A Lady For a Duke: a swoonworthy historical romance from the bestselling author of Boyfriend Material

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That seems to prevent Hall from fully committing to his villainy, yet making him problematic enough that I’m not comfortable rooting for him in the future. As a bonus, Hall also wrote the funny, insightful discussion questions at the back, allowing readers space to dwell a bit longer on the story. My heart was full to bursting by the time I set my kindle down, and now I’m just wondering when is too soon to pick this story back up for another round of epic romance? Viola’s desire to transition, solidified by her first experience of meeting someone transgender (one of the farmers who helped her recover after Waterloo), is certainly her own business, but she reacts to Gracewood’s feelings by becoming very angry with him.

Viola and Gracewood's relationship has this sweetness and depth to it and I was fully rooting for them by the end of the book. The side characters are an absolute delight, and the ending is everything I could have wished for Viola and Gracewood as a couple.

There are times when he cannot be as strong as he would like, and even times when Viola has to support him and even fight for him. A beautifully articulated queer romance that's completely worthy of its length, A Lady for a Duke feels like an old-school historical romance in the best way possible, with its lyrical writing, the near-obsessed dedication to capture every single emotional nuances, and the sense of sweeping scope and place. Worse yet, a mystery, my very womanhood the subject of speculation in private salons and bets at White’s”.

Despite its tough topics, A Lady for a Duke is a comfort read, and I haven’t even mentioned the gorgeous side characters yet, especially Lady Marleigh, Miranda, and Lady Lillimere. The fact that she was transgender in such a time (I believe the early 1800s) was astounding and damn courageous, and I adored her family and the support and unwavering acceptance given by every character that knew and loved her. Quaint, happy, and filled with heart, A Lady for a Duke is a shining example of a new type of inclusive historical romance. I’m actually genuinely upset that you can have a premise so interesting with the friends to lovers trope and just make it uninteresting.

Viola and Gracewood are drawn to each other in such a way that there is pining and angst and love and fear. She manages to be difficult and authentic and pushy while still being someone you like and whose good intentions are clear. He is constantly torn between following his heart and fulfilling his legacy, exactly as his strict father would have wanted.

Suffering from debilitating battle wounds and PTSD, Justin is openly scorned as a coward and a failure by his peers. She becomes lady Marleigh's (her sister in law) companion, also giving up her rights and place on the hierarchy ladder. Her younger brother became the Viscount, and he and his wife take in Viola as she learns to embrace herself and her womanhood in a society ripe with fashions, customs, and gossip. A lush, sweeping queer historical romance from the bestselling author of Boyfriend Material -perfect for fans of Bridgerton, Evie Dunmore, and Lisa Kleypas!For those who were fans of Boyfriend Material, it's worth noting that A Lady for a Duke is tonally quite different. The bravery and vulnerability of these two characters—the beautifully nuanced acknowledgment that necessary choices can bring relief but also loss (but also hope, and new opportunities)—I cried so much while reading that my mask became utterly saturated and probably lost structural integrity. To start with what I liked about this, I really loved how we got to see Viola's way of thinking and how she wanted to live her life. This may just be my own personal preference (or ignorance of convention at the time the book is set) but sometimes, the way the characters talked seemed a little too 'modern', which took me out of the story a little bit. While I have far less context than the biographer, this proclamation sounds somewhat complementary to modern trans narratives I have heard—that one was ‘bad’ at presenting and fulfilling all the aspects of their gender assigned at birth, and there is a specific rightness to the gender they identify as.

It is so good and so cathartic to see these characters find their way back to each other and heal each other in a way that is so incredibly earnest and powerful. She says she can’t marry him because he might be laughed out of his clubs and because she can’t give him biological children.I adored the side characters - they were hilariously refreshing, effortlessly charming, simply delightful parts of Viola and Gracewood's lives that just added such life to their moments.