Yay, a new Kerrigan Byrne series! We have a feisty archeologist, Lady Alexandra who along with her two best friends is hiding a secret from their school days. But someone has discovered the secret and is blackmailing her. Her family is destitute and she can no longer pay the blackmailer. That is when the idea of marrying the Terror of Torcliff becomes a good one. Evil follows Alex and Piers.
This is a great start to a new series. The meeting of Alex and Piers is a perfect start to this original plot. Ms Byrne once again kept me glued to the book only getting up to refresh my coffee. I wanted Piers to be a bit more terrifying. He was just too easy to love. I loved the independent, accomplished Alexandra. The action and adventure was pitch perfect. Highly recommended.

I love that the author was brave enough to tackle a difficult subject and (I think) do well with a realistic portrayal of what surviving looks like. The chemistry between the hero and heroine is fantastic, and I loved Alexandra's best friends. While the plot is a bit unwieldy, with a few too many characters to complicate things, it's still a very enjoyable read. Based on this novel, I would be delighted to pick up other novels by Ms. Byrne.

Thank you, NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you netgalley for the ARC

First of all CW for sexual assault on the page of our heroine.

Alexandra is a young girl at a boarding school with her two close friends and her headmaster rapes her and she kills him. This is all in the prologue and the story really gets started years later.

Kerrigan Byrnes novels often have a very old school romance feel. Her heroes are almost always damaged in some way either physically or philosophically. Her heroines often have secrets that she is afraid to reveal to the hero because she thinks it will destroy their relationship when in reality it’s not being honest that hurts the relationship.

Alexandra and Piers both fall into these categories as usual but they also feel different from the author’s previous books.
However it’s pretty predictable where the story goes to be honest.

I also don’t really think Byrne handled the rape storyline in the best way. Apparently all Alexandra needed was the right man to have sex with and her PTSD from the rape will be completely cured!

Thank you netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
So the beginning was a bit difficult to get through as the heroine experiences a life altering act of sexual violence that affects her ability to connect with other men. She meets the hero after saving a horse and others. He is scarred and set to uncover the mystery that surrounds his attack. Both are broken characters that through love overcome the obstacle of fear and shame. Emotionally charged and we'll written.

This book was so good! I live when romance is paired with mystery and intrigue, and this did not disappoint! The characters were flawed but lovable, and the story is a page turner. I absolutely recommend this book!

Most reviews have spoken to the opening of this book. While incredibly hard to read, for a story to begin with such horrid ugliness, to somehow unfold into a beautiful love story, speaks of the remarkable writing by Kerrigan Byrne.

This story was one of a hard fought journey toward healing for both Lady Alexandra Lane and Piers Gedrick Atherton, the Duke of Redmayne, who had his own demons to fight as well. Despite the ugliness he saw in himself, Alexandra couldn't have had a more valiant man in her corner. As she began to realize this herself, the line that summed up the feel of the story was when Alexandra reflected to herself,

"What a long road they had to travel, the two of them,
toward any kind of marital contentment. They each had
so many scars".

They were damaged and broken on their own, but together were a force like no other. Their vulnerabilities, fears and losses were no match for their ultimate strength, trust and love they shared.

This was an amazing start to a new series and has firmly established Kerrigan Byrne on my Top 10 favorite romance author 's list.

Kerrigan Byrne is a fantastic writer and I have fallen hopelessly in love with her historical romances. I wasn't sure she would be able to top the Victorian Rebels series but she has! This book has it all. I can't wait for the next one!

In her usual style, Kerrigan Byrne has written another deeply romantic, extremely emotional and appealingly sexy historical romance with unusual characters who are connected by a secret past. Rather than dangerous men who were the center of her Victorian Rebels series, this new series focuses on three women who now must face the challenges of their secrets being uncovered.

I enjoyed watching Alexandra and Piers meet, circle, fall in love and face the dangers that surround them. This is a sexy, emotional, dark historical romance that I can recommend highly!

(PS - but even as I enjoy this new series...I still want Morley's story from the Victorian Rebels! )

Alexandra is a survivor, and the most important people in her life are her two friends, Cecilia and Francesca. She has come at her friend, Franceca's, behest to attend her wedding, even though the three of them made a pact to never marry. From the moment Alexandra arrives, disaster strikes and she and others are nearly killed. It soon becomes clear to her that someone is trying to kill her and her friends.

