This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.

Book Evaluation:
Plot: 🎞️🎞️🎞️🎞️
World Building:🌎🌎🌎🌎🌎
Cover:📔📔📔📔
Hero: 🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻.5
Heroine:🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️
Intimacy Level: 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Relationship Building: 💒💒💒💒💒
Heart & Feels:💞💞💞💞💞
Witty/Banter/Reaction of Laughter: 😂😂😂😂
Page Turner Level:📖📖📖📖📖
Ending:🧧🧧🧧🧧.5
Overall View: ✨✨✨✨.25

First Impressions
The Unwanted Marriage is the third installment in the Windsors and is the most recent release of the series. This has your very classic style of arranged marriage with a few twists to the story. I wanted to love this one as I did the previous two but it had some aspects to the plot that just didn't quite work for me. I really wanted to love it more though. Its just the way the conflict with the heroine and her father was resolved that felt a bit off, how its implemented in the plot was a bit weird for me. But other than that, the story itself was solid in the green and I had so much fun with this one and the one brother that definitely is a bit darker in his own way. I love his element of being the protective older brother.

First Line
When my grandmother asked my siblings and me to gather in our formal drawing room, I'd known.

The Main Protagonists
The Hero: Dion Windsor
The oldest of his siblings, the leader of the group, has a darker past and runs many financial business matters for his family.

The Heroine: Faye
A profession pianist, been groomed to be the bride of the oldest Windsor, been abused by her family and manipulated

Summary
Dion and Faye have been betrothed to marry since they were young children. Both of their mothers were best friends. And both have known majority of their lives that they were destined to marry. Faye was forced to become a professional pianist by her father, and its a huge part of her own identity now. Her father constantly abuses and manipulates her to be the perfect bride for Dion. Dion has lived his own life away from his fiancee, sowing his oats you could say. But when his grandmother makes the announcement, he knows that he will have to face the woman he has neglected for many years. There is a huge age gap between them, so it makes sense why he has kept his distance from her. Faye starts to understand what real freedom is like with Dion and how he only encourages her own independence and will but Faye will have to choose whether to stay with him for good...

What I Loved
There are so many parts to this book that was so fun to read. There is something about this author and how she writes romance that just instantly appeals to me. I honestly love how she writes arranged marriages and how each book has a different form of an arranged marriage. This is honestly my favorite trope and I just never see it in romance so it's really refreshing to see. What I really liked to this one was Dion. I adored the hero so dearly and well eventually the heroine I did eventually fall hard for. What really makes this book work so well is the way that Dion sees Faye and fights for her in his own way. We see what a strong protector he is for those he loves, how tortured he is over the death of his parents but most especially his mother. He bears so much guilt over it, and seeing him work through his issues and find peace was so satisfying to read. Then we have Faye who lives in such a difficult home situation, but has so much strength in her spirit. And when she marries Dion, we see her inner spirit just blossom in the best of ways. The connection that she and Dion have is very bold and intense but be prepared to get swept away by fierce moments of emotion that only this author is capable of.

What I Struggled With
Some aspects to the plot and some actions of the heroine I wasn't a complete fan of. First off the abuse aspect to the story wasn't executed very well. I struggled with how it plays out and the hero learning of it. I think it was dragged out secretly too long, and he should have learned about it a bit earlier in the book. Then we have the relationship that Faye has on the side with her "boy toy" and I didn't like her for these actions. She knew she had an arranged marriage, but wasn't honest in her relationship and I honestly felt so bad for this other guy because he was in love with her and she pretty much knew there was no future for them and led him on and even risked him being in danger. I understand why she did it, she wanted to choose her experiences and I get that, but the way about it was wrong.

Overall View
The Unwanted Marriage is a poignant, packed with deep emotion, with layered spice and a story that packs a punch!

Favorite Quote(s)
think this is what I’m developing an addiction to — real moments with her. No pretense, no expectations, nothing standing between us. I want more of this, of her.

He is my ultimate dream, my greatest wish. It just took me a while to realize that.

“What if I don’t know which version of me is real?” I smile at her, knowing all too well how she feels. “Then give me all of you, every last jagged fractured piece. Give me all of it, Faye, because those pieces you think are broken? They complete me.”

Book Details (also in my shelves)
Sub Genre: Contemporary Romance
Character Types: Billionaire, Pianist, Tortured Hero, Abused Heroine
Themes: Family Bonds, Heart/Touching, Dirty Talk, Music
Tropes: Arranged Marriage, Love Triangle, May To December (Age Gap)

Book Perspective
Duo POV

Relationship Conflict vs Plot Conflict
Relationship Conflict

Song This Book Inspires
Tightrope by Michelle Williams

Recommendation For Reading Order
You can do either.

Steam/Spice Explanations

Steamin' up the room -the sexual content is more explicit in the language and tone, heavier amount of sexual scenes. ( )

Catharina Maura has done it again—each time I read one of her books I’m convinced it’s my new favorite, only to have that place quickly stolen by her next book! So it goes without saying that Dion and Faye are hands down my new favorite couple. Dion has all that wonderful brooding angst of a great MMC, while Faye has a softness and insecurity that is relatable and makes you just want to protect her. Although on the surface they are pretty different, they still work so well together and bring out the best in each other.

I loved watching Faye grow as a character, and develop throughout the story. Similarly, I thought Catharina Maura did a wonderful job of building a relationship between Dion and Faye that led to growth and development of both characters. They grew as a couple and as individuals because of their relationship, and this was done in a way that was plausible but still interesting.

I also can’t go without saying that I really appreciated the way this author writes short characters. Sometimes short characters are written in a way that feels inauthentic and the details just don’t match the alleged height. While this is such a silly thing, I feel like Catharina Maura gets what it’s like to be really short and the little details she added into this book made Faye feel more real. While I totally acknowledge this is such a silly thing, it totally took this book over the top for me.

Read if you like:
🎹age gap
🎹billionaire romance
🎹tortured MMC
🎹contemporary romance
🎹piano/ music

* At the front of this book, there are trigger warnings. This includes domestic violence in the FMC’s home. While there is no domestic violence between Faye and Dion, please read the trigger warning if you think this might be an issue. ( )