If I Only Had a Duke by Lenora Bell
Publication Date: August 30, 2016
Publisher:Avon
Amazon Link: HERE
Received From: Purchased


Summary (from Amazon):
After three failed seasons and a disastrous jilting, Lady Dorothea Beaumont has had more than enough of her family's scheming. She won't domesticate a duke, entangle an earl, or vie for a viscount. She will quietly exit to her aunt's Irish estate for a life of blissful freedom. Until an arrogant, sinfully handsome duke duke singles her out for a waltz, making Thea the most popular belle of the season.

The duke ruined her plans and he'll just have to fix them.

Dalton, Duke of Osborne, is far too heartless for debutantes or marriage—he uses dalliances and public spectacle to distract from his real purpose: finding the man who destroyed his family. When his search leads to Ireland, the last thing he needs is the determined, achingly innocent Thea, who arrives in the dead of night demanding he escort her to her aunt. His foolish agreement may prove his undoing. The road to the Emerald Isle is fraught with unforeseen dangers, but the greatest peril of all might just be discovering that he has a heart...and he's losing it to Thea.

Review: 
In order for Dalton to get revenge after Lady Dorothea tried to trap his friend into marriage and also to win a bet, a bet declaring that Lady Dorothea will receive several marriage proposals within the next few weeks, he dances with her, making her sought after by eligible and not so eligible men. While most young ladies would be happy to be the center of attention, Dorothea isn't one of them. All she wants is to stop being pushed to marry by her parents and grandmother and move to Ireland and live out the rest of her life with her aunt. Dalton is the one who got her into this mess so she decides he'll also have to get her out. After discovering he's taking a trip to Ireland, Dorothea tags along. But while they spend more time together, they begin to realize that maybe they would rather be together than alone.

I enjoyed If I Only Had a Duke but it wasn't one of my favorites, mainly because I had a hard time understand the characters' motives and the plot. It was hard to wrap my head around the fact that Dorothea sought Dalton out at a ball alone in order to talk about paintings, and then agree to dance with him even though she must have suspected that it would make her popular. It was also hard to believe Dalton's anger for Dorothea because he set that anger aside too early. His character was probably one of my favorite things about the story, though, because he was realistic and gritty. I also thought the love scenes were well written and had definite chemistry, which is always important in a historical romance. I've read historical romances before with a similar plot—with the heroine and hero traveling together—and while it was a fun read, there wasn't anything spectacular about the book or anything that would make me remember it and want to re-read it in the future.

Overall, I would recommend picking up If I Only Had a Duke at the library, or if you're looking for a historical romance novel that features the heroine and hero traveling together.

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