#Review: WHEN THE DUKE LOVED ME by Lydia Lloyd

 

3.75 of 5 stars

John Breminster, Duke of Edington, wanted nothing to do with Miss Catherine Forster, and certainly not to ask for her help. After everything that her Aunt Mary had done to destroy his family, he could hardly admit that a codicil in his father's will would force him to ask for Catherine's help in finding Mary. The meeting with Catherine did not go well as they both remembered that night seven years ago when they each had assumed a fake identity at a ball and shared a moment of passion in the garden, only to find out each other's true identity. John had recoiled from her and walked away.

Catherine never forgot that night in the garden, and she only agreed to help John find her aunt for a princely sum. The money wasn't for her sole use. It would help her adopted family regain some of their dignity and help with future expenses. Of course, that meant she must travel with John and try to find the location of her aunt, or John's sister Henrietta stood to lose her substantial dowry. 

All of the circumstances that bring John and Catherine together seem a bit far-fetched, but as I read further, the will became the driving force in the book. Both of them, as it turns out, had never forgotten their shared passion of that night seven years ago. I liked Catherine. She suffered a lot in her young life, especially during her first Season, which was an utter disaster because the scandal about her aunt and the old duke was still on everyone's lips. John, on the other hand, was mostly distant and aloof. It took a while for me to warm up to him. 

There is a lot of angst in the book, but I was surprised at the opening chapter when Catherine was willing to have a tryst with John in the garden. That seemed a little out of character for a well-bred young lady. Also a few situations, especially the one with the modiste, I believe would never happen in Regency England, but for the sake of the plot moving forward, was used in the book. The secondary characters added charm to the book, especially John's friends, which I can see, each having their own book. This is a very good first novel for this author, and her writing flows nicely. As she writes more in the series, I hope that she will stay true to the period and Societal norms of the times.

I voluntarily read the advanced reader copy, and all opinions are my own.