The Duchess Takes it All by Michelle McLean
Tracy’s Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Series: Standalone with possibility of spinoff novels
Release Date: November 26, 2024
Tamsin Palmer, the widowed Duchess of Clevesley has never really been accepted by society despite her advantageous marriage to a Duke, in the eyes of the ton, she is nothing more than a wealthy Cit whose father bought her a title, and sadly the duke, while considerate to her physically, did nothing to smooth her entrance into the upper echelons of society, preferring to have her stay in the country with their infant son. But now that her mourning is almost complete, she hopes to finally find her place in the ton, raise her son, continue to use her art to make a difference and live happily independent ever after. And then she met him…
Christian August, Count of Rauchberg, is a German noble and cousin to the late duke. He was named by his cousin as executor of the dukedom and co-guardian to his young son. Christian is all about duty and thanks to his mother being of lower birth than his father, knows firsthand how cruel society can be to those they deem as lesser mortals. He believes he will go to England, set the estate to rights, form a plan for the young duke’s future and then return to Germany, marry an acceptable bride and live dutifully ever after. And then he met her…
This book was entertaining, but not quite the story I was expecting. I was hoping for a light, fun read and it started out that way and then for some unknown reason, the author decided to crank up the angst and made the characters miserable before easily solving the problem and giving them a HEA. Overall, it was an OK read, but not one I would re-read. This book doesn’t appear to be the start of a new series but does have several secondary characters that might get stories of their own.
*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. *
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