Piers Gedrick Atherton, the Duke of Redmayne wants revenge and in order to get it, he must marry. Unfortunately, the minute Alexandra arrives, he realizes he wants her instead of her friend. He tries to resist, but when Alexandra offers her hand and a chance at being happy, can he deny her?

HOW TO LOVE A DUKE IN TEN DAYS is a tragic, yet beautiful story about a young girl who is taken advantage of in the worst way. Although it shaped Alexandra into the woman she is today, strong and resilient, it has also claimed a part of her. It isn't until she meets Piers that she is able to heal and discover that love can exist between a man and a woman. My heart goes out to Alexandra. I am so glad she was able to find happiness with Piers. I cannot wait to read the rest of THE DEVIL YOU KNOW series by author Kerrigan Bryne. I give HOW TO LOVE A DUKE IN TEN DAYS a 4.5 star rating.

I was hankering to get my greedy little hands on this novel and for good reason!

A Kerrigan Byrne book always reminds me why I fell in love with historical romance. And Byrne is my go-to for a darker, gothic edge to the storytelling with crazy heavy sexual chemistry. The sweeping landscapes, the harrowing adventures, and the sizzling passion kept me on my toes!

Lady Alexandra is an archaeologist and adventurer. She finds more comfort in the dead than the living, and for good reason. When financial ruin threatens to expose her secret, she’s looking for a solution when one tumbles into her path--the mysteriously intriguing Piers Atherton, the Terror of Torcliff! But Alexandra’s dark past seems too large to ignore, especially when she can’t quite seem to keep her eyes off her new broody, intense husband. With enemies on their tales, Alexandra and Piers are thrust head-first into each other, battling their inner wounds along the way.

Can an adventurous but fearful Alexandra find comfort and love in the arms of a scarred and disillusioned peer or will their past sins catch up to them?

How to Love a Duke in Ten Days is a slow-to-combust romance that enraptures readers with a passion that can’t be denied, a pervasive sense of humor and charm that brings two damaged souls together, and a rollicking fun plot that will keep you flipping the pages.

Highly recommended for fans of historical romance who want plots weaved in rebuilding hope and reclaiming one’s past.

5 stars!

While I truly enjoyed this title, I feel like it could easily have been at least 60 pages shorter. I honestly found waiting for Alexandra’s secrets and the villain to be revealed to be of far more interest than the romance itself. That was a shame because I absolutely adored how she and Piers met.

I really liked Alexandra and liked Cecelia and Francesca but I HATED them calling each other by the masculine equivalents of their names. It brought me out of the story each and every time and they do it a lot. I also really liked Piers, even if he was a bit of a jerk at times. But I expected him to be beastly and he came around in the end.

I will be checking out the next title in this series because the hero and heroine were teased in the prologue and I can’t wait to see them together!

*I received an eARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This is an ARC from NetGalley.

Every time I pick up a Kerrigan Byrne novel, I think this will be the usual, but enjoyable historical romance troupe. And every time, I'm blown away by her story telling - How to Love a Duke in Ten Days surpassed my expectations!

Alexandra and Piers both have trauma and betrayal in their past that comes back to haunt them, mix in a rush to get married, multiple attempted murders and trying to protect their loved ones - how does anyone have time for love, especially in just 10 days! While hard to trust themselves and each other, our couple find they are already open to love and just didn't know it. I enjoyed most of Piers' jealousy and I appreciated he didn't at least continuous verbally abuse Alexandra with unwarranted accusations. Alexandra shame, balanced with her continue fight to love and be loved showed she had a great foundation from her friends.

The book felt too short, even though the whole story was told.

I can't wait for more of the series - All Scot and Bothered in 2020!

Byrne writes for survivors - they keep on surviving, growing and loving!

I received an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review

Definitely intriguing story but I thought the Duke was a little too dark. Smacked a bit of Beauty and the Beast and not in a good way. I can’t lie, I was a little uncomfortable

I loved this book! I have read all of Kerrigan Byrne’s other books and really like them all, but none of them were as strong as her first book (The Highway Man) – until this one. While the title is a bit cliché, the book itself is really good. This is the first book in a new series about a trio of women who became best friends at boarding school when they were young. Each woman is dealing with different kinds of traumas in their lives but have helped each other through them. One warning, the book is pretty heavy in some regards and starts with the depiction of trauma that I thought was written starkly but sensitively, but might be hard for some to read.

