Review - My Favorite Duke by Bianca Blythe

Bianca Blythe's My Favorite Duke is the second book in her Duke Hunter's Club series. The book focuses on Lady Juliet and the Duke of Ainsworth, Lucas. Juliet is betrothed to the Duke of Sherwood and couldn't be happier, except that he never attends events and she hasn't seen him in almost a year. Lucas poses as a bumbling botanist to hide his true vocation as an agent of the crown as well as a duke. When Juliet decides to sneak to the Duke of Sherwood's castle to investigate some untoward rumors she's heard, she is waylaid by Lucas, and she has to rethink who is, in fact, her favorite duke.

I really wanted to like this book, unfortunately it just didn't really work for me. The author had some really good ideas and all the bones of a great story were there, it just seemed like a lot of scenes were rushed, or not enough description was given to really become invested in the action. I couldn't really sympathize with either of the main characters, it seemed like the actions they took weren't considered (or the reader wasn't informed of their considerations). At one point Lucas tells Juliet that he loves her, and she says "we can be friends" brightly. Then he left. What did he feel about that, what did she feel about that? It's never explained, and was honestly a little frustrating. Again, the plot was solid with a lot of twists and turns, I just felt the characters needed to be fleshed out more so that we would be invested in the action.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy of this novel in exchange for my review.

Review - Who's That Earl by Susanna Craig

Who's That Earl, by Susanna Craig, is the first in her new Love and Let Spy series. Thomas Sutherland is a spy who, through a quirk of inheritance, suddenly becomes the Earl of Magnus, the castle near the small Scottish village where he spent summers growing up. Since he has no interest in giving up his profession, he goes to Dunnock castle to sort things out and get back to spying. However, the castle is being leased to the reclusive writer of scandalous Gothic novels, Robin Ratliffe. Robin Ratliffe, though, is none other than Jane Quayle, the girl Thomas fell for seven years ago before being called away on duty. Robin is receiving death threats, and Thomas is ideally trained to get to the bottom of the situation.

This was a really fun, quick book to read. I really enjoyed both Jane and Thomas, and the way that Susanna Craig handled the tension between them was very well done. I sympathized with both characters' struggles - Thomas being reluctant to drive a wedge between his new title and his old friends; Jane craving her independence. Jane's dogs were an adorable addition to the story as well.

The mystery of the letter-writer seemed to be wrapped up rather quickly - I would have enjoyed having more hints or a bigger glimpse into his motivation, but recognize that the true story is Jane and Thomas.

I really enjoyed Who's That Earl and will definitely be reading more by Susanna Craig!

Thanks to Kensington Books and Netgalley for the review copy!

Review - Take A Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert

I really struggle to find words to express how much I loved Take a Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert. This book is chock full of humor and sexiness and intimacy and heart - in short, it's pretty much everything you could want in a book.

The story centers on Dani Brown (sister to the titular character of the first book in the series, Get a Life, Chloe Brown), a post-graduate student, who prays for a no-strings-attached bed partner. She has goals and plans, and they don't include a relationship. She does, however, have time to flirt with Zafir Ansari, the really hot security guard at work.

A series of mishaps leads to a video of Zaf and Dani going viral, and the resulting fame brings attention (and funding) to Zaf's struggling nonprofit - helping young boys deal with their emotions through rugby. Zaf suggests to Dani that they fake a relationship, and what could go wrong with that?

I honestly can't remember the last time I laughed so much while reading a book. Hibbert's writing game is on point in this novel in every aspect - I literally can't think of any criticisms. I loved the characters so much - both were so incredibly deep (i.e. real people). Their happy ending seemed like a shot in the dark, but I'm so glad that they got there.

I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone and everyone, it's seriously that good.

My rating: 5/5 stars

Review - Girl Gone Viral by Alisha Rai

My Rating: 5/5 stars!!

Alisha Rai’s Girl Gone Viral is utterly fantastic and a joy to read. The book follow Katrina, a former model who is now plagued by anxiety and so tries to be as anonymous as possible. When a photo of her in a coffee shop goes viral, she fears that the life she’s carefully built for herself will be ruined. Jas, her trusty (and hunky) bodyguard steps in to help her out.

The character building in this novel is top-notch. Both Katrina and Jas are such believable, likable characters. They both have their own problems they are dealing with, but watching them come together to overcome them is just great. I loved reading the back-and-forth from both points of view, which were full of with and vulnerability.

The way that Rai tackles such timely and poignant issues in this book is impressive. Characters deal with anxiety, PTSD, family issues and the lack of privacy inherent in an increasingly online world. She raises some really interesting  questions that keep you thinking after you've finished the book.

I can’t wait to read more by Alisha Rai.

Review - About a Rogue by Caroline Linden

"I don't dare touch you or kiss you, because I might combust on the spot if I can't have all of you." Max St James, About a Rogue

First of all - I LOVE this book. All caps. L-O-V-E. I've read a few of Caroline Linden's other work, all of which was good and I enjoyed; About a Rogue is exquisite. 

