Thursday, May 31, 2018

It's All About the Duke by Amelia Grey


Nearing thirty, the Duke of Rathburne is finally ready to make amends for the wager that caused him and his best friends such scandal―but taking on a ward who needs a husband is a feat he’s not sure he can manage. The last he saw of Miss Marlena Fast, she was a spirited little ruffian, not the sort of bride most bachelors on the marriage mart sought. But one glance at the lovely lady she has become is enough to convince him otherwise…

Orphaned young and shuffled from family to family, Marlena counts on her fierce independence and quick wits to keep herself content. Being the responsibility of a notoriously wicked duke who upended so many lives is an unexpected challenge when she realizes he arouses her decidedly feminine desires. Marlena must be careful. She has her own scandalous secret to protect. If he finds out, will it shatter her chances of a happily-ever-after with the notorious rake?

It's All About the Duke is the next Regency romance in The Rakes of St. James series from Amelia Grey.

Add to Goodreads –


Book 3
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo



Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica☆☆☆
I was highly anticipating this installment, after handing out a 5-star rating to To the Duke, with Love. While this is a continuation, and it will benefit the reader to start at the beginning of the series and read in order, there would be little to no confusion if read as a standalone.

I will admit, I struggled throughout the course of the novel with keeping my interests. I was able to read a chapter here or there until completion, and this may have affected my overall enjoyment. However, I did read the first 40% in one sitting.

The pacing was a big issue for me. It starts off molasses slow. While I enjoyed Marlena and Rath's narration, my pet peeves were popping out everywhere. Their initial meeting took almost 20% of the book, filled with conversation, inner musing/monologues breaking up dialogue, excessive description which also interrupted the flow of conversation, and eye-humping each other while thinking about how amazingly beautiful/handsome the other was.

Attraction is definitely what I expect from an initial meeting, but this was too close to self-admitting being in love. While this took a great portion of the novel, it was literal minutes of their lives.

Rath was a naughty boy in the past, he and the heroes of the previous installments. Wagering on ladies and treating them less than human. They've all learned the error of their ways, character growth. He is now picking up the duty of introducing his new ward to the ton for a season. Rath, the insulter of ladies, will be protecting one – I loved the juicy irony of that.

Marlena is an orphan, but also a grown woman. After witnessing how naughty men treated the fairer sex, she penned Miss Honoria Truth. In the previous installments, I loved the witty, feminist bent to the little ditties scattered throughout the series, and I just couldn't wait for the author to narrate a book of her own.

Marlena fell short of my expectations. I felt she was too focused on the vapid, outside package of Rath's, when I expected more from her. She was always mooning (inside her head) over how handsome he was, reminding the reader every few paragraphs, as if we could somehow forget Rath's impressive attributes. It felt shallow, as if Marlena was not the Miss Honoria Truth I'd come to love – entertainer and avenger of ladies everywhere.

In a nutshell, I'm a sucker for a guardian and his ward entanglement. Added to the fact he was a reformed reprobate and she was the one who took him to task in the media, sparks should have been flying everywhere. But it all felt forced, due to the pacing, repetition of inner monologue via both narrators, and description breaking up every conversation to be had and any and all action scenes.

I do believe it was a solid installment of the series. These are my pet peeves that made it difficult to enjoy the novel. If we don't share these same issue, no doubt you will highly enjoy it. I do recommend to fans of the author and the series.


Also Available in The Rakes of St. James Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our Last Night with the Duke post.


Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our To the Duke, With Love post.



New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Amelia Grey read her first romance book when she was thirteen and she’s been a devoted reader of love stories ever since. Her awards include the Booksellers Best, Aspen Gold, and the Golden Quill. Writing as Gloria Dale Skinner, she won the coveted Romantic Times Award for Love and Laughter and the prestigious Maggie Award. Her books have sold to many countries in Europe, Indonesia, Turkey, Russia, and most recently to Japan. Several of her books have also been featured in Doubleday and Rhapsody Book Clubs. Amelia is the author of twenty-five books. She’s been happily married to her high school sweetheart for over thirty-five years and she lives on the beautiful gulf coast of Northwest Florida.

Connect with Amelia

Facebook  ~  Google+  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads




http://www.stmartins.com/


Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of It's All About the Duke (The Rakes of St. James #3) by Amelia Grey to read and review.

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