Through lush descriptions of London and the countryside, Linden introduces us to a cast of characters that shine in a love story that reaches beyond romance. It is a story of finding home and of finding family. It is a tale of overcoming pride and prejudices. It is a tale of discovery and growth.

I absolutely loved this low angst story about two people falling in love for the first time. What was just as beautiful was all of the relationships that developed between the hero and the secondary characters. It was a love story that encompassed friendship just as much as romantic love.

I highly recommend this eloquently written story that will fill you with hope and remind you to cherish the ones you love.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this eARC thanks to Avon and Harper Voyager via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This was an entertaining read, I enjoyed the interaction between Philippa and William Montclair. Philippa enjoys her life in the country and she doesn’t want the new steward, William to upset the dowager duchess. There is a mystery concerning the duke and William, too, is keeping something back. I can’t say the dowager endeared herself to me as a character. Although I did learn more of the hard life she had experienced. My only drawback was the quick ending where everything came to a conclusion but without saying how people felt about it and what would happen next. I have since read that they will be another book to conclude the whole series. I received a copy and have voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Welcome to Carlyle.

I liked that All the Duke I need was about outliers.
Phillippa is the duchess of Carlyle's companion and defacto granddaughter. So much death surrounds the Duke and Duchess of Carlyle.
Will Montclair is American, brash, young, the new steward and looking more like a prate then a steward of Carlyle,
He's smitten with Phillippa, but he's temporary, working as a steward for money.
Phillippa is half Indian and a working woman. She essentially runs the castle.
I really liked that both Phillippa and Will were working people (yes surrounded by dukes and duchesses).
I appreciated getting to know the duke and duchess more and at their private home (castle).
Recommend.

4.5

Phillipa "Pippa" Kirkpatrick lives with her step-grandmother, the Duchess of Carlyle, at Carlyle Castle, has come to love everything about Carlyle, and is the Duchess' right hand. She is a half-Indian heiress who doesn't want to leave her home, even though the Duchess wants to see her married.

American William Montclair and his brother, Jack, are in London to expand their family's trading firm. Needing money for their enterprise, William decides to take a temporary position. In a serendipitous turn of events, he is offered the steward position at Carlyle.

Pippa is shocked by the new steward, especially when he admits he has never before managed an estate. She does what she can to guide William and teach him everything she can about the castle, the land, and the people.

As they work together, the attraction between Will and Pippa blossoms. Linden takes time to develop that attraction and bring it to fruition but, while Will wants to stay with Pippa, family secrets may prevent that from happening.

I loved William's interaction with the Duchess and with the invalid Duke, who sees more than you expect. The book ends with an epilogue that ties up a lot of the story but leaves you wanting more.

This was a well-written, entertaining book. It was creative, steamy, held my interest and I didn't want to put it down. This author is a "must read" for me. I enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it to others.

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon, and Ms. Linden for the opportunity to read an ARC of this title. An honest review was requested but not required.

I’m not completely sure how I skipped reading book #2 in the Desperately Seeking Dukes series, but I very much enjoyed book #1 (About a Rogue). All the Duke I Need is book #3 and features Pippa, whom we (the readers) have met previously and Will, whom we have not. Will Montclair is a Bostonian with Canadian heritage (Montreal, by way of his mother) who is in London to expand his father’s shipping empire. However, he is bored of shipping and takes a job – seemingly on a whim – as an estate manager for the duchy’s of Carlyle’s castle, grounds and principal lands and surrounding village. Of COURSE, he and Pippa strike sparks off one another like gasoline and matches, and of COURSE, they are quite clearly meant to be.

It's charming how much effort Will puts into doing the absolute best job he can do at estate stewardship. I wasn’t sure how this and the subplot of the duchess’s search to eliminate any other potential heirs to Carlyle were related. THEN I was worried that things were too coincidental (as in, a gazillion-to-one coincidental). I should have had more faith in Ms. Linden, who rarely lets me down. I don’t want to spoil any endings, but I was very happy with how things were left, to the point that I was quite irritated that the epilogue stopped where it did. But I wanted moooooore 😭

There were some unanswered questions plot and character-wise but Ms. Linden is a terrific writer and I was swept away with the story.

