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maeverose's review against another edition
DNFed @ 75%
I liked parts of this, disliked other parts. It was the constant back and forth of them clearly liking each other but then stupid things getting in the way of their feelings that ultimately made me dnf. I don’t like angst in my romance unless it’s actually understandable and done well, and imo this was overdone to the point of being annoying. To me, at least.
It’s not mentioned in the synopsis though it’s not a spoiler, the duke is scarred and blind. I can’t fully speak on the disability rep as I’m not blind, but I am disfigured and disabled in different ways. Overall I don’t think it was done badly, some of the descriptions about how he can see vague shapes and colors in the light tracks with what a blind relative of mine has described, and I like that they showed how he has headaches from the injury and it’s not something that he has zero struggles with. But some of the general language could’ve been better, such as:
“Yesterday, she’d made a journey to Northumberland by herself, taken possession of a medieval fortress, and held her ground against a scarred, angry duke. She ought to feel like a strong woman, by any measure.” Mentioning the scars when trying to make him seem more scary is body shaming. The author could’ve just left it at ‘angry duke’.
Also:
I liked parts of this, disliked other parts. It was the constant back and forth of them clearly liking each other but then stupid things getting in the way of their feelings that ultimately made me dnf. I don’t like angst in my romance unless it’s actually understandable and done well, and imo this was overdone to the point of being annoying. To me, at least.
It’s not mentioned in the synopsis though it’s not a spoiler, the duke is scarred and blind. I can’t fully speak on the disability rep as I’m not blind, but I am disfigured and disabled in different ways. Overall I don’t think it was done badly, some of the descriptions about how he can see vague shapes and colors in the light tracks with what a blind relative of mine has described, and I like that they showed how he has headaches from the injury and it’s not something that he has zero struggles with. But some of the general language could’ve been better, such as:
“Yesterday, she’d made a journey to Northumberland by herself, taken possession of a medieval fortress, and held her ground against a scarred, angry duke. She ought to feel like a strong woman, by any measure.” Mentioning the scars when trying to make him seem more scary is body shaming. The author could’ve just left it at ‘angry duke’.
Also:
“First, he’d walked to rebuild the strength sapped from his limbs. Then he’d walked to master the lay of this castle without his sight. He might be a wreck, he told himself, but he’d be damned if he’d be an invalid.”
I can’t quite tell if we’re supposed to interpret this as him not wanting his disability to make his life more difficult, as he mentioned that he doesn’t like having to rely on others to help him read, for example. Or if it’s supposed to be interpreted as ‘god forbid I become one of them’. To me, it reads as the latter. Either way the use of the word ‘invalid’ bothers me. It’s used multiple times, and I get that it’s period-accurate but I don’t think it would’ve been difficult to not use the word given that it’s considered pretty ableist by today’s standards.
It also annoys me a bit that the cover on the edition I have makes the duke look like Darcy, which is not at all how he’s described. And he has no scar 🙃 and on the other edition I’ve seen he’s not even on the cover. Obviously that has nothing to do with the actual book though, I believe the publisher is in charge of finding someone to design the cover.
I can’t quite tell if we’re supposed to interpret this as him not wanting his disability to make his life more difficult, as he mentioned that he doesn’t like having to rely on others to help him read, for example. Or if it’s supposed to be interpreted as ‘god forbid I become one of them’. To me, it reads as the latter. Either way the use of the word ‘invalid’ bothers me. It’s used multiple times, and I get that it’s period-accurate but I don’t think it would’ve been difficult to not use the word given that it’s considered pretty ableist by today’s standards.
It also annoys me a bit that the cover on the edition I have makes the duke look like Darcy, which is not at all how he’s described. And he has no scar 🙃 and on the other edition I’ve seen he’s not even on the cover. Obviously that has nothing to do with the actual book though, I believe the publisher is in charge of finding someone to design the cover.
