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3.51 AVERAGE
3.51 AVERAGE
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Rating- 3.5 Really good
Heat- 3 Slow build
ARC received in exchange for an honest review.
The Duke Dynasty series looks to be a new favorite by Jeffries. The series will clearly follow one complicated family. Lydia, the matron, has been widowed by 3 different Dukes and born heirs for each of them, while Project Duchess follows her oldest son, Fletcher, the Duke of Greycourt. Yes, Fletcher is our hero's name. Thankfully he goes by Grey. We also get to know two of Grey's half-brothers who are Dukes as well and his half-sister. Watching the interaction between these siblings was one of the best aspects of this book. Their quick sallies had me like
Grey keeps himself apart from his family. He learned not to count on them when he was sent away as a child. As Project Duchess opens, Grey learns about the death of his step-father and goes to join them. Upon arrival, he instantly runs into Beatrice, his half-brother's cousin. Grey is used to people being intimidated by him, so he finds Beatrice's lack of fear intriguing. Despite his instant attraction to Beatrice, Grey is hoping to escape his family and return to London as soon as possible. He is forced to agree to stay for a while when his brother confesses his suspicions that his father was murdered.
While the love story between Grey and Beatrice is sweet, it is full of over used tropes. Grey doesn't want to care about anyone but can't stay away. Beatrice has had experiences with men in the past that made her distrust suave men like Grey. The best parts of Project Duchess are the mysteries. The problem of what happened to Grey's step-father becomes more intriguing with each chapter until the book ends with the family having more questions than they did at the start. We are left eager for the next installment.
Jeffries does a wonderful job of building not just this murder mystery but enigmatic characters. We are slowly fed bits and pieces about Grey's childhood that has us dying for the full story before she indulges us.
Beatrice's brother, Joshua, a war veteran with obvious signs of PTSD, leaves us begging to hear what happened during his time away that so changed him. An intriguing backstory between Gwyn and Thorn, two of the siblings, is thrown out and left dangling (hopefully for future books).
Heat- 3 Slow build
ARC received in exchange for an honest review.
The Duke Dynasty series looks to be a new favorite by Jeffries. The series will clearly follow one complicated family. Lydia, the matron, has been widowed by 3 different Dukes and born heirs for each of them, while Project Duchess follows her oldest son, Fletcher, the Duke of Greycourt. Yes, Fletcher is our hero's name. Thankfully he goes by Grey. We also get to know two of Grey's half-brothers who are Dukes as well and his half-sister. Watching the interaction between these siblings was one of the best aspects of this book. Their quick sallies had me like
Grey keeps himself apart from his family. He learned not to count on them when he was sent away as a child. As Project Duchess opens, Grey learns about the death of his step-father and goes to join them. Upon arrival, he instantly runs into Beatrice, his half-brother's cousin. Grey is used to people being intimidated by him, so he finds Beatrice's lack of fear intriguing. Despite his instant attraction to Beatrice, Grey is hoping to escape his family and return to London as soon as possible. He is forced to agree to stay for a while when his brother confesses his suspicions that his father was murdered.
While the love story between Grey and Beatrice is sweet, it is full of over used tropes. Grey doesn't want to care about anyone but can't stay away. Beatrice has had experiences with men in the past that made her distrust suave men like Grey. The best parts of Project Duchess are the mysteries. The problem of what happened to Grey's step-father becomes more intriguing with each chapter until the book ends with the family having more questions than they did at the start. We are left eager for the next installment.
Jeffries does a wonderful job of building not just this murder mystery but enigmatic characters. We are slowly fed bits and pieces about Grey's childhood that has us dying for the full story before she indulges us.
Beatrice's brother, Joshua, a war veteran with obvious signs of PTSD, leaves us begging to hear what happened during his time away that so changed him. An intriguing backstory between Gwyn and Thorn, two of the siblings, is thrown out and left dangling (hopefully for future books).
Rating- 3.5 Really good
Heat- 3 Slow build
ARC received in exchange for an honest review.
