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A review by rjordan19
Duke the Halls by Felicity Niven
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Readability: 📖📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡⚡⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑🍑
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥🔥
Humor: Yes
Perspective: Third person from both hero and heroine
When mains are first on page together: Immediately
Cliffhanger: No, this ends with a happily ever after
Epilogue: Yes
Format: voluntarily read an advanced reader copy from the author in e-book form
Should I read in order?
This is a prequel novella to the Bed Me Books series.
Basic plot:
So I usually throw together my own thoughts on plot but I adored this opening SO MUCH that I’m just going to put it here…
The Duke of Kittredge is the rarest of men – a wealthy, tall and still-unmarried duke at the age of thrity-one. As such, he’s perennially at the top of the “Most Eligible Bachelor” list of the ton. And yet, he’s never gotten close to landing a wife. Young ladies don’t seem to like him. Scratch that. They revile him. And he’s in complete sympathy with their opinion of him.
Because he is, without questions, an insufferable clodpole.
Give this a try if you want:
- Regency – 1817
- Duke hero
- heroine loves Christmas
- celibate herothree years
- neologisms!
- opposites attract – bit of sunshine and grump feel
- hero has dimples
- bargain – for letting Franny and her brother stay for Christmas, she’ll help Kit with his lady problem
- bearded hero
- bit of a reverse sex lessons vibe
- novella length
- medium steam – 2 full scenes, though on is in the epilogue (in a novella length)
Ages:
- Hero is 31, didn’t catch heroine
First line:
No, no, no, no.
My thoughts:
This novella was just THE BEST. Really. I think this might be my favorite thing I’ve read all year. It was just delightful. Hilarious. Unique characters. And lots of hero perspective which is my favorite!
I found myself highlighting lines left and right – I just couldn’t get enough of these two. Their playful banter. I ate up how badly Kit wanted Franny but was rather clueless about how to behave. I adored being in his head and seeing him sort through those emotions and become a man worthy of her. But..it wasn’t just these two. It was the entire thing. Niven’s writing style has really grabbed me with this series and this one was just one of those books that the writing pulled me in and held me there in a cozy embrace. I like plenty of books, but rarely do I feel a book was an absolute pleasure to read cover to cover. This one hit that for me. It’s such a gem.
The time spent on kisses in this one is much appreciated by me – I adore first kisses and the fact that there’s some teaching elements in this one really makes Kit have some self reflection and he melted me with his thoughts about pleasing Franny. Still riding my high from Bed Me, Earl, I had no idea Niven would come by with another novel that leaves me grinning ear to ear and feeling giddy so soon. 😍
Quotes/spoiler-y thoughts:Any mistakes/typos are my own
She untied her boots. “Do you want to please me because I’m your teacher and you’re a good pupil?”
He scoffed.
“Or are you a selfish pig-widgeon and you think pleasing me will get you what you want?”
“I’m a selfish pig-widgeon.”
---
“Thank you,” she blurted.
The man nodded.
Oh. He hadn’t been angry at her for laughing. Smoldering was just his natural expression. And his blue-gray eyes now made her feel quite warm despite the chilly day.
---
“I’ve been in my stays for over a day. Fell asleep without taking them off. Would you mind...that is, would it bother you if I removed them?”
Every bit of blood in his head rushed to his cock and all he saw was red. Red nipples. His mouth went dry and his lips stuck to his teeth. Air could not enter his lungs.
But still, he tried to sound as if he discussed women’s undergarments, or the lack of them, all the time. “No. It wouldn’t bother. Me.”
It came out as a growl. But better that than a whimper.
---
“What’s next?”
“Kissing.”
Suddenly, he crowded her and her back was against the music room’s priceless, elaborate mural. Each of Kit’s enormous hands were flat on the painted wall on either side of her head, his arms caging her in. His breath, sweet with whisky and ginger biscuits, warmed her face.
---
He pushed away ‘arsehole’ and ‘clodpole’ and ‘I want to tup you’ and kept her words in his mind: you’re beautiful, I cherish you, I adore you.
He trembled himself now. He turned his head slightly, bent his head down, and put his lips to hers. You’re beautiful, I cherish you, I adore you.
---
Just before he ended the kiss, he licked the seam of her lips oh-so-very lightly. And she just very slightly parted her lips for him as he did so.
Ah. Good God. She must feel his cockstand pressing against her now.
He put his forehead to hers, not letting go of her. “I’m sorry about…”
She smiled. “Your maypole? I’m not. You flatterer, you.”
