Book Review: Compromising Kessen by Rachel Van Dyken
(Blurb): The last thing career-driven Kessen Newberry wants is to leave her home in Colorado to spend a Season in London, far away from her job, her friends and the memories of her mother. However, her father, the Earl of Newberry, threatens to disinherit her unless she gets in touch with her British roots. She complies, but has no intention of enjoying the experience. That is until she meets Christian Vandenbrook, the arrogant and irritatingly handsome future Duke of Albany and her father’s business partner. Unfortunately, Christian hates Americans. And coffee. And apparently, Kessen. A hatred this passionate can only lead to one thing… marriage. Caught in the middle of a Regency-inspired nightmare, Kessen and Christian are forced to marry in only one week’s time. Resigned to their fate, the two resolve to give the relationship a chance—which would be much easier if everyone would stop interrupting them every time they found a moment alone.
Book Information
Age group: New adult/Adult
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Length: 283p
Version: eBook
Compromising Kessen (The Vandenbrook Series, #1) delivers a comedic take on a "set-up" marriage between a very successful British business man and the American-British heiress of a sensational coffee company.
Both characters are on even playing ground, if you will, in terms of both coming from money, both are very successful and trying to take over respective companies, and both have something to prove to their families before they will be able to take over the companies. That provides for a humorous get-to-know-you-period for both characters. Stirring the plot-pot you also have the British father of the American-raised Kessen who is trying to integrate her more into British culture - of which Kessen would rather not.
Compromising Kessen also provides the meddling grandmother (a Van Dyken classic like that in The Bet series), many American and British stereotypes to laugh at, a strong love for coffee or tea (in this you must pick a side ;-)), and of course a very handsome Mr. Christian Vandenbrook who has a secret that he's keeping from Kessen. What more could you ask for?!
What I didn't like
I fell in love with all of the characters in the beginning, and the love-hate tension between Christian and Kessen due to their respective situations within the company was great! However, as their relationship evolved I felt as though their maturity greatly waned and there was a specific event that had me yelling "WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?! Are we 12?!" and then skimming through the pages until that part was over. Christian and his friends immaturity especially started to drive me nuts. There are certain things that you read in a book and you're like "meh, ok. I don't really get it but whatever," and then there are other things that you read that have you screaming "WTF," because who in their right mind would do that?! I don't normally rant about a specific part of a book, but because I love Rachel so much and I was so disappointed in this I am going to. For specific details read below or skip to the end of the minor spoiler.
*** Spoiler ahead ***
Christian was completely unable to express any feelings towards Kessen (okay, so maybe he was shy/hesitant/thinking life through. I get it.). For whatever reason his friends decided that the best way to make him admit his feelings was to stage a kidnapping (WHAT?!). We're talking fake news crews, fake friends, fake chaos...all staged for the hell of it as a life lesson prank. The whole thing was ridiculous, embarrassing as a reader (considering these people were supposedly 25+ years old), and didn't make sense! Once you got over the initial "WTF" thoughts you start to think, okay maybe this can turn out fun. Maybe. But then it's just over and all of a sudden all is fine in the world. Both parties realized how important it was for their friends to stage a ridiculous kidnapping in order to get a guy to say "I love you". WHAT? So yeah. That pretty much ruined the ending for me.
***end of spoiler***
Overall, how the story played out in the end really tainted my good loving feelings from the beginning. How the characters mentally responded to those later events was not how I would have thought they would have based on their mentality up to that point. So it was a bit of a character building let down. It was a pretty good read besides that and the writing style was exceptional as always.
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