Can a duke be thrown into debtor’s prison? If so, Emily, dependent on her cousin, the heir to her father’s impoverished dukedom, wonders what will become of her? With great reluctance, she agrees to marry a man willing to pay for an aristocratic bride.Rejected by the woman he loves, Ambrose Hawkins, shipper, importer, and former pirate, settles for a female who can further his social ambitions. … ambitions. His marriage to Emily is prospering until a man who blames Hawkins for the failure of his own courtship is murdered. Hawkins is the obvious suspect……and the obvious suspect usually hangs.
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This is my first experience with this author so I did not know what to expect. The story was intriguing and captured my interest from the start and had me turning the pages till the end. The characters were well-developed and had great personalities and depth. Emily’s father was an impoverished duke and when he dies, she is ultimately left in the care of her cousin, who simply wants to marry her off to a wealthy businessman so the dukedom has somewhat of a chance of recovering. Ambrose is simply looking for a bride that can help increase his social standing. Ambrose is not what Emily expected, and he actually cares about her opinion and what she wants. They court for a brief time and when fate intervenes and separates them, Emily fights for his freedom. I found this to be a very enjoyable and entertaining read and after reading this book, I am interested in reading more of Ms. Buckley’s work.
I received a complimentary copy from BookSirens and am voluntarily leaving my review.
This book is not quite what was expected.
It is full of mystery and intrigue.
I would have liked it more if it was more detailed with love scenes.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily
I love reading historical romance and when an author can develop characters that you fall in love with and can feel their emotions you know this will be an author you will follow.
I can’t imagine living in a time that would make a woman marry when she doesn’t want to do so. I felt so bad for Emily.
Wanting to advance in society, Ambrose chooses to marry a penniless lady that just happens to be a duke’s daughter. He seems so cold I can’t but hope Emily won’t go through with the marriage.
An adventure that will keep you interested and involved until the very end.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
This book was ok. I wasn’t a fan of the writing and the dialog between the H & h. There wasn’t a lot of actual romance in the book. This book is about Emily, a duke’s daughter whose father has passed away so she is living with her cousin, the current duke, and they have no money. Ambrose Hawkins is a wealthy merchant who wants to marry in to the ton to further his business. So the two marry and then the murder and mystery starts.
I received a free copy of the book for my honest review
This story is about the daughter of a Duke who was sold by her cousin to save the Duchy. As Emily learns to navigate the middle class; her husband is arrested for murder on circumstantial evidence. Emily lives her life, not showing her emotions.She does try to save her marriage and her husband from the noose. I’m not sure if this is from duty or love. It’s really hard to tell. At the end of the story, I’m unsure if Andrew and Emily are actually in love or just enjoy the marriage bed and their wealth.
My first impression upon beginning “A Duke’s Daughter” was, “I didn’t know authors wrote like this anymore.” It wasn’t just the setting and time period Kathleen Buckley captivated me with, it was very much the way she unfolded it through her hero’s and heroine’s senses. I understood every bit of heroine Emily’s plight of being a penniless Duke’s daughter in an unforgiving society, without the author bogging me down in her details. Instead I analyzed the situation alongside Emily, considered futile options with her until deciding to marry beneath her status seemed the only…and right…thing to do. Then I stood in our hero Hawkins’ shoes. I saw him from her eyes, but knew his thoughts until this unlikely giant of a man won my heart. Add to this couple in an unlikely arranged marriage, murder, jealousy, characters from all walks of life, and a threat of death, and you have two people who decide to rearrange their relationship to something different than either…or society…expected.
A little long and wordy. I wasn’t fond of some of the underlying thoughts, especially when it interrupted the flow of the story. I did love the basic plot between Emily and Ambrose which then incorporated the murder. This is what saved the book from a three. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book.
1741
It seemed through the ages the Dukes of Normande had not overly taken care of the estate but muddled through and such was the case with the current Duke. Such was the case was with Henry, the eighth duke of Normand, Emily Saintonge’s cousin. After her father had passed away, Claude had taken over and then his son Henry. It seemed the finances were in dire straights, thus she could not fathom why he had brought her to Covent Gardens to see a play. She could only wonder about the cost!
That is when she was introduced to Mr. Ambrose Hawkins. Her cousin had arranged for her to marry him if he found her pleasing, thus helping with the debt owed. A time honored way of things?
This story is the journey of Emily and Ambrose and overcoming their marriage of convenience with some suspense and mystery thrown into the mix. An enjoyable read! I read this through NetGallery
This is an interesting story. Ambrose Hawkins was into shipping. He owned several ships. He is still single but wanted a mate. He had tried to woo Olivia Cantarell but he made a whopper of a mistake. So needless to say, that she rejected him and went with another. Someone suggested a moneylender as a matchmaker. Apparently, he had been successful. So Hawkins went to him. The Duke of Normande was financially in dire straits and was only twenty-two. But it had happened through three dukes mismanaging the estate and the Dukedom. So he decided to get a rich wife and he also went to Solomon. He put his cousin, Emily Saintonge, on the block also. Mr. Hawkins saw her at a play and liked the looks of her. Then he came to the house to meet her and learn a little more about her.
I thought it was well written and the plot kept my attention. There were some twists and turns that were eventually explained. The only problem I have is she seemed to dwell on she should not do this because they were lower classes, like when she befriended Sarah. The characters were realistic and engaging. I fell very lucky to have the chance to read this book.
I received this ARC from Net Galley and voluntarily reviewed it.