The Duke Dynasty series looks to be a new favorite by Jeffries. The series will clearly follow one complicated family. Lydia, the matron, has been widowed by 3 different Dukes and born heirs for each of them. While Project Duchess follows her oldest son, Fletcher, the Duke of Greycourt. Yes, Fletcherror is our hero's name. Thankfully he goes by Grey. We also get to know two of Grey's half-brothers who are Dukes as well and his half-sister. Watching the interaction between these siblings was one of the best aspects of this book. Their quick sallies had me like
Grey keeps himself apart from his family. He learned not to count on them when he was sent away as a child. As Project Duchess opens, Grey learns about the death of his step-father and goes to join them. Upon arrival, he instantly runs into Beatrice, his half-brother's cousin. Grey is used to people being intimidated by him, so he finds Beatrice's lack of fear intriguing. Despite his instant attraction to Beatrice, Grey is hoping to escape his family and return to London as soon as possible. He is forced to agree to stay for a while when his brother confesses his suspicions that his father was murdered.
While the love story between Grey and Beatrice is sweet, it is full of over used tropes. Grey doesn't want to care about anyone but can't stay away. Beatrice has had experiences with men in the past that made her distrust suave men like Grey. The best parts of Project Duchess are the mysteries. The problem of what happened to Grey's step-father becomes more intriguing with each chapter until the book ends with the family having more questions than they did at the start. We are left eager for the next installment.
Jeffries does a wonderful job of building not just this murder mystery but enigmatic characters. We are slowly fed bits and pieces about Grey's childhood that has us dying for the full story before she indulges us.
Beatrice's brother, Joshua, a war veteran with obvious signs of PTSD, leaves us begging to hear what happened during his time away that so changed him. An intriguing backstory between Gwyn and Thorn, two of the siblings, is thrown out and left dangling (hopefully for future books).
Heat- 3 Slow build
ARC received in exchange for an honest review.
The Duke Dynasty series looks to be a new favorite by Jeffries. The series will clearly follow one complicated family. Lydia, the matron, has been widowed by 3 different Dukes and born heirs for each of them. While Project Duchess follows her oldest son, Fletcher, the Duke of Greycourt. Yes, Fletcherror is our hero's name. Thankfully he goes by Grey. We also get to know two of Grey's half-brothers who are Dukes as well and his half-sister. Watching the interaction between these siblings was one of the best aspects of this book. Their quick sallies had me like
Grey keeps himself apart from his family. He learned not to count on them when he was sent away as a child. As Project Duchess opens, Grey learns about the death of his step-father and goes to join them. Upon arrival, he instantly runs into Beatrice, his half-brother's cousin. Grey is used to people being intimidated by him, so he finds Beatrice's lack of fear intriguing. Despite his instant attraction to Beatrice, Grey is hoping to escape his family and return to London as soon as possible. He is forced to agree to stay for a while when his brother confesses his suspicions that his father was murdered.
While the love story between Grey and Beatrice is sweet, it is full of over used tropes. Grey doesn't want to care about anyone but can't stay away. Beatrice has had experiences with men in the past that made her distrust suave men like Grey. The best parts of Project Duchess are the mysteries. The problem of what happened to Grey's step-father becomes more intriguing with each chapter until the book ends with the family having more questions than they did at the start. We are left eager for the next installment.
Jeffries does a wonderful job of building not just this murder mystery but enigmatic characters. We are slowly fed bits and pieces about Grey's childhood that has us dying for the full story before she indulges us.
Beatrice's brother, Joshua, a war veteran with obvious signs of PTSD, leaves us begging to hear what happened during his time away that so changed him. An intriguing backstory between Gwyn and Thorn, two of the siblings, is thrown out and left dangling (hopefully for future books).
Formulaic, tropey in the worst way, uninspired, and tossed together like a bad salad. Not even 300 pages and I had to force myself to not skim large chunks of it. I just was not captured by anything here. My mind wandered so long and so far while I struggled to read this book. I decided to fold the laundry so that I could have a few minutes away from it. I even put the folded laundry away. That's how unexcited I was about these characters and the plot (what little there was of one at least).
