Co-Review: A Duke in Shining Armor (Difficult Dukes #1) by Loretta Chase

A Duke in Shining Armor

Author: Loretta Chase
Series: Difficult Dukes, Book 1
Publisher: Avon
Published: November 28, 2017
Mass Market Paperback, 400 pages
Rating:
Ariel: 4 stars ★★★★☆
Elley: 5 stars ★★★★★

Goodreads  Amazon

Summary: Not all dukes are created equal. Most are upstanding members of Society. And then there’s the trio known as Their Dis-Graces.
Hugh Philemon Ancaster, seventh Duke of Ripley, will never win prizes for virtue. But even he draws the line at running off with his best friend’s bride. All he’s trying to do is recapture the slightly inebriated Lady Olympia Hightower and return her to her intended bridegroom.

For reasons that elude her, bookish, bespectacled Olympia is supposed to marry a gorgeous rake of a duke. The ton is flabbergasted. Her family’s ecstatic. And Olympia? She’s climbing out of a window, bent on a getaway. But tall, dark, and exasperating Ripley is hot on her trail, determined to bring her back to his friend. For once, the world-famous hellion is trying to do the honorable thing.

So why does Olympia have to make it so deliciously difficult for him...?

Review

Ariel here, of Peekabo’s corner fame, bringing you the what’s what on the new Loretta Chase novel A Duke in Shining Armor. This is book one in her “disgraceful dukes” series, and if this book is any indication, this series is going to be AMAZING.

But let’s start at the beginning.

The Plot

A: I dug it. I liked the fleeing bride concept, the stalwart best friend who tries to save the day, but sort of makes a hash of things, and ends up falling for his best friend’s bride. I wasn’t totally into all the bro guilt that was a fairly constant thread throughout, but I thought it worked out well.

E: The bro guilt is because Ripley is extremely fond of Ashmont, and they’re like brothers by choice if not by blood. And he thinks Olympia is super awesome, and knows she’d be a great influence on Ashmont, plus he wants Ashmont to have the best possible wife (which is CLEARLY Olympia, duh). But then he starts to see it from other angles, like while Olympia would be great for Ashmont, would HE be great for HER? And then you factor in his own feelings into the mix… As for the rest of the plot: I love a runaway bride, and I love that Ripley is so adamant that Olympia is perfect for Ashmont. (Yes, sure Ripley… She’s perfect for “Ashmont.” Mmmhmm.) I like that this is basically a road trip romance, and Ripley and Olympia are thrown together and forced to be in close proximity for the duration.

A: I respect their bro love. And I am 100% here for when Ashmont finds a love of his own, and Ripley is like “yasssss”.
The Characters

A: Let me tell you how here I was for Olympia and her sassy self. HERE FOR IT. Every time I thought she was going to cave and whine or complain or do something stupid, she turned around and showed some attitude, stood up for herself and her own wants and desires, and was generally a badass. Even when she decided to throw caution to the wind, she did it in a way that I respected.

E: OK, I will admit - drunk Olympia is so me. Well, drunk me. Like “Get this damn uncomfortable stuff off me! I’m out of here!” Though I’m usually trying to escape a crowded bar or club, not my own wedding. To each her own, I guess? But I definitely agree that every time I thought for sure Olympia was about to go all damsel in distress or get weepy, she turned that crap around and lady-balled up like a boss.

A: I liked Ripley! For the most part. I appreciated his restraint, and the fact that even though he had a serious boner for our heroine, he was trying to be noble and honorable. Their banter was top notch too. I appreciate that they were snarky and bantering without being mean at all.

E: I love how PLAYFUL they randomly burst out into being! That scene with the racing around the library? Adorbs. A thousand times adorbs. I must have smiled my stupidly goofy grin so many times reading this book. They’re both so upright and serious and then all of a sudden - shenanigans! I also love how persnickety he is about his clothing (especially his headwear).

A: Also: Can we just talk about Lady Charles for a second? Someone give that woman an awesome woman of the year award because I loved her SO much. And I want her love story with Other Old Dude to progress in the rest of the books, and for them to have lots of hot old people sex because clearly they’re in love and need to be together.

E: Hooray for hot old people romance! Um, I don’t think I need to read those sex scenes though?

A: I could take or leave Ashmont. Ashmoor? I don’t even remember his name. Once he gets his own book, I’ll probably be into it, but for right now he seemed kind of eh.

E: I assume Ashmont will do some serious cleaning up and have some sort of reality check, because I certainly wouldn’t want to read a story about him as portrayed in this book. He reminded me of a big, naughty, not terribly bright puppy… I’ll be interested to see where things go with Blackwood and his wife (Ripley’s sister). There’s CLEARLY a story there.

A: Right? They’re married, right? But are on the outs? That’s sort of the vibe I got from them. I am hoping the next book is about them.

The ending

A: Uhhh what? I feel like everything was chugging along nicely and then SOMETHING happens, and then SOMETHING ELSE is revealed that made me simultaneously go “wtf?” and “uggh, men!” But once all that was done, I thought the ending was very satisfying.

E: That’s not unheard of, for them to do that… UGH, it’s hard to have a conversation about this with no spoilers! But that’s sort of the done thing, because you can’t go around murdering people or you’d be hanged or, at best, banished. (And now aren’t you DYING to know what we’re talking about, Dear Reader? Guess you’ll have to read the book and find out!)

