It’s All About the Duke ⭐️⭐️

Nearing thirty, the Duke of Rathburne is finally ready to make amends for the wager that caused him and his best friends such scandal―but taking on a ward who needs a husband is a feat he’s not sure he can manage. The last he saw of Miss Marlena Fast, she was a spirited little ruffian, not the sort of bride most bachelors on the marriage mart sought. But one glance at the lovely lady she has become is enough to convince him otherwise…
Orphaned young and shuffled from family to family, Marlena counts on her fierce independence and quick wits to keep herself content. Being the responsibility of a notoriously wicked duke who upended so many lives is an unexpected challenge when she realizes he arouses her decidedly feminine desires. Marlena must be careful. She has her own scandalous secret to protect. If he finds out, will it shatter her chances of a happily-ever-after with the notorious rake?

I have read all 3 books in the series and this one was the hardest ... slowest read by far. I would pick it up with honest intentions to read more than a page or two and would quickly become bored. Wondering if I should give the dog a bath or schedule that root canal.

I very nearly DNF when at 80% of the book read I was still waiting for something, anything to happen to make the characters stand out. Unfortunately for me they never did.

I received this ARC for free in exchange for my honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you NetGalley!

This story was interesting. In both good and not so good ways. To begin with, I have not read the other books in this series, and yet I had no trouble understanding this one. If anything, this novel made me curious about the first two the point I have added them to my "to be read at some point" pile.

I enjoyed the story to a point. The author had a way of both keeping my interest while slowly building up the relationship between ward and guardian (which in itself was a story I have not seen before). However, I didn't find their relationship as believable as I wanted. It seemed as though Marlena had harbored this dislike of the rakes (and Rath) for so long, and yet she seemed to be somewhat easily seduced by him. If she hated him for ruining her friends (as well as other young ladies) reputations because of a letter he had written three years ago, why did she not put up more of a fight? This could be because Rath appears as much a gentleman as he can considering - and he does actually try to do right by her.

The fact that the author chose to give Marlena a conscience was a refreshing change as well, although it did become a bit tiresome. As did the constant reminder that she "had spark and spunk" because she spent her childhood running around the countryside with her five male cousins, and his constant "woe is me I will never live up to my father's expectations" attitude. When you overlook these, you still have to overlook Marlena's "chaperone" who I wanted to throttle throughout most of the story.

I also wish we would have gotten more closure when it came to Mr.Portington, there was obviously more of a story there than we were shown. Sure his part in the story was tied up nicely, but what happened to the person responsible for their predicament in the first place?

When I look at this entire story as a whole however, I do feel like it will still appeal to not only fans of the first two novels, but those who enjoy a different sort of historical romance.

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

Really well written part of a trilogy. Could be read as a stand alone book. Loved both Marlena and Rath. So much caring and simmering passion. A coming of age and facing ones mistakes book for the them. Great read.

In this third and final installment in The Rakes of St. James series, Rath the Duke of Rathburne gets his turn at love with the feisty and, unusually for her time, independent Miss Marlena Fast. Rath and his two duke friends caused quite a bit of trouble with their prank of sending letters pretending to be secret admirers to twelve young women some years ago. Now as he has matured, Rath feels guilty for the damage that may have been done by their selfish and juvenile behavior. He is trying to be a better a man, a gentlemen even, when Rath agrees to be Marlena’s guardian whose duty is helping his ward through her first season in high society. Marlena grew up as an orphan, living first with rowdy boy cousins who taught her independence and fortitude. She then became the ward of an elderly gentlemen who allowed her much freedom. Marlena now lives with a cousin who wants to stamp all that unconventionality and free spirit right out of her.

The Duke is immediately drawn to the lively and beautiful Marlena, but desires to do the right thing by her and see a good marriage is made. Marlena is equally enchanted by Rath; however, she has a secret relating to him and his fellow Rakes that if it were known, could have devastating consequences for her and some close friends. The fact Rath and his friends emerged relatively unscathed from their earlier behavior caused much turmoil for Marlena as she loathed what they did, but now, she finds herself very attracted to the Duke of Rathburne.

Marlena is intriguing because she is quite different than the ladies of her station and time period. Her independent nature and desire to be something other than someone’s wife sets Marlena quite apart. Usually, only the very rich could indulge themselves in such a manor not bowing to society’s rules and restrictions. Rath realizes living the life of a reprobate is less than satisfying. He finds himself drawn to Marlena feeling things about a woman he has never felt before.

