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3.67 AVERAGE
3.67 AVERAGE
Growing up, I was often sad when I reached the end of the book. I’d spent all this time getting to know characters and towns, I just wanted to know what happened next. Where did their lives go. (Clearly, fan fiction was just not a thing at the time). Young me would have loved this book. Although each romance novel is different, they each share some commanalities – two people, often man and woman, start coming together – sometimes they’ve just met, other times they’ve known each other forever. And there’s always a conflict, or two, that is getting in the way of their love – internal conflict, external conflicts, or both. The conflict resolves and they get their happily ever after.
In this book, that sequence wrapped up pretty early on in the book. Viola Astley, a member if the Wildes family and stepdaughter to a Duke, is painfully shy, largely because she’s never felt like a true daughter of the duke. When she was younger, she also spied a couple arguing at a ball and the man really screamed at the woman. This made a lasting impression on her.
Fast forward a few years and it’s getting close to her season. The new Vicar and his rather obnoxious fiancé come to visit. Viola falls instantly in love with the Vicar, who’s handsome and nice. She decides to break up their engagement so she can marry him, though her family soon gets wise to the plan.
Meanwhile, at another ball, she overheards Devyn, the Duke of Wynter, telling a friend he needs to get married and produce an heir, so he’s going to court and marry, Joan, Viola’s step sister. The friend, Otis, says – no, you should go for Viola. Devyn rejects the idea because Viola’s too mousy and is not the real daughter of a Duke, which makes Viola quite angry.
She reveals herself and argues with Devyn, who quickly finds her attractive and not mousy. He soon realizes her desire to marry the Vicar, so he devises his own plan to block that. Sparks continue to fly between the two, which leads to kissing, which leads to being caught in a compromising position, which leads to a quick marriage. And the sparks grow even more, as they quickly embark on a relationship with plenty of marital relations. But that gets you half way through the book, if that.
The story continues. Secondary plots resolve, the vicar’s wife gets her comeuppance, but there’s really no conflict for the two lead characters and the book felt wanting as a result. Yes, Devyn figures out that he was the gentleman whom Viola spotted arguing years ago and he becomes convinced he ruined her life. He ultimately reveals that and she responds with a shrug, “meh”. I get that people can plow small incidents up in their brain – it happens, but it’s not enough – at least this incient is not enough – to prop up half a book.
When I read novellas, I often wish they could be longer. This book should have been a novella.
It’s sweet and charming, Ms. James is a good writer, the characters are enjoyable, yet something was missing. 3/5
In this book, that sequence wrapped up pretty early on in the book. Viola Astley, a member if the Wildes family and stepdaughter to a Duke, is painfully shy, largely because she’s never felt like a true daughter of the duke. When she was younger, she also spied a couple arguing at a ball and the man really screamed at the woman. This made a lasting impression on her.
Fast forward a few years and it’s getting close to her season. The new Vicar and his rather obnoxious fiancé come to visit. Viola falls instantly in love with the Vicar, who’s handsome and nice. She decides to break up their engagement so she can marry him, though her family soon gets wise to the plan.
Meanwhile, at another ball, she overheards Devyn, the Duke of Wynter, telling a friend he needs to get married and produce an heir, so he’s going to court and marry, Joan, Viola’s step sister. The friend, Otis, says – no, you should go for Viola. Devyn rejects the idea because Viola’s too mousy and is not the real daughter of a Duke, which makes Viola quite angry.
She reveals herself and argues with Devyn, who quickly finds her attractive and not mousy. He soon realizes her desire to marry the Vicar, so he devises his own plan to block that. Sparks continue to fly between the two, which leads to kissing, which leads to being caught in a compromising position, which leads to a quick marriage. And the sparks grow even more, as they quickly embark on a relationship with plenty of marital relations. But that gets you half way through the book, if that.
