A shy woman. Her outdoorsy crush. And the bet that could bring them together…or implode spectacularly.

Nell Delaney will do almost anything for her parents and her two sisters. But enter a marriage of convenience to save the family’s coffee shop? Too far. So Nell and her sisters strike a deal: whoever hasn’t found love in thirty days has to step up to take one for the team. The good news? Nell knows the perfect guy to fall in love with. The bad news? She’s going to have to pretend she likes the outdoors…a lot.

Adventure guide Grant Williams knows immediately that Nell is not exactly Little Miss Outdoorsy. She’s a walking natural disaster—an amazingly adorable disaster. And whoa, their chemistry is unbelievable. Everything between them is so perfect, he’s not even a little bit shocked when he starts thinking of forever…

Right up until he catches the town gossiping about the Delaney sisters’ bargain and realizes she’s just using him to win a bet. His family’s unreliable reputation means he can’t just dump one of the town’s sweethearts. No, she needs to dump him. If she’s going to pretend to be the perfect doting bride, well, he’ll just pretend to be the worst bachelor on the market.

Let the games begin…

Titles in the Majestic Maine series include — First Bride to Fall —♥— Second Bride Down —♥—

This is a romance that includes no swearing, no violence, and no sexual content (beyond a few light kisses).

Title:  First Bride to Fall
Series:  Majestic Maine #1
Author:  Ginny Baird
Genre:  Contemporary Romance
Published:  June 28, 2022
Publisher:  Entangled Publishing
My Rating:  4.5 stars

First Bride to Fall is the delightful first story in the Majestic Maine series and captured my imagination early on, and emotionally never let go until the end.  Nell and her sisters have come up with a grand scheme to avoid having to enter into an arranged marriage with the son of the man who did their father wrong years ago.  To them, a fate worse than death – but someone will have to take on that challenge to save the family business.  Unless… they each find someone to love, willing to marry them within a very short time frame.  Impossible?  Perhaps, but when one’s back is up against the wall it’s amazing what can be accomplished.

Nell believes she has this in the bag since she’s always had a crush on Grant, a local man who is also an adventure guide who practically lives for the outdoors life.  Nell, not so much.  But she’ll finally get up her courage and go after the man she believes could be the answer to her prayers – a man to love her and save her family’s business all in one swoop.  It would be so much easier if she didn’t loathe the outdoors and on their first hike Nell ends up injured.  As the saying goes, the rest is romantic history as they fall deeply in love.

Until… Grant makes a trip into town and discovers what the sisters are up to and can’t decide if he’s angrier or brokenhearted over the fact that he believes he’s been played.  So, Grant makes a plan of his own, one that won’t be exactly easy but he feels he’s justified in his actions.  What happens beyond this point is a fun, witty, engaging romance between two people who really do care about each other but need to have that fact proven to them, fast.

I had fun with First Bride to Fall.  Grant and Nell are a fun couple, perfect for each other if only they can get past a few rather major issues.  Watching them navigate their romance, the good and the bad parts, was an emotional journey full of potholes.  I laughed, got teary-eyed, definitely felt angry at times, and always believed in this couple.  If you love a solid romance, family issues, learning to trust again, and a love story that will touch your heart then you’ll want to get started on the Majestic Maine series right now.  I don’t believe you’ll be disappointed.

*I received an e-ARC of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are my own – good, bad, or indifferent. I was not financially compensated for this review and no expectation of a positive review was promised.*

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