The Worst Duke in London by Amalie Howard

Tracy’s Rating: 2/2.5 of 5 stars

Series: Taming of the Dukes, #3

Release Date: September 24, 2024

Lady Evangeline Raine is a bluestocking through and through, she has no patience for those don’t agree with her and she chafes against the patriarchy, leading her to distain both society and marriage and focus her passion on saving animals. But when her younger sister wants to be courted by her beau, their father decides that if Viola wants to be courted then Evangeline must also be courted. Evangeline has no desire to be courted or married, but she is interested in what she might be missing in the boudoir. So, when Gage Croft, Duke of Vale shows interest in her, she offers him proposition, he may court her if he agrees to show her the delights of the marriage bed sans marriage.

Gage Croft, Duke of Vale inherited a rundown, debt-ridden estate thanks to his father and older brother, he tries to turn the estates finances around, but the debt is enormous. So when the holder of the majority of his debts offers to reduce the debt in exchange for a favor, Gage agrees. The favor is for Gage to court Lady Evangeline so Lady Viola will be able to be courted. Simple enough, that is until he meets her and finds himself embroiled in yet another deal. Everything would be fine, if he hadn’t fallen for her and if she hadn’t learned about his previous arrangement. Now he has to convince her that his love is true and worth the risk.

Sigh, this had the potential to be a great story and the author’s writing style is very good, but sadly instead of romance, this book is more like women’s fiction with sex, corsets, and no electricity or indoor plumbing. These days, a bit of anachronism and creative license are to be expected in historical romance, to make characters more relatable to contemporary readers, but this was over the top – it was a contemporary story in period dress. I have read other books by this author and felt the same way but have given her several chances to prove that she can in fact write historical romance – and have been disappointed time and time again. If I wanted to read about feminism and 21st century ideals and morals, I would read a contemporary romance. I am sure there will be plenty of readers who will read and love this book, but it just doesn’t work for me. This is the third book in the series, but it could easily be read as a standalone title without any issues.
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*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher/author. All opinions in this review are my own. *