Lady Alexandra Lane is an explorer who has traveled the globe but has returned to England when she thinks one of her friends is in trouble. She’s also dealing with a blackmailer who knows something dark about her past.

Piers Gedrick Atherton, the Duke of Redmayne, has invited society to his estate for his wedding – part of his plan to get back at a society that has rejected him. The two main characters are drawn to each other immediately, but have real baggage from their pasts – and problems they are currently dealing with. The characters have real chemistry with each other and you really buy in to their individual stories and their romance. I also love the friendship between the three friends – the author fleshes it out enough that it seems real and substantial. This book is the start to a very strong series, I can’t wait for the next installment.

I received a copy of this book by the publisher via NetGalley for free in exchange for an honest review.

Whenever I pick up a book by Kerrigan Bryne I know I’m in for a well written, emotionally packed, angst filled read. Characters who have been to hell and back yet in the end find their happiness. It will make you smile and cry in equal measures. Alexandra and Piers are amazing together. I loved how devoted they became to each other. Her and her group of friends are equally charming. A wonderful example of a found family.

For much of the book I admit to a bit of frustration because many of their problems could have been solved at they just communicated better. I had to remind myself they had only known each other a matter of days and Alexandra’s experiences are not easily or openly discussed.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC!

* I received an arc in exchange for an honest review.*.
Sometimes historical romance gets caught up in a certain type of language that, for me, is distracting. I understand that it’s the author’s attempt at keeping the story set in a desired time period but often it overwhelms the story.
Things I enjoyed:
The red rogues. Their secret club reminded me a bit of the Dead Poets Society and I adored that movie.
The small nod to beauty and the beast or my perceived nod.
Alexandra’s determination to see the world.
The rape and the aftermath. Not that I enjoy sexual assault but I appreciate how it was depicted.
This book was just an okay read for me. The characters were good but slightly familiar. The mystery parts of the story felt a little off. There were a few times that there was a shift in the story that didn’t quite fit.

I received an ARC of this book from net galley for my honest review. A beautifully written book by Kerrigan Byrne! Yes, there are trigger warnings in this book which will be at the end of the review if you need to know the triggers prior to starting any book. I thought the beginning of the book was handled with as much truth and sensitivity as possible while still telling the story. This book had a lot to like from three great friends, a strong but sweet hero, ongoing mystery, and a heroine learning to trust again. I especially liked the relationship with the three friends and I am excited to see how all the stories play out. The epilogue was almost for two books! That was a plus! I loved that our heroine was independent, strong, and enjoyed traveling, archeology, and history. There was so much more to her than one defining event. This book had be from the #metoo dedication til the end and the resolution of the mystery aspect of the book.
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Trigger warning for rape scene of underage girl and older male in an authoritarian role. explicit verbiage and numerous repercussions.

I received this from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This is book one in a new series by Kerrigan Byrne. Now, this starts with a pretty dark topic I won’t spoil it but it will definitely take your breath away. After that the book slows down a little bit and made it hard to enjoy. The story finally picked up again and I ended up enjoying it a great deal. The author does a good job of dealing with dark topics and what it takes to over come. Looking forward to more in this series.

I loved this book! I read it in two sittings and stayed up past midnight to finish it. I loved the characters and how real they seemed. The plot was interesting. I love a good mystery. I didnt see the whole endibg coming which I really enjoyed! I will be reading more by this author.

This book was all that I expected and so much more. It had a lot of my romance catnips. Tortured, scarred, brutal and cold hero (who has a secret soft center), sweeping, all enduring love. Great side characters. A very endearing heroine. Vivid characters, good dialogue, fast paced story that made me unable to put it down. The storyline was intriguing, though a little bit rocky in some places. Good pacing, frankly there is very little not to like about this book.
I'm not exactly sure what it was about Alexandra's character that I liked, but I did like her. We are also introduced to some secondary characters, but in a way that fits in well with the story. The layers that exist to the main characters are revealed slowly as they get to know more and more about each other. The ending was a little sappy, but in a pleasantly amusing way.
That being said, I enjoyed this book immensely and this is likely the terrific beginning to an amazing series. It pulled at my heart strings more than once and I'm looking forward to the next one.