Series: Desperately Seeking Duke, #2
Traits & Tropes: widowed heroine; rags to riches, former soldier hero
Publication Date: 06.29.21
Genre/Setting: Historical; Scotland, 1787
Heat Level: 4
Rating: 4 stars!
His family’s distant nobility is no surprise to Captain Andrew St. James, but his father was disowned by the ducal branch of the family, and he’s never known or expected anything from them. Drew is shocked to learn that he is now the heir to his distant cousin, the current Duke of Carlyle. With his simple soldier’s life upended, Drew has a stiff learning curve to face with all these new expectations and responsibilities, but first he’s taking a trip home to Edinburgh to visit his mother and three sisters and tell them the news.
Widowed Ilsa Ramsey is ready to seize her independence and have a little adventure, not settle down into a second marriage. When she learns that the handsome soldier she danced with at a raucous tavern is in fact her friend’s brother and heir to an English dukedom, she reminds herself of all the reasons she could never be with him, despite their strong mutual attraction. But as Ilsa’s friendship with his sister puts her in the same orbit as Drew more and more frequently, they struggle to stay apart.
Drew knows the Duchess expects him to marry an Englishwoman with a sparkling reputation and training befitting the title, and lively Ilsa if far from that expectation. Even so, when Ilsa finds herself embroiled in scandal, Drew steps in to help her even as she attempts to push him away. Soon neither of them is willing to forsake their feelings for any duty or expectation.
It took a while for me to really get into this book, but I did wind up enjoying it. I loved the Scottish setting as well as the fact that Ilsa and Drew’s relationship begins fairly early on in the book and develops with a fair amount of open honesty and not much game playing. Andrew was a great hero as he seemed to just be a genuinely good man, devoted to his family, and trying to do right by Ilsa, his newfound responsibilities, and his own heart. He was easy to root for. I also found myself cheering Ilsa on, but this was a source of great frustration for me when she refused to stand up for herself and truly assert her status as an independent woman to her aunt and father. I won’t say much more because I don’t want to give anything away, but I wanted more vindication for her and more comeuppance for the villain. I liked that the conflict was mostly external, but Ilsa said some awful things to Drew that she could’ve done a better job of apologizing and making up for, especially after everything he was willing to sacrifice for her. I also thought that the final conflict was cleared away rather quickly and in a manner that wasn’t wholly satisfactory for me, especially after how much of a big deal it was made out to be. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed this story and both the main and supporting characters, and I look forward to the next installment in the series.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3134684290
https://www.bookbub.com/reviews/1512998367
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