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halleymalley1's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
merrinish's review
5.0
This hit all of my bulletproofs.
Bride is older than groom - check
So much pining for like over a decade - check
Marriage of convenience - check
Bride isn't a beauty or even particularly attractive - check
EXCEPT WHEN SHE BLOSSOMS BECAUSE SHE STARTS BELIEVING IN HERSELF - check
Also had awesome lady friendship and passes the Bechdel test, icing on the cake. I checked this out from the library but I'm gonna buy a hard copy and reread often.
Bride is older than groom - check
So much pining for like over a decade - check
Marriage of convenience - check
Bride isn't a beauty or even particularly attractive - check
EXCEPT WHEN SHE BLOSSOMS BECAUSE SHE STARTS BELIEVING IN HERSELF - check
Also had awesome lady friendship and passes the Bechdel test, icing on the cake. I checked this out from the library but I'm gonna buy a hard copy and reread often.
virginiaduan's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting story. I look forward to reading the rest in the series. :) I also appreciated how misunderstandings did not drag on forever and the people acted like actual grown ups for the most part. Not much else to say other than a diverting read.
ssejig's review against another edition
3.0
Katherine Howe got married to suit her parents and it didn't work out well. Now, her mother is pressuring her to marry the husband's heir. It seems her late husband borrowed money from Katherine's father and the account is coming due. He thinks that the best way to solve everyone's problems is for the two of them to marry.
But Katherine doesn't want to marry the heir. He's a very religious man who will only kill her spirit. Instead, she decides to propose to Gerard de Lacey. He helped her one time and she's been thinking about the man ever since.
Gerard de Lacey has his own set of problems. It seems that he and his brothers, sons of a duke, may not actually be legitimate. They stand to lose a lot of money as well as their social prominence if it's true so he's now on the trail of the blackmailer who is threatening to expose their secrets. Katherine hits him at exactly the right time. Her fortune is enough to keep him in the lifestyle to which he's become accustomed, her figure isn't displeasing and her spirit is impressive.
Can these two not only discover a blackmailer but fall in love?
But Katherine doesn't want to marry the heir. He's a very religious man who will only kill her spirit. Instead, she decides to propose to Gerard de Lacey. He helped her one time and she's been thinking about the man ever since.
Gerard de Lacey has his own set of problems. It seems that he and his brothers, sons of a duke, may not actually be legitimate. They stand to lose a lot of money as well as their social prominence if it's true so he's now on the trail of the blackmailer who is threatening to expose their secrets. Katherine hits him at exactly the right time. Her fortune is enough to keep him in the lifestyle to which he's become accustomed, her figure isn't displeasing and her spirit is impressive.
Can these two not only discover a blackmailer but fall in love?
thenia's review against another edition
3.0
Gerard de Lacey's part of the story and his quest to find the person blackmailing his family. Katherine Howe enters his life just as his journey begins and her proposition is one he can't refuse.
An enjoyable romance but I found Katherine and her insecurities a bit annoying.
I am interested to see how the Durham dilemma will be resolved now that it's in Charlie's hands, so I'll be reading his story next in [b:The Way to a Duke's Heart|13549234|The Way to a Duke's Heart (The Truth About the Duke, #3)|Caroline Linden|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1331924743s/13549234.jpg|19115140].
An enjoyable romance but I found Katherine and her insecurities a bit annoying.
I am interested to see how the Durham dilemma will be resolved now that it's in Charlie's hands, so I'll be reading his story next in [b:The Way to a Duke's Heart|13549234|The Way to a Duke's Heart (The Truth About the Duke, #3)|Caroline Linden|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1331924743s/13549234.jpg|19115140].
chiaroscuro's review against another edition
3.0
I'm not sure about this one — Caroline Linden has definitely done better. I don't think Kate is an especially engaging heroine, though I was rooting for her at the beginning: her whole 'helplessly fades into the background' complex is something I do understand. Gerard was wonderful and mostly quite dreamy, though his emotional process at the end leaves something to be desired. Linden doesn't give us his Realisation that he loves Kate, which I find a bit disappointing.
A lot of this is about the blackmail plot that runs through the Truth About the Duke trilogy. There was a lot of plot stuff in book 1 too, but I felt that was more elegantly balanced with the romance than it is in this one. That isn't to say that we don't get emotional growth between Gerard and Kate (there's this lovely moment when Gerard storms out but on his angry walk, he thinks through their argument and realises that he's been an arse). But for a marriage of convenience novel, it doesn't feel like they come especially far in their relationship.Kate is apparently already in love with Gerard from the beginning, but I'm just not convinced by her actions or words. The romance feels sparse (though there's plenty of sex) and there are loads of random secondary characters who don't enrich the book at all. Also, I don't care for the blackmail plot more than the romance, so it's a shame that featured so prominently in this.
3 stars? 2.5? 3.5? I'm too sleepy to say. I'm a diehard Caroline Linden fan, so I read this, but if you're not then perhaps this is worth a miss.
A lot of this is about the blackmail plot that runs through the Truth About the Duke trilogy. There was a lot of plot stuff in book 1 too, but I felt that was more elegantly balanced with the romance than it is in this one. That isn't to say that we don't get emotional growth between Gerard and Kate (there's this lovely moment when Gerard storms out but on his angry walk, he thinks through their argument and realises that he's been an arse). But for a marriage of convenience novel, it doesn't feel like they come especially far in their relationship.
