A Marriage of Undead Inconvenience

The Unexpected Adventures of Lady and Lord Riven #1

by Stephanie Burgis

Margaret Dunhaven may have been forced into marriage with the sinister vampire lord of Shadowcroft Manor to fulfill a family obligation, but she's not about to stay trapped there for long. The beastly man doesn't even have any decent tea leaves in his kitchen!

However, when she realizes that she's not the only one who's been tricked into this marital union, it's time to join forces with her unwanted new husband. If they can combine her scholarly skills with his ancient history, then, working together, they might just manage to reclaim her inheritance, break his curse, and find their freedom.

...Just so long as they don't fall in love along the way.

A witty and sparkling gothic fantasy novella that puts a new twist on Beauty and the Beast in an alternate-history version of late 19th century England.

Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Vampires, Novella, Paranormal, Historical Fiction, Historical

ebook

First published August 5, 2024

About the author

I grew up in America, but now I live in Wales with my husband, fellow writer Patrick Samphire, our two sons, and our sweet (and extremely vocal) tabby cat, Pebbles. I write fantasy rom-coms for adults (most recently Claws and Contrivances and Good Neighbors) and fun MG fantasy adventure novels, too (most recently The Raven Crown duology). My next series will be the adult romantasy trilogy The Queens of Villainy, published by Tor Bramble, starting in 2025 with Wooing the Witch Queen.

To get early sneak peeks at new stories and novels, sign up for my newsletter here: stephanieburgis.com/newsletter.

To join my Dragons' Book Club and get early copies of every ebook that I put out myself (so, all of my novellas, short story ebooks, etc!), check out my Patreon page, where I also published a series of fantasy rom-coms (Good Neighbors) across 2020-2021.

I only rate and review the books that I like, which is why all of my ratings are 4 or 5 stars.

Reviews

[Stephanie]

A Marriage of Undead Inconvenience is a gothic fantasy rom-com novella, published on my Patreon July 1st & everywhere else August 5th. The gorgeous cover is by Artscandare. ❤️

I had so much fun writing this story, and I can't wait to share these characters with everyone else! :)

**

ETA: And hooray! It's out NOW everywhere. :)

[Анастасія ꒰⁠⑅⁠ᵕ⁠༚⁠ᵕ⁠꒱⁠˖⁠♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Якось коротко, хотілось би більше.

[sil ♡ the book voyagers · Rating 4 out of 5]

༉‧₊˚🕯️🖤❀༉‧₊˚. A cozy, academic marriage of convenience fantasy romance that is perfect for readers who want a quick read! ༉‧₊˚🕯️🖤❀༉‧₊˚.

Oh my god. I'm a fantasy romance girlie now HELLO??? When have you seen me read fantasy romance books one after another? Like... consecutive books. I'm impressive with myself actually lol and happy! Most of the fantasy romance books I read are cozy, light-hearted romances and I find myself enjoying them more!! This one is definitely just like that -- it's 60 pages of two spouses who just got married under false pretenses and now have to find a legendary gem to break off their marriage.

The banter between Margaret and Riven is hilarious and entertaining. It's a novella so consider that it's quick about everything. You won't get a slow-burn so expect everything to go by so fast. Because I really do loved the setting, plot, and characters though, I wish I WISH this was longer. I would love another lil novella if it was possible about them going on more adventure and just be like another slice-of-life, adventure-y chapter novella yeah? That'd be wonderful ♡

Read if you want:
♡ Vampire husband
♡ Snarky scholar
♡ Marriage of (in)convenience
♡ Mystery
♡ Gothic-infused alternate-history version England
♡ "Wife" "My dear" moments

[Izzie (semi-hiatus) McFussy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The cover and title are cute.

[Tetyana · Rating 1 out of 5]

2/10
Тропи:
- вампір і науковиця
- примусовий шлюб;
- атмосфера вікторіанської Англії
- прокляття.

Цій історії не пасує формат новели, якби це була повноцінна книга, можливо мені б більше сподобалося.

Це було нудно, детективна лінія переважала над романтичною і не скажу, що за нею було цікаво спостерігати🫠. Вплітання реальних історичних фактів виглядало безглуздо і прісно, я ледве не заснула.

Стосунки героїв взагалі не розкриті: дуже мало взаємодій а розвиток їхніх почуттів показано буквально одним абзацом. Нам просто повідомили, що вони проводили багато часу разом, розмовляли, ділилися історіями і зблизилися. Це що, переказ якийсь, чи що?🤨 Я розумію, що в новелі сильно не розженешся, але можна було хоча б один розділ присвятити взаємодіям головних героїв. Я була б рада навіть одному поцілунку, погляду, чи дотику.

