Marrying Winterborne is a historical romance novel by Lisa Kleypas. It’s the second book in her Ravenels series, and I recently listened to the audiobook via the Audible app. I had picked up the first two books in the series during a sale, and I started listening to this book almost immediately after finishing Cold-Hearted Rake.

Lady Helen has been sheltered for most of her life, rarely venturing away from the manor house in which she was raised. She has not encountered very many eligible young men, and finds Rhys Winterborne absolutely charming. Their courtship actually began in Cold-Hearted Rake, and I was very interested in seeing what was going to happen to Helen and Rhys.

As the owner of the largest department store in London, Rhys Winterborne might be one of the wealthiest men in England, but his working-class origins make him wholly unsuitable for the daughter of an earl. Rhys never imagined that he would ever fall in love, but he can’t stop thinking of Lady Helen.

Can this unlikely duo flourish under society’s scrutiny or will they be torn apart by secrets from the past?

I enjoyed reading this book. This is unique to the audio edition, but I have to share how much I loved narrator Mary Jane Wells’ Welsh accent for Rhys. I also loved the unconventional plot elements; having a department story owner was certainly a first for me. I loved the scenes in the store, and how fascinated the characters are to shop in a manner that we modern readers take for granted.

I would recommend Marrying Winterborne to fans of historical romance. I would suggest reading Cold-Hearted Rake first. Normally in a series, there are some allusions to a relationship developing between secondary characters, but in this case, there are multiple scenes between Helen and Rhys in CHR, and readers will benefit from reading the series in order. Once again, the secondary characters are very well developed, and the chemistry between Helen and Rhys works well. I am looking forward to reading the rest of the Ravenels series!