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madeleinehelena's review against another edition
4.0
“I don’t want to be a footnote in history. I want my very own chapter.”
India Rochester is an amazing character. She's brave, clever, vulnerable and does not apologize for pursuing her goals.
Daniel Ravenwood is also likeable, but I wish the author would have hidden that fact a bit longer to build up the tension. The best parts of the book are when India and Raven are bantering, and I would have loved more of it. As it is, it's obvious quite early on that he is not who she thinks, which deflates some of the interactions.
I really enjoyed the plot, with treasure hunt, Egyptian history/myths and spies.
India Rochester is an amazing character. She's brave, clever, vulnerable and does not apologize for pursuing her goals.
Daniel Ravenwood is also likeable, but I wish the author would have hidden that fact a bit longer to build up the tension. The best parts of the book are when India and Raven are bantering, and I would have loved more of it. As it is, it's obvious quite early on that he is not who she thinks, which deflates some of the interactions.
I really enjoyed the plot, with treasure hunt, Egyptian history/myths and spies.
hannahkiwi's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
kimberlyyyreads's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
readwithchey's review
5.0
“Surely a treasure hunt across Paris between sworn rivals will be more thrilling than dangerous.”
Okay okay before we start the technical part of this review I need to gush first. I loved this. Like wholeheartedly loved this from the moment I picked it up. After DNFing two books in a row I needed something good so desperately and this little historical gem came along and rescued me. I will recommend this to anyone and everyone who wants a historical romance with a kick of adventure because I, again, absolutely loved this.
Now that that’s over, let’s get down to business.
Lady Danger versus the Rogue Duke.
Let’s discuss characters, shall we? Indy was such a fun lead to follow through this journey because she’s so smart and witty and knows her own power, especially because we see her through both the world of archaeology and the world of the ton. It’s part of why I loved this book so much, because both Indy and Raven were scholars in their own right and worked together to uncover a mystery. It was like a treasure hunt mixed in with the classic Duke finds a Duchess and the old friends to enemies to lovers trope tossed in for good measure. Speaking of the devil, Raven was dashing and smart mouthed and a total dream boat. I loved him, especially when he was being an ass, and I loved the way he grew and changed over the course of the novel.
I want to be clear about something; this is not an adventure/treasure hunting masterpiece like National Treasure or whatever, but this plot line was my absolute favorite part of this novel. I had so much fun reading this and learning more about what Indy was studying and researching and everything else and then getting the romance plot added in was a bonus for me. It may be a touch corny, especially the whole Raven as a spy thing, but it’s still fun and it’s different from the other historicals I’ve read, granted I’ve only read a few. I do think the mystery of the missing relic was well done though, I didn’t see the ending coming no matter how many clues I thought I found throughout the book.
The writing in this is great, too. It has the perfect amount of steamy scenes and hilarious banter and every time I picked this up I was sucked in fully. All the side characters and mansions and fight scenes were really well written and didn’t feel extra or rushed, which they often times can. I think the author did a fantastic job when it came to writing the romance scenes in this because not only did they feel realistic but they were damn sexy. Your girl loves a good enemies to lovers story; always have, always will.
I might pick up the others in this series because I did really enjoy her writing and world building, but I also don’t know because the adventure aspect of this was what pushed this over the top for me. It also sparked a love of historical romances with an adventure/treasure hunting aspect, a smaller genre that I’ve been slowly gathering books in. Overall, I had so much fun reading this and this is going to go down as one of my favorites of the year and one of my favorite historicals. Ever.
Side Note: Can’t a girl get a sexy stepback anymore? Like damn, ya’ll. The possibilities here were endless. I feel let down.
You can check out other full reviews, author interviews, and bookish talks at Tonkin About Books!
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Okay okay before we start the technical part of this review I need to gush first. I loved this. Like wholeheartedly loved this from the moment I picked it up. After DNFing two books in a row I needed something good so desperately and this little historical gem came along and rescued me. I will recommend this to anyone and everyone who wants a historical romance with a kick of adventure because I, again, absolutely loved this.
Now that that’s over, let’s get down to business.
Lady Danger versus the Rogue Duke.
