Megan Frampton

Sometimes it's not the book, it's me. This was probably one of those times, as I put it down about halfway in and I don't usually abandon books after having committed that much time. With a plot of good-girl-going-sort of-bad, this felt to me like Sarah MacLean's NINE RULES but not as original. Most of the plot devices were just past my ability to suspend disbelief. For example, I could never believe that the hero was taking the heroine out on dates in order to woo her for his brother, who show more didn't have the time. That's just not a thing. For starters, the heroine was supposedly in such dire straits that she didn't need to be wooed. Second, that's not how relationships work... and the story does indeed hinge upon that fact. It's not that I didn't believe that the two of them were a good fit. It's because I did believe it that I didn't finish the book. I could see the ending and just hit fast-forward in my head. show less

Megan Frampton knows how to keep the pages turning and this new installment in her Duke's Daughters series is no exception.

Lady Olivia is hopelessly in love with Lord Carson and she is convinced he loves her in return. So when she proposes to him and he turns her down, she doesn't quite know what to do, besides persevere. She concludes that all she has to do is to prove herself worthy and he'll come around. Which means she needs a project - some way in which to help Lord Carson - and what show more better way is there than to make a respectable gentleman out of his illegitimate best friend by getting said friend engaged to a lady? Tenacious and optimistic, Lady Olivia is certain she'll succeed, even if it will require resisting a man whose kisses are oh so tempting.

Edward Wolcott knows Society only tolerates him because of his father's wealth. He is keenly aware that he will never be 'one of them'. But when his ailing father asks him to find a bride and Lady Olivia offers to help him do so, he decides to go along with it. For his father's sake, of course. Not because he wants to spend more time with a woman as lovely and tempting as Lady Olivia. She is after all in love with his best friend and would never consider marrying a bastard, which becomes a bit of a problem with Edward must acknowledge that he's done what he never intended to do and fallen in love with the lady himself.

This was a fun read with an incredibly kind-hearted hero who's trying to find his place in a world he doesn't fit into, and a heroine whose tenacity prompts her to fight for what she believes in, including the right to marry the illegitimate man of her dreams. show less

*** 2.5 Stars *** *** Review updated to add: The writing is excellent, it is the main character and events with which I take issue. ***

Several years ago, Lady Della Howlett, the older daughter of a duke, ran away with her dance instructor (with no thought about how that would affect her sisters). She wasn’t happy at home with a cold domineering father and an unfeeling mother and when Mr. Baxter showed an interest in her, she fell for him. It didn’t take her long to realize he wasn’t show more the one she wanted to spend her life with, but she was already expecting a child by then. Still, she wouldn’t marry him. Her parents disowned her and refused to have anything to do with either her or her child. After the birth of their daughter, Nora, Mr. Baxter took off with Della’s jewels, leaving Della and Nora to fend for themselves. Luckily for Della and Nora, they were befriended and rescued by Sarah Wattings.

Captain Griffith Davies (a Viscount) lived with constant criticism from his father. He was never good enough, never smart enough – just never – enough. With no thought for how it would affect his much-loved cousin, at the age of sixteen (or maybe it was seventeen) Griffith ran away to sea. Now, he is a much-respected captain of his own vessel, serving queen and country. He’s docked in London waiting for his ship to be reloaded before heading back out to sea. He and his first mate are at a pub getting drunk when – he’s accosted by a hat pin wielding female – and then he’s arrested by the Royal Navy.

This author’s books are always humorous and I was really looking forward to reading this one. Sadly, for me, a small bit of humor and a generally likable hero were all it had going for it. Had it not been for those two things, I would have put the book down before the halfway point and would not have finished it.

When I first began to read, I thought the biggest problem I would have with the book was that there was absolutely no way Griffith could be a Viscount. That just couldn’t have been the case. After a few chapters, that didn’t even signify. What did signify was the heroine. She grated on every nerve in my body. I have not ever read a more selfish, self-centered, controlling, demanding, unrelatable and unlikeable heroine. She was a bitchy shrew of the highest order and I totally failed to see why Griffith would desire to spend one minute with her much less fall in love with her.

