Reviews with content warning for Emotional abuse - El duque y yo

My problems with the book are the lack of stakes within Daphne's search for a husband which makes their whole plan kind of pointless, the Duke's entire personality in Chapter 17, the lack of any real fallout from the event in Chapter 18, and the lack of a presence of other characters in their lives.

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alexcooper88's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective tense 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

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adiloretto's review against another edition

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challenging emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

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nightstitch96's review against another edition

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lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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jj7twin's review against another edition

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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? Yes

4.0

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kkylezzz's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

This was a good read. I thought the humor and banter and character back-n-forth in general was great. The first half was really good, I enjoyed the length of scenes and the dedication to detail and consistency with the characters and descriptions. There was tons of dialogue which I love. I really enjoyed the how the first half too felt them growing together.

Obviously in our timeline, "dating" for more than a couple weeks is conventional before even becoming a real couple let alone considering marriage, but for translatable purposes, this felt well told in that regard.

The second half was enjoyable too, but more so for the pitiable, dramatic love story elements.

I was alright with the separation and then pregnancy scare and the heart-to-hearts getting more in depth each time it was brought up.

The last couple of chapters and Epilogue(s) was (were) redeeming, I enjoyed them.

I liked that it ended on a positive note, the extended pregnancy brining in extra drama, and the possibility of Geogie being afflicted with Simon's same drama without actually confirming that.

The sex scenes weren't too terribly bad either.

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certifiedplayerhater's review against another edition

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funny tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

0.5

Spoilers for the whole book

take a shot every time simon murmurs.

In all seriousness, the story is a perfectly passable romance from 2000. The story is focuses purely on the romance between Simon and Daphne, which isn’t an inherent flaw but it means every other character is relegated to a single characteristic (ex. The three Bridgerton brothers are overbearing, Violet is motherly, etc.). Daphne and Simon were likeable enough characters and their developing relationship was fun to watch.

However, everything changed with Daphne sexually assaulting Simon. There’s no repercussions for that action and the author frames it as an act of passion as opposed to the horror that it was. Which is interesting considering the author spends just as much time highlighting how badly this affected Simon, like him regressing back into the worst stutter he’s had in years. It felt like a slap in the face to hear how Simon had been abused by his father only for his lover to turn around and exert the a level power and abuse over him. I can’t in good faith speak positively about anything that happens afterwards because there’s no consequences to the action.

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lesslinette's review against another edition

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emotional funny fast-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

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