Reviews with content warning for Dysphoria - A Lady for a Duke

Reviews tagging 'Dysphoria'

A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall

42 reviews

mermaidmomma's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective medium-paced

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

3.5

I am a fan of historical romance as is and I adored this twist on it!! I really enjoyed the tension that grew better Viola and Justin. I love the fact that the 3rd act conflict had nothing to do with Viola being trans and that also wasn’t the central focus of the novel. Viola was just Viola to those who knew her past and that is exactly how it should be.

Also, I must say I loved Mira and I cannot wait for her story. I really hope we get more of her and Stevie.

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tesshersh's review against another edition

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slow-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

4.0

Loved the first 75%, the last quarter could’ve been completely cut out and I would’ve been totally fine :P but all in all very enjoyable!!

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analenegrace's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful medium-paced

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

4.0

I've read most of Alexis Hall's books, and I do think this might be my favorite. From a cis-gendered perspective, I found that Hall took on the topic of being trans in this historical period and did it fairly well while making all of his characters accepting of Viola's identity because, at the end of the day, it's fiction and its romance, which needs a happy-ever-after. Hall did a good job of taking modern ideas, of transness, PTSD, bisexuality, etc, and fitting them into a historical context in a natural way that did not feel like prescribing modern terminology to the characters and the period. I enjoyed Justin and Viola's relationship greatly, and I liked that it had some aspect of adventure to it, and I look forward to reading the sequel, which I imagine will be about Mira.

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kshertz's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I think the fact that I didn’t stop listening to this book for two days and finished it super quickly speaks for itself. It was so awesome to read about a trans person getting to live the life they wanted back in a different time period. The explanation made so much sense and the characters themselves were very well done. I really loved them and cared about what happened to them. This would be a 5.0 but it took forever to get to the sexiness. Which if you know me I need multiple and very often.

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netflixismyroommate's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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readingthroughinfinity's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful relaxing sad slow-paced

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

4.25

An absolute delight of a historical romance novel. Alexis Hall always knows just the right notes to hit in these kinds of stories. With hidden identities, yearning, humour, and wonderfully dramatic love confessions, this is one of the most refreshing romances I've read in a long time. I loved Viola as a character and really enjoyed seeing how her and Gracewood's relationship progressed throughout the novel. The pacing slowed a lot in the middle, which stalled the overall progression of the story, but one the whole I thoroughly enjoyed this and would definitely recommend it.

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novella42's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

This book was a delight and a joy, easily one of my top reads of 2022. As a queer cis person with PTSD and a disability, married to a genderfluid partner, I have often wondered what our lives might have been like in a different time. This story was a refreshing alternative to many of the "gritty" interpretations of queer history. The truth is that we don't know a lot about the queer or trans experience prior to the Twentieth Century—because it was hidden from view—and because we don't know, there is also space to speculate for happiness and acceptance just as there is for the usual tropes that assume all will encounter darkness and hate.

I felt such a connection to the characters. The struggle with internalized ableism was believable and handled with more nuance than I expected. And just... The identity work in this book, not just about gender but on so many levels. It felt wonderful to witness. To see them work through their fears, their demons, to navigate all the uncertainties (without language for their identities or traumas), and all the ways they connected to heal. I was crying with pure joy at multiple points throughout the book!

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