Although this book is part of a trilogy, it can be read as a standalone as enough information is given to understand the backstory set down in the previous books. Fans of Ms. Grey and Regency Romance will enjoy this conclusion to the series.

“Reformed rakes often make the best husbands.” –Judith McNaught, Something Wonderful

There are three books in The Rakes of St. James series:
Last Night with the Duke: pub Mar 7, 2017 [The Duke of Griffin & Miss Esmeralda Swift]
To the Duke, With Love: pub Dec 5, 2017 [The Duke of Hawksthorn & Miss Loretta Quick]
It’s All About the Duke: estimated pub May 29, 2018 [The Duke of Rathburn & Miss Marlena Fast]

OK am I the only one to see the pattern in the last names of the ladies… Swift, Quick, and Fast? Seriously?? And the guys… [Griff, Hawk, & Rath]… what do they represent? Griffin is a mythical creature with the head and winds of an eagle and the body of a lion… both creatures of prey. Hawk… a bird of prey. Rath… not sure about him. All three are reformed rakes trying to clean up their act and redeem their reputations. Several years prior, they created a scandal that has haunted them and their victims… although the ladies suffered more than they did. Society blamed the females in the scheme before they blamed the Dukes… or as the ton said… ‘rakes will be rakes.’ By the third or fourth chapter… I was becoming pretty tired of hearing of the scandal and Marlena’s anger toward the Duke for ruining her friend’s life. She was pretty zealous in regard to her friend and neighbor… to the point of being obsessed with her situation and well-being. It quickly became tiresome… all-the-way to the final chapter. If I heard the word scandal one more time… I might call myself out… to end my misery.

“If a wicked rake doesn’t kiss a young lady when they’re alone in a moonlit rose garden, might it mean he doesn’t intend to? There were rules about such things. Weren’t they written down somewhere? If not, then they should be. A Treatise on Rakes, written for Susceptible Young Ladies, by a lady of distinction.” –Anna Bradley, A Wicked Way to Win an Earl

Our heroine, Miss Marlena Fast, had a secret. She wrote for the scandal sheets under the name Miss Honora Truth. Her target… the Rakes of St. James… our hero His Grace, the Duke of Rathburn and his friends… the Duke of Griffin and the Duke of Hawksthorn. Her writing had become so popular that the publisher convinced her to write a book with her reflections. The title… Miss Honora Truth’s Words of Wisdom and Warning About Rakes, Scoundrels, Rogues, and Libertines.

Each chapter of this book had a heading with Miss Honora Truth’s reflections regarding rakes. They read like a Jeff Foxworthy… “You might be a redneck…” only our author stated “He could be a rake…” and then listed a reflection on what might constitute someone being a rake. Of course, that was exactly what our hero did in that very chapter. His every action reinforcing her opinion that he was a rake.

The chemistry between them was HOT… thus the RATING: MA: mature audience, sex scene between consenting adults [anticipating vows]. I’m sorry, but our couple jumped into lusty and steamy… way to quickly. I didn’t ‘feel the love’ between them, but rather felt the lust factor instead. He wanted her and she wanted him. Just saying. Then they had a colossal fight, had to suck up their courage, resolve the misunderstanding and forgive each other and head off to their happy ever after. Pretty predictable.

This story did not make me want to run and read books 1&2. Characters from those books were present and made an appearance in this story. I liked his buddies, the other rakes or Dukes; however, their wives were just OK… nothing that piqued my interest. There was comedic relief from Miss Marlena’s cousin and widow… Mrs. Justine Abernathy. She was a pistol; however, after a while even her antics became tedious. Everyone got on my nerves. I am sorry, I simply could not connect with these guys. [3-stars]

I volunteered to read an ‘Uncorrected digital Galley’ from the publisher via NetGalley. The views expressed are my own. Estimated publication date... May 29, 2018.

I had a very difficult time getting into this book. The opening chapters dragged, and it was difficult for me to believe that Marlena would fall for the man who so hurt her friends. The fact that Rath became her guardian also added a bit of an ick factor to this story for me. The book did improve over the last fourth of it, but it took so long to get to that point. I couldn’t help but feel this book was a bit of a disappointment.

I received an eARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest and fair review.

I really enjoyed this book. I plan on reading more books the author in the future. It was a good book.

Simply a delightful and interesting historical romance. Nice pair of main characters with chemistry. I was intrigued from page and hooked.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that it is probably not idea to read the third book in a group of companion books without having read the previous two.