3.75 Stars
Raised in the splendour of Carlyle Castle by her doting guardian, the Duchess of Carlyle, Philippa Kirkpatrick is one of the greatest heiresses in England. The duchess is eager to see her wed, but Philippa hesitates to leave the only home she knows. William Montclair is in London to expand his family’s trading firm, with little progress. Impulsively he takes a job managing the Carlyle estate, for the money, he tells his incredulous brother, and only for a year. Philippa is shocked by the handsome, scandalously bold new steward. It’s all she can do to prevent the horrified duchess from sacking him on sight. She determines to teach him how to love Carlyle as she does, only to find herself reluctantly charmed by the rogue. It’s true; Will is falling for everything about Carlyle…including the duchess’s beautiful ward.
The third book in the series & an absolutely lovely romance. A well written engrossing read which I devoured & found hard to put down until it suddenly ended with no series closure & no epilogue. I felt cheated & unsatisfied. I loved both Philippa & Will & I loved their journey to a HEA, I loved their slow burn romance & I was on course for a five star read until that ending.
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

Looking for something a little bit different to read? Read this wonderful, diverse story. Ms. Linden's writing style flows. Her characters and the world she creates are so believable. The twists and turns in this story kept my attention so that I couldn't put the book down! I highly recommend this book!

I received an advance reader copy. These are my honest opinions voluntarily given.

Let me start off by saying that this is the third book in a series. I know most romance "series" are loosely connected by characters simply mentioned in other stories (think Kiss Quotient) or it follows a family so there is some back story involved (think Bridgerton), but in this series there is an underlying issue gently pushing the characters in the series to make the decisions that they are making.

So, can you pick this up and read it as a stand alone? Probably. Did I find the story much more fulfilling to read since I read the other two books in the series? Damn right I did. I suggest you go back and read About a Rogue and A Scot to the Heart to get a fuller picture of what is happening.

I loved this series, but I especially loved this book. I feel like Linden's writing was the strongest in this book. Everything that happened felt important to the story but it never felt forced or bogged down to me. I'm sure part of that was that I enjoyed these characters the most. Linden does an excellent job writing characters in Georgian England that still feel modern without completely taking me out of the story.

This story is ambitious, which I appreciate as reader. As someone who has devoured entirely too many historical romances, I understand that the author has to do something different to make the story unique and interesting. I have no complaints. The twist throughout is appreciated and the foreshadowing is about as subtle as a shotgun, but I was in to it.

I will be picking up more from Linden, because I fell in love with her writing style!

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon, and Caroline Linden for giving me the opportunity to review an eARC this book!

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon for providing me with a copy of this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Philippa Kirkpatrick is all but a duchess as a charge of the Duchess of Carlyle, and tends to the estate as well as she can and most of that is tending to the Duchess' every whim and the current Duke's ailing health. When the new steward arrives looking more of a pirate than a proper Englishman she tries to think the better of him, especially hearing about his heroics on the land.

William Montclair was originally in London with his brother to get the family shipping business off the ground, but after a turn of bad luck he takes a job to steward the Carlyle estate. He's met with the obstinate Philippa and the prickly Duchess of Carlyle who threatens to fire him at every turn. Enchanted by the young lady and the clash of wits that occur, he decides to try his best to keep the job. Even though his social status and secrets threaten to keep them apart, he cannot stay away from her.

This is the third book in the Desperately Seeking Duke series by Caroline Linden, which in my opinion can be read as a standalone. The thread that ties the book with the others as far as I'm aware, as I have only read the first, isn't too thick. Though I do intend to read the second as soon as I can. I adore this series and Caroline Linden has become one of my new favorite historical romance authors!

Philippa isn't a duchess herself, she is the daughter of a solider, only related to the current Duchess through marriage. The Duchess' daughter was her step-mother. I would also like to mention, which seems to not be in any of the promotional material, that Philippa is part Indian. I love seeing a historical heroine of color! I also loved how connected Philippa remained to her her culture, most of her gowns are described in beautiful jewel tones and she had some of her mothers jewelry along with a portrait of her hanging in her rooms.

There's also something about Caroline Linden's heroes that set them apart. I know it's all the rage to be a rake in a historical, but from the two books I've read from this series, the men are complete gentleman even without the title. It's really a breath of fresh air, not that being a rake isn't terrible, but it can feel a little bit overdone at times. Give me a softer hero or a working class hero from time to time.

That said this book broke my heart a few times. There's lots of banter and angst and longing. I really loved how they butt heads in the first of the book. I would recommend it to everyone!

The mystery of who will inherit the Carlyle dukedom is solved in All the Duke I Need. I was entertained by Philippa and Will’s story from beginning to end, thanks to the excellent chemistry between the leads.

After her father married into the Duke of Carlyle’s family, Philippa Kirkpatrick was adopted by them and raised by the dowager duchess after her father and stepmother’s death. She’s had a front row seat to the search for the heir to the dukedom. Meanwhile, Carlyle estate needs a new steward, but the man hired for the job is nothing like she imagined a steward should be. William Montclair is a brash, bold American whose blunt tongue raises the dowager duchess’s hackles. But Will is also dedicated, hardworking, and determined to repair and modernize Carlyle. He and Philippa lock horns once in a while (especially as she tries to help him not get fired by her grandmother), but mostly their banter made me smile. There’s an effortless chemistry to their interactions thanks to author Caroline Linden’s writing. It was easy to become lost in their story and watch them fall in love. Both are likeable leads with good hearts, quick wit, and senses of humor – how could you not be swept away by them?