---
“Your buttocks are breathtakingly gorgeous,” he said. “Your buttocks derange me. They drive me mad.”
He heard a giggle. “You can’t blame my buttocks for that.”
He stepped up to her backside and pressed himself to her, his cock against her lower back. “You feel my derangement?”
She took in a shaky breath. “Is that your pet name for it?”
---
Was he pleasing her? She was so much quieter than he had expected. He was used to a woman making all kinds of sounds before and during the act. Loud yelps. Shouted oaths. Screaming.
---
“Give me the beast. Like when you carried me up the stairs and threw me on the bed. Fuck me like you wanted to then.”
He hesitated. She hadn’t liked that before. Was she trying to please him?
The next word came out on a deep, gutteral groan. “Now.”
He did his best. His bollocks were aching for release so he let every primitive part of him give power to his thrusts.
A growl burned in his chest and rose up and out of him with his grunts.
You’re beautiful. I adore fucking you. I fucking adore you. I fuck you. Mine.
---
He was sobbing and being put in a chair and Bevel was trying to lick his face and someone was shoving a whisky in his hand and he heard Dagenham saying ‘Lady Francesca’ and ‘has a terrible tendre’ and ‘never seen him like this’.
Content warnings: These should be taken as a minimum of what to expect. It’s very possible I have missed some.
- alluded to assault/harassment on a state coach
- death of parents
- loss of title due to Catholic marriage not being recognized
Locations of kisses/intimate scenes:
Safe sex: Hero pulls out (and has been celibate for almost 3 years)
39% - on page but short and a bit fantasy based/alluded to hero self pleasure
66% - 🔥kisses, touches, fingering for her, missionary
“Your buttocks are breathtakingly gorgeous,” he said. “Your buttocks derange me. They drive me mad.”
He heard a giggle. “You can’t blame my buttocks for that.”
He stepped up to her backside and pressed himself to her, his cock against her lower back. “You feel my derangement?”
She took in a shaky breath. “Is that your pet name for it?”
85% - kisses
89% - 🔥sit on my face oral for her
“Come here.” He roughly grabbed and dragged and she giggled until he got her upright, suspended above his face, her knees on either side of his head.
She looked down. “Kit?”
“Take hold of the headboard. The duke wants his dessert. Now.”
Readability: 📖📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡⚡⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑🍑
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥🔥
Humor: Yes
Perspective: Third person from both hero and heroine
When mains are first on page together: Immediately
Cliffhanger: No, this ends with a happily ever after
Epilogue: Yes
Format: voluntarily read an advanced reader copy from the author in e-book form
Should I read in order?
This is a prequel novella to the Bed Me Books series.
Basic plot:
So I usually throw together my own thoughts on plot but I adored this opening SO MUCH that I’m just going to put it here…
The Duke of Kittredge is the rarest of men – a wealthy, tall and still-unmarried duke at the age of thrity-one. As such, he’s perennially at the top of the “Most Eligible Bachelor” list of the ton. And yet, he’s never gotten close to landing a wife. Young ladies don’t seem to like him. Scratch that. They revile him. And he’s in complete sympathy with their opinion of him.
Because he is, without questions, an insufferable clodpole.
Give this a try if you want:
- Regency – 1817
- Duke hero
- heroine loves Christmas
- celibate hero
- neologisms!
- opposites attract – bit of sunshine and grump feel
- hero has dimples
- bargain – for letting Franny and her brother stay for Christmas, she’ll help Kit with his lady problem
- bearded hero
- bit of a reverse sex lessons vibe
- novella length
- medium steam – 2 full scenes, though on is in the epilogue (in a novella length)
Ages:
- Hero is 31, didn’t catch heroine
First line:
No, no, no, no.
My thoughts:
This novella was just THE BEST. Really. I think this might be my favorite thing I’ve read all year. It was just delightful. Hilarious. Unique characters. And lots of hero perspective which is my favorite!
I found myself highlighting lines left and right – I just couldn’t get enough of these two. Their playful banter. I ate up how badly Kit wanted Franny but was rather clueless about how to behave. I adored being in his head and seeing him sort through those emotions and become a man worthy of her. But..it wasn’t just these two. It was the entire thing. Niven’s writing style has really grabbed me with this series and this one was just one of those books that the writing pulled me in and held me there in a cozy embrace. I like plenty of books, but rarely do I feel a book was an absolute pleasure to read cover to cover. This one hit that for me. It’s such a gem.