It seems that the male love interest and some friends played a mean prank on some debutantes who were having their season and ruined the chances of at least one of them to make a good match. As a result, I didn't really warm up to the guy. Then, in revenge for before mentioned prank, the female love interest decided to get revenge on his sister. As a result, I kind of felt the two of them were shady and deserved each other. But again, maybe if I had a better understanding of the backstory I'd have liked this more.

It’s All About the Duke by Amelia Grey
Written with humor and involving well-drawn characters, this is a wonderful addition to a splendid series. Nearly ten years prior to the start of this story, three young dukes made a foolish wager. While each of the books in the Rakes of St. James series refers to that bet, Book 3 focuses almost entirely on the consequences of one’s actions, intended or not. As one of the men who years earlier wagered on whether or not 12 young ladies would elude their chaperones to meet a “secret admirer,” The Duke of Rathburne may learn about consequences by losing the love of his life. Rathburne finds himself the guardian of Marlena Fast when her previous guardian becomes too ill to manage. Marlena has a secret – she is the author of the scandal sheet as well as a book warning about rakes. She started writing these earn funds to aid her friend, and next-door neighbor, and to avenge her friend’s sister, who was one of the 12 young women tricked in the wager and who has made an unhappy marriage to escape the scandal. Much to the surprise, and dismay, of both Marlena and the duke, they find themselves attracted to one another, but can this attraction become something more in the face of the past. Characters from the first two books make an appearance here, but in minor roles. Hopefully, the next book will tie up some of the loose ends in the stories of a few of the minor characters, especially Lady Vera.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley. It wasn’t an awful book but it also wasn’t terribly interesting. The relationship between the main characters developed well and over a believable time frame but it just felt like nothing really happened. I feel like the big secret wasn’t really that big of a deal and it didn’t quite create the tension I think the author was going for.
One thing that did bug me about this book was how often it was mentioned that the h went tromping around the countryside with 5 boys when she was a young girl. It was as if they believed this was the most badass thing a woman could have done as a girl and, while I know that women were much more oppressed in these times, it’s not the most amazing thing she could have done to get her strength and boldness. Recommend if you’re after something easy. Wouldn’t read again though. 2.5 stars.

It's all about the Duke is the third book in the Rakes of St James series. I had not read the other two, so I was a bit lost, but I was still able to follow the story well enough. I'm a huge fan of Amelia Grey's, but I didn't like this book as much as her others. Maybe it was because I hadn't read the other in the series, but the story just went a little slow. Theres always good romance, but this had a bit too much of the introspective dialogue than I personally prefer. I do think it's worth the read, but definitely after the other two.

We finally get to the bottom of who is Miss Truth. I have read the other books in this series and really liked them but this book was off for me. I did not hate it but did not love it either. I did love Rath. He is kind and loving and helpful, especially to those he loves and respects. I had a hard time liking Marlena. Even though she was doing what she thought was justice, it really hurt a lot of innocent people. That is where I had a huge problem with her. I think Rath deserved someone better than her. With that being said, the overall series is good. I am not sure if there is a spin off of this series planned but would like to see Lady Vera as a heroine in a book.

I received an ARC via Netgalley of It’s All About the Duke by Amelia Grey in exchange for an honest review. This is the part of the Rakes of St. James series. This is my first Amelia Grey book. It is not necessary to read the other books in the series to be able to keep up with this one—it reads fine as a stand alone.

A guilty conscience moves the Duke of Rathburne to accept the guardianship of Miss Marlena Fast. He’s trying to make amends for a prank gone wrong in his younger years. Marlena is less than thrilled to become the responsibility of one of London’s most notorious rakes. She values her independence and is secretly trying to help friends better their lives. There is an immediate attraction between the Duke in Marlena but a lot of secrets stand in their way.

I thought the book was well written and there was good chemistry between the characters. The book did drag a little in parts because of secondary story lines.

Summary:

*From Goodreads*

Nearing thirty, the Duke of Rathburne is finally ready to make amends for the wager that caused him and his best friends such scandal―but taking on a ward who needs a husband is a feat he’s not sure he can manage. The last he saw of Miss Marlena Fast, she was a spirited little ruffian, not the sort of bride most bachelors on the marriage mart sought. But one glance at the lovely lady she has become is enough to convince him otherwise…

Orphaned young and shuffled from family to family, Marlena counts on her fierce independence and quick wits to keep herself content. Being the responsibility of a notoriously wicked duke who upended so many lives is an unexpected challenge when she realizes he arouses her decidedly feminine desires. Marlena must be careful. She has her own scandalous secret to protect. If he finds out, will it shatter her chances of a happily-ever-after with the notorious rake?