This is the first book in her new series- Desperately Seeking Duke. The dukedom of Carlyle has lost its only direct heir, and with the present duke in ever-declining health the Duchess seeks out any other heirs - a Scottish army captain and a notorious rogue. 

The rogue is the hero of this novel - Maximillian St James. However, this is a bad boy with a heart of gold. He leverages his shot at a dukedom to propose a partnership with Samuel Tate, owner of a very successful pottery business, including marrying his sweet, calm daughter Catherine Tate. Catherine, however, is in love with another man, and her younger sister, Bianca convinces her to elope on the eve of the wedding, which results in Bianca being forced to marry Max instead.

This isn't quite an enemies-to-lovers story, since Max never views Bianca as an enemy. In fact, he may be one of the sweetest, most patient male protagonists I've read! The chemistry between Bianca and Max builds steadily and is delicious to read. The climax of the book hits hard and fast, and is oh-so-satisfying. 

Linden does an exceptional job writing passion. Both romantically and otherwise. Bianca's passion for her pottery business is conveyed expertly, as is Max's passion to prove himself.

I am so glad to have received this ARC from Harper Collins and the Avon Historical Romance Readers group on Facebook. I can't wait for the next book in this series!!

Review - The Princess and the Rogue by Kate Bateman

Full of intrigue, The Princess and the Rogue is the third and final installment of Kate Bateman's Bow Street Bachelor's series, and the first of her books I've read. Not having read the first two books in the series, I was a little apprehensive that there might be references I'd miss or not be able to follow some of the plot. However, I'm very happy to say that The Princess and the Rogue works well as a standalone book. There are appearances by the main characters of the previous books, but their backstory is explained enough that it doesn't break the immersion of the book.

This was a very enjoyable book. The story starts out with a wonderful introduction to the heroine, Princess Anastasia Denisova, Anya, of Russia, on the run from an abusive would-be-fiance. You get the measure of her character right away, and can't stop rooting for her throughout the book. She ends up working as a companion to a dowager duchess in London and things are going well until the not-fiance turns up. The dowager convinces her great-nephew, Sebastien Wolff, Earl of Mowbray, agent of Bow Street, and owner of a gambling club to protect her, without disclosing her true identity as a princess.

Bateman does a great job in developing both of these characters, and setting up their romance. The climax of the book was utterly engaging, and I couldn't put the book down for at least the last 50 pages. Even knowing that Sebastien and Anya are going to get their happily-ever-after, it was still hard to see how it could be possible at times.

There were a lot of really interesting references to Russian traditions and customs, which was very intriguing and not something that is typical in a Regency romance. It was obvious that a lot of research went in to this book.

I would recommend The Princess and the Rogue, and will likely be reading more of Kate Bateman in the future as a result of reading this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the advance copy!

Review - A Princess in Theory by Alyssa Cole

I don't typically read contemporary romance (I can count on one hand the number I've read in the last year) but I decided to step outside my comfort zone and read A Princess in Theory by Alyssa Cole, and am I glad I did!

This book was a very enjoyable read - and it was a real-life fairy tale! Prince Thabiso of Thesolo and Naledi Smith were betrothed as children, before Naledi's parents fled Thesolo for New York City. Naledi grew up in foster care and has worked hard to earn her way into grad school for epidemiology.

Thabiso has had his assistant track down his long-lost fiancee, and when they find she's in New York, where he has to be for business meetings, he decides to confront her. However, when they meet she thinks he's an employee and has no idea who she really is.

Cole does an excellent job exploring a lot of pretty heavy topics, from Naledi's fear of making herself vulnerable and how that impacts her relationships, to Thabiso's life of privilege. Their romance is sweet, and feels organic.

Would recommend!!

Review - Brazen and the Beast - Sarah MacLean

Ohhhh goodness. This book. Sarah MacLean has done it again in Brazen and the Beast, the second in the Bareknuckle Bastards series. This book focuses on Whit, a.k.a. Beast, the second of the Bareknuckle Bastards, kings of the Covent Garden rookeries, and Lady Henrietta Sedley, a.k.a. Hattie, daughter of a successful shipping merchant.

Hattie sets out to take over the course of her life in the "Year of Hattie", but her plan goes awry the very first night when she discovers a man unconscious and tied up in her carriage. Knowing it must be the work of her ne'er-do-well brother, Hattie unties the man and throws him from her carriage, but not before sharing a passionate kiss.

Beast, having been dumped out of a moving carriage, vows to find the mysterious woman, who must be connected to recent attacks on his smuggling shipments, and find out who is responsible.

The characterization of Hattie and Beast is masterfully done. In the first book in the series, Beast was the strong, silent type. While he still is, in this book we get to see that in fact his thoughts are many and myriad, even if he still doesn't say much.