Let’s discuss characters, shall we? Indy was such a fun lead to follow through this journey because she’s so smart and witty and knows her own power, especially because we see her through both the world of archaeology and the world of the ton. It’s part of why I loved this book so much, because both Indy and Raven were scholars in their own right and worked together to uncover a mystery. It was like a treasure hunt mixed in with the classic Duke finds a Duchess and the old friends to enemies to lovers trope tossed in for good measure. Speaking of the devil, Raven was dashing and smart mouthed and a total dream boat. I loved him, especially when he was being an ass, and I loved the way he grew and changed over the course of the novel.
I want to be clear about something; this is not an adventure/treasure hunting masterpiece like National Treasure or whatever, but this plot line was my absolute favorite part of this novel. I had so much fun reading this and learning more about what Indy was studying and researching and everything else and then getting the romance plot added in was a bonus for me. It may be a touch corny, especially the whole Raven as a spy thing, but it’s still fun and it’s different from the other historicals I’ve read, granted I’ve only read a few. I do think the mystery of the missing relic was well done though, I didn’t see the ending coming no matter how many clues I thought I found throughout the book.
The writing in this is great, too. It has the perfect amount of steamy scenes and hilarious banter and every time I picked this up I was sucked in fully. All the side characters and mansions and fight scenes were really well written and didn’t feel extra or rushed, which they often times can. I think the author did a fantastic job when it came to writing the romance scenes in this because not only did they feel realistic but they were damn sexy. Your girl loves a good enemies to lovers story; always have, always will.
I might pick up the others in this series because I did really enjoy her writing and world building, but I also don’t know because the adventure aspect of this was what pushed this over the top for me. It also sparked a love of historical romances with an adventure/treasure hunting aspect, a smaller genre that I’ve been slowly gathering books in. Overall, I had so much fun reading this and this is going to go down as one of my favorites of the year and one of my favorite historicals. Ever.
Side Note: Can’t a girl get a sexy stepback anymore? Like damn, ya’ll. The possibilities here were endless. I feel let down.
You can check out other full reviews, author interviews, and bookish talks at Tonkin About Books!
Blog | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Pinterest
shogins's review against another edition
3.0
Not my favorite Bell book. It took a while to get into and the conclusion was bad-silly not fun-silly.
fringebookreviews's review against another edition
4.25
I’m loving this series (yes I’m reading from book three to two to one) and I REALLY loved the Indiana Jones vibes her nickname is literally Indy and she’s so bad ass. Betrothed since childhood but current enemies is always a very good time and I have no complaints.
The 69 was a lovely surprise god bless
The 69 was a lovely surprise god bless
kstep1805's review against another edition
3.0
Took a little bit to get into but Raven was super yummy and such a feminist. Dreamy.
l1brarygirl's review
4.0
I absolutely adore the character of India and I couldn't wait for her love story after seeing her in [b:What a Difference a Duke Makes|35068792|What a Difference a Duke Makes (School for Dukes, #1)|Lenora Bell|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1505780341l/35068792._SY75_.jpg|56396244].
#1 What a Difference a Duke Makes - ★★★★☆
#1 What a Difference a Duke Makes - ★★★★☆
bookishromance's review against another edition
4.0
I loved both the leads in this book. They were so well written. Both Indy and Raven were so perfect. I loved how strong Indy was. It is such a rare sight to see such strong h. I love the book more because of this and raven was so devoted to her. They were too cute.To make things even more perfect there were scenes portrayed in my favorite city. Paris. How could I not like this. Though the book did have some lacking elements. 3.5!!
loverofromance's review against another edition
3.0
This review was originally posted on Addicted To RomanceI received this book for free from Avon in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
*May Contain Spolers*
For The Duke's Eyes Only is the second book in the latest series by Lenora Bell. Here we have a story that features a second chance romance, some adventure, secrets and danger and some laughs. I will admit that I was a bit nervous in reading this book here. I really wanted to like this a ton, and I will admit I did get a kick out of this story in many ways. But unfortunately it wasn't a five star read like I was hoping for....but does that mean it was a bad book? HELL NO...it was REALLY good, just a couple things that brought the rating down a notch.
