Wallflower Most Wanted by Manda Collins

Opening scene: our heroine falls while painting and sprains her ankle. As the hero strides over to help
her, they overhear a murder being discussed. There is also contained in this book the problem of vast amounts of forged art coming out of their village and an unscrupulous man running for local council.
Luckily, Sophia and Benedict are positioned to help (she's an artist, his family is part of the government entity trying to shut the forgeries down).
Sophia actually seemed believable; a female artist with talent who might not be appreciated because of her sex - somewhat resigned but accepting. Benedick is a nice guy. There could be more to their connection but I don't think regular Collins readers won't be disappointed.

Three stars
This book comes out January 30
ARC kindly provided by NetGalley
Follows Duke with Benefits

Duke with Benefits by Manda Collins

This book picks up immediately after Ready, Set, Rogue. Lady Daphne Forsyth and Dalton Beauchamp, the Duke of Maitland, have been circling around each other. She is a genius at mathematics. She's also very wary because she's been burned by men before. First, her father who would use her to win money at cards. Then her tutor's son who... well... that's a bit of a spoiler but when he shows up, she's not happy.
Dalton is taken aback by this woman who says what she thinks and is willing to have sex with him without the sanctity of marriage. He knows that she's smart at math, but he also knows that he's a genius with people (we're told this over and over again.) Together, they are going to be able to not only solve the riddles his aunt left for them both, but discover the location of some long-lost gold.
Like the first book, this is a fast trip between introductions and Twu Lurv. We get a little more time since Daphne and Dalton met in the first book but that book didn't cover much time. We also got two characters who were nice enough but we got more "tell" than "show" in character development.

Three stars
This book comes out June 27
Follows Ready, Set, Rogue
Followed by Wallflower Most Wanted

Ready Set Rogue by Manda Collins

Torquil "Quill" Beauchamp, Marquess of Kerr, is very upset that his aunt left her property to four unmarried bluestocking spinsters. He is racing down to find out what is going on (and possibly block his aunt's will) when his carriage breaks down and he has to stop at an inn. There he sees a young woman, obviously a governess, trying to get on the mailcoach but she refuses to leave her bags and the coach driver says that they are too full to take them with. When Quill finds out she is Aphrodite "Ivy" Wareham, one of the heiresses, he reluctantly offers her  a ride. On the way, they get to know each other better (even though he starts off as a pompous jerk). Once they get to the property, they not only meet the other heiresses, they discover that Quill's cousin is there as well to act as chaperone. Oh, and Ivy gets a note that the aunt thinks she was murdered and Ivy should work with Quill to figure out what's going on.
The romance for me was just a little too fast. Happy Ever After in just a couple of days? Meh. I like to see a relationship unfold. And the whole book went just a little too fast for me, glossing over several parts. But overall this is an enjoyable read that regular Collins readers will enjoy. I'm looking forward to the next one.

Three and a half stars
This book came out January 3
Followed by Duke with Benefits