Bespeckled and freckled, Lady Stella Corsham at least has a dowry that has attracted a crowd of fortune-hunting suitors—which definitely doesn’t include the sinfully handsome Silvester Parnell, Duke of Huntington, who laughingly calls her “Specs” as he chases after elegant rivals.
And then—
The worst happens. Marriage.
To the duke. To a man marrying her for all the wrong reasons.
How can Silvester possibly convince Stella that he’s fallen in love with the quirky woman he married?
Santa says:
I’m back with an exciting review of Eloisa James’ latest book, Not That Duke. This five star read was a triumph! I fell in love with Silvester and Stella from the very first pages. It's a slow burn romance of friends to lovers. But that trope over simplifies how these two people fall in love - and kind of out of love - on Stella’s part while our hero is in hot pursuit of this year’s original, Lady Yasmin who we met in the previous book in this series, The Reluctant Countess.
Silvester believes in love and fancies himself in love with Lady Yasmin. He decides to court her. It’s what any steadfast Duke would do. She’s a safe bet. Not one to call attention to herself in Silvester’s eyes, her beauty speaks for itself. And that should be enough, right?
Stella for all her intellect and forthright opinions struggles to not knock over everything in sight. In her eyes, she is the exact opposite of Yasmin. She’s ‘sturdy’ and freckled. She sees Silvester and Yasmin as a golden couple.
Stella is a not too reluctant wallflower. It’s safe there against the wall. No chance of knocking into someone, spilling something or trodding on anyone’s feet on the dance floor. But when disaster strikes Silvester is right there ready to help her along.
However, his teasing and alleged barbs - fed to her by a particularly vicious cat of the ton, Lady Lydia - hurt Stella as she has been half in love with him for quite some time. She tries to hate him and rebuffs his attempts at befriending her but they reach a tentative friendship over their daily games of chess.
Over time, Silvester’s feelings change. He finds himself lustfully attracted to Stella. He is desperate to have her in his life and in his bed. And not necessarily in that order. He proposes to Stella in the most unromantic way. Stella wants someone to be in love with her and she feels that Silvester is still in love with Yasmin.
They marry much to Stella's chagrin. But as time goes by Silvester realizes that he was only in love with the idea of Yasmin who turns out to be in love with his best friend, Giles.
Can Silvester convince Stella that he really does love her? It takes the concerted efforts of Silvester’s unconventional mother, the dowager duchess, and Stella’s aunt, with just a bit of groveling at the end.
Once again, it’s time to run and devour another Eloisa James novel. I guarantee you will be as delighted as I was. Be prepared to laugh out loud, to sigh with joy and you may even shed a tear or two!
PJ here. I hope you enjoy this book as much as Santa and I did. It really is a treasure.
What's the last book that made you shed a tear, sigh with joy, and laugh out loud?
One randomly chosen person who posts a comment before 11:00 PM, July 29 will receive a print copy of Not That Duke.
*U.S. only
*Must be 18
