The first book in the 12 Dukes of Christmas, a great start to this series. Benjamin Ward, the Duke of Silkridge goes back to Cressmouth Village for the Will reading after the death of his estranged grandfather to collect his inheritance, his mother's locket. There he meets Noelle Pratchett whom he kissed years ago. I enjoyed seeing their story come together and them get a second chance at a happy ending. I enjoyed listening to Rosie Akerman narrate their story.

I love Erica Ridley. She writes fun diverse historical romances with interesting good decent characters you want to root for with lovely family dynamics and interesting side characters that are charming and add to the dynamic of the book. Highly recommend.

Narration: I found the narrator a bit hard to listen to. Idk why but it just took me out of the story! Story was okay, nothing special a light historical romance (a little on the cheesy side) overall 3 stars.

If you are looking for a cute, sweet and light read and you love historical romance and holidays' settings, then this is the right book for you.

It's a very fast read/listen as well. Narrator did a good job with this book.

I've just recently begun listening to Regencies on audiobook, and it's really a great way to pass time while driving or doing other tasks. This title was entertaining and a good introduction to the series, which I have gone on to listen to. The narrator was engaging without going over the top with voices. An enjoyable listen.

So I didn't like this book at all. I could barely finish the audiobook, and I felt that this book dragged on and it was super short anyways! I just didn't like the characters, the romance didn't hook me, and I just felt it was really silly. I just find that Ridley's novellas don't sit well with me, and I have found that I don't like them at all. I'm hoping that isn't the case with her full length novels. This book was just really meh.

I've been reading historical romances (on and off) for a very long time, and the past couple of years I've really read/listened to a LOT - I guess we all have our "escape" books, and historical romance is my escape genre. So when I had the opportunity to listen to this one I took advantage. At a little under 5 hours listening time, it's more of a novella than a full-length novel. Even so, there was a lot of repetition in this - both main characters having the same thoughts, and conversations, over and over and over. And it's quite "cutesy", which usually isn't my thing. Then again, set during the Christmas season in a village called "Christmas", I pretty much expected a healthy dose of cute.
I liked this one - didn't love it, but it left enough clues about the "12 Dukes" of the series title to pique my interest in reading more of the series to see how the other characters' stories develop (I've found that freqently the first book in a series isn't the best of the series because there's a lot of time spent setting up the foundation for what's to come). This one's a nice, short listen - especially for the Christmas season. I can be a bit picky about narrations, but Rosie Ackerman did a nice job with this one.
My thanks to Netgalley and OrangeSky Audio for providing a copy for an unbiased review.

Great little audiobook and a really fun Christmas listen. Darcy Burke’s book clip right along and they’re fun and sexy.

This was a pretty decent romance for how short the book was but the plot was lacking. It felt weak and predictable. I liked the Christmas setting and historical feel. It gave very cozy vibes in that way. The narrator was hard to listen to at times when she became very high pitched and nasally so I would try the ebook instead.

This was a heartwarming historical romance with a Christmas theme. The story was sweet and good natured, centering around a duke, an orphaned woman and a town perpetually in the Christmas spirit. There were a few plot holes that were left unanswered by the end of the book involving the duke and his grandfather.

This is a wonderful book.  I loved this style of writing it's thoroughly enjoyable. I listened to the audiobook and thought the narrator was brilliant. She has a fantastic range of voices some will a little hint of humour. The author and narrator added a real sense of atmosphere and tension that had me at the edge of my seat. I loved the fact that it was a shorter novel packed full of interesting people.  The book had a brilliant fast pace to it and became a real page turner.  I loved the ending of the book. Will he stay or will he go. Im not telling you it will spoil the book . I will definitely be looking for more books by this author.
I would like to thank the author and publishers for bringing this fantastic romance novel to life. It was truly wonderful to read and hard to put down. I want more now.
Above review was place on the following today goodreads, waterstones, Google books, Barnes&noble, kobo, amazon UK and my blog https://ladyreading365.wixsite.com/website/post/once-upon-a-duke-by-erica-ridley-orangesky-audio-4-stars under the name ladyreading365 or lady Reading365

Once Upon a Duke by Erika Ridley

3 stars. And the last holiday story for the year. It’s light, sweet and a nice listen for the holidays.

We have a cranky Duke who hates Christmas and a woman who loves it. He has his reasons and she hers. And maybe, never the Twain shall meet? But they do, and she eventually gets off her high horse to try to understand him (a little annoying that).

Narrator was ok too. And it was nice getting lost in Christmas time at Cresmouth(?) in England.

Thank you OrangeSky Audio and NetGalley for this advance listening copy. It was a nice listen.

I'm a huge fan of historical romance, no matter the season. But holiday romances hold a special place in my heart. Add a duke and a fun heroine and I'm in!

