Stirring historical romance with a different sort of characters. An unusual start however became predictable.

Miss Lily Hartley, her sister Fiona, and her friend Sophie are the masterminds behind the potentially scandalous advice column for young debutantes called The Debutante's Revenge. They give advice to young women looking to navigate the marriage mart. However, if their secret is revealed, they will be thrown out of society.

One evening, Lily disguises herself as a boy and delivers the latest column to the newspaper. Because her sister and her new husband are out of town as are her parents, Lily takes the opportunity at freedom and explore parts of London she has seen before. She finds herself in a pub and in the middle of a bar fight.

Lily is rescued by Eric Nash, Duke of Stonebridge, who was also in the pub. Lily has an accident that was partially caused by Nash so he brings her to his home and calls his doctor. When Lily awakens, she has no memory of her past. Nash and his sister Delilah, who is a big fan of the Debutante's Revenge, nurse her back to health. They want to help her recover her memory.

Nash and Delilah have just returned to London from five years at their country home. A tragic accident which cost the life of their father and Nash's twin sister sent them away from all the memories and left Nash guilty and afraid to commit his heart to anyone.

The story has Nash and Lily falling in love while Delilah is also falling in love - with a very unsuitable suitor. I loved the relationship between Nash and Lily as she convinced him that his heart was safe with her.

A very sweet, romantic read. I loved it!

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this story. It's sweet and witty but a little predictable. It was enjoyable nonetheless.

The Duke is But a Dream is a very light read and a little predictable featuring Lily Hartley whom suffers amnesia and is cared for Eric Nash. It will fill a few hours but don't expect any surprises.

I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

"Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy of this book, in exchange for an honest review."

Loved this book very much. It had just enough sweet, sexy romance and the storyline was great! I highly recommend!

I DNF'ed this book halfway through. This book just couldn't keep my interest. Lilly/Caroline put herself into jams without thinking about the consequences. Then she was going to leave Nash's home because of something said in the middle of the night. She had no common sense. Then there's Nash, who doesn't want his sister Delilah debauched, but he had no problem debauching someone else's sister. His upstanding demeanor was quite hypocritical. This is my honest opinion and I voluntarily read this book via NetGalley in exchange for this opinion.

I DNF this book. I read about 50%, but the formatting of the dual narrative was abrupt and made it difficult to follow.

I am not a huge fan of the amnesia/unlovable person troupes. I don’t see the appeal in falling in love with someone who has amnesia. When they recover their memory, they could be someone different. Like it was pointed out to Nash, Caroline/Lily could be a scullery maid. I also don’t like the unlovable person troupe. It rubs me the wrong way. So, when I saw that The Duke is But a Dream contained both, I sighed and mentally set myself up for a disappointment.

I am happy to report; this book didn’t disappoint me. The author did a fantastic job of building up the troupes and then shattering what I thought of them.

I liked Lily/Caroline. She was sweet but impulsive. That impulsiveness got her into trouble, and it continued throughout the book. I did feel awful that she had amnesia. I couldn’t imagine not remembering who I was or my family. I liked how she handled Delilah, Nash, and their issues too.

I wasn’t fond of Nash. His backstory took a while to come out. Meanwhile, he was keeping Delilah from meeting people (and suitors). When his backstory was revealed, I felt awful for him. I wouldn’t wish that on anyone. I thought he would have gotten better after the reveal, but he didn’t.

The romance angle of the book was a bit hard for me to swallow. Mainly because I didn’t like the “hard to love” and “amnesia” troupe. But the author did a great job of building up Nash and Lily/Caroline’s relationship. By the end of the book, their relationship felt natural.

That incredible sexual tension leads to some fantastic sex scenes. Lily/Caroline was progressive for a young lady of that era. She enjoyed sex and doing sexual things.

The end of The Duke is But a Dream was typical. Lily/Caroline and Nash got their HEA. But, I do wish that there was an epilogue that was set in the future.

I would give The Duke is But a Dream an Adult rating. There is sex. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread The Duke is But a Dream I would recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**

The advise column authoress who has lost memory is an interest setting. All the characters are likable. However, everything in this historical romance felt too modern and too inconsistent. The duke got indignant at his sister's seducer, but what he did to the heroine is basically the same. The heroine is too ignorant and too impulsive to write a popular advice column. The hero is wish washy.

It's just a romance novel, but it has to be believable. It's a cute romance book, but it's not special enough.

Lily is putting herself in danger with her escapades and disguises. But she gets the opportunity to meet her one true love and the adventures begin. Great story.

