Review: Convenient Vows with a Viking by Lucy Morris & Sarah Rodi

Title:	Convenient Vows with a Viking: Her Bought Viking Husband Chosen as the Warrior’s Wife
Author:	Lucy Morris Sarah Rodi
Series:	/
Pages:	288
Genre(s):	Harlequin / Mills and Boon
Trope(s):	Viking Romance Marriage of Convenience
Point of View:	Third Person, Past Tense, Dual Viewpoints (H&h)
Location:	Iceland, Constantinope and on the seas, Europe
Setting:	910 & 1035 AD – Viking
HEA:	✔️
Release Date:	23rd January, 2024

A tale of two Vikings

It’s two for the price of one in this book with two authors each bringing us a non-connected story about Viking marriages of convenience. The whole book is the same size read as your normal Mills and Boon / Harlequin romance, meaning you’re getting two short stories in the time it normally takes to read one full story.

Bought Viking Husband by Lucy Morris

We’re in Iceland and Orla (an Irishwoman kidnapped as a child and brought up as the daughter of a Icelandic couple) is having trouble with her neighbours and her kin. So when she sees the big, strong and intimidating Hakon in chains, she decides to buy him and set him free…in exchange for him marrying her and helping her secure her farm.

It’s great that in any Viking tale we can get realistic stories of strong, independent women surviving and thriving. But there are some things that it’s useful to have a man for which is exactly why fierce, independent Orla needs Hakon.

Short stories always suffer slightly from the speed of the tale and we always lose some detail, but as soon as Orla and Hakon get back to the farm, you really start to see their relationship develop and blossom.

I’m very fond of a story where one half of a couple comes into the house of the other and makes it a home. It was lovely to see that in this case, it was the man coming in and making Orla’s farm something so much better than it was before. They were a sweet couple but suited each other perfectly and we even get some intimate scenes which is always nice to build up the connection between a couple.

Hakon’s brothers also make an appearance in our story and I’m seriously hoping we get their stories soon because I’m already addicted to them. One already has kidnapped a noble woman before he arrived in our story so that’s definitely something I want to hear more about!

But this story was short and satisfying but still with the detail that I’ve come to expect from Lucy Morris and the worlds she builds.

Chosen as the Warrior’s Wife by Sarah Rodi

This is my introduction into Sarah Rodi’s work so I wasn’t really sure what to expect. But it’s a Viking tale so I’m happy!

But our tale is more of a road trip romance – or a sea trip romance, really. It starts off in Constantinople where Fiske the Viking has lived and fought for the past 5 years. He’s about to go home and as a token of thanks, the Emperor gifts Fiske a woman from the bride show. His choice is Kassia, the same girl who attempted to steal his ship the night before.

As Kassia and Fiske travel the seas to return to Denmark, they create a bond and slowly fall in love. But Kassia was a bit of a brat. Somewhat understandable but hardly the makings of a character I was going to fall in love with. And Fiske, well, he talked the talk of being a kind and compassionate man (except, you know, the warrior part) but whenever Kassia said ‘no’ to him, he would say things like ‘it’s just a kiss’ or ‘would you at least tell me why?’. No is a full sentence.

Kassia has also been raped by the Emperor and it’s unpleasant to read about. Yes it’s probably very true to the period and most likely a very real experience for many women – but that doesn’t mean I want to read about it in a romance – especially a short one where there isn’t time for all that character depth.

And then Fiske didn’t really cover himself in glory towards the end – but at least we get our happily ever after. This story just didn’t really resonate with me. Nothing was quite how I liked it and that really affected my feelings towards it.

Lucy Morris once again captivated me with a rich and romantic tale. Sarah Rodi’s tale wasn’t for me, but as a whole, two tales of different Viking romances in one book is still worth a read. 5 stars for the first and 3 for the second gives an overall score of 4 stars!

*I received this book in exchange for my honest review*

Lucy Morris lives in Essex, UK, with her husband, two young children, and two cats. She has a massively sweet tooth and loves gin, bubbly and Irn-Bru. A member of the UK Romantic Novelists’ Association, she was delighted to accept a two-book deal with Harlequin after submitting her story to the Warriors Wanted submission blitz for Viking, Medieval, and Highlander romances. Writing for Harlequin Historical is a dream come true for her and she hopes you enjoy her books!

Sarah Rodi has always been a hopeless romantic. She grew up watching old, romantic movies recommended by her grandad, or devouring love stories from the local library. Sarah lives in the village of Cookham in Berkshire, where she enjoys walking along the River Thames with her husband, her two daughters and their dog. She has been a magazine journalist for over 20 years, but it has been her lifelong dream to write romance for Mills & Boon. Sarah believes everyone deserves to find their happy ever after.