The Duchess Deal

When Emma Gladstone decided to visit the reclusive Duke of Ashbury to collect the money owed to her, she didn’t expect the man to offer marriage, but she is desperate and he’s offering security and comfort beyond her wildest expectations as well as a viable solution to an unexpected complication. Of course, getting married is just the beginning for this couple.
This was my first read by the author and I’m seriously regretting not getting on her train sooner. Her writing is just as I like my books: fluid, fast paced and extremely clever and it had me hooked from the very beginning.
This story has amazing main characters, fun secondary characters, great banter and a plot that properly brings them all together. I really enjoyed everything about it and have already lined up my next read by the author.

I must confess I read this book only because a regency romance was required for a reading challenge. I must further confess I ending up loving this book. I love wounded damaged heroes – probably because they seem to deserve a happy ending the most and phew…Duke Ashbury may be my new favorite. Ashbury is disfigured by burn scars he received from ordinance that blew up in his face during his military service. He believes he is so broken and hideous even though he’s not. He’s a good man and you just know love will let him see he’s such a kind, sweet, good guy who deserves all the things. Emma Gladstone is a master seamstress/dressmaker who was turned out at the age of 16 for an indiscretion by her unforgiving vicar father. Emma meets Ashbury when trying to collect her wages for the wedding dress she prepared for his former betrothed. Emma agrees to a marriage of convenience to Ashbury who is looking for a wife because he needs an heir. Ash and Emma’s journey to their inevitable HEA is a bit of an awkward but beautiful dance. This book has a little bit of everything – sweet moments, fan your face steam, real life issues, imperfect characters, tearful moments, and heart squeezing love – expect to laugh, to swoon, and to cry. While I love reading romances for the HEA, when real life issues are included – like abandonment and social judgment – and the scars those experiences leave, it makes for more three dimensional characters and more well rounded storylines. This story was a masterpiece of all the things and it will not be my last book in this genre.

‘When girl meets Duke, their marriage breaks all the rules…

Since his return from war, the Duke of Ashbury’s to-do list has been short and anything but sweet: brooding, glowering, menacing London ne’er-do-wells by night. Now there’s a new item on the list. He needs an heir—which means he needs a wife. When Emma Gladstone, a vicar’s daughter turned seamstress, appears in his library wearing a wedding gown, he decides on the spot that she’ll do.

His terms are simple:
– They will be husband and wife by night only.
– No lights, no kissing.
– No questions about his battle scars.
– Last, and most importantly… Once she’s pregnant with his heir, they need never share a bed again.

But Emma is no pushover. She has a few rules of her own:
– They will have dinner together every evening.
– With conversation.
– And unlimited teasing.
– Last, and most importantly… Once she’s seen the man beneath the scars, he can’t stop her from falling in love…’
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The Duchess Deal is the first book in Tess Dare’s Girl Meets Duke series and is a historical romance.

I adored both main characters and their dynamic together. Emma is resilient and brazen, not afraid to step into the unknown and needle Ash to chip away at his defences. She’s amusing and a good source of light for him. I adored the numerous nicknames she made up to vex him. Ash is prickly and reserved, but that really just the walls he has put up to protect himself from rejection since getting injured while serving. He wants to see himself as a terrifying menance to be feared, but both Emma and his unwanted sidekick, Trevor, won’t enable him cling to that image, forcing him to see himself in a different light.

There were some cheesy moments that were a bit predictable and silly, but it didn’t take away form my enjoyment of the book. I still really enjoyed the book and this has been one of my favorites by this author. I plan to reread it, maybe before I read the next book in the series.

Tessa Dare has a very distinctive historical romance style with a light-hearted and sometimes whimsical tilt. It always seems like it shouldn’t work, that it is going to mess with the historical tone, but I always really enjoy her books. There are other authors I’ve read that have a similar style and it normally ruins the book for me, but she strikes a good balance and she’e one of my favorite historical authors. I still have the second in the series left to read before the fourth book comes out sometime (hopefully) soon.

