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569 reviews for:
How the Dukes Stole Christmas
Sarah MacLean, Joanna Shupe, Sophie Jordan, Tessa Dare
3.66 AVERAGE
569 reviews for:
How the Dukes Stole Christmas
Sarah MacLean, Joanna Shupe, Sophie Jordan, Tessa Dare
3.66 AVERAGE
Meet Me in Mayfair: 5 stars
This one was my favorite in the entire book! I loved it so much!
The Duke of Christmas Present: 3 stars
I was a little disappointed by this one since I'm a huge Sarah MacLean fan, but I still liked it.
Heiress Alone: 4 stars
This was my second favorite. This was my first highlander story as well as the first time reading anything by this author, and I really enjoyed it!
Christmas in Central Park: 4 stars
Probably my third favorite of the four stories. The beginning was a little slow, but it picked up towards the end and the middle. This is also the first story I've read by this author.
This one was my favorite in the entire book! I loved it so much!
The Duke of Christmas Present: 3 stars
I was a little disappointed by this one since I'm a huge Sarah MacLean fan, but I still liked it.
Heiress Alone: 4 stars
This was my second favorite. This was my first highlander story as well as the first time reading anything by this author, and I really enjoyed it!
Christmas in Central Park: 4 stars
Probably my third favorite of the four stories. The beginning was a little slow, but it picked up towards the end and the middle. This is also the first story I've read by this author.
3 stars. Those 3 stars are only for the short story The Duke of Christmas Present by Sarah MacLean. That was the best story in this collection and the only one that was worth reading honestly. The rest were boring with unlikable Dukes and I just didn't care for them. All of the stories are well written but the other ones besides MacLeans story were underwhelming and lacked heart. It wasn't a horrible read because I found some new HR authors to read so I'm very excited about that.
Having a horribly stressful and overall BAD day? Read this and instantly feel better! I hadn't read all the authors before this, but now I have quite a few books to add to my TBR.
I just loved this series. Maybe it was the time of year. The stories were, of course, pretty predictable, but I laughed out loud SO many times. I also enjoyed them so much I made my husband listen!
This was a delightful collection of four regency romance novellas, each with a Christmas theme.
In “Meet me at Mayfair” Louisa attends a ball hoping to catch a wealthy husband because her family is about to become homeless due to her father being unable to pay the debt that has suddenly come due on the house they live in. At the dance, she unfortunately catches the attention of the very Duke who is threatening to turn them out in the street. This was very cute, with a midnight walk, snowball fighting and Christmas caroling.
In “The Duke of Christmas Past” Evan and Jac were lovers when they were children, but a disagreement over a decade ago caused a split. Jac shows back up in Evan’s life, but with news that distresses him. All the stories feature magical shortbread that causes the person who eats it to fall in love, which was a fun addition.
In “Heiress Alone” Anise is left behind in the midst of a terrible snowstorm and is rescued by a reclusive Scottish duke from criminals threatening the countryside. This novella had lots of steamy scenes. Anise is planning to become a nun, but a night with the Duke changes her mind.
In “Christmas in Central Park” Rose is an advice columnist who gives household tips, but can’t even do the simplest cooking herself. When her boss requests a dinner party hosted by “Mrs. Walker” she has to find both a house to hold the party in and a fake husband. This one was funny.
In “Meet me at Mayfair” Louisa attends a ball hoping to catch a wealthy husband because her family is about to become homeless due to her father being unable to pay the debt that has suddenly come due on the house they live in. At the dance, she unfortunately catches the attention of the very Duke who is threatening to turn them out in the street. This was very cute, with a midnight walk, snowball fighting and Christmas caroling.
In “The Duke of Christmas Past” Evan and Jac were lovers when they were children, but a disagreement over a decade ago caused a split. Jac shows back up in Evan’s life, but with news that distresses him. All the stories feature magical shortbread that causes the person who eats it to fall in love, which was a fun addition.
In “Heiress Alone” Anise is left behind in the midst of a terrible snowstorm and is rescued by a reclusive Scottish duke from criminals threatening the countryside. This novella had lots of steamy scenes. Anise is planning to become a nun, but a night with the Duke changes her mind.
