The Bachelor Bargain by Maddison Michaels – a Review

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Description:
Bachelors, beware. For those who keep secrets and prey on the innocent, you will be exposed, with all your dirty little secrets laid bare to one and all. You have been warned…

Lady Olivia Haliford has had enough. Tired of seeing women lose their reputations, futures, and sometimes even their lives to scandal while the men walk free, she is ready to take back power and stand up for women everywhere. Along with her two closest friends, she plans to start an anonymous publication dedicated to dishing the dirt and exposing the secrets of society’s most eligible bachelors. But in order to do so, she will have to make a deal with the devil…

Sebastian Colver, known as the Bastard of Baker Street, is feared throughout London as the city’s most notorious gambling den owner and undisputed king of the underground. His life is nothing but darkness and danger, so he is shocked when the petite lady gracing his doorstep seems anything but frightened of him. He agrees to be a silent partner in the publishing of the Gazette if she will use her connections to sponsor his sister and launch her into Society and away from his dark world.

But exposing the secrets of the rich and powerful can be dangerous. Almost as dangerous as a lady falling in love with the king of the underground. 

Content Warning: The Bachelor Bargain  features themes, imagery, and content that may be triggering for some readers. Discussion of physical abuse, rape, suicide, and death appear within the novel. Scenes depicting graphic violence/death also appear. It is my hope that these elements have been handled sensitively, but if they could be considered triggering to you, please take note.

Review:

The Bachelor Bargain by Maddison Michaels is the first book in her Secrets, Scandal and Spies series. 

Olivia has had enough, yet one more young lady has had her good name besmirched, her standing in the community thrown into disarray! But to lose one of her closest and dearest friends to death (the poor girl could not face the shame) enough is enough! Something must be done! She needs a way of exposing the scoundrels without putting herself in danger! So with the help of her two friends (Kaitlyn and Henrietta) she comes up with a newspaper to expose the rakes that do the evil deeds! 

Sebastian isn’t known as the “bastard of Baker Street” for nothing, he might have been born from an unholy union, but it’s his fearsome reputation that the nobility and street rats fear the most! He will ruin you at his gambling tables, and he doesn’t care what stock your from! 

This is the first book in a new series. So I’m hoping her friends Kaitlyn and Henrietta get books too. I thought Olivia was great, she knew her mind and doggedly pursued what she wanted! No mean feat in those days, as ladies were only meant to be accessories for their husbands! 

But Livie has come to accept that she’s going to be a spinster forever! A limp has put her at a disadvantage. Beauty is suppose to be from top to toe, and no one will put up with a girl with a disfigured leg! 

Sebastian although a rogue and bastard, was actually more of a gentleman than he was given credit for! He protects those he cares for, but it’s still hard to place trust in anyone….He owns a lot of property, and so a lot of responsibility, but he’s not the sort ti shy away from hard work. 

The idea of exposing the scoundrels that ruin the young ladies was a new one, and I loved it. What a nice way to spend an afternoon. Intrigue and suspense, throw in a splash of passion and romance and it will face to glued to the pages until the end. 

Seb has to come to terms that he feels more than just admiration for Olivia, but his standing in the community means they can never really be together! He wants his half sister to be accepted into society! Why? If all he does is ruin the men he might want her to marry! That’s easy, he only ruins men with a rogue reputation, so there are still plenty of good men for his sister to marry. So when he strikes up a bargain with Olivia, financial help from him, but only if she helps to elevate his sisters standing in the society, Olivia is hard pressed to refuse. 

But not everyone is happy with her wanting to expose these scoundrels! And when her life is in danger, how will Sebastian act? 

Reviewed by Julie

Copy provided by Publisher