Scan barcode
A review by apple_atcha_reading
Her Night with the Duke by Diana Quincy
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
I have some complicated feelings about this book, so I hope I don't ramble too terribly much, but also this is my review and no one can stop me.
TL;DR: Leela is a QUEEN and Hunt doesn't deserve her. A man should respect you AND make you orgasm, the two are not mutually exclusive.
I've seen a few others review this novel and they have such high praise for our female lead, Leela, and Hunt is "just there". I get it now. 100%.
The premise of the novel is our love interests, Lady Delilah Chambers (Leela) and the Duke of Huntington Elliot Townsend (Hunt), share a passionate, anonymous night together, promising to never meet again. But as fate would have it, their lives are about to be forever entangled.
I loved, loved, LOVED Leela. She was strong, independent, and refused to take any crap from anyone, but specifically from men who believed themselves superior than her. On paper, Leela should have been granted status and benefits from society due to her title as a lady dowager, but her "unsavory" heritage. Her father was a nobleman, who "lowered" himself to marry her mother, the daughter of a Palestinian merchant. Leela's father never recovered his status in the eyes of elite society; everyone labeled him the "Mad Marquess". When Leela came of age, she married an older nobleman who had children from his previous marriage. When her husband died, Leela ran away to be with her family and did not return, since the heir made it very clear Leela was not a part of the family or welcome in the manor.
Elliot Townsend, "Hunt", is attempting to salvage his family's reputation, run his duchy, and live as respectable and scandal free as possible. There is a rumored curse on the Townsend family, every other generation is doomed to ruin through self-indulgence and reckless behavior. Which is why he simultaneously regrets his unforgettable one night stand with a mysterious lone woman, and wants to meet her again. Until, he realizes who the mysterious woman he shared an evening with is: the stepmother of the young woman he intends to marry.
In my household this was referred to as the MILF book (affirmative). Leela is a MILF, but she is an independent woman who doesn't need Hunt, but enjoys him. However. I did not enjoy Hunt. I found him to be shallow and superficial. I found myself wanting to get back to Leela's perspective or their shared chapters. At first I was like "ok, he falls hard, insta-lust, etc" which I would have been fine with, BUT whenHunt decides to propose marriage to Leela and meets her extended family and says he'll learn to tolerate them??? Leela RUN. In the back half of this novel when he started thinking about the future he desired with Leela, and especially the mentions of his "tolerance" of her family and her future travel plans , he gave me the ick. A real and true partner would have supported her dreams and goals (unless of course they were detrimental to herself or others), but Hunt really came off as wanting to tame Leela and have her act more traditional or in line with English standards WHICH HE SPENT SO MUCH TIME SAYING HE DIDN'T WANT? Throw the whole man away.
TL;DR: Leela is a QUEEN and Hunt doesn't deserve her. A man should respect you AND make you orgasm, the two are not mutually exclusive.
I've seen a few others review this novel and they have such high praise for our female lead, Leela, and Hunt is "just there". I get it now. 100%.
The premise of the novel is our love interests, Lady Delilah Chambers (Leela) and the Duke of Huntington Elliot Townsend (Hunt), share a passionate, anonymous night together, promising to never meet again. But as fate would have it, their lives are about to be forever entangled.
I loved, loved, LOVED Leela. She was strong, independent, and refused to take any crap from anyone, but specifically from men who believed themselves superior than her. On paper, Leela should have been granted status and benefits from society due to her title as a lady dowager, but her "unsavory" heritage. Her father was a nobleman, who "lowered" himself to marry her mother, the daughter of a Palestinian merchant. Leela's father never recovered his status in the eyes of elite society; everyone labeled him the "Mad Marquess". When Leela came of age, she married an older nobleman who had children from his previous marriage. When her husband died, Leela ran away to be with her family and did not return, since the heir made it very clear Leela was not a part of the family or welcome in the manor.
Elliot Townsend, "Hunt", is attempting to salvage his family's reputation, run his duchy, and live as respectable and scandal free as possible. There is a rumored curse on the Townsend family, every other generation is doomed to ruin through self-indulgence and reckless behavior. Which is why he simultaneously regrets his unforgettable one night stand with a mysterious lone woman, and wants to meet her again. Until, he realizes who the mysterious woman he shared an evening with is: the stepmother of the young woman he intends to marry.
In my household this was referred to as the MILF book (affirmative). Leela is a MILF, but she is an independent woman who doesn't need Hunt, but enjoys him. However. I did not enjoy Hunt. I found him to be shallow and superficial. I found myself wanting to get back to Leela's perspective or their shared chapters. At first I was like "ok, he falls hard, insta-lust, etc" which I would have been fine with, BUT when
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Sexual content
Moderate: Misogyny, Infertility, Sexual assault, and Classism