The time spent on kisses in this one is much appreciated by me – I adore first kisses and the fact that there’s some teaching elements in this one really makes Kit have some self reflection and he melted me with his thoughts about pleasing Franny. Still riding my high from Bed Me, Earl, I had no idea Niven would come by with another novel that leaves me grinning ear to ear and feeling giddy so soon. 😍
Quotes/spoiler-y thoughts:Any mistakes/typos are my own
She untied her boots. “Do you want to please me because I’m your teacher and you’re a good pupil?”
He scoffed.
“Or are you a selfish pig-widgeon and you think pleasing me will get you what you want?”
“I’m a selfish pig-widgeon.”
---
“Thank you,” she blurted.
The man nodded.
Oh. He hadn’t been angry at her for laughing. Smoldering was just his natural expression. And his blue-gray eyes now made her feel quite warm despite the chilly day.
---
“I’ve been in my stays for over a day. Fell asleep without taking them off. Would you mind...that is, would it bother you if I removed them?”
Every bit of blood in his head rushed to his cock and all he saw was red. Red nipples. His mouth went dry and his lips stuck to his teeth. Air could not enter his lungs.
But still, he tried to sound as if he discussed women’s undergarments, or the lack of them, all the time. “No. It wouldn’t bother. Me.”
It came out as a growl. But better that than a whimper.
---
“What’s next?”
“Kissing.”
Suddenly, he crowded her and her back was against the music room’s priceless, elaborate mural. Each of Kit’s enormous hands were flat on the painted wall on either side of her head, his arms caging her in. His breath, sweet with whisky and ginger biscuits, warmed her face.
---
He pushed away ‘arsehole’ and ‘clodpole’ and ‘I want to tup you’ and kept her words in his mind: you’re beautiful, I cherish you, I adore you.
He trembled himself now. He turned his head slightly, bent his head down, and put his lips to hers. You’re beautiful, I cherish you, I adore you.
---
Just before he ended the kiss, he licked the seam of her lips oh-so-very lightly. And she just very slightly parted her lips for him as he did so.
Ah. Good God. She must feel his cockstand pressing against her now.
He put his forehead to hers, not letting go of her. “I’m sorry about…”
She smiled. “Your maypole? I’m not. You flatterer, you.”
---
“Your buttocks are breathtakingly gorgeous,” he said. “Your buttocks derange me. They drive me mad.”
He heard a giggle. “You can’t blame my buttocks for that.”
He stepped up to her backside and pressed himself to her, his cock against her lower back. “You feel my derangement?”
She took in a shaky breath. “Is that your pet name for it?”
---
Was he pleasing her? She was so much quieter than he had expected. He was used to a woman making all kinds of sounds before and during the act. Loud yelps. Shouted oaths. Screaming.
---
“Give me the beast. Like when you carried me up the stairs and threw me on the bed. Fuck me like you wanted to then.”
He hesitated. She hadn’t liked that before. Was she trying to please him?
The next word came out on a deep, gutteral groan. “Now.”
He did his best. His bollocks were aching for release so he let every primitive part of him give power to his thrusts.
A growl burned in his chest and rose up and out of him with his grunts.
You’re beautiful. I adore fucking you. I fucking adore you. I fuck you. Mine.
---
He was sobbing and being put in a chair and Bevel was trying to lick his face and someone was shoving a whisky in his hand and he heard Dagenham saying ‘Lady Francesca’ and ‘has a terrible tendre’ and ‘never seen him like this’.
Content warnings: These should be taken as a minimum of what to expect. It’s very possible I have missed some.
- alluded to assault/harassment on a state coach
- death of parents
- loss of title due to Catholic marriage not being recognized
Locations of kisses/intimate scenes:
Safe sex:
39% - on page but short and a bit fantasy based/alluded to hero self pleasure
66% - 🔥kisses, touches, fingering for her, missionary
“Your buttocks are breathtakingly gorgeous,” he said. “Your buttocks derange me. They drive me mad.”
He heard a giggle. “You can’t blame my buttocks for that.”
He stepped up to her backside and pressed himself to her, his cock against her lower back. “You feel my derangement?”
She took in a shaky breath. “Is that your pet name for it?”
85% - kisses
89% - 🔥sit on my face oral for her
“Come here.” He roughly grabbed and dragged and she giggled until he got her upright, suspended above his face, her knees on either side of his head.
She looked down. “Kit?”
“Take hold of the headboard. The duke wants his dessert. Now.”