I do love a good regency romance and this book falls into that category. Put together a handsome, rich, powerful duke and a feisty young lady and the sparks are bound to fly. A good read.

3.5 stars. While I liked the change by having Natalie be an American, her constant protesting of the English aristocracy got tiresome after the 50th time. I liked Leo and how his future was the central plot, but couldn’t stand Hadrian constantly calling him brat. Overall the story was good but the ending seemed rushed and didn’t resolve Leo’s situation for me.

Natalie Fanshawe has a small problem, his name is Leo. Natalie is an American whose best friend was an English Noblewoman. They met on the wild frontier of America. Lady Audrey had given up her title and her family connections to marry a preacher. They then moved to America as Missionaries. But when tragedy struck and both Lady Audrey and her husband were killed little Leo was left without any family in America. Audrey's dying request of Natalie was to take Leo back home to his grandfather so that he could have a secure lifestyle.

The Duke of Clayton also has a small problem. He needs to marry and produce an heir to carry on the family name and legacy. He is on his way to seek the hand of a "very young" lady whom he has known since she was just a child. But he isn't sure this is the best match.

When the Duke of Clayton meets Natalie Fanshawe he is completely enthralled, smitten, captivated, whatever term you want to use, they all fit. He has never met a woman who has a mind of her own, abhors the British Aristocracy, and is capable of taking care of herself and others.

The rest of the story is amazingly written. The love between the two will grow, but neither wants to admit it. The Duke because he doesn't know how to love and Miss Fanshawe because she doesn't want to fall in love with a British Aristocrat. Little Leo almost becomes just a small part of the story, but in fact he is really the central character. He is born into the British Aristocracy but his grandfather doesn't want anything to do with his wayward daughter and especially her orphaned son.

What will happen? Will there be a marriage? Will the boy be adopted? Will grandfather come around and love his grandson? Will Natalie and Leo have to return to America and make a living on their own?

Enjoy the read!

This book was ok for me. It failed to catch me from the get go. It is predicable and it is very similar to another novel I read by another author. That said, this is an enjoyable read and has some nice scenes in it. I did not care for the character of Natalie and felt the ‘well we don’t do this in America’ line to get old real fast. The characters could do with some depth but even without the story still works. This is the first I have read from Oliva Drake and I would honestly give her other novels a try, I think she has a talent for writing. Thank you to the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for my review.

It was ok. An easy read to while away a bit of time, but nothing that hasn't been done before. The story was a little bit predictable but for all that - it did entertain me and I liked it.

A good premise, interesting characters and a bit of intrigue thrown in, makes for an interesting romance. I like that the Duke knows that he wants Natalie in his life and tries to win her heart. Natalie’s aversion to British aristocracy is refreshing and makes for some interesting scenes.

I love Regency and this has an interesting twist on the history with the heroine being from America and having to overcome prejudice against Britain for the war and for its caste system. This made the hero work hard. Past and present villains make for some danger but antagonistic relatives supply the most problems. Thankfully, the hero is a duke.
This was entertaining enough to read again.

I voluntarily reviewed a free ARC from Netgalley.

Kindly provided with an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.....

Oh I love a good historical romance and this ticked plenty of my boxes.
It was Hadrian and Natalie's book. Hadrian needs a wife and has his sights set on free spirited Natalie. What does she think about this ?. Well let just say that she's not entirely on board !!!

Great story about class difference and how love can break though boundaries. The only reason it was not a firm 5 Shiny Stars from me was......I enjoyed Hadrian's chase and campaign to win Natalie but found her character just a little to flighty. Not that she HAD to say "I do" straight away but give a guy a chance !!. But on reflection that's probably what made this such a juicy read !!!

Overall great read for me and would definitely recommend this book for lovers of historical romance/dramas.

Well done Olivia !!, Many thanks for this opportunity xx

Later peeps xx

Olivia is a masterful suspense writer. The combination of the suspense, the steamy sex and overall excitement of the story keeps you turning pages.

This is the first I've read by Olivia Drake. I felt it started a bit bumpy with speech between the duke and his valet a bit too familiar, even for a long time retainer. Fortunately, things smoothed out and I was interested in following where the story would lead to reach the mandatory HEA. Natalie's ward, young Leo, steals a scene or two.
Thanks very much to the publisher for this ARC via NetGalley. The thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

It was pleasant, but I strongly feel it should decide whether it wants to be a gentle romance (in which case the sex and suggestive bits be removed), proper romance (same as above but make it religious), or a historical romance where you keep the sexy stuff but slide to it more throughout the story to build sexual tension and chemistry. The book could have gone any way and mixing it all together means I don’t know what type of patron to sell it to, and honestly as it is I can’t sell it to anyone which is a shame bc it’s promising.

The characters are very likable, accept it gets a little silly at the end and ventures into the screwball comedy with the flummoxed villain with idiot henchmen. Also certain truths are repeated again and again and again. Give the reader some credit, we can keep track of who reacts in what way and why. For example, the lead female doesn’t like the nobility and is a feminist who wants to be treated equally, yet bows to the king at her first opportunity to make a meaningful statement in a public place. No! It doesn’t work that way!