Heat level

A: The tension is really good, because they are both clearly warm for each other’s form, but there wasn’t a TON of gettin’ up on each other. (Maybe there was a little bit.) It didn’t make me all tingly in my lady parts though. Honestly, I tended to skip the sex scenes. Were they hot?

E: LMAO, “warm for each others’ form.” I am dying. :D I don’t normally skip sex scenes, but I found myself skimming over them in this one too. /shrug They were very “meh” for me.

Book Review: The Duchess Deal (Girl Meets Duke #1) by Tessa Dare

Rating: 5 Stars

 

Published August 22nd 2017 by Avon
Summary: When girl meets Duke, their marriage breaks all the rules…

Since his return from war, the Duke of Ashbury’s to-do list has been short and anything but sweet: brooding, glowering, menacing London ne’er-do-wells by night. Now there’s a new item on the list. He needs an heir—which means he needs a wife. When Emma Gladstone, a vicar’s daughter turned seamstress, appears in his library wearing a wedding gown, he decides on the spot that she’ll do.

His terms are simple:
- They will be husband and wife by night only.
- No lights, no kissing.
- No questions about his battle scars.
- Last, and most importantly… Once she’s pregnant with his heir, they need never share a bed again.

But Emma is no pushover. She has a few rules of her own:
- They will have dinner together every evening.
- With conversation.
- And unlimited teasing.
- Last, and most importantly… Once she’s seen the man beneath the scars, he can’t stop her from falling in love...
(from Goodreads)

Review: Today I have a *special treat* for y'all - Ariel is joining me for a guest review of the first book in Tessa Dare's new Girl Meets Duke series, The Duchess Deal. This is my first ever joint review, so we'll see how that goes, haha. I'll try to be a tad more organized than I normally am in my reviews.

For starters, let’s talk world building, tone, style, and all that jazz.

Elley: The setting is Mayfair in London during the Regency period. I love the backstories for both Emma and Ash, and Tessa Dare always right such delightful, witty, fun romances. Once I got going with this book I had a really hard time putting it down.
Ariel: Tessa Dare did a great job in this one of creating a wonderful atmosphere, both in Ash’s residence, and the way she held to the distinction of different class systems without making any of the characters snobbish or jerks about anything. I always do appreciate a sassy butler too, which Ash certainly had. Someone give that butler his own book! Make him a recurring character

OK, now for the good stuff: let's talk main characters and their love story!

Elley: I love me a damaged man with a heart of gold. While other girls were dreaming of Prince Charming and pretending to be Cinderella, I was watching The Hunchback of Notre Dame and swooning over Quasimodo. I also preferred the Beast over his transformation into Prince Adam. So obviously I fell immediately head over heels for Ash.
Ariel: When I initially read the description, I was concerned that Ash would be kind of a brooding alpha-hole, or that he would be so bogged down in his personal woes that he wouldn’t have any other personality. But it turns out I LOVED his personality! He maintained a great rapport with Emma, had the right amount of brood without getting over the top. I appreciated Emma’s spunk, and her ability to stand up for herself.
Elley: Oh my gosh, I loved Emma! I like that she’s so sexually free in a time when women were supposed to just lie there and let their husband do his thing. Yeah, baby! And yeah, she’s definitely got gumption. Can you imagine striding into the residence of a duke wearing a dress that looks like a unicorn vomited on it and demanding to be paid? You go girl.
Ariel: I feel like in Regency romance there is a fine line between delicate flower and wanton lady, and Emma manages to walk that line very nicely.

What about those side characters?

Elley: OK, I *loved* Ash's little sidekick, what did he call himself again?
Ariel: I don’t remember but he definitely should get his own book. Or at least keep showing up and being adorable. I couldn’t totally place his age. Is he old enough to end up with one of the friends? I am 100% here for that.
Elley: I felt like he was more like 11 or 12 or something. But he definitely needs to come back around in future books! I also really liked Ash's servants. I feel like you can tell a lot about a person from how they treat "the help." Today that might look like how they treat their waiter or speak to a cashier, and if someone talks to people in the service industry like they're trash they're most likely not a keeper. I think the way Ash's servants interact with him (especially his butler!!) says a lot about his hidden heart of gold.
Ariel: The only thing that bugged me was the “the servants are conspiring to hook us up” plotline, and the weird maid whose only function was to act like an awkward matchmaker. That seemed a bit forced. But I absolutely loved the butler, and how he was Captain Sass all the time at Ash. I would love to hear more about him.
Elley: It’s cute how much they care about their master and want him to be happy and fall in love! OK, yeah, a lot of the matchmaking plotline was weird and out of place. But that BUTLER! I also really loved Emma’s circle of strange friends, and I imagine the rest of the books in the series will be about them. Talk about some quirky leading ladies!!
Ariel: I am 100% here for every single quirky book about this friend group, and I hope our favorite masked bandit makes an appearance in all of them.

Overall rating/thoughts?

Elley: I really enjoyed this book and had a hard time putting it down once I got started reading it. I give it 5 stars, and can’t wait to read the next books in the series!
Ariel: I gave it 5 stars for the same reason. It didn’t get bogged down in gloom, the characters were wonderful, and as always, Tessa Dare’s writing was top notch. More books now please!