A nice story, but a bit too easy. Everyone said all the right things (almost) all the time, every danger was immediately rectified, and the relationship happened startlingly fast. The characters were likable, but overall, everything was far too convenient for there to be any real tension or drama at all.

A very pleasant historical romance that will keep your interest from beginning to end. A young lady, while dressed as she should not be and where she should not be, received a very hard bump on the head. It not only renders her unconscious but also causes her to lose her memory. Through trial and tribulations she becomes enamored with the hero who rescued her and is maintaining her in his home that he shares with his sister. While her background is open to speculation her deepening love for her rescuer is not and as it blossoms will her troubled hero return the love she is offering.

I have rated this book 4 stars and would recommend it if you enjoy historical romance novels.

I received an ARC from Netgalley for my unbiased review.

I absolutely loved Nash and Lily's story. When Nash has no idea who Lily really is, he gets to know Caroline. There are so many unknowns for her but the love they find is known and true. It was fun watching them find Lily together.

This was a good, light, romance beach read for me. I like the backstories the author sets up for her characters. I found myself cheering for Lily. This is book two in the series. But can be read as a stand alone.
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Loved this story! Lily disguised as a man ventures into a tavern for some excitement, she ends up hitting her head and when Nash takes her to his house to recuperate, she wakes up with no memory of who she is.

Nash has suffered tragedy and is overprotective of his sister, but now finds himself attracted to Lily, but fears he can’t give his heart to her the way she needs.

Great romance and story! I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves historical romance!

Thanks to the publisher for a review copy via NetGalley.

The Duke is but a Dream

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

She’s a secret sensation.
Miss Lily Hartley is the anonymous mastermind behind the ton’s latest obsession: The Debutante’s Revenge, a tell-all advice column for young ladies. To keep her identity hidden, Lily delivers her columns disguised as a boy—which is well and good, until she lands in the middle of tavern brawl. As luck would have it, a devastatingly handsome duke sweeps in to rescue her.
He has no idea who she is.
Eric Nash, Duke of Stonebridge, discovers there’s a beautiful woman hiding beneath a lad’s cap, and, before long, he’s falling for the delightfully clever stranger recuperating in his house. He vows to help her find her home, even though he’s reluctant to part with her. There’s only one problem…
Neither does she.
Lily has no idea who she is. She could be a duchess or maid. Betrothed or married. There’s only one thing she does know—that her attraction to Nash is more than skin-deep, and it grows stronger every day. While Lily and Nash search to find her true identity, they just might lose their hearts to each other...

All in all I enjoyed the book. It is the second book in the series Debutante Diaries but is also a good stand alone book.

A little cheesy and predictable but plenty of plot lines to keep you reading.

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, Anna Bennett and St. Martins Press

Lilly and Nash were a fantastic read. I couldn't pit this book down. It has everything a historical romance reader could want. It won't disappoint.

I enjoyed this story. It was light and airy, and I really enjoyed the adventure of it. I did have a hard time believing the brief, abrupt nature of the sexual relations between the pair. It seemed like there should have been a little more build up between these two characters. However, it was still a very enjoyable story.

Miss Lily Hartley anonymously pens the advice column, The Debutante's Revenge. It is cherished by ladies young and old, especially those entering the marriage mart. Lily must keep her identity a secret so she delivers the column dressed as a lad. Wanting to venture a little farther, Lily enters a tavern in her disguise. That is how she finds herself waking up in the Duke of Stonebridge, Nash's, home, without a clue to her own identity.

In trying to come to a young lad's defense, Nash, Duke of Stonebridge, causes him to get knocked out. Nash takes him home and is surprised to learn that the lad is actually a lass. Nash finds no clues to the woman's identity, but offers her a place to stay and heal. It doesn't take long before Nash starts to really like her. He knows someone out there is missing her and he means to return her home as soon as she knows who she is.
Will he be able to let Lily go when the time comes?

I thoroughly enjoyed author Anna Bennett's THE DUKE IS BUT A DREAM. It is the second installment in the DEBUTANTE DIARIES series by Ms. Bennett and is just as good as the first book, FIRST EARL I SEE TONIGHT, which I highly recommend reading first. THE DUKE IS BUT A DREAM is Lily's story. Lily is bold, adventurous, caring and extremely compassionate. I really liked her character and how even unsure of her identity, she is brave and willing to stand up for what she believes. Nash really tested her and although she seemed the one most end in need of healing, I think it was he who healed the most. Together, they are better and stronger. I cannot wait to read more by Ms. Bennett.