Our story begins with our heroine, India Rochester, digging in the ground with her friend Daniel, who is also her betrothed. They are the best of friends, looking for treasures, plans on having adventures around the world together and finding lost treasure and artifacts of all kinds. But then Daniel receives word that his father has been killed and a traitor to the country and must go to a special school in Scotland. At first Daniel and India write to each other for a while but then Daniel betrays India in the worst of ways, closing off her heart to him completely and now its been fifteen years since they were children playing and running free.
Lady India, is a Archaeologist and very passionate about her career. She has traveled all over on her digs and adventures and is planning a big one set for Egypt. And she is more than ready. But while in London, she poses as a man and infiltrates a male secret society for ancient artificats since women are forbidden to be part of it. And while out exploring, she stumbles across what is supposed to be the Rosetta Stone...only she knows that its a fake and Daniel of all people find her and now his boss wants her to accompany him on a mission to France to find the real one which has been stolen.
Daniel has been working as a spy for many years, ever since his father's death and being claimed a traitor, he knew his father was set up and wanted to clear his name. So he went through a brutal training when he was young, which forced him to give up everything and everyone he ever cared about including Indy. He has never stopped loving her, but he has to keep an emotional distance, because working as a spy....emotion can be the death of you. But he can't tell what he does for a living, but he has to keep Indy out of danger and tries to but he also understands her more than anyone else does. He understands her passion and zest. Will they find the theif of the stone....and will they find their happy ever after despite the past mistakes made?
I simply adored this book quite a bit, it was a delight in many ways. The first beginning scene, you truly feel the connection that Indy and Daniel have with each other even as children. They both have the same passion for knowledge and ancient artifacts and have their own dreams of their version of their future. But the life gets in the ways and they become enemies over the years. And now they will have to work together to solve a great mystery and bring a criminal to justice and hopefully prevent a war between England and France.
The bantering between the couple was simply fantastic, and I had a blast with these two. They were so entertaining and I loved how quick-witted they both are and they really understand each other in certain ways that even they don't even fully realize. Daniel wants to protect Indy because he knows the dangers of this type of work....he almost died a year before from this work and is just trying to prove himself to his boss so he can be out in the field again. But Indy is determined to get this mission done, even though she doesn't know everything that is really going on. She is kept in the dark at times so I understood why she could be a bit ....DRAMATIC....alright they are both dramatic in different ways. I expected this since we do see some dramatics in the first book "What A Difference A Duke Makes" --book one of the School For Dukes series. I did feel that Indy could be a bit naive at times and just wanted to go head first into this mission without thinking things through. But she has such a interesting personality that fascinates the reader that surprisingly this element didn't bother me so BRAVO to Lenora Bell to creating a heroine that I normally don't care for and found myself wanting to be friends with this independent lady who is unconventional and true to herself.
I had no problems with the hero, I could see things from his point of view and why he acts the way he does. We don't see what he goes through in his brutal training that he received, but I can just imagine how bad it must have been. And we also see what a close bond he has with his CO...who lost his family because of the job so we see that he doesn't want to lose Indy because of his choice to clear his father's name and do something bigger than himself...to make a difference and make the world a bit safer. He sacrfices quite a bit and I know that he may seem overbearing at times, but you also see that he does it out of concern for Indy. He has seen quite a bit evil in the world so I can see why the fear does get to him at times.
The flow of the story was a bit slow at times especially in the middle, but I can guarantee that the beginning and ending are very fast paced but at times the pace slows and so I had to keep with it at times. I am not sure if it was due to a bit of frustration with some of antics by Indy or if the plot just slows a bit. I also found that there are some unresolved issues in this book like for example
Overall I found For The Duke's Eyes Only to be a laugh out loud, curl your toes and excite your senses love tale....it has adventure, wit, intrigue and some smexy times to sigh over....PURE DELIGHT!!
*May Contain Spolers*
For The Duke's Eyes Only is the second book in the latest series by Lenora Bell. Here we have a story that features a second chance romance, some adventure, secrets and danger and some laughs. I will admit that I was a bit nervous in reading this book here. I really wanted to like this a ton, and I will admit I did get a kick out of this story in many ways. But unfortunately it wasn't a five star read like I was hoping for....but does that mean it was a bad book? HELL NO...it was REALLY good, just a couple things that brought the rating down a notch.