This book was fun, especially if you love fluffy romances that are both cliché and super sweet. It's pretty common to stumble across stories with fickle plots, and this was one of those. I will say, the whole motives behind the duke's story was a bit farfetched (even for a romance novel imo) so that did lessen the enjoyment for me as far as getting into the story goes.

Book 1 in the historical 12 Dukes of Christmas series by Erica Ridley is loosely based upon Dickens A Christmas Carol.
Set in Cressmouth, in the northern part of England, the spirit of Christmas is alive year round.
Not so for Benjamin, the Duke of Silkridge, who abruptly left five years ago. He has returned now only for the reading of his grandfather's will.
This is a second chance novel, with light hearted moments but a darker current running through the pages.
A strong beginning to an engaging and interesting series.
The narrator does a wonderful job.

Erica Ridley is one of my favorite authors and I loved this book as much as I loved all others I have read from her. She’s always an automatic buy for me! This particular story had the right dose of angst with a satisfying HEA. But since I must review the audiobook, I must confess that unfortunately I didn’t like the narrator. In my opinion she’s much too theatrical and when the characters whispered she whispered too… but a little too much! It was very difficult to hear, especially because I listen to audiobooks in the car. I never had this problem before… So five stars for Erica, but one only for the narrator.

Once Upon A Duke (12 Dukes of Christmas #1)
Erica Ridley
Benjamin the Duke of Silkridge despises everything about Cressmouth, the mountains where he grew up. The duke was raised by his grandfather who never forgave him for the death of his mother. All the Duke had of her was a locket which his grandfather took from him. The terms of his grandfather’s will bring him back to the loathsome place. As a young man he left the mountain, escaping to London, planning to never return. He became a part of Parliament and dedicated his life to helping the people. When his grandfather passed away, he was called to return to Cressmouth for the reading of the will. He had not planned to fall in love with Noelle Pratchett. He was amazed at her intelligence and her beauty. All he wanted was the locket his grandfather took from him. However, his grandfather’s will required him to stay and finish a project. Noelle was determined to show him that Cressmouth was a wonderful place to live. Ben broke Noelle’s heart years ago; Noelle finds it difficult to keep an icy demeanor when Ben began to see Cressmouth through her eyes. She doesn’t want to leave Cressmouth and he doesn’t want to stay.
This is a delightful Christmas romance, filled with humor and joy. This is the kind of book that makes you want to grab a cup of tea and curl up in your favorite chair in front of a nice warm fire as you are transported to Cressmouth. I enjoyed watching Ben and Noelle overcome their pain and fears; they fall in love but hesitate to admit it even to their selves. Noelle is a strong character for the era this book covers; she has a full-time position as a bookkeeper.

While the novel was an overall cute Christmas story, it seemed rushed with only minimal character development. I finished the book wondering why everything seemed to happen so quickly and with no real depth. It is a good option for a reader who wants a quick and cute read.

Once Upon a Duke was a fun, quick listen - complete with holiday spirit, life lessons, love that transcends societal expectations, and the perfect grumpy/sunshine couple. It's rare for me, but I actually loved this historical romance more for the story's message than for the romance between the main characters. I definitely did enjoy the main characters as well, but Ridley incorporated such a nice message for the holiday season into this romance and I loved seeing Benjamin realize the true meaning of home and family. If you love a grumpy character, you'll definitely enjoy Benjamin; he is Scrooge incarnate, perfectly content to do the bare minimum for his childhood home if it means getting back to London and the House of Lords as soon as possible. For Benjamin, it was always duty over love. And then Noelle made her perfect, sunshiny entrance, proving to Benjamin that the holiday spirit does not have to die with the last of his family. Noelle is confident, talented, and everything Benjamin could want in a duchess despite her social standing. If you're looking for a quick historical romance featuring second chances for the holidays, look no further than Once Upon a Duke by Erica Ridley.

The audiobook version of Once Upon a Duke was narrated by Rosie Ackerman. Ackerman did a fantastic job on the narration. This was the first audiobook I listened to featuring her voice work, and she seemed to have the perfect tone and cadence for historical romance. While Ackerman didn't vary her voice too much between Noelle and Benjamin's point of views, I found it easy to tell when the perspectives changed. It was equally easy to tell when secondary characters were speaking. I enjoyed Ackerman's recording of Once Upon a Duke and recommend either (or both!) the story and the narration.

This was a cute story. I had already read the ebook a couple of years ago, but listening to the audiobook was also a very nice experience. The story is perfect for the holiday season, with the romance happening while the characters are surrounded by Christmas. There's also a strong element of family and belonging to some place or someone that brings up a lot of good reflections fitted for this time of the year. I really enjoyed listening to it and I recommend for eveyone who's looking for a Christmassy love story.

Phew. The slowest of slow burn in this book, which is not exactly my personal taste. I really didn't feel the connection with the characters and I wasn't invested in their love. The town was cute and I had a soft spot for the goat. The story was cute and cheeky with lots of Christmas cheer but was missing the aspect to make this story really memorable.