It’s the end of July and @Bardsong over at Flight into Fantasy won the call early in the month! Wooot! Here is a link to her entry. Meanwhile, the audience goes wild!

As for my own efforts…well! Having had a rather dismal fiction reading month, I was all prepared to admitting to only crossing off one square and then a few days ago I decided to read the last book left on my library TBR. It has been sitting on my shelves for 3 months and I could not renew it again. I thought I would give it a shot, DNF after 2 chapters and wallow in my fiction slump. But no! Not only did I get out of my slump but I also scored EVERY SINGLE SQUARE ON THE JULY SHEET WITH THE ONE BOOK!

That is right!

Hang on to your seats while I reveal SPOILERS galore to tell you how Tessa Dare’s Say Yes to the Marquess ticked every box!

Bingo Square: It’s Complicated

The premise of the book is that our heroine, Clio Whitmore is betrothed to Piers Brandon. Yet, we the readers know that the HEA is with his brother Rafe Brandon #saynomore

Bingo Square: Tyranny of Distance

Clio has been engaged to Piers for 8 years but he has (embarrassingly) been happily gallivanting around the world for most of that time while Clio is stuck in London being “finished”. This has been upsetting as people gossiping about her and making wagers on whether she will ever marry Piers.

Bingo Square: Betty

Clio is a total Betty Cooper. A gooder girl could never be as good as she is. All wholesome but deep down inside she is not a walk over and is a cunning planner.

Bingo Square: Ghost Town

In the opening scene, Clio enters a deserted alleyway into a disreputable building in search of prizefighter Rafe Brandon. Sure…it isn’t really a ghost town as much as a ghost building…. #workwithmepeople

Bingo Square: And the fandom rejoiced!

Rafe Brandon is famous as an illegal prizefighter. Wherever he goes he is recognised by fans and especially  the men who seem to always want to fight him as a proof of their masculinity.

Bingo Square: Delicate

Clio is tired of being treated as a delicate flower. One who was not able to make her own decisions purely because she is a woman. She is frustrated that she is not able to be in charge of her own choices.

Bingo Square: Quaint

The Whitmore sisters, Clio, Phoebe and Daphne are all quaint in some of their unique behaviours. Though there are times that they do not get on, their understanding of each others peculiarities makes them protective of each other.

Bingo Square: π or pi

Well….sister Phoebe is a mathematical genius. And there is some awesome pie eating too.

Bingo Square: Summer Lovin’

This book takes place in summer…and there is quite a bit of lovin’ in it.

Bingo Square: Ice Castles

Clio has inherited a castle and most of this novel is set in here where she takes residence with her sisters (and incredibly annoying brother-in-law). It is very cold and drafty in this castle even in the summer and there is discussion about how it will take a lot of fuel to heat it in the winter. Otherwise it will be an ice castle… *ahem* #workwithmepeople

Bingo Square: Insta-what!

Clio spends the majority of the book trying to dissolve her engagement to Piers. Brandon however decides to show her how wonderful a wedding will be by easily organising flowers, cakes, wedding dresses all to appear in the space of a few days. Because weddings are THAT easy and instant. That said, Brandon is just so gorgeous in this pursuit.

Bingo Square: XXL

Our heroine, Clio Whitmore is not thin but somewhat buxom and rounded. This becomes part of the storyline as Clio has been vexed all her life with other people’s image of her shape. (It’s a stretch  to call her XXL but it works for me)

Bingo Square: Going solo

So yeah, we subtly find out that Clio had gone solo on herself and knows exactly what her body likes.

Bingo Square: Fifty-fifty

There is a lot of wagering that goes on in this book. Whether it is on Rafe’s illegal prizefighting or card games with cheats or the likelihood of the Piers-Clio betrothal becoming a marriage.

Bingo Square: Lick

Heh! There were some pretty hot moments in this book where the licking was just sublime. However the best scene is when Rafe is licking cake off Clio’s fingers *swoon*

Bingo Square: Wicked

The sex scenes are deliciously wicked and Clio herself feels rather wicked about her actions with Rafe after years of being the good fiancee.

Bingo Square: Pulling Out!

Rafe does consider pulling out of Clio when they are having sex to come into his hand instead…but then doesn’t.

Bingo Square: Sausage sizzle

*snort* Because it does! And not in the Australian election day way but in the nudge nudge wink wink kinda way.

Bingo Square: Pyrrhic Victory

Clio finally succeeds in getting Rafe to sign the legal papers to dissolve her betrothal to Piers but it is definitely a Pyrrhic Victory as Rafe’s role in the dissolution will only serve to cause tension between the two already distant brothers. Thankfully she realises this and gets rid of the papers before Piers finds out.

Bingo Square: 18

Clio hates being beholden to a contract that had been signed before she was the age of 18 #tenuouslinkstothebingosquarescount

Bingo Square: Happy Dance

Clio finally gets to dance with Rafe at a country ball having been despondent that he had not attended her debut thus never having danced with her. This moment was really quite sweet for reasons 🙂

Bingo Square: True Love’s Kiss

It’s rather touching when Clio discusses her first ever kiss. She is affronted by her lack of having been kissed during her 8 years betrothal but by the end of the book she has been kissed by both of her “true loves” though only one captures her heart.

Bingo Square: They

Clio and Rafe are so delightful together. They really are a plural They. They understand each other. They get on. They laugh together. They are perfect for each other.

Bingo Square: July

In July 2016, this nominated book sadly did not win the Best Historical: Short novel award at the RITA’s despite being nominated. But it did win at being ShallowreaderBingo One Book One Full Bingo Sheet Bombastic! #livingthedream

Last Bingo Square:

Fuck Yeah! Tessa Dare!

Say Yes to the Marquess

Totally Crushed it!

 

I read a copy of this book borrowed from a NSW Public Library.