Our story begins with our heroine, India Rochester, digging in the ground with her friend Daniel, who is also her betrothed. They are the best of friends, looking for treasures, plans on having adventures around the world together and finding lost treasure and artifacts of all kinds. But then Daniel receives word that his father has been killed and a traitor to the country and must go to a special school in Scotland. At first Daniel and India write to each other for a while but then Daniel betrays India in the worst of ways, closing off her heart to him completely and now its been fifteen years since they were children playing and running free.
Lady India, is a Archaeologist and very passionate about her career. She has traveled all over on her digs and adventures and is planning a big one set for Egypt. And she is more than ready. But while in London, she poses as a man and infiltrates a male secret society for ancient artificats since women are forbidden to be part of it. And while out exploring, she stumbles across what is supposed to be the Rosetta Stone...only she knows that its a fake and Daniel of all people find her and now his boss wants her to accompany him on a mission to France to find the real one which has been stolen.
Daniel has been working as a spy for many years, ever since his father's death and being claimed a traitor, he knew his father was set up and wanted to clear his name. So he went through a brutal training when he was young, which forced him to give up everything and everyone he ever cared about including Indy. He has never stopped loving her, but he has to keep an emotional distance, because working as a spy....emotion can be the death of you. But he can't tell what he does for a living, but he has to keep Indy out of danger and tries to but he also understands her more than anyone else does. He understands her passion and zest. Will they find the theif of the stone....and will they find their happy ever after despite the past mistakes made?
He knew how to make her laugh. He knew how to wound her. He was her one and only weakness. He always had been.
I simply adored this book quite a bit, it was a delight in many ways. The first beginning scene, you truly feel the connection that Indy and Daniel have with each other even as children. They both have the same passion for knowledge and ancient artifacts and have their own dreams of their version of their future. But the life gets in the ways and they become enemies over the years. And now they will have to work together to solve a great mystery and bring a criminal to justice and hopefully prevent a war between England and France.
I love you because...I always have. And I always will.
The bantering between the couple was simply fantastic, and I had a blast with these two. They were so entertaining and I loved how quick-witted they both are and they really understand each other in certain ways that even they don't even fully realize. Daniel wants to protect Indy because he knows the dangers of this type of work....he almost died a year before from this work and is just trying to prove himself to his boss so he can be out in the field again. But Indy is determined to get this mission done, even though she doesn't know everything that is really going on. She is kept in the dark at times so I understood why she could be a bit ....DRAMATIC....alright they are both dramatic in different ways. I expected this since we do see some dramatics in the first book "What A Difference A Duke Makes" --book one of the School For Dukes series. I did feel that Indy could be a bit naive at times and just wanted to go head first into this mission without thinking things through. But she has such a interesting personality that fascinates the reader that surprisingly this element didn't bother me so BRAVO to Lenora Bell to creating a heroine that I normally don't care for and found myself wanting to be friends with this independent lady who is unconventional and true to herself.
I had no problems with the hero, I could see things from his point of view and why he acts the way he does. We don't see what he goes through in his brutal training that he received, but I can just imagine how bad it must have been. And we also see what a close bond he has with his CO...who lost his family because of the job so we see that he doesn't want to lose Indy because of his choice to clear his father's name and do something bigger than himself...to make a difference and make the world a bit safer. He sacrfices quite a bit and I know that he may seem overbearing at times, but you also see that he does it out of concern for Indy. He has seen quite a bit evil in the world so I can see why the fear does get to him at times.
The flow of the story was a bit slow at times especially in the middle, but I can guarantee that the beginning and ending are very fast paced but at times the pace slows and so I had to keep with it at times. I am not sure if it was due to a bit of frustration with some of antics by Indy or if the plot just slows a bit. I also found that there are some unresolved issues in this book like for example
Spoiler
Daniel never finds the information he needs to clear his fathers name and I was really hoping that would happen in this book so maybe it will happen in a future book but this was quite a let downOverall I found For The Duke's Eyes Only to be a laugh out loud, curl your toes and excite your senses love tale....it has adventure, wit, intrigue and some smexy times to sigh over....PURE DELIGHT!!