The Duke of Ashbury returned from Waterloo scarred and bitter, spending his days brooding and his nights menacing ill-intentioned scoundrels on London’s streets. But he needs an heir and that means the first step is finding a wife. When vicar’s daughter turned seamstress Emma Gladstone appears in his library demanding payment for the hideous wedding dress commissioned by his former betrothed, Ash decides she’ll do just fine for his wife.

Ash offers Emma a deal: her security in exchange for his heir. He intends to only visit her chamber at night, under cover of darkness, forbids kissing or questioning his scars, and once she becomes pregnant with his heir, they can go their separate ways. Emma knows she’d be a fool to refuse him, but she has conditions of her own: they’ll have dinner together each night with actual conversation. As she begins to know the real, caring man beneath the scarred visage, she can’t help but love him even as she fears he’ll never return her feelings.

This book was absolutely delightful, and I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to get around to it. I listened to the audiobook and Mary Jane Wells’ narration was a perfect fit and really added to the story. This one had me laughing aloud and no doubt looking like a lunatic, but the humor and snappy dialogues were excellent. I loved the banter between Emma and Ash as they fought falling in love even as their feelings had already clearly grown past that possibility. Ash was a brilliantly strong yet scarred hero whose self-worth had been damaged by the rejection and censure he faced because of his scars. Emma helped him heal and see his true worth while he helped her learn to trust that not every man would let her down. I adored this couple and this book and I’m hoping to finally get around to the next book soon.

Blog link: https://mustreadalltheromance.blogspot.com/2021/03/the-duchess-deal-by-tessa-dare-audio.html

Cute story. Quick read

I love all of Tessa Dare’s books. This one is a particular favorite. Emma is probably my favorite heroine this author has penned. She has such a compelling backstory, and the fierce backbone to go with it. The banter in this book is fabulous. And the cat…:) A must read!

This is my first book by this author and I am hooked! I absolutely loved this book. Ms. Dare has become a new favorite author!

Ash is scarred and bitter, Emma destitute and untrusting. They enter into a marriage of convenience. Their journey to a wonderful HEA begins here.

The characters were so vividly described. From Ash’s scars to Emma’s horrid dress, the descriptions of the characters are spot on. They are richly and lovingly written. The plot draws slightly from a fairy tale, but this adds to the story rather than detract. This brings an almost ethereal feeling to the story.

The plot had so much humor, I found myself laughing and smiling. The dialogue was witty and sharp. Where there were many times I laughed, there were also times where the pain the characters felt were palatable. But the heart of the novel was a very passionate love story. It moved fast and the comedic timing was spot on.

This novel grabbed me at the first page. It catches your attention right away and it keeps you drawn in until the last page.

I am so glad I found this author, I will definitely be reading more of her books. I would recommend this novel to lovers of passionate historical romance with a touch of humor.

Love Tessa Dare…all her books are fantastic!

Look at me. Look at me. Because you’re the only one who does. Likely the only one who ever will.

I finally read a Tessa Dare and I’m 1000% obsessed! I loved everything about this romance. Emma is a vicar’s daughter turned seamstress with a big heart. She is constantly taking care of others. She also has a strong backbone and isn’t afraid to voice her opinion. Ash is the perfect grumpy, brooding ash-hole, but he’s one for a very good reason. Ash is badly scarred on one side of his face and neck from a war wound, and he’s turned into a recluse. A recluse in need of a wife. Luckily for him, Emma shows up in a wedding dress so she kind of makes his decision easy. This has so much push and pull, denial of love but we as readers can see how quickly and deeply these two fall for each other. It’s adorable.

The angst, the chemistry, the steam, the smut, the funny banter between the two…….it was all off the charts and I couldn’t get enough. I cannot wait to get to the rest of the books in this series because they are staring the funny group of female friends that Emma makes in The Duchess Deal.

Overall rating 5 stars
Steaminess 4 stars

I’ve read this before and loved it, and loved it again the second time around! Emma is smart and kind and willing to do the hard work needed to succeed – in life and in her marriage. Ash is broken and in pain and pretending that he’s not. All around a wonderful story!