Reviews with content warning for Pregnancy - Always Be My Duchess

I'm conflicted.
The most interesting part of this book was the male lead's trauma and discovering how that affected him. On the other hand, the most interesting part of this romance novel was the male lead's trauma and discovering how that affected him. There were other "issues" coming between the leads, but those issues were easily disposed with once Stone decided to get around to it. (Using his nickname, Stone, because I can't remember the real one after a few days...)

I found him more believable later on in the novel, and knowing what I know about him, he seems out of joint with his own internality based on his reactions in the first part.
What do I mean by this?

I find it highly unlikely that he'd be so smitten so soon. And this is a matter of taste, to some extent.

Granted, I'm on the asexual spectrum, and when characters experience insta-love or insta-you-know-what, my reaction tends to skew skeptical. But the rampant hormones in here were... a lot. If that sort of thing isn't your cuppa or puts you in a bad headspace/mindspace/etc., you might want to skip this one.

The ladies' solidarity with Neve was sweet, and so were many of the passages describing art as an emotional and creative outlet. But Stone spends so much time flipflopping between absolute impassivity and raging passion that I was a little bit in favor of him getting some therapy and not in favor of them running off happily ever after. At least, not yet. But this is a Victorian novel, and that suggestion is a bit anachronistic.

Also: Am I the only one who sort of hates the grovel trope when it's overblown? Yes, apologies that recognize wrongdoing are good, but promising to never ever make a mistake again is just...unrealistic. I have no idea how this couple would thrive moving forward.

Are we expected to believe

Treadway's not going to manage to blackmail them with Neve's dancer background? I get that he's facing prison, but he's not without ability to speak.

Anyways. The moody, artistic, dark atmosphere of the duke's house and was often super immersive, but some of the character development fell a touch flat for me.

Content Warnings

foiblesandfiction's review

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective fast-paced

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

5.0

it may be a little-known fact, but historical romance is my jam, bread, and butter. i'm pretty sure if you go back a few years that you'll find a goodreads reading challenge of mine that is almost entirely filled up with historical romance. lisa kleypas is my ride or die, tessa dare is her second in command. i worship at the altar of the wallflowers; may summer, fall, winter, and spring live forever and ever, amen.
needless to say, i was an ideal audience for this arc and i loved it. i loved every single moment of reading this book, so much so that i finished the book and then immediately began typing up a list of every single thing i loved the most:
1) funny banter, like really witty and clever
2) the emphasis on consent
3) strong fmc
4) one of the side characters writes smutty fanfiction about another side character!! is this going to be a novella? because i need it
5) the phantom of the opera reference to music of the night
6) a skilled archery moment that gave me fox-y robin hood vibes *sweats, drools*
7) male shirtless cello playing
8) the pinnacle of a man being written by a woman
if you enjoy romantic comedies, or historical romances, or funny, touching, steamy stories about dukes and ballerinas then you are going to love this book. i swear on my wallflower saints.
the author does include some content guidance at the beginning of the book. however, it does fail to mention infertility (due to amenorrhea) that results in pregnancy.

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