I didn’t like Ransom as a love interest very much. He’s physically aggressive and has anger issues, which I understand is probably to add to the whole rugged bad boy thing, but the way he was written wasn’t sexy to me. It’s borderline abusive. He always asks for consent, but gets grabby with her before establishing that consent. The author also tries to show that he’s caring at the same time, even though his words and actions didn’t fully reflect that, which left me confused. In the first half of the book (before he had any idea Izzy liked him) he repeatedly warns her that he’s a starved man who may not be able to control himself around a woman like her. It almost felt like rape threats, even though from her pov she saw it as thrilling and enticing, if she wasn’t into him that would 100% be interpreted as a rape threat, no? She’s broke, has no where else to go, legally owns the castle, is now employed to him so he’s her only source of income, and yet he’s threatening her that if she stays he might have his way with her… I get this is a fictional romance, and I get why people would be into that kind of story but it wasn’t marketed as that kind of story, so it made me uncomfortable.
This book has the trope of ‘pretty main character thinks she’s just so plain and unlovable and was bullied for her very
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Sexual content, and Alcohol
Moderate: Ableism, Body shaming, and Death
Minor: Misogyny
Minor misunderstanding trope surrounding how Izzy feels about Ransom’s appearance. He thinks she finds him repulsive when she doesn’t. This lasts probably half the book but isn’t brought up too many times.cardaisy's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I can always count on Tessa Dare for the perfect HR comfort read. Though this definitely confirmed that I'm PMSing right now because this made me cry a little bit more than it probably warranted. Also I wish there was a bit more substance given to the side characters! But overall very enjoyable and incredibly readable
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent and Ableism
Minor: Forced institutionalization
hallaxx's review
fast-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? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism
thaliareads's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
fast-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? Yes
5.0
Such a fun read. Forced proximity with a hint of "they should marry for convenience but are too stubborn." I liked the bit of mystery in figuring out why Izzy is now the owner of the castle that rightly should have belonged to the incredibly grumpy and now confused Duke. While the spice was nice, this was also a story about Izzy finally finding a home, building new friendships, and finally claiming what is hers.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism
Minor: Death and Death of parent
Izzy's family has all died prior to the events of the book. There are some ableist assumptions about the Duke who has been left blind after an injury.lotte5322's review against another edition
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
chaptersofamylea's review against another edition
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
"You didn't kiss me like that was your first kiss."
"Of course not. I kissed you like it would be my last."
3 ⭐️
Its been a hot minute since I had read a historical romance and I fancied a change of pace but this didn’t live up to what I wanted it to be. Tessa Dare is usually my go to as her books are the ✨perfect✨ blend of laugh out loud and swoon. While this book was enjoyable and sweet in places, I felt the usual humour and angst was missing for me like there has been in the other books I’ve read by her.
If someone wants to gift me a castle tho I ain’t gonna say no ✌🏻
TWs: death of a parent, ableism, life altering injury
"Of course not. I kissed you like it would be my last."
3 ⭐️
Its been a hot minute since I had read a historical romance and I fancied a change of pace but this didn’t live up to what I wanted it to be. Tessa Dare is usually my go to as her books are the ✨perfect✨ blend of laugh out loud and swoon. While this book was enjoyable and sweet in places, I felt the usual humour and angst was missing for me like there has been in the other books I’ve read by her.
If someone wants to gift me a castle tho I ain’t gonna say no ✌🏻
TWs: death of a parent, ableism, life altering injury
Content Warnings
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Ableism
Minor: Death of parent
hrtlss_grl's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Ableism, Classism, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, and Gaslighting
earlgreyandhoney's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Sexual content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, and Grief
dasatain's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
**Romancing the Duke by Tessa Dare**, MF historical, 4/5 ⭐️. I really loved both MCs here and how they accepted each other on their own turns. I liked the grumpy/sunshine pairing and the setting of the creepy gothic castle was fun. Also definitely some very humorous moments. I would have liked a bit more fleshed out side characters although I did enjoy the valet. Also appreciated the disability rep and that there wasn’t a magical cure once he falls in love. Nice seeing his blindness just being accepted as a part of him and not something that has to be fixed for him to get his HEA.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism
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