There is no legitimate chemistry between Grey and Beatrice and I lost track of the number of times I rolled my eyes or flat out had to put the book down over the shit they did and said. Grey pops a stiffy every time she's in his general vicinity and it's always for reasons he doesn't want to examine too closely. I never believed that he felt anything genuine for her, just physical attraction. I know the aristocracy are repressed, but COME ON PAL. A little self-reflection and emotional intelligence isn't going to cause you to lose your standing to Society or turn you into a weeping Byronic mess. Just stop thinking with your dick for five seconds. Please.
And Beatrice! Beatrice was so focused on hating Grey for half the book that those swoopy feelings in her gut whenever he was around sounded more like an impending IBS flareup than any kind of romantic attachment. These two ran lukewarm then cold and it was taxing to read. Physical lust is not the same as being emotionally engaged with a person and you can’t change my mind.
The smutty bits were AWFUL. If I ever have to see the phrase “earthquake in her soul” when describing an orgasm again, the offending book will be buried in my garden as fertilizer and maybe serve a useful purpose.
Vaguely referenced feelings and motivations that didn’t make sense dragged down what little actual story there was and just didn't inspire me to want to care about these characters. For example, Grey keeps thinking about how bitter he was about Things. Did I care about this and how it shaped him into the man he is? No. No I didn't. Because he did not display any depth of character or redeeming qualities. At all.
Finally, there was a lot of ~foreshadowing~ about an overarching plot but little of it actually interests me. The only character I'm actually curious about and want to read more of? Joshua Wolfe. We see far too little of him but his page time was the only thing that had me actively engaged with the story. Which is why I’ll read the next book, dammit. Jeffries knew what she was doing when she made him the focus of the next in the series.
In summary, I can’t recommend this to anyone. Save yourself and go find something else to read.
There is no legitimate chemistry between Grey and Beatrice and I lost track of the number of times I rolled my eyes or flat out had to put the book down over the shit they did and said. Grey pops a stiffy every time she's in his general vicinity and it's always for reasons he doesn't want to examine too closely. I never believed that he felt anything genuine for her, just physical attraction. I know the aristocracy are repressed, but COME ON PAL. A little self-reflection and emotional intelligence isn't going to cause you to lose your standing to Society or turn you into a weeping Byronic mess. Just stop thinking with your dick for five seconds. Please.
And Beatrice! Beatrice was so focused on hating Grey for half the book that those swoopy feelings in her gut whenever he was around sounded more like an impending IBS flareup than any kind of romantic attachment. These two ran lukewarm then cold and it was taxing to read. Physical lust is not the same as being emotionally engaged with a person and you can’t change my mind.
The smutty bits were AWFUL. If I ever have to see the phrase “earthquake in her soul” when describing an orgasm again, the offending book will be buried in my garden as fertilizer and maybe serve a useful purpose.
Vaguely referenced feelings and motivations that didn’t make sense dragged down what little actual story there was and just didn't inspire me to want to care about these characters. For example, Grey keeps thinking about how bitter he was about Things. Did I care about this and how it shaped him into the man he is? No. No I didn't. Because he did not display any depth of character or redeeming qualities. At all.
Finally, there was a lot of ~foreshadowing~ about an overarching plot but little of it actually interests me. The only character I'm actually curious about and want to read more of? Joshua Wolfe. We see far too little of him but his page time was the only thing that had me actively engaged with the story. Which is why I’ll read the next book, dammit. Jeffries knew what she was doing when she made him the focus of the next in the series.
In summary, I can’t recommend this to anyone. Save yourself and go find something else to read.
Fletcher "Grey" Pryde, 5th Duke of Greycourt, is trying to avoid a compromising situation with his cousin Vanessa. Her mother's dearest wish is to have the two be married but neither is eager to fall in with her plans. Their excuse to avoid that fate is that Vanessa has just delivered the news to Grey that his stepfather has just died.
Grey is devastated. He may have had conflicting emotions regarding his stepfather Maurice (who sent Grey away when he was 10 to live with his uncle who was then the Duke) but he knows that he has to go be with the family.
Everyone at Armitage Hall is shocked that the Duke is dead. He had only succeeded his brother a few months ago. His son, Sheridan (Grey's half-brother), is suspicious that both deaths may not have been accidental. Sheridan asks Grey to stay and figure out if his cousin Joshua is getting rid of the people who stand before him for the dukedom. Grey is also wondering. But he has a problem. Joshua's sister Beatrice is distracting him.