The story continues. Secondary plots resolve, the vicar’s wife gets her comeuppance, but there’s really no conflict for the two lead characters and the book felt wanting as a result. Yes, Devyn figures out that he was the gentleman whom Viola spotted arguing years ago and he becomes convinced he ruined her life. He ultimately reveals that and she responds with a shrug, “meh”. I get that people can plow small incidents up in their brain – it happens, but it’s not enough – at least this incient is not enough – to prop up half a book.
When I read novellas, I often wish they could be longer. This book should have been a novella.
It’s sweet and charming, Ms. James is a good writer, the characters are enjoyable, yet something was missing. 3/5
I loved the way Viola and Devin's relationship evolved. They weren't quite enemies to lovers but they were definitely in each other's faces/antagonistic(?) to each other. Granted, that continued after their marriage but at that point it felt more on purpose and like they were being sarcastic than anything. They actually had similar personalities even if they kind of came by them from wildly different directions. I loved the way Viola realized how she felt safe with Devin even when he was doing his (idiotic) best to scare her off.
I did find myself laughing at the way Devin seemed so surprised at Viola. I did enjoy watching the two of them and laughing every time he found out something new about her. Yeah, she was a mouse to the public but she was also a Wilde; why would he think she'd be anything but surprising? I did want someone to smack him when he found that letter and then tried to convince himself that meant she was going to leave? I applauded Viola's handling of the situation though.
Miss. Pettigrew was a shrew. I half wanted Viola to end up standing up to her but I liked that Devin helped things along with the play and got rid of the Pettigrew's, freeing Caitlin and Marlowe to explore their happiness. And he did it because Viola asked him to and he was in love with her!! *does happy dance* (I was really excited for him to realize that)
There were a couple of continuity things that bothered me. I mean, overall, these probably aren't anything to detrimental, but I feel like there's more editing that could have maybe been done?
I did find myself laughing at the way Devin seemed so surprised at Viola. I did enjoy watching the two of them and laughing every time he found out something new about her. Yeah, she was a mouse to the public but she was also a Wilde; why would he think she'd be anything but surprising? I did want someone to smack him when he found that letter and then tried to convince himself that meant she was going to leave? I applauded Viola's handling of the situation though.
Miss. Pettigrew was a shrew. I half wanted Viola to end up standing up to her but I liked that Devin helped things along with the play and got rid of the Pettigrew's, freeing Caitlin and Marlowe to explore their happiness. And he did it because Viola asked him to and he was in love with her!! *does happy dance* (I was really excited for him to realize that)
There were a couple of continuity things that bothered me.
Spoiler
There were comments about Alaric being the oldest, but I thought that was North? And there was a comment about someone holding one of North's kids but I thought that he and Diana only had one daughter? There's also been some stuff in other books that bothered me (like in the last book, Jeremy mentioned being shot by Diana's mother, but wasn't it Lavinia's when she was in an opium fit?).
Sweet, low angst, soft. The plot is barely there but I love reading about two people falling for eachother too much to care about the plot.
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:
No
This book about the quiet sister coming into her own is a delight.
To be honest, this book is totally my favourite among the rest of the series. I just love everything about it
A big broody man and a sharp-tongue woman are always a good mix. This book was ridiculous at times, but it was so much fun!
It took a little bit of time for the book to pick up, but once it did it was great! Devin and Viola have so much chemistry and you can feel their passion for each other while you read their scenes.
I will definitely be picking up the other books in this series.
It took a little bit of time for the book to pick up, but once it did it was great! Devin and Viola have so much chemistry and you can feel their passion for each other while you read their scenes.
I will definitely be picking up the other books in this series.
This was so so so cute and adorable and fantastic and Viola and Devin are one of my otps now, none touch them ok? Ok.
this book was such a basic regency (ok technically georgian sue me) so i had low expectations but i ended up LOVING it. not much happens highkey but the characters were sweet and i really empathized with viola’s character (as i kid i used to make myself throw up from anxiety a lot so i promise you its a real reaction) and just loved viola and devin’s dynamic and banter. also it was laugh out loud funny at certain parts due to eloisa james’ amazing ability to write captivating but realistic dialogue. now i can’t wait to go back and read the rest in this series!!
