Will's True Wish (True Gentlemen, #3) by Grace Burrowes on February 2nd 2016
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It's a dog's life...
Will Dorning, as an earl's spare, has accepted the thankless duty of managing his rambunctious younger siblings, though Will's only true companions are the dogs he's treasured since boyhood. When aristocratic London is plagued with a series of dognappings, Will's brothers are convinced that he's the only person who can save the stolen canines from an awful fate.
But the lady's choice...
Shy, bookish Lady Susannah Haddonfield has no patience with loud, smelly beasts of any species, but must appear to like dogs so as not to offend her sister's only marital prospect. Susannah turns to Will, an acquaintance from her most awkward adolescent years, to teach her how to impersonate a dog fancier. Will has long admired Susannah, though he lacks the means to offer for her, and yet as they work together to rescue the purloined pets, it's loyal, dashing Will who steals Susannah's heart.
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~~Reviewed by AnnMarie~~
Will’s True Wish is the third book in Grace Burrowes’ True Gentlemen Series. This can easily be read as a stand alone novel, but having read the previous books I have to say that you can only benefit from reading them all, purely for the enjoyment of each story.
This story is about Lady Susannah Haddonfield and Will Dorning, next in line to an Earldom if his brother doesn’t have sons.
Susannah is content with her single life in the country, happy with reading her favourite Shakespeare works. Her younger sister Della, needs to marry though and with that in mind Susannah goes to London with her in order for her to have her come out into society. Inadvertently Susannah speaks her mind to a prospective husband for Della. She says in no uncertain terms that she isn’t keen on dogs at all, only to find out that the man in question adores dogs and thinks less of people that don’t. Thinking that she may have ruined her sister’s chances with the man, she calls upon none other than Will Dorning’s help.
Will makes his living from dogs. He breeds and sells them, but only to acceptable homes. He is the best there is at training them too, regardless of if he bred them. He is sought after by people to help them train their animals and he always has great success. Susannah needs Will to help her learn to at least like dogs in order for her to convince Della’s suitor that she didn’t mean what she said about dogs before.
Susannah has known Will and his family for years. In fact in her previous ‘coming out’ in society, he rescued her from the mean-spirited women who were determined to tell lies about her, make her feel dreadful, and hopefully take the attention away from her that men were giving. Men that they wanted. Will was a darling to her, and although he didn’t offer for her, she’s always had a soft spot for him.
When they renew their acquaintance her romantic notions come to the surface, and although he still feels he cannot offer for her due to his circumstances, Will is drawn to her again too. There isn’t too much time to think about romantic notions though when not only does Will have to help Susannah with learning to get along with dogs, but he also needs to find out who is behind dog-napping that has started happening. Find out who, and stop them.
This book was a pleasure to read. Not only do we have the will they, won’t they story of our main couple Will and Susannah, but there is the excitement and intrigue of finding out who is behind the theft of the dogs. Danger and drama ensue and you can’t help but read the book as quickly as you can to find out all the answers. As well as all that going on, you also have Della’s search for a husband to involve yourself with. Who will she end up with, if anybody at all?
There are so many emotional scenes in this book too, especially ones of anger when you read about one of the character’s mistreatment of his dog. You wish you could reach into the book, punch the man, and rescue the dog at the same time.
You don’t have to love dogs to enjoy this book, but something tells me that if you didn’t before, you might just have at least a new respect for them by the time you get to the last page.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Readers Copy of this book.
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About Grace Burrowes
Grace Burrowes grew up in central Pennsylvania and is the sixth out of seven children. She discovered romance novels when in junior high (back when there was such a thing), and has been reading them voraciously ever since. Grace has a bachelor’s degree in political science, a bachelor of music in music history, (both from Pennsylvania State University); a master’s degree in conflict transformation from Eastern Mennonite University; and a juris doctor from the National Law Center at the George Washington University.
Grace writes Georgian, Regency, Scottish Victorian, and contemporary romances in both novella and novel lengths. She’s a member of Romance Writers of America, and enjoys giving workshops and speaking at writers’ conferences. She also loves to hear from her readers, and can be reached through her website or her social channels.
I’ve only read one Grace Burrowes book but I liked it, and this one seems pretty cute. I love that Will is awesome with dogs.