The Cash Countess

by Samantha Hastings

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Miss Cordelia Jones is an American Princess, but her story is no fairytale.

Eighteen-year-old Cordelia Jones is locked in her tower until she promises to marry Lord Thomas Ashby, the eighth Earl of Farnham. Cordelia doesn’t want to leave her American home or Stuyvesant Bradley, whom she has loved since childhood. But Stuyvesant leaves on a trip and Cordelia is pressured by her overbearing mother to marry a stranger.

Coerced into a loveless marriage, Cordelia finds herself an alien in a decaying English country house where customs and manners are so different from home. Worst yet, accidents seem to befall her at every corner. The more she begins to care for her husband, the more perilous her life becomes. Is she unlucky, or is someone trying to kill the newest cash countess?

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Book Details

Genre

Historical Romance

Subgenre

Billionaire, General Historical, Victorian (1830–1900)

Audience

New Adult

Bell Peppers

🫑🫑

Profanity

2 Mild

Violence

3 Moderate

Drugs, Alcohol, Tobacco

2 Mild

Publication Date

July 1, 2023

Language Versions

English

Fiction Form

Novel

Sensitive Themes

Arranged or forced marriage, Murder or attempted murder

Editorial Reviews

“There are delicious hints of a real romance and wonderful nuggets of the Rapunzel fairytale woven throughout. The combination of real history, romance, and a fairytale makes this a very enjoyable read. This is highly recommended to fans of romance and books about the ‘dollar princesses.’”

—Historical Novel Society

"It's been a while since I have truly enjoyed a book, this was one of those books. It is amazing. I loved the American twist. We had some mystery, a murder attempt, and two love triangles. It was so fun. Highly recommend!"

-MadBakingSodaGirl, Amazon.com

"I was immediately in love with this book when I first saw the amazing cover, and the story inside is just as beautiful! Samantha Hasting was new to me this year, but has become one of my favorite historical romance authors."

-Laura Miller, Amazon.com

A delightful marriage of convenience with a side of slow burn romance.......

I just love marriage of convenience with two people who are lovely characters! Yes, they each had some growing to do but that came so naturally in the story and gave it even more depth. Cordelia thinks she knows what love is but she is about to learn that it's more than just sweet words. And Thomas was a wonderful leading man with honest care for those within his home. I loved that he fell first but didn't push Cordelia into something more until she was ready. The side characters kept things interesting, too, and I loved Lois and Oliver. They mad for some great conversation and excellent encouragement for Thomas and Cordelia. And the mystery threaded throughout the story was also well done - keeping me guessing until the end. Plus, the romance was a delightfully swoony slow burn that I certainly enjoyed. Definitely recommend this story for your TBR this summer, its a fantastic read.I received an ARC of this story from the author via BookFunnel. I am not required by anyone to write a positive review and the opinions expressed herein are entirely my own.

Beautiful story!

I was immediately in love with this book when I first saw the amazing cover, and the story inside is just as beautiful! Samantha Hasting was new to me this year, but has become one of my favorite historical romance authors.Tangled is one of my favorite fairy tales so I quickly fell in love with Cordelia. She is 18 years old, wealthy and living in New York. Her parents are divorced which is looked down upon in the society she lives in. Due to this, Cordelia finds that people no longer want to associate with her and her family. When Cordelia thinks she is in love with a man of her choosing, her mother locks her inside her bedroom and arranges a marriage to Lord Thomas Ashby, who Cordelia has never met so they can reenter society.I loved that Cordelia was spunky but also very kind. She is strong and tries various tactics to escape and not give in to her mother. She even escapes once only to be caught. One thing Samantha excels at is creating strong female heroines that you fall in love with right away and Cordelia is no different. Her strength combined with her kindness makes her so endearing. I love how she tries to help the poor village and felt it was her duty as countess to do so even though she wasn’t born into a society with titles in America.Thomas was also easy to love. I felt for her right from the beginning and the burden and struggles that were put upon his shoulders after his fathers death. He is desperately in need of money to restore his property and pay the people who work for him. When his cousin suggests he go to America to find a rich wife he sees no other way to get help and agrees.One thing I really enjoyed about this story was how the relationship between Thomas and Cordelia grew. They were both in love with other people at the time of their marriage, but saw no other way out. Cordelia went from despising Thomas at the beginning to building a friendship with him and eventually falling in love. I love how they called each other partners and were on equal footing with every decision listening to each other's opinions. It showed a great example of marriage. They were so adorable together!Besides from the journey of Thomas and Cordelia’s relationship there is a mystery woven in that added to the intrigue of the book without overtaking the sweet romance. It is definitely one historical romance lovers will not want to miss. Such an enjoyable read!I received a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Absolutely engaging!

I absolutely loved this story! This was in my calendar to remind me and I loved the complicated romance and drama! I will definitely be reading this again and order for my library!

The Cash Countess

It's been a while since I have truly enjoyed a book, this was one of those books. It is amazing. I loved the American twist. We had some mystery, a murder attempt, and two love triangles. It was so fun. Highly recommend!