Reviews

The Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare

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radianest's review against another edition

4.5

This was so much fun! The banter made me laugh out loud, even when I was in public. A marriage of convenience turned to love, with a little bit of a beauty and the beast feeling. I loved it! And am excited for the next ones, as each of the heroines were introduced in this book.

domicspinnwand's review against another edition

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5.0

Hach, was für ein nettes, wortwitziges Buch! Ich habe das britische Hörbuch gehört und hatte sehr, sehr viel Spaß am britischen Akzent der Vorleserin. Aber auch die Story ist toll: Wortwitzig, clevere Charaktere, sogar die Nebenfiguren (der Butler! Lady Penny!) sind zum Niederknien - so toll! Lasst Euch nicht von diesem schauderlichen Nackenbeisser-Cover abschrecken! Wobei das Cover meiner Hörbuch-Variante nicht so grauslich war. Ich bin auch alle Fälle entzückt, Tessa Dare als Autorin entdeckt zu haben. Und da dieses Buch Teil 1 in einer bisher 3bändigen Reihe ist, kann ich gleich weiterhören - juchu!

carsonelainee's review against another edition

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4.0

god bless the friend that suggested tessa dare to me when i told her i was looking to get more into historical romance. i had seen tessa dare, especially the duchess deal, around for such a long time but had never had the boost to truly get into her work.

i’m so glad i finally was in the right head space and mood to try it. these last couple of days reading her books has been the time of my life. they’re just so much fun and not overly serious. i can’t help but find my self smiling and laughing as i’m reading which hasn’t happened in a while!

the duchess deal, specifically, is very special because it has some of my favorite tropes and even some that i haven’t historically loved, but thought worked very well in the context of the story. it has marriage of convenience, forced proximity, terms of endearment, grumpy/sunshine - all things that i love! there’s also another trope that is spoilery so i won’t mention it, but historically i hate it and normally it’s enough to make me hate the book, but… i actually didn’t mind it in this instance…

emma is a standout heroine and is a fresh character among the many characters who suffer from the slightly dated conventions of historical romance novels. she is not a naive, virginal character. she actually has experience and stands up for herself on multiple occasions instead of letting herself be run over.

ashbury is a typical romance hero, but again, it’s done in a refreshing way where he doesn’t come off as a product of the time. he is funny, but also suffers from real trauma that is given great screentime in the novel without it being the butt of a joke.

together they are way too sweet. there is such a realistic development of the romance (if you suspend your disbelief for a couple of instances). i just loved it so much and could definitely see this book, and the next couple in the series, becoming a real comfort read.

samsterleeee's review against another edition

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4.0

A fun read! I loved both leading characters. I thought the development of their relationship felt very natural. And I loved how outspoken the heroine was! She was definitely not afraid to speak her mind.

librarianinperiwinkle's review against another edition

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4.0

Emma Gladstone just needs to get paid so she can pay her rent and buy groceries. Her previous attempts to collect have gone unanswered, so she dons the wedding dress she made for the Duke of Ashbury's ex-fiancee, summons her courage, and marches up to his front door in Mayfair, never imagining how drastically that encounter will change her life, for the prickly Duke is in need of a Duchess and decides the spirited seamstress meets all his requirements.

This novel is filled with tropes: Beauty & the Beast; young, wealthy Duke marrying poor woman; scarred war veteran (Waterloo, of course); marriage of convenience; young women bearing all consequences of having sex whilst the young men get off scot-free, etc. Yet the result is a witty, banter-filled delight of a book that simultaneously deals with the lingering effects of trauma, both physical and emotional.

A few things were too unrealistic for me (yes, even for a Regency romance), such as the idea that Ash's staff would universally embrace Emma with no snobbery. None. Or that Ash wouldn't have taken at least a moment on his drive to the ball to repair his clothing as much as possible to avoid what would actually have been irreparable harm to his reputation and by extension caused Emma to be all but ostracized from society (or at least brought out the Mean Girl in every Ton member and made her life absolute hell). I don't want spoilers here, but that section was absolutely absurd and cost the book a star in my opinion.

But aside from those issues, I loved this story of two wounded souls relearning to trust and believe themselves worthy of love. I also loved Emma's new friends and hope the later books in this series feature them more prominently. Plus the banter is fabulous!

For readers' advisors: character and language doorways are both strong. It's a sex-positive book, so there are some very steamy sex scenes. Some swearing. A little violence, with Ash defending himself & Emma from would-be footpads and working out his frustration by roaming the streets at night and beating up thugs and criminals.