My thoughts:

To start, let me just say that I loved these characters. Rath is funny, kind, and trying to live better- even when it certainly doesn’t suite him. He feels bad about the wager- he was young, stupid, drunk and full of himself- and he’ll be the first one to tell you so. You can’t change the past. All he can do is move forward and so he tries to. The mix of emotions in this hero, the desire for his father’s approval that’s too late to ever happen… these things make him human. His loyalty and wit, and his wildly flirtatious streak make him delicious.

Then there’s Marlena. She is beautiful, kind, intelligent and loyal to a fault. When she started a scandal sheet to poke at the dukes, they had been faceless and she never really thought about coming face to face with them. All she considered was that her friends and neighbors needed money and she had no other way to get it. Daring, sassy and just plain mesmerizing, I loved watching this girl.

The relationship between Rath and Marlena also felt honest- there was a lot of chemistry and emotion. The story line was strong, though I feel like the author was in a major hurry to wrap things up. The ending just seemed a bit too neat, you know? It lost half a star due to that for me… Still this was a quick, entertaining read that I adored. I do wish I had read the others first (I HAVE to stop doing that!), but with these you really don’t have to. It’s wise, but I don’t feel like I missed any of the story. For me, this is a three and a half star book. It won’t win any literary awards, but it’s great fun!
On the adult content scale there is a small amount of language and a rather large sex scene. It seemed, as they usually do, to go into far greater detail than needed. Maybe that’s just me? Still, there’s only one so it isn’t that bad. I give this a five.

I was lucky enough to receive this book from Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review. My thanks.

Thanks Netgalley for this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

So the book is the 3rd in the Rakes of st James. I thought I read all but I guess I skipped book 2( I read alot and get confused and forget easily) That being said I did like this book but I also had some problems with it. I fslt there was WAY to much inter dialogue. I also felt That He fell to fast for her. He didn't even really know her. It felt more like he was lonley because of his friend's marriages and was ready to settle down. Also Miss Fast writes about Rakes but is fast to fall for one? Just because he his handsome? IDK but I didn't "feel the love" . All that being said I still enjoyed the vook and LOL a few times Miss fast Cousin was just so ridiculous that it was funny. All things considered I'll go 3.5 stars.

I initially gave this book 3 stars, but the more I think about it, I think it is only a 2-star book. My biggest problem with the book is that I felt it dragged on and on. I don't mind a little of it, but it is especially tedious when I don't like the characters. The main characters were okay, but I didn't really like the side characters all that well. I also have mixed feelings about characters secretly being gossip columnists. Also, another minor problem I had was with the plot in general. This is just a "me" problem, but the guardian/ward pairing trope in romance can be a little hit-or-miss with me, and this one was just a miss. I have read Amelia Grey's books before and would read them again, but this one wasn't my cup of tea.

I loved the premise of the story- and the characters. Amelia Grey does a very nice job of character development and tying all story ends together in the end. I think this book will be an instant hit!

My only objection was the amount of narrative that the book had, which tended to bog me down, instead of draw me into the book. Even with that- once I got to know the characters, I connected and picked up the book every spare chance I got.

I heartily recommend.

A good spirited read. Rath and Marlena have great chemistry and each is trying to deny their feelings. A solid entry to the historical romance genre.

"I received an advanced copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review "

I have yet to be disappointed by anything this author has written. I loved this book. I highly enjoyed the two main characters. Rath and Marlena. Rath is a "Rogue" who has taken on guardianship (out of guilt for past mistakes) of Marlena and intends to get her through her first season and help her find a husband. After meeting her and realizing his attraction for her the thought of her marrying anyone else doesn't sit well with him.

Marlena has a secret. A secret that she uses to help support her neighbors and friends. She is terrified of her secret getting out especially when Rath becomes her new guardian. Her attraction to him and her natural curiosity do not make a good mix.

I absolutely love the banter between the two of them and how good hearted the two of them are. They will both go out of their way to help someone.

This is the third book in a series and can be read as a standalone. You definitely have more information on characters if you read the previous books but it's not necessary. This was the first book in this particular series that I have read.

If you are a fan of historical romance then I highly recommend reading. This book is definitely worth the read.