3 stars? 2.5? 3.5? I'm too sleepy to say. I'm a diehard Caroline Linden fan, so I read this, but if you're not then perhaps this is worth a miss.
silvercal's review against another edition
4.0
Lady Katherine Howe is feeling quite a bit of pressure to marry her late husbands heir in order to forgive a large debt that must be repaid to her otherwise. Her late husband squandered her entire dowry and her father gave him a loan that must now be repaid. But Katherine does not want to be forced into another marriage not of her choice so she comes up with a rather bold plan. She plans to propose to Gerard de Lacey--yes, that de Lacey of the wild rumors of illegitimacy--as she knows he will be in need of a large fortune if the rumors are true. But her deeper reason for wanting this marriage to the bold captain has to do with one long ago rainy afternoon in which he kindly helped her--a plain, quiet young lady.
Gerard is stunned when he receives a most unique proposal from this rather unremarkable looking woman. Kate, as Gerard grows to call her, is so careful with her wording and demeanor and he just can't understand why she wears such dull, drab clothing and as he is most intrigued to find out more about her, he agrees to her proposal. He steals a kiss and is relieved to find there is a bit of passion hiding underneath her facade. As Gerard was on his way to Bath to uncover clues as to who is blackmailing his family, he takes Kate with him as soon as they are married and together they try to find the right balance for their new marriage of convenience.
If you read the previous book in this series, [b:One Night in London|11315200|One Night in London (The Truth About the Duke #1)|Caroline Linden|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1327928210s/11315200.jpg|16243181], this book takes place during the same time as that one but with hardly any overlapping as most of the story is set in Bath versus London. I was a bit surprised by this as the ending of [b:One Night in London|11315200|One Night in London (The Truth About the Duke #1)|Caroline Linden|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1327928210s/11315200.jpg|16243181] left me quite anxious for this one and I was a little disappointed that the reveal of what happened isn't almost until the end of this story. I understand that the whole book leads up to the dilemma Gerard got himself into but I was hoping for a bit more scandalous reveal I guess. *shrugs* Once Gerard finally confesses the reason for being in Bath to Kate, they are able to uncover some clues about the blackmailer but overall this book seemed a bit light in the illegitimacy issues and I would have liked it to move forward in that direction more.
I really enjoyed our two characters. I liked that Kate is not a raving beauty and is quiet and we get to see her emerge from her shell and transform into a lovely butterfly and I really enjoyed how Gerard saw her for her true self almost from the start. He quickly learns that getting Kate to smile is one of the best things to do and he loves to watch her transform when she gives a rare smile. Gerard for his part is brash, bold and a bit quick-tempered but he learns to curb this soon around his new wife as she divulges she suffered some abuse from her first husband. Together, they mesh and this is a sweet yet hot romance of two people finding love where they least expect it. Overall, I enjoyed this book for its uniqueness of no titles for the couple, a different location, an unassuming woman just waiting to be polished off a bit and a decisive hero. There really is no major action or danger to take away from the romance so it truly is a lovely romance to watch emerge. I know I am anxiously awaiting the final book in this series and the teaser already has me wanting it right now even though this book left me wanting a bit more from it. 3 1/2 stars
I received this eARC from Avon via netgalley.com
Gerard is stunned when he receives a most unique proposal from this rather unremarkable looking woman. Kate, as Gerard grows to call her, is so careful with her wording and demeanor and he just can't understand why she wears such dull, drab clothing and as he is most intrigued to find out more about her, he agrees to her proposal. He steals a kiss and is relieved to find there is a bit of passion hiding underneath her facade. As Gerard was on his way to Bath to uncover clues as to who is blackmailing his family, he takes Kate with him as soon as they are married and together they try to find the right balance for their new marriage of convenience.
If you read the previous book in this series, [b:One Night in London|11315200|One Night in London (The Truth About the Duke #1)|Caroline Linden|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1327928210s/11315200.jpg|16243181], this book takes place during the same time as that one but with hardly any overlapping as most of the story is set in Bath versus London. I was a bit surprised by this as the ending of [b:One Night in London|11315200|One Night in London (The Truth About the Duke #1)|Caroline Linden|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1327928210s/11315200.jpg|16243181] left me quite anxious for this one and I was a little disappointed that the reveal of what happened isn't almost until the end of this story. I understand that the whole book leads up to the dilemma Gerard got himself into but I was hoping for a bit more scandalous reveal I guess. *shrugs* Once Gerard finally confesses the reason for being in Bath to Kate, they are able to uncover some clues about the blackmailer but overall this book seemed a bit light in the illegitimacy issues and I would have liked it to move forward in that direction more.
I really enjoyed our two characters. I liked that Kate is not a raving beauty and is quiet and we get to see her emerge from her shell and transform into a lovely butterfly and I really enjoyed how Gerard saw her for her true self almost from the start. He quickly learns that getting Kate to smile is one of the best things to do and he loves to watch her transform when she gives a rare smile. Gerard for his part is brash, bold and a bit quick-tempered but he learns to curb this soon around his new wife as she divulges she suffered some abuse from her first husband. Together, they mesh and this is a sweet yet hot romance of two people finding love where they least expect it. Overall, I enjoyed this book for its uniqueness of no titles for the couple, a different location, an unassuming woman just waiting to be polished off a bit and a decisive hero. There really is no major action or danger to take away from the romance so it truly is a lovely romance to watch emerge. I know I am anxiously awaiting the final book in this series and the teaser already has me wanting it right now even though this book left me wanting a bit more from it. 3 1/2 stars
I received this eARC from Avon via netgalley.com
bookwifereviews's review
1.0
The narrator was terrible... kind of hard to ignore and ruined a lot of the story. Also I hated both the MCs.