До речі, стосовно героїв, вони взагалі не викликали симпатії: жгг бісила, а чгг — погано розкритий. До того ж, я банально не встигла проникнутися їхньою історією, як вона вже закінчилася.

Бали лише за те, що я 2 рази засміялася і фінальна сцена була непоганою. Купу всього намішано, а достатньо нічого не розкрито.

[Iqra · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5*

[Jan Agaton · Rating 3 out of 5]

honestly I wish this were longer, which I don't say often about books! I can see the potentially strong chemistry between the two MCs, but they didn't have enough time to show us in the midst of the plot and the resolution to everything. I think their banter was cute, nothing was cringey, and the vampy vibes were there but fairly subtle so I'd love more of those as well, but I'm definitely planning on continuing on with the series!

[Inna ♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Неочікувано чарівна маленька історія! 🖤
Вона про вимушене весілля між саркастичною дослідницею і вампіром, який просто хотів спокій😌 Багато чаю, трохи готики, натяк на детектив і затишна романтика між рядками 😏

[A.J. Lancaster]

What a delightful crumpet of a book! This regency fantasy novella is set in a world where half the nobility are werewolves and vampires, thanks to the powers of a mysterious stone lost several centuries ago. Features a single-minded scholar heroine determined to find said stone, dragging her undead husband-of-inconvenience along for the ride. I had such fun and read this in one sitting.

[Literary Child (Tania) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Овва, я не очікувала, що мені це дуже сподобається, але новела приємно вразила!

[Georgie-who-is-Sarah-Drew · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sadly—no.

A gorgeous cover, an intriguing first half-page, and the lure of a paranormal Regency had me buying this. But the plot is overly contrived and relies on two sensible people both behaving illogically: I suspended disbelief most unwillingly. (Also—vampires, meh—so many ethical mudstains.)
The pacing is a problem in such a short piece (17.5k words), with the first two thirds effectively one long conversation between MCs, and the last part straying into "with one bound he was free" territory.
I've read other Burgis books I thought were more coherent and cohesive.

[Jessica]

Very fun novella about a lady scholar suddenly forced into marriage with a grumpy vampire. The reason why may surprise you!

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*

[❀⊱RoryReads⊰❀ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

Short story, about 60 pages.

Charming, paranormal/alternate history mystery with a vampire and romance. There's an element of academia too, as Margaret is a scholar. My only complaint is that it's too short. This was my first Stephanie Burgis book, and it won't be my last. My library has Claws and Contrivances, a Regency romance with dragons, so I've put it on hold.

[Stephanie (Bookfever) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Marriage of Undead Inconvenience was a short and cozy historical fantasy set in an alternate version of 19th century England. Stephanie Burgis created a world where paranormal creatures such a vampires and werewolves live amongst the human population.

A short novella it may have been but that doesn't mean the characters or plot weren't great to read about, on the contrary even! I really liked both Margaret Dunhaven, a scholar, as well as Lord Riven, a vampire. Somehow they both find themselves to be hurriedly married to each other and when they realize they were both forced into this marriage, they decide to work together to find out who is actually behind all of this and how the Rose of Normandy, a mysterious heirloom with incredible power.

This really was a fun novella and with 62 pages it can easily be read in one sitting. For such a quick read it still had enough world and character building to make it a very enjoyable story. Initially Margaret and Lord Riven didn't get along very well but as they worked together and got to know each other more and went up against the villain of the story they realized they might not hate being married to each other after all.

I loved the humor, the lightheartedness of the story and most of all the two main characters. I would actually love a full novel or series set in this world. I, for sure, would love to read more about Margaret and Lord Riven!

[Julia Sarene · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Marriage of Undead Inconvenience by Stephanie Burgis is such a cute and comforting story!

A scholarly young lady gets forced into a marriage with a vampire lord, who also might not actually have wanted said marriage, for reasons this novella is bound to uncover.

I absolutely loved both main characters, who are quite strong willed, yet able to see when they were wrong. The banter and friendship forming went down like a wonderful mug of iced coffee (it's 30°C in my flat, so hot cocoa does not sound appealing in the least right now 😅)

My only gripe is the length - I would have loved to have a whole novel about these two!

[Suzannah Rowntree]

If you loved EMILY WILDE, this short and sweet romantasy novella will be right up your street - it's cosy, it's cute, and it teams up a no-nonsense lady academic with the vampire husband foisted upon her by the machinations of her family. This was a "cackling out loud at zzz o'clock" story for me, and I loved the way that superior academic skills win the day.

