Rating 3 Stars
Review
My Darling Duke is the first book in the Sinful Wallflowers series and a decent introduction into the wallflowers looking to change their circumstances. My Darling Duke features Katherine “Kitty” Danvers as a desperate wallflower attempting to save her family by pretending to be engaged to the reclusive Duke of Thornton, Alexander Masters. His reclusiveness has been self-imposed after a tragic accident which left him with scarring and difficulty walking/standing for long periods. After learning through newspaper articles and rumours told to him by family members that he has a fiancée, he makes it his mission to discover just who this woman is and what exactly it is about her that’s so intriguing to his senses.
This is the first story I’ve read by Stacy Reid so I wasn’t entirely sure what her writing style would be like. For the most part, I enjoyed it! I liked the story – I have a soft spot for fake to real relationships, especially in historical romances – and found Alexander’s perseverance to overcome his difficulties from the accident to be really interesting. However, there were a few moments in the book that I found a little repetitive and would skim-read those parts while anxiously awaiting what was going to happen next in the story.
The characters in the story were also great with Alexander being the scarred and tortured hero with genuine flaws that made him all the more realistic and lovable. Kitty’s wallflower status emphasized the meaning behind perception in society. In reality, Kitty was a fierce protector of her family, and strong-willed in her actions to avoid financial destitution and secure good matches for her sisters. When Alexander approached her for the first time, Kitty was faced with the consequences of her decisions and held true to herself. Basically, Kitty’s personality was the opposite of a quiet, meek wallflower.
Overall, I think this was a good start to the series and I look forward to seeing what the other ‘wallflowers’ get up to in an effort to change their situations.
Release date is 31 December 2019! Pre-order your copy now!
Disclaimer: Thank you to Entangled Publishing and Netgalley for the free copy in an exchange for an honest review.
Bookishly Nomes 