I wavered on how to rate All the Duke I Need because I adored the romance and the family dynamics at Carlyle. Philippa’s love for her adoptive family warmed my heart and the way Will just fit at the estate made me smile. However, there were some elements of the story that felt rushed and underdeveloped. Will’s relationship with his brother, Jack, and their family’s shipping business never felt fully realized. And then there’s the resolution to the missing heir storyline. I’m treading carefully to avoid spoilers and I will say that I liked where Linden took us with this plot. However, it was rushed, left me with questions, and the book ended so abruptly I thought I was missing some pages. So while I thoroughly enjoyed All the Duke I Need overall, I felt like a few more chapters would have taken this book from very entertaining to fantastic.

3.5 stars, rounded up

This book opens 20 years in the past when Sophia St. James, the Duchess of Carlyle met her daughter’s step-daughter Philippa “Pippa” Kirkpatrick for the first time and instantly fell in love with the little girl. Years later when her parents die, and her English relatives what nothing to do with the Anglo-Indian child, the duchess raises Pippa as her beloved granddaughter. Later Pippa fills the role of companion to the duchess and is universally loved by all on the Carlyle estate – a feeling that is completely reciprocated by Pippa. That is until the new steward arrives and stirs things up…

William “Will” Monclair and his brother Jack have been sent to London from Boston by their father to establish a shipping office for the family’s shipping business, a business Will has no desire to be a part of, so when an opportunity arises to be the steward of the Carlyle estate, he jumps at the chance and promises his brother that he will only take the post for a year. But Will is not prepared for the amount of work that needs to be done on the estate, the secrets that are being kept by its inhabitants, or the attraction he feels for Pippa. Sadly, Will knows that his attraction to her and his growing attachment to the estate, the duke, and the tenants cannot have a happy ending, because he too has secrets and has made promises that his honor demands he keeps, no matter the cost to his heart.

This final book in the Desperately Seeking a Duke series isn’t exactly what I expected, nor is it all I hoped it would be. The writing is good, all the characters are wonderful, the chemistry between Will and Pippa is believable and their romance is slow-burning and heartfelt. But for me, this book was a slow read, the story was slow-moving, basically, the first half of the book is just Will and the duchess butting heads over the estate, and there is very little interaction between Will and Pippa until the second half of the book. In my opinion, Will’s secret was held for too long and the ending of the book was too abrupt. My understanding is Ms. Linden plans to write a series epilogue, which I hope will wrap things up a bit more neatly, and answer questions that were not addressed in this book. Overall, it was a nice story that dragged a bit at the beginning, evened out in the middle, and then finished with a huge bang, yet for me, it felt incomplete even though there is an epilogue in this book. This is the third book in the series and while you could read it as a standalone title, I would recommend reading the series in order.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own.*

Unfortunately, this book did not hold my interest. This was a DNF for me. I won't be writing a review on the regular sites as I do not wish to give a bad review because of one book of Caroline's. Many of which I have loved.

Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) provided by the Author and Publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I am more than a little disappointed in the resolution of this series. Although we get to know the Dutchess and her son, the Duke, a lot better and the characters of Philippa and Will are well crafted, the story and the romance just wasn't as entertaining as the previous books. The ending was abrupt and left a major question unanswered.

William Montclair and his brother, Jack, have come to London from Boston to establish a branch of their family shipping business. Will finds that the whole process of finding and securing new clients rather tedious and they are in need of additional funds. He crosses paths with Mr. Edwards, the solicitor for the Carlyle estate, and is intrigued by the management of the estate, which is in need of a new steward. As the estate needs a steward and Will and his brother need money, a deal is struck, but Will has reasons of his own for taking a job with the Caryle estate.

When Will arrives to take up his job as Steward, he makes a lasting impression on the Dutchess of Carlyle and her ward, Philippa Kirkpatrick and it isn't a good one. Philippa has spent her whole life at Carlyle Castle and loves it and the people there very deeply. But she knows that the time is coming when she will need to wed. If not for Philippa's influence, Will would have been sacked on the spot, and it sometimes seems that Will is intent on getting himself sacked no matter how Philippa tries to give him direction and advise.

During the months at Carlyle Castle, Will makes vast repairs and improvements to the estate, meets and wins the friendship of the Duke, who is ill and mentally incapacitated, and falls in love with the lovely Philippa. But his time here is limited by both his promises to his family and the secrets he is carrying with him.

What is he hiding he can’t share with the woman who moves his heart …

It has been a while since I have read the author, and now I have finished my reading I am left much confused.
So I will endeavor to look at this book from two aspects, the romance and the mystery of the lost heir.