[Danny_reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was good, but it could definitely been stretched into a novel, which would have made the romance feel way more believable. Honestly, this felt more like a summary of a story, than a story in and of itself.

[Jennie Damron · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this on Libby and thought I would give it a try. It was OK. I liked the story and Lord Riven but I wanted more. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either. It was a cute palate cleanser.

[Jukaschar · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute historical fantasy romance novelette with a cozy-spooky mood. I enjoyed this very much and it is a great start into my short spooky season reads this year.

I would love to have some follow-up stories wherein Margaret and her husband explore all the mysterious places in Europe like Castle Hainfeld, the inspiration for schloss Karnstein in Carmilla or the Loreley on the river Rhine.

As I don't enjoy most horror books, I'm always searching for books that fit well with the Halloween mood but don't have all the bloodshed and gore. This is one such book.
Thank you to Jassmine for this recommendation, I will definitely check out more of Stephanie Burgis's work.

[Debby Tiner · Rating 3 out of 5]

This adorable short story about deadly academic interests and undead romance was the perfect fall read! Sidenote: it’s sort of a Beauty and the Beast retelling.

If you like the arranged marriage trope, characters that are obsessed with tea, feisty nose-always-in-a-book women, and dry-humored, self-sacrificing vampires, this story will be the perfect fit for you!

There was some good foreshadowing, even though the plot was relatively small because the story was so short.

My one complaint is that we did not get to see the comeuppance of all of the evil characters.

Favorite quotes:

“You gravely misunderstand me if you think me de-fanged."
"And you mis-name me, my lord." Her hand tightened around the handle of her teacup. "As I believe you are fully aware, my name is 'Lady Riven' now."

When had she ever not enjoyed winning an argument?

“Naturally, I am pleased to hear you plotting another man's doom, for once. In fact, I find it startlingly enjoyable.”

“I promise, my dear, on my honor as a Riven and a gentleman. You will never have to do without good tea leaves again, no matter where in the world we may travel.”

“Madam,” he said gravely, “I would never stand between you and any of your scholarly pursuits.”

If you liked this book, I would recommend Garlic and the Vampire by Bree Paulsen, The Rose Bargain by Sasha Peyton Smith, and Sunshine by Robin McKinley.

[Arden Powell]

A lighthearted, read-in-one-sitting romance with gothic trappings that fits in nicely alongside Burgis's Good Neighbours novellas. Here, Margaret, a driven student of academia, and Riven, a reclusive vampire lord, are tricked into an unwanted marriage by bad actors on either side. While trying to untangle the lies that got them married in the first place, they are led to Margaret's academic rival and their shared fascination with the Rose of Normandy, an ancient magical artefact of great historical significance that was responsible for the creation of the vampires and werewolves in the ruling class.

Like Burgis's other fantasy romances, this is a quick, sweet novella with a fun plot, and delightful characters whose romance you can't help but want to work out. I wish it had been a little longer and more fleshed out, but as long as you go in expecting a cupcake of a book rather than a full dessert spread, you should find it a charming read.

Also, I absolutely adore the cover art.

[Lorrie (Clockworkbookworm) · Rating 4 out of 5]

2024 Reads #539/250
3.75🌟

Read for the Sights of Sweden Challenge 2024-2025
September 20, 2024 - January 10, 2025

Online Availability:
📖 Kindle $

[Claire]

We all need more cozy vampire stories in our lives!!

An Emily Wilde-esque heroine is dropped into a vampiric marriage of convenience—or decidedly inconvenience—in Stephanie Burgis’s new novella. Margaret and her new vampire husband Lord Riven discover that they have been hurried to the altar so inconveniently by person or persons unknown who have a secret agenda of their own. It will take Margaret’s scholarship and Lord Riven’s family history to uncover the plot—as well as copious pots of tea along the way.

This was just super cozy and fun, in an England of supernatural monsters where the heroine is a scholar and decidedly annoyed to find herself married to a vampire. This just-kissing novella was a lot of fun and a great way to kick off the fall season!

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The nitty-gritty: Short and sweet with a touch of (implied) spice, A Marriage of Undead Inconvenience is a gothic fantasy treat.

Stephanie Burgis is back with a short but delightful gothic fantasy romance with a vampire love interest, and as I do with all her books, I enjoyed this immensely!