I love strong, independent, resilient female leads but Della just came off as shrewish. It was her way or the highway and she was very, very, very quick to take offense. If you did not do her bidding and do it her way, she wanted nothing to do with you. You must constantly apologize to her, tell her you'd do whatever she wished, in whatever manner she wished it. Nobody could help her –not for any reason – nor could they do anything for her – which was highly hypocritical because her ‘mission’ was to find Sarah’s husband and reunite them.

Why do so many authors seem to equate being strong and resilient women with shrews? I know a lot of very strong, very resilient and very independent women and most of them are very lovable as well as strong. Why can’t a strong heroine want an equal partnership rather than demanding that it all be her way or the highway?

Now, don’t get me wrong, I had issues with Griffith as well. Not many though. I really liked him and wanted him to find his HEA with almost anyone except Della. My issue with Griffith was merely that he had no spine when it came to Della – he was obsessed with her.

The book moved along at a low altitude with Griffith and the humor keeping me going. Then, at around the 70% mark, it started losing even that altitude and by the 80-85% mark, it had taken a nose-dive and had crash landed. Griffith just needed to grow a set when it came to Della. I think the entire book had been hinting at a dom/sub thing (no, I don’t know exactly how that works) and then that scene toward the end just put the nail in the books coffin for me.

Just as an additional side note, this book had a very modern ‘feel’ to it. It was more like a contemporary read that is dressed up in period clothes.

So, the bottom line is – I would not re-read this book nor would I purchase it for a friend. I hope my view is in the minority and that the author has success with this, but I just cannot recommend it. This is all my own personal opinion -- you might love it. If you choose to read it, I hope that you really do like it.

Given Goodreads rating system, 2-stars means 'it was OK' and 3-stars means 'I Liked it'-- therefore, I believe 2-stars is the correct rating.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. show less

My fair duchess was a delight to read. I loved the letter in the beginning of each chapter and I can say that I loved the book, even if the duchess made a mess somewhere down the road. The little dose of angst was perfect. The ride was very enjoyable and I was happy to see something new in a historical novel. Almost all the romance books I read (historical and contemporary) have the hero in a position of power, but in My fair duchess the roles are reversed. Genevieve is the one who inherits show more the title and Archie is her butler and tutor. He is helping her become a good duchess and fill in her position as well as any man did at the time and even better (she helps her people after all, unlike some other dukes). Poor Genevieve had no one to prepare her for what was going to come. Neither Genevieve or Archie expected to fall for the other, but the connection is there from the first time they see each other. It's not insta love and the characters have time to develop their feelings into something more than attraction. I wasn't expecting it, but I finished the novel with a smile on my face. I have found another author to follow and anxiously wait for their next release. I have loved all the books I have read by her so far and I hope that streak will continue.

I was a very happy passenger on Genevieve's journey. I got to see her and Archie fall for each other through the lessons he have her and the letters they wrote even if they didn't send them. Genevieve came close to ruining thing, by proposing something unexpected to me. I was waiting for her to say the right words (as did Archie), but in her effort to make things work she made them worse. I was very happy when I saw her trying to fix things up instead of waiting for Archie to do it. This is the kind of heroine I want. She was strong and fierce and caring. Archie was a good hero who knew what Genevieve needed and his actions showed that he didn't mind that Genevieve had more power than him as some insecure man would have felt.

There is only one tiny thing that disappointed me and that's the lack of reunion between Archie and his family. I wanted to see something grand and a couple of tears falling. After I finished the book I went for the 4 stars, but I just couldn't write that down, so I went for the 4.5 and it still didn't work. The final 5 star rating I am giving to My fair duchess feels well deserved and I really hope the readers will love this book as much as I did. The book has also earned a nomination for my top 10 books of 2017 (in 2016 I didn't manage to find 10 books, but this year seems to have better books). I can't wait for the next book to be released. show less