymoon is a disaster in paradise. I’m angry. She’s resentful. All those swirling emotions explode in the most physical ways.

But even as I’m drawn closer to my new wife, there’s still a threat looming out there. Seamus McTiernan is determined to destroy what we’ve created.

I won’t let anything tear us apart.

He has no idea who he’s dealing with. I will end him.

Watch me.

Welcome to the Midnight Dynasty… The warring Morelli and Constantine families have enough bad blood to fill an ocean, and their brand new stories will be told by your favorite dangerous romance authors.

WARNING: This book is intended for readers eighteen years old and over. It contains material that some readers could find disturbing. Enter at your own risk.

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REVIEW: THE RUTHLESS GROOOM is the second instalment in Monica Murphy’s contemporary, new adult ARRANGED MARRIAGE (formerly Wedded Bliss) dark, erotic, romance trilogy, set in the author’s A MILLION KISSES IN YOUR LIFETIME / THINGS I WANTED TO SAY world, and a part of the multi-authored MIDNIGHT DYNASTY series. This is twenty-four year old businessman Perry Constantine, and twenty year old Charlotte Lancaster’s continuing story line. THE RUTHLESS GROOM should not be read as a stand alone as it picks up immediately after the events of book one THE RELUCTANT BRIDE.

SOME BACKGROUND: In an effort to improve their status in the criminal underworld, the Constantine matriarch Caroline, and her eldest son Winston offer up twenty-four year old Perry Constantine in an arranged marriage to Charlotte Lancaster of the very powerful, very rich and notorious Lancasters. Neither Charlotte nor Perry want anything to do with an arranged marriage but Perry suspects all is not well in Charlotte’s life, and offer his protection to the woman he suspects has struggled to be seen and heard in the Lancaster family. Perry’s reputation has preceded his introduction to our story line heroine but Charlotte’s past is mired in secrets and darkness, secrets that are about to threaten Charlotte’s hold on her tenuous security.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Perry and Charlotte) THE RUTHLESS GROOM picks up at the wedding between twenty-four year old businessman Perry Constantine and twenty year old Charlotte Lancaster. Charlotte Lancaster comes from a rich and powerful crime family, and has been used as a pawn to barter for power and control but Charlotte’s past has returned, threatening to destroy everything and everyone in his wake. From the outset Charlotte knows her marriage is a marriage of convenience but never expected to fall for Perry Constantine, a man who runs hot and cold towards his young wife . As Perry’s volatile moods continue to fluctuate, Charlotte’s past takes control, destroying a little bit of our story line couple with every mention of his name. What ensues is the building but tempestuous relationship between Charlotte and Perry, and the fall-out as Charlotte is targeted in war where our heroine is the ultimate prize.

Perry Constantine does not trust his wife in the wake of discovering the ‘who’ about her past. Charlotte has been broken by not only her family but by her first love, betrayed and left battling for any sense of pride. Forced to marry a man she does not know and does not love, Charlotte is further betrayed when issues of trust threaten to destroy her long fought chance at independence and happiness. Hoping to uncover the truth, the Constantine family begin a deep dive into the past, only to discover the past has returned, claiming Charlotte as his own.

The relationship between Charlotte and Perry is an arranged marriage, marriage of convenience in which our couple are slowly falling in love but Perry struggles to trust his young bride, and Charlotte is often the target of Perry’s mood swings and cold heart. The $ex scenes are intimate, passionate and intense but I dislike the use of a certain four-letter word.

Once again, we are quickly re-introduced (some by way of mention only) to both Perry and Charlotte’s immediate and extended families, many of whom cross over from the numerous instalments in the interconnected Midnight Dynasty Collection, as well as Winston Constantine, and the return of Seamus McTiernan.

THE RUTHLESS GROOM is a story of power and control, betrayal and vengeance, family and relationships, trust and love. The premise is intriguing, captivating and engaging; the romance is heart breaking yet seductive; the characters are powerful, charismatic and impassioned. THE RUTHLESS GROOM ends on a cliff hanger-you have been warned

Click HERE for Sandy’s review of book one THE RELUCTANT BRIDE

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Monica Murphy is the New York Times, USA Today and #1 international bestselling author of the One Week Girlfriend series, the Billionaire Bachelors and The Rules series. Her books have been translated in almost a dozen languages and has sold over one million copies worldwide. She is both self-published and published by Random House/Bantam and Harper Collins/Avon. She writes new adult, young adult and contemporary romance.

She is a wife and a mother of three who lives in central California on fourteen acres in the middle of nowhere along with their one dog and too many cats. A self-confessed workaholic, when she’s not writing, she’s reading or hanging out with her husband and kids. She’s a firm believer in happy endings, though she will admit to putting her characters through angst-filled moments before they finally get that hard won HEA.

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