Private Arrangements - Sherry Thomas

To all of London society, Lord and Lady Tremaine had the ideal arrangement: a marriage based on civility, courteousness, and freedom—by all accounts, a perfect marriage. The reason? For the last ten years, husband and wife have resided on separate continents. 
But once upon a time, things were quite different for the Tremaines….When Gigi Rowland first laid eyes on Camden Saybrook, the attraction was immediate and overwhelming. But what began in a spark of passion ended in betrayal the morning after their wedding—and now Gigi wants to be free to marry again. When Camden returns from America with an outrageous demand in exchange for her freedom, Gigi’s decision will have consequences she never imagined, as secrets are exposed, desire is rekindled—and one of London’s most admired couples must either fall in love all over again…or let each other go forever.

I love to read books where people have to work to make their relationship a success. When I started reading romance I was happy just with a traditional HEA where the h/h fell in love, had to overcome some sort of conflict and marry. But in time I started to enjoy more and more the stories about what happened next. Either a couple falling in love after a marriage of convenience or having to work through their differences after a period of estrangement.

So when I had the chance to pick this one up I was really happy because it seemed just perfect for me. I was a bit wary of the heroine because I had heard so much about how she had betrayed the hero and behaved very badly... I do like my heroines to be at least likeable. I don't always have to relate to them but I want to like them and if I don't, I know that will very probably affect my judgment of the book.

When Camden and Gigi meet they are very young. They feel attracted to one another but Camden is decided to marry someone else. Gigi wants him because he is the heir to a dukedom but it is her feelings towards him that make her do what she does and eventually causes their estrangement after the wedding. So they have spent 10 years apart... 

Now Gigi is in love with someone else and she wants a divorce. Her request brings Camden home. To set her free he wants an heir first. Absurd as it may seem Gigi agrees, they will try for a year and after the baby is born they will get the divorce. I thought it fairly obvious that there were still strong feelings between them, the animosity is great and potentially explosive but one feels that if they just managed to talk and heal they would be a perfect pair. Because despite feeling betrayed by Gigi's actions, Camden never once believes he would have been better matched with someone else.

The past is shown through flashbacks and I loved the fact that we get to see them grow and change. Despite the fact that they still love each other after ten years, they actually moved on with their lives while they were away from each other. If Gigi hadn't asked for a divorce one wonders when they would have met again... 

I spent most of the story wishing they would solve their differences and I did feel that it could have been wrapped up a bit earlier. There is a secondary romance involving Gigi's mother that, I thought, started really well but then looses a bit of its strength. Overall it was a story that I enjoyed and, since I know the author has more similarly themed stories, I can't wait to pick up the next one and see if she manages to keep it fresh.

Grade: 4/5