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A review by sophiegrubben
One Season with the Duke by Addy Du Lac
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
thank you to netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review!
this book is more of a 3.5 stars or 3.75 but I enjoyed it far too much for it to be a 3 star, so I rounded up :)
One season with the duke revolves around Hettie (Henrietta) as she finds out that she might not be who she always assumed she was and is blackmailed into marrying her cousin. meanwhile Finn (Findley) has returned to London to find his childhood crush betrothed to someone he never expected her to be with. when she expresses doubt, he whiskes her off to London to marry her himself. from there on out the true story starts. both characters (for most of the book) are loveable, loyal, kind people, except one around the end (but this person is redeemed (somewhat)). of course it's Finn. he's the man, of course it's him. he finds out the secret and just becomes this awful man-child, incapable of reason and so fuelled by anger that he lashes out at everyone, to the point that his entire staff is frightened of him. he doesn't calm down until his mother (who did not like Hettie for most of the book) tells him to act right. like, he's being that awful. the fact Hettie forgave him at all is a miracle on its own, goddamn
as for the plot, you will be frustrated. such is the nature of this. both of these idiots will drive you wild in all the ways. you will flush at both the smut and the indignant anger of how stupid they're being.
one gripe I had with the book was the modern use of the word cuz and the public displays of affection. I did google when the word cuz was first in use (1889, so fifty some years after the epilogue) but it didn't gain popularity until well into the 90's so that was extremely jarring to read. another thing was the public displays of affection, a big no-no in victorian England. at one point Hettie is kissed by someone publicly and it's written that people cheer. I very much beg to differ. also, later on the story Hettie and Finn get handsy in public and I had to put the book away for a bit. it's small things like this that took me out the story multiple times.
other than those gripes, I did like the book, especially Hettie. Hettie is my darling. I want all the good things for her, no more hardships ever, thank you very much.
this book is more of a 3.5 stars or 3.75 but I enjoyed it far too much for it to be a 3 star, so I rounded up :)
One season with the duke revolves around Hettie (Henrietta) as she finds out that she might not be who she always assumed she was and is blackmailed into marrying her cousin. meanwhile Finn (Findley) has returned to London to find his childhood crush betrothed to someone he never expected her to be with. when she expresses doubt, he whiskes her off to London to marry her himself. from there on out the true story starts. both characters (for most of the book) are loveable, loyal, kind people, except one around the end (but this person is redeemed (somewhat)).
as for the plot, you will be frustrated. such is the nature of this. both of these idiots will drive you wild in all the ways. you will flush at both the smut and the indignant anger of how stupid they're being.
one gripe I had with the book was the modern use of the word cuz and the public displays of affection. I did google when the word cuz was first in use (1889, so fifty some years after the epilogue) but it didn't gain popularity until well into the 90's so that was extremely jarring to read. another thing was the public displays of affection, a big no-no in victorian England. at one point Hettie is kissed by someone publicly and it's written that people cheer. I very much beg to differ. also, later on the story Hettie and Finn get handsy in public and I had to put the book away for a bit. it's small things like this that took me out the story multiple times.
other than those gripes, I did like the book, especially Hettie. Hettie is my darling. I want all the good things for her, no more hardships ever, thank you very much.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Racism, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Classism