And the ending just stopped. I have no idea why became of the investigation into Leo’s birth certificate or if he’ll be adopted or any of it which was the basis for the story. An epilogue would have tied up all of those loose strings.

With some polish it will be a great story I can hand out at the library.

I have read lots of romances and this one was interesting with the american not wanting anything to do with aristocracy or the way english government works. It brought a different perspective for sure. It just wasnt one of my favorite stories.

Natalie Fanshawe is an intelligent, independent American that brings her closest friend's son, a precocious and curious young Leo back to England to be claimed by the family that disowned his mother, Audrey. Along the way she meets Hadrian, a duke and Audrey's cousin, and so begins a period of discovery and enlightenment for both on who they are, what they want and what changes they're willing to make because of their undeniable attraction to each other. In some ways, this storyline is very predictable, and there are points where getting reminded that Hadrian is a duke and Natalie wants nothing to do with the aristocracy gets routine and more than a little bit boring. The characters are admirable, but could do with additional character depth. But I definitely liked the second book in Drake's Unlikely Duchesses better than the first, I liked the characters, I liked the growth of the characters and Leo helps add a little bit of humor and charm that otherwise might be lacking if the book was only about the main characters' attraction to each other.

it is crazy to me the mentality from the nobility from the free-thinking Americans. its interesting to see how much it changed and i love how Natalie is thrust into a world she wants no part of to keep a promise to a dying friend and Hadrian becomes her champion and so much more.

Forever My Duke is a Romance that defines all that there should be in a historical novel! I loved reading this story and watching as the characters evolved into what everyone hopes for in their lifetime. Great book that I recommend to every adult romance reader.

When Natalie travels from the Americans to England to bring the orphaned son of her best friend to his family, she is greeted with suspicions and scorn by the noble family, who accuses her to show off her own child to secure their wealth for herself.
Only Hadrian Ames, the Duke of Clayton and uncle of the baby, seems to be in alley.

I liked it. Natalie was playing a bit too much on the egalitarian drum (her coming from America, she does not curtsy to anyone!), but the couple was very likeable and I loved their dialogs.

Highly recommended.

I’m not much of a historical romance reader but this one was great. I enjoyed the strong, smart heroine..Natalie. Hadrian is a great and plays of Natalie so well.. you will root for them from the beginning.

A perfectly serviceable romance. Although some of the characters were a bit too stereotypical, I did enjoy the relationship between the hero and heroine, as well as the inclusion of a woman from America (for a believable reason). Thank you, NetGalley, for a copy of this book to read and review.

3.5 stars! I like how Natalie is devoted to Leo. And I like how Hadrian's eyes are opened by Natalie and how fascinated he becomes with her and Leo. Yes she's a very unlikely duchess being an American though connected with an old family in the UK. But it's all good and you have to admire her principles.

Thanks St. Martin's Press for a copy of the book!

The alpha-type/boss/leader/rebel untightening and unwinding to their opposites and opening their minds is one of my favorite tropes, and this time, I got a double dose of it!

<b>Pros</b>:
<b>✓</b> The way Drake took two people who had very certain perspectives of the world, and through a shared goal (as well as a mutual attraction), they expanded their way of thinking without necessarily compromising themselves.
<b>✓</b> They both have ideals, but neither of them is necessarily full of themselves, either.
<b>✓</b> Small appreciative side note: Hadrian, for all his "yes, this already contracted 18 year-old second cousin bride I didn't meet grow up with is the perfect wife to my 29 year-old ready to settle down with according to Society standards" talk in the beginning, meets up with her and is immediately squicked out and feels like a lecherous old creeper.

<b>Negatives</b>:
<b>✘</b> The pace was a little slow and/or uneven. I appreciate when time jumps happen and not everything presents as one thing after the other after the other, like all the events happen in three days, but some things felt skipped over and other things felt dragged out, which affected the tension and the drama
<b>✘</b>: Okay, it doesn't help that it's 2019 and as an American, I currently miss the days <a href="https://pics.me.me/jeremiah-traeger-jerbivore-me-2016-well-this-is-a-dumpster-29196340.png">when my country was merely a self-contained dumpster fire</a>, but Natalie's "America the beautiful, where everyone is equal!" attitude could be grating, especially when her past <spoiler>as a daughter of a senator, then a frontier teacher</spoiler> would've exposed her to the fact that there certainly were class structures in the States, albeit less defined. <spoiler>(Like it would've been weird for a daughter of a elite-hostess daughter of a senator and a maid to chill, no matter how Amer-i-Can! she makes it sound).</spoiler> She does briefly acknowledge it with a "but you can go beyond it!" but not really? It's all a little:

<center><img src="https://media2.giphy.com/media/3o6Zt8WS687jQ4L59S/giphy.gif"></center>

<b>Neutral</b>:
- Leo (the six year-old) could be cute, could be kind of annoying, and mostly was a plot device. I didn't mind him.

<b>tr;dr</b>: This was a really a solid 3.5, and I'll definitely look for more stuff by Drake in the future.

Disclaimer: Thanks Netgalley & publisher for the free ARC, with no incentive or coercion on your parts!