The Governess Game by Tessa Dare
Tracy’s rating: 5 of 5 stars
Series: Girl Meets Duke, #2
Release Date: August 28, 2018
Alexandra “Alex” Mountbatten met Chase Reynaud six months ago when he ran into her in a bookshop – literally – they did not exchange names but she never forgot him and he was the star in many of her fantasies. Secretly she hoped that he was thinking of her and they would met again.
Be careful what you wish for! They do meet again, but it is clear Chase doesn’t recognize her and mistakes her for a governess applicant. Chase is heir presumptive to his uncle, the Duke of Belvoir and as his uncle is incapacitated, Chase has taken over his duties, including the care and guardianship of two young hellions. He is desperate for a governess to teach the girls enough that they will be accepted into school. Chase is a rake and refuses to form attachments or make promises. When Alex takes him to task, he knows she is the perfect person to get the girls ready for school. He drags her up to meet them, but upon entering the room and seeing what appears to be a gruesome murder scene, Alex flees. Chase follows and offers her an outrageous amount of money to stay, but Alex refuses.
Later when a panic attack causes her to lose her chronometer and therefore her livelihood, she returns to his house and accepts the job. She starts the next day and immediately realizes two things, one, Rosamund and Daisy are not going to be easy and two, Chase is not going to be easy to ignore. She tries to bond with the girls, but quickly recognizes their pain, for she has been in their shoes. When she is awoken the next morning to attend the funeral of Millicent, Daisy’s doll, she learns that this is an almost daily occurrence and one Chase is also part of. Chase is called to perform the service and tries his best to make Alex laugh.
They all settle into a routine, the girls ignoring Alex, pulling pranks, Alex using Chase’s telescope to try and find a comet (her new profession) and daily funeral services with Chase officiating. Alex begins to see the real Chase and tries to include him in the girls lives. But Chase just seems to want to complete his Cave of Carnality and get back to his rakish ways. Slowly they get to know each other and kisses follow. She wonders what happened to make such a loving man keep everyone at arms length.
When the truth is revealed, Alex tries to make Chase see that he can move on from his past and help the girls, but Chase doesn’t believe he can be trusted and keeps pulling away. When Alex finally finds a comet, Chase is by her side and helps her face her own fears. They both confess their love and it seems like their HEA is well in hand. But when the unexpected happens, words are exchanged and hearts are broken. Can Chase finally conquer his demons and win back the only woman he has ever loved?
This was an extremely well written, witty, fast paced novel, that was nearly impossible to put down. Alex and Chase are wonderful leads, they both have things in their pasts that affect them, but they are incredibly supportive of each other, the secondary characters are great and highly entertaining, the love scenes are steamy, the story grabs you from the first pages and doesn’t let go until the last word. I highly recommend this book, it is the second in the Girl Meets Duke series, but it can absolutely be read as a stand alone with no problem.
*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an uncorrected eARC that was provided to me by Edelweiss and the publisher*