So first things first, when I learned the title of the next Wilde book was Say Yes to the Duke I thought that surely this would be featuring the Duke we were supposed to be saying No to in the last one, but lo and behold, I was very wrong. Anyway.
Say Yes to the Duke centers around Viola Astley, the Wilde who isn't a Wilde. The daughter of the Duke of Lindow's third wife, Viola has never truly felt like a part of the Wilde clan, though she would never say that to her family. She also appears to suffer from extreme social anxiety, which makes any social setting her special version of Hell. That is until she meets the handsome new vicar with nice eyes, Mr. Maslowe. The only problem? Mr. Maslowe's (fairly horrific) fiancée. Viola decides to make it her mission to "save" Mr. Maslowe from his upcoming marriage (which she thinks cures her of her anxiety/shyness?) and sets out to show Maslowe what a good vicar's wife she could be. Unfortunately for Viola, she still has to go to London for her debut and take part in her first season with her sister Joan. It's there she meets Devin Lucas Augustus Elstan, the Duke of Wynter, who is determined to marry Joan - he wants a Wilde - and could not care less about the stepsister. The one who isn't a real Wilde. At least, that's what he thinks - until he meets her.
There were parts of this that worked for me and parts that didn't. I really enjoyed the banter between Viola and Devin. They had some very sweet moments and some very hot moments. While Viola's character seemed fully formed - although her anxiety does seem to just disappear at some point in the book - I felt like we were pieces missing from Devin. He's supposed to be a cold, calculating Duke who doesn't know how to have friends, but he warms to Viola right away. His journey felt disjointed, like parts were cut from it. I actually really liked Devin, so I would have loved to see more of his transformation!
The plot itself wasn't terrible, but again it felt like pieces were missing. The secondary romance in it was fun, but there were times I wished it would focus more on Viola and Devin. It was low-angst as well, for those who are looking for that right now. Overall, while I wouldn't say it was Eloisa James's best, I still enjoyed it. It probably won't get a spot on my go-to rereads shelf though!
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss in return for an honest review.
Say Yes to the Duke centers around Viola Astley, the Wilde who isn't a Wilde. The daughter of the Duke of Lindow's third wife, Viola has never truly felt like a part of the Wilde clan, though she would never say that to her family. She also appears to suffer from extreme social anxiety, which makes any social setting her special version of Hell. That is until she meets the handsome new vicar with nice eyes, Mr. Maslowe. The only problem? Mr. Maslowe's (fairly horrific) fiancée. Viola decides to make it her mission to "save" Mr. Maslowe from his upcoming marriage (which she thinks cures her of her anxiety/shyness?) and sets out to show Maslowe what a good vicar's wife she could be. Unfortunately for Viola, she still has to go to London for her debut and take part in her first season with her sister Joan. It's there she meets Devin Lucas Augustus Elstan, the Duke of Wynter, who is determined to marry Joan - he wants a Wilde - and could not care less about the stepsister. The one who isn't a real Wilde. At least, that's what he thinks - until he meets her.
There were parts of this that worked for me and parts that didn't. I really enjoyed the banter between Viola and Devin. They had some very sweet moments and some very hot moments. While Viola's character seemed fully formed - although her anxiety does seem to just disappear at some point in the book - I felt like we were pieces missing from Devin. He's supposed to be a cold, calculating Duke who doesn't know how to have friends, but he warms to Viola right away. His journey felt disjointed, like parts were cut from it. I actually really liked Devin, so I would have loved to see more of his transformation!
The plot itself wasn't terrible, but again it felt like pieces were missing. The secondary romance in it was fun, but there were times I wished it would focus more on Viola and Devin. It was low-angst as well, for those who are looking for that right now. Overall, while I wouldn't say it was Eloisa James's best, I still enjoyed it. It probably won't get a spot on my go-to rereads shelf though!
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss in return for an honest review.