In “Christmas in Central Park” Rose is an advice columnist who gives household tips, but can’t even do the simplest cooking herself. When her boss requests a dinner party hosted by “Mrs. Walker” she has to find both a house to hold the party in and a fake husband. This one was funny.
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Tessa Dare’s Meet Me in Mayfair was a hopelessly romantic short story with a young woman on a quest to find a wealthy man to marry before her family loses their assets. Dare’s quintessential wit and charm quickly pulled me into Louisa’s world and had me delighting in her whimsical yet grounded personality. The chemistry she had with the Duke was instant and beguiling, an organic romance that spoke for itself with minimal effort from the writing. The flow, connection, and journey they had with one another was simply spectacular, and I could’ve read two-hundred more pages of them. This is the kind of feel-good story with a punch that readers crave, and I loved this story most of all.
The Duke of Christmas Present by Sarah MacLean was an emotional second-chance romance between childhood lovers. For a short story, I was amazed at how quickly and easily their past and present wove within one another to create a love story with no missing pieces. The subtle undertones of love and pain were beautifully handled and incredibly potent—turbulent feelings interlaced with hopeful attraction. I love a story with a man who can be remorseful when finally confronted, and I really loved how this one played out.
Heiress Alone by Sophie Jordan places readers into the Highlands with its left-behind heroine and the cantankerous Scottish Duke who wants nothing to do with her kind. Jordan’s hero to the rescue certainly made for a romantic and sensual love story that bloomed between two characters forced into close quarters. Even with their contempt, the attraction was this solid, physical thing hanging between them and I loved how easily it gained ground.
The one story I struggled with was Joanna Shupe’s Christmas in Central Park. I had never read this author so I cannot speak to if it was the setting of the story (time period) or if it was simply the story itself. It was quite a shock to go from three ‘period pieces’ to a non-‘period piece,’ but after getting over that, I found myself struggling with the characters themselves—their chemistry, their depth—as we followed along Rose’s disastrous holiday party built upon a wish and a prayer. I couldn’t fall into it or find myself rooting for either main character, and I wish that weren’t the case.
How the Dukes Stole Christmas had an absolutely wonderful array of short stories set in the Christmas holiday that evoked every possible emotion from humor to sadness and heartbreak to absolute infatuation. Each story had its own magical qualities that really showcased the different sides to a love story and the feeling of family and joy around the holidays. Though they be shorter stories, there was zero skimping on the storytelling or the romance that built between each couple, and I could re-read them all again.
**Received an early copy; this had no bearing on my opinions**
The Duke of Christmas Present by Sarah MacLean was an emotional second-chance romance between childhood lovers. For a short story, I was amazed at how quickly and easily their past and present wove within one another to create a love story with no missing pieces. The subtle undertones of love and pain were beautifully handled and incredibly potent—turbulent feelings interlaced with hopeful attraction. I love a story with a man who can be remorseful when finally confronted, and I really loved how this one played out.
Heiress Alone by Sophie Jordan places readers into the Highlands with its left-behind heroine and the cantankerous Scottish Duke who wants nothing to do with her kind. Jordan’s hero to the rescue certainly made for a romantic and sensual love story that bloomed between two characters forced into close quarters. Even with their contempt, the attraction was this solid, physical thing hanging between them and I loved how easily it gained ground.
The one story I struggled with was Joanna Shupe’s Christmas in Central Park. I had never read this author so I cannot speak to if it was the setting of the story (time period) or if it was simply the story itself. It was quite a shock to go from three ‘period pieces’ to a non-‘period piece,’ but after getting over that, I found myself struggling with the characters themselves—their chemistry, their depth—as we followed along Rose’s disastrous holiday party built upon a wish and a prayer. I couldn’t fall into it or find myself rooting for either main character, and I wish that weren’t the case.
How the Dukes Stole Christmas had an absolutely wonderful array of short stories set in the Christmas holiday that evoked every possible emotion from humor to sadness and heartbreak to absolute infatuation. Each story had its own magical qualities that really showcased the different sides to a love story and the feeling of family and joy around the holidays. Though they be shorter stories, there was zero skimping on the storytelling or the romance that built between each couple, and I could re-read them all again.
**Received an early copy; this had no bearing on my opinions**
This book charmed me. I loved every single one of these stories. All of them got 5 stars. My favorite was Sarah MacLean's, my least favorite Joanna Shupes.
dark
emotional
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes