Review - - The Duke's All That

The Duke's All That

by Christina Britton

Synneful Spinsters - Book 3

Publisher: Forever

Release Date: February 6, 2024

Reviewed by PJ

A heartbreaking betrayal. A secret life. A love that deserves a second chance.

Iain MacInnes, Duke of Balgair, has spent the last thirteen years believing his wife is dead—until he receives word that she is very much alive and living under an assumed name on the remote Isle of Synne. He sets off with only one goal in mind: bring his wife back to Scotland where he can divorce her and expose her for the liar she is.

After a devastating deception by the man who was supposed to love her, Seraphina did what was necessary to keep herself and her sisters safe. And though she’s still haunted by the events that tore her world apart all those years ago, she’s made a happy life on Synne, surrounded by loyal friends and building a secret career as a popular author. Now that Iain has found her, however, all that is at risk.

Despite their long separation, the attraction between Iain and Seraphina still burns strong. But with so much hurt and betrayal between them, can they possibly find their way back to each other?

PJ's Thoughts:

I fell in love with Christina Britton's writing while reading her first Isle of Synne book, A Good Duke is Hard to Find, four years ago. Since then, each successive book set on Synne has only reinforced that initial reaction. Her newest, The Duke's All That, just may be my favorite of the whole bunch. 

Seraphina and Iain checked all my happy romance reader buttons with their enemies-to-lovers, second-chance, road romance. I always knew there was more to Seraphina's story than what had unfolded during the course of her stay on Synne. I never imagined the layers, the betrayals, the heartache and pain, but also the strength and courage that lurked in her secretive past. Every time I thought I couldn't admire her more a new secret was revealed and my admiration, and affection, doubled. Iain is a new character so I had no idea what to expect from him but it didn't take long for him to forge his way into my affections as well. These two had been betrayed in a horrible, life altering manner. I couldn't help but pull for them to find their way back to one another. 

I love a story that pushes all my emotional buttons and this one certainly did that. There's yearning, angst, retribution, character growth, family dynamics, steamy desire, and the love and support of a steadfast community of women...a couple dukes...and one salty parrot, with a Scottish brogue, who is the source of much humor but also heartache (no worries - the parrot is hearty and healthy at the end). Nothing in the journey feels rushed. Britton takes her time with these two, slowly revealing secrets and layers, unveiling the events of the past thirteen years that they've been apart. She also takes her time rebuilding the trust, affection, and desire that had been such a crucial part of their young relationship, before it was blown to smithereens. There were more than a few twists along the way but by the time I reached the conclusion with these two both my mind and my heart were happy with the outcome. 

The Duke's All That is a tumultuous, deeply emotional, sometimes humorous, and thoroughly satisfying reawakening of love that's going straight to my keeper shelf where I have no doubt I'll be visiting it again. Though characters from earlier books appear in this one, readers new to Britton could absolutely enjoy this as a standalone. If you prefer to read books in order but are put off by the length of the series, I recommend beginning with Some Dukes Have All the Luck, book one in the Synneful Spinsters trilogy set within the Isle of Synne world. If you want to go back to the beginning, I've listed all of the books in order below with links to my reviews. 

Isle of Synne:

A Good Duke is Hard to Find

Someday My Duke Will Come

A Duke Worth Fighting For

Synneful Spinsters:

Some Dukes Have All the Luck

What's a Duke Got to Do With It

The Duke's All That