Hattie is every woman who has ever been told that she's not enough, or too much, or just not. Watching her find her confidence is amazing.

This book is a must-read, mixing high-ton events with low-class Covent Garden. Would definitely recommend!

Review - Wicked and the Wallflower by Sarah MacLean

Do you ever read a book and think, "that was a good book," then later go back and read it again and realize you were wrong, and it's actually amazing? Because that's exactly what I did with Wicked and the Wallflower, by Sarah MacLean.

When the Bareknuckle Bastards were brought up in Day of the Duchess (another amazing read), they seemed like bullies and I distinctly remember not being that excited to read their books, convinced that they couldn't be compassionate protagonists. Boy, am I glad to be wrong!

This book, Wicked and the Wallflower, centers on Devil, one of the kings of Covent Garden. Together with his brother and sister, Devil runs a highly successful smuggling business while at the same time making their corner of Covent Garden a safer, happier place for all.

Through a bit of highly intriguing backstory, Devil lands at the Mayfair mansion of the Duke of Marwick, eager to send him a message. There he meets Lady Felicity Faircloth, once a darling of the ton, now an aging spinster wallflower. When she declares to the ton's biggest gossips that she is affianced to the Duke of Marwick (who she in fact has never met), she's sure that she is ruined. Devil, however, offers to arrange the impossible by making it true.

I truly don't know how MacLean is able to create such vivid, three-dimensional characters as are in this book, and able to weave them together so seamlessly that their not being together seems incomprehensible. This story is full of all the right moments - sweet, playful, steamy, angsty, and everything in between.

Seriously, go read this book.

5 of 5 stars

Review - Never Kiss a Duke by Megan Frampton

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The first book in Megan Frampton's Hazards of Dukes series, Never Kiss a Duke, centers on ex-duke Sebastian de Silva and gambling-house owner Miss Ivy.

The first page of the book starts with Sebastian, Duke of Hasford, learning that he is in fact, not the Duke, and is in fact illegitimate. I was hooked from there! His friends take him out to the up-and-coming gambling house, Miss Ivy's to console him. Ivy, the proprietress, was raised among the aristocracy but lost everything, and (literally) gambled everything to ensure the survival of herself and her younger sister. Now she is running a successful gambling club, and hires Sebastian to help implement new ideas to increase the profits of the club.

This was the first book of Frampton's that I've read, so I wasn't sure what to expect, but I was very pleasantly surprised. She does an excellent job navigating Sebastian's journey from Duke to common man; the growth that he goes through feels organic and not without missteps. Ivy didn't feel quite as fleshed out as a character but was relatable and likable nonetheless.

The ending of Never Kiss a Duke felt a bit rushed, and the transition of the main characters from attraction to lust to love felt a little lacking, but otherwise it was a great read. There are so many colorful side characters as well that I can't wait to return to this world.

Would recommend!

Review - An Heiress to Remember by Maya Rodale

An Heiress to Remember by Maya Rodale
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Excellent book! Maya Rodale finishes her Gilded Age Girls Club series wonderfully with An Heiress to Remember. A book about second chances, Rodale succeeds in creating a romance that is everything you'd want to read - passionate, fun, emotionally-charged and satisfying.

Sixteen years ago department store heiress Beatrice Goodwin left behind her youthful love, Wes Dalton, an employee of her father's in order to marry a duke and move to England, breaking both her and Wes's heart in the process. Now, she's back, recently divorced, and determined to save the failing department store that she loved. Dalton, however, had built a rival department store and has been working tirelessly for sixteen years to enact revenge on the woman who broke his heart.

In this series Rodale has done an excellent job of giving human voices to the challenges that women faced at the turn of the century, but also still today. In this book, for instance, the heroine struggles with the desire to succeed in her professional endeavors, but also in her personal ones, and how to balance the two. This is an issue that I think every person faces, and Rodale explores that so well in this book.

I would definitely recommend this book!

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Review - Some Like It Scandalous by Maya Rodale

Some Like It Scandalous by Maya Rodale
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

In Some Like It Scandalous, Maya Rodale impresses again by depicting in detail the challenges that women of the Gilded Age faced. The heroine of this novel, Daisy Swan, has aspirations of launching a line of skin care products for women, a scandalous proposition. Her plans are hampered, however, by her mother's machinations in affiancing her to her childhood bully, Theodore Prescott the Third. Theo, a society darling, is likewise not interested in being married to her, and they agree to pretend to be engaged to appease their parents.

Rodale does a wonderful job at creating engaging, believable characters. Their romance and courtship progresses organically, and the frankness and honesty between Daisy and Theo is a breath of fresh air when compared to so many novels featuring problems that could be solved with a single honest conversation.

Some sentiments felt like they were repeated often, which did grow a bit tiresome (not lines that were repeated purposely, more ideas that the characters would have, revise, then restate again). Other than that it was a very enjoyable read. I can't wait to get my hands on the next book in the series!

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