Margaret Dunhaven has just found herself married (not by choice) to Lord Riven, a vampire, after her aunt and uncle insisted that the family would be ruined if she didn’t. When she and her new husband sit down to talk about their situation, Margaret realizes that Lord Riven was duped as well. Forced into an odd marriage of (in)convenience, Margaret takes charge and the two decide to get to the bottom of what really happened—and of course, to figure a way out. At the center of the mystery is a fabled family heirloom called the Rose of Normandy, a gem with immense powers that could fix their problem.

A Marriage of Undead Inconvenience is barely a novella at less than seventy pages, but Burgis works her magic and gives readers a complete story—a mystery with just a touch of romance. I loved Margaret, a go-getter who refuses to accept anything less than the perfect cup of tea and won’t sit still until she’s unraveled the mystery behind their unfortunate forced marriage. Margaret is a scholar who has been studying the Rose of Normandy for years and is somewhat of an expert on it, so that helps when they realize their situation revolves around this mysterious and valuable gem. 

I also enjoyed learning about the history of the gem throughout the years and how it was responsible for creating an army of werewolves during the Battle of Normandy. Because of that, humans live alongside supernatural creatures, so  the fact that Margaret finds herself married to a vampire isn’t that unusual. But still, the fact that she was blackmailed into marriage is simply terrible, so it’s a good thing she’s determined to set things right.

Burgis adds a few twists to her mystery, and I did love the way the gem storyline is resolved. There’s a cute part about how vampire bites can add spice and excitement to a married couple’s, er, bedroom activities, and despite the couple’s annoyance at being thrown together against their will, Margaret and Lord Riven eventually acknowledge their common ground. I thought they were adorable together, and I wouldn’t mind another story centered around these characters. And although we only get a glimpse of this world, it’s intriguing enough that I’d love to revisit it. Fingers crossed!

Big thanks to Stephanie Burgis for providing a review copy.

[Tiffani · Rating 5 out of 5]

┌─ ⋆⋅Five Stars⋅⋆ ─┐

Lady Riven is literally me, I love her.

Lord and Lady Riven are so cute!!

[laureneliza]

Really unfortunate this wasn't a full length novel as it had a lot of potential to be explored :(

[Tessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author was kind enough to send me an arc. She's one of my favourite authors and I drop everything to read her work whenever I get it. This was another book I really enjoyed. Stephanie's humor and lighthearted stories feel like a warm blanket on a cold and rainy day, no matter what she writes.

A Marriage of Undead Inconvenience is a fun romcom with gothic elements and vampires. I would've loved to see more of the gothic house (that's one of my favourite tropes). Even with so little pages, she knows how to incorporate enough worldbuilding to make it interesting and give you more context on the state of the world. Maybe we'll see more of this? I certainly hope so.

[Jassmine · Rating 4 out of 5]

"No, for better or worse, we are joined together from this day forwards, just as that droning minister ordained. At least you may take some consolation, madam. As you don't happen to share my curse, this won't have to be an eternal union. You'll be released from it in a mere sixty years or so, leaving me to start the whole inconvenient process over again."

I was feeling gloomy and once again Stephanie Burgis comes to rescue! I think this is a twelfth story I read by her this year? I'm clearly in love...

This is very short and very funny story, centering on sharp, academically proven heroine Margaret who marries a vampire lord to save her family from ruin... only to find out that she had been tricked. As was her new husband for that matter. I think you know how it goes from then on...


Some things that I loved:

- Margaret can't function without tea - very relatable!

- She looks at him and goes in her head "he looks both like a warrior and dancer and not a bit like a scholar, this can never work out between us!" and then he says something clever and she's like "oh no, this is VERY distracting!" 🤭

- When she tells him she has some expectations regarding the marriage he assures her immediately that there will always be enough of good tea 😂


I overall really enjoyed this. I loved how the heroine is the one that ultimately takes the lead and shines, but at the same time Lord Riven (blast it, does he have a first name?) has her back and occasionally makes his own contribution. Since the story is really short, it does have a certain insta-loveyness to it, but I think that can be forgiven since avoiding that would have been an impossible feat. So, yeah, this was great! Can't wait to read more from Burgis... possibly Good Neighbors... or actually probably Undead Philosophy 101 and some of her other shorter works... did I say I'm obsessed?

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

9/14/24
Here there be
• women in magical STEM (one of the best fantasy subgenres)
•a hot vampire
•an arranged marriage (but like...shoddily arranged. last-minute, everyone sleep deprived)
•Emily Wilde Energy

I was going to say "what more do you need?" but there was ample opportunity for there to be Only One Bed, AND YET

Also, part of me would have liked for it to have been longer? But sometimes it's nice to read something short. A little book snack.

[Chanel Chapters · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m sorry, but Margaret was an annoying idiot.