At 26, Beatrice doesn't necessarily want to be presented to society but her uncle Maurice's family has embraced her and her cousin's half-sister Gwyn really would rather not debut alone. She just wants to find a nice man, maybe a priest or a doctor. Dukes are not on her list. Even though Grey kisses like a fiend. But she knows she's not the type of woman he's going to marry. And worse, he thinks her brother has killed two men.
The first three-quarters of this book were great, setting up the series as well as letting us see Grey and Beatrice falling in love but the last quarter felt rushed and not as well edited. Very loose. This may change before the book comes out but the ARC ended with a whimper.
Grey is devastated. He may have had conflicting emotions regarding his stepfather Maurice (who sent Grey away when he was 10 to live with his uncle who was then the Duke) but he knows that he has to go be with the family.
Everyone at Armitage Hall is shocked that the Duke is dead. He had only succeeded his brother a few months ago. His son, Sheridan (Grey's half-brother), is suspicious that both deaths may not have been accidental. Sheridan asks Grey to stay and figure out if his cousin Joshua is getting rid of the people who stand before him for the dukedom. Grey is also wondering. But he has a problem. Joshua's sister Beatrice is distracting him.
At 26, Beatrice doesn't necessarily want to be presented to society but her uncle Maurice's family has embraced her and her cousin's half-sister Gwyn really would rather not debut alone. She just wants to find a nice man, maybe a priest or a doctor. Dukes are not on her list. Even though Grey kisses like a fiend. But she knows she's not the type of woman he's going to marry. And worse, he thinks her brother has killed two men.
The first three-quarters of this book were great, setting up the series as well as letting us see Grey and Beatrice falling in love but the last quarter felt rushed and not as well edited. Very loose. This may change before the book comes out but the ARC ended with a whimper.
I love Sabrina Jeffries' books and this is no exception.
There is romance, a big family bond, and a murder mystery to be solved. The mystery will be solved over the course of this series and that is just another reason for the reader to watch out for more from this series.
I loved this book for it sets up the foundation for all the characters, and goes about introducing the family dynamics.
Definitely looking forward to this series.
For more book reviews, visit Frost At Midnite.
There is romance, a big family bond, and a murder mystery to be solved. The mystery will be solved over the course of this series and that is just another reason for the reader to watch out for more from this series.
I loved this book for it sets up the foundation for all the characters, and goes about introducing the family dynamics.
Definitely looking forward to this series.
For more book reviews, visit Frost At Midnite.
I accepted to read to Project Duchess in exchange for an honest review from Netgalley. It does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
**4.5 stars**
Wow, this book blew me away. I didn't really know what I was getting myself into with this book. I'm still slowly getting into historical romance and this is my first time reading Sabrina's work. Definitely not my last for sure! But this was so different from others I have recently.
My reading tastes tend to be darker - I prefer darker the better. With that said, this book had some of those elements. And I immensely enjoyed it! It was a murder mystery and one that left you wondering "who done it" until the very end.
Then mix in the connection between Grey and Beatrice, a rake and a girl who has given up on romance... IT WAS EVERYTHING! I'm really looking forward to seeing where this series goes and who it follows and how their story plays out. I also look forward to reading Sabrina's backlist.
**4.5 stars**
Wow, this book blew me away. I didn't really know what I was getting myself into with this book. I'm still slowly getting into historical romance and this is my first time reading Sabrina's work. Definitely not my last for sure! But this was so different from others I have recently.
My reading tastes tend to be darker - I prefer darker the better. With that said, this book had some of those elements. And I immensely enjoyed it! It was a murder mystery and one that left you wondering "who done it" until the very end.
“"My experience is what has taught me how rare a woman you are."”
Then mix in the connection between Grey and Beatrice, a rake and a girl who has given up on romance... IT WAS EVERYTHING! I'm really looking forward to seeing where this series goes and who it follows and how their story plays out. I also look forward to reading Sabrina's backlist.
“"You are not merely a beauty -- you're the queen of beauties."”
Didn’t love the characters or the dialogue. Struggled to get through it. Liked the storyline, interested in the murder mystery but not sure I’ll pick up the rest of the series.