First this is a fast paced story as it goes with a slow burn romance. Philippa or Pippa is the “adopted” granddaughter of the dukedom, when she lost her father and stepmother, she had no more relative outside the “grandmother” she grew up with, having no one left from her mother’s side in East India. So for the last few years, she was the one who helped with the burden of ruling the estate, as it also in some way prevented her to face the ton’s marriage mart, knowing she would not be much welcomed for her mixed heritage.
William with brother went in England to grow his father’s chipping business, but he had not much interest for the office side of the job, why he is set on looking for something else. Thus his employment as the new steward for the Carlyle estate. But only him knows it is a temporary arrangement, no more than one year he promised to his brother.
Why he is set on avoiding the temptation Philippa is to his senses. For the whole book, there is something he is hiding, from Pippa but also his brother. And while it was easy to uncover his secret, I never understood the reason for the secrecy.

Their romance is much enjoyable and cute, they began on the wrong foot and Will is determined to unsettle Pippa, then slowly they win one another trust and confidence, if not for Will’s reason to stay only one year when he feels at home managing the estate.
Sure he is a man who shakes everyone’s life by his unusual way and approach of life, he is cocky and confident but also a hard worker, still he holds back something gnawing at him.

Now what is leaving me wondering if there is an other version of the story or if I misunderstood the whole heir inquiry’s part.

Sorry SPOILER ahead ☞
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The missing heir they are all looking for is the grand son and/or the great grandson (if he has children) of the abusive duke, let call him DI.
DI married and had 3 sons, the first DII married with the heroine’s “grandmother “, the third is the forefather of the presumed heirs, and the second son was taken by his mother (DI’s wife) when she ran away to France. This son grew to adulthood, married and some fifty years before the storyline, left France, destitute to seek fortune in the colony with a bride and a son.
From there, it should have been easy to conclude Will is the grandson of the man who migrated, so his father was the son who followed his destitute father, the missing 2nd son, the rightly expected heir as he is still alive.
But in the last chapter, there is a twist, Philippa sees a paint of her “grandmother” (wife of the late DII) with her four children when she only had three at the beginning.
The actual duke DIII, Pippa’s stepmother and the spare who died a few years before. But on the paint, there is an other son, one looking like Will’s bother. Which would mean the hero’s father is the bother of the actual duke (DIII), not the offspring of a missing son some generations back.
This is where I lost myself, unable to understand if I completely made a muddle of the story in my head.

So my rating would be 4 for the romance as I loved the bickering, the slow burn and how they built their relationship, if Will had been a bit more forthright with Pippa, it would have been more than 4 stars. But the mystery of the missing heir is so confusing, if I was rating it, it would be a 3, I liked the idea of the long missing son from the past but the son who left a mother who loved him is quite absurd.
So I will only rate the romance and hope that for release day the mystery will have been cleared a bit.

𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹 one onscreen lovemaking scene.

I have been granted an advance copy by the publisher, here is my true and unbiased opinion.

My favorite book of the series - despite its flaws.

A perfectly lovely conclusion (I'm guessing?) to the series! We finally learn more about why the Duchess is such an unpleasant woman, who the next Duke of Carlyle will (probably) be. But. I still have questions?

Anyway. As for the romance, which is what we are here for anyway, that I absolutely adored! It was the most delicious of slow burn romances, taking almost the entire first half of the book to work up to a first kiss, while William and Pippa bickered and argued, and got to know each other. Which is literally all I want from a romance. No drama. Just two lovely people meeting and falling in love, teasing each other and making my chest ache with *gag* feelings. And that, this book did wonderfully. They had such a lovely connection, and I devoured this book almost in a day.

Will, while I wish he could have just told the damn truth earlier, was such a lovely tease with a devilish glint in his eye, constantly smiling and teasing, selflessly helping everyone around him, caring and working tirelessly on the estate he cares so much for. My kind of hero!
And Pippa, while her initial reaction to Will and his teasing ways did cause me some eye rolls, blossomed into such a lovely heroine over the course of the story! She was so nice and caring, and once she decided to tease the man right back, it was such fun to see her come out of her shell and claim her happiness.

The only slight problem I had was the "big bad secret", which I was dreading because it was so very obvious. And it left me with so many questions, it was really annoying.

But, at the end of the day, it's a Caroline Linden book, so you're in the hands of an expert story teller. I really enjoyed this series. In fact, it might actually be my favorite of hers. The heroes across the series were such lovely, FUN, hard-working men, with equally lovely matches who challenge and adore them.

Caroline Linden writes a witty repartee between characters that makes this story a decided page turner. The third in series counties the search fora St. James heir. William is in England to do business for his father but sets off on the secondary mission of investigating his family’s past. He is handsome and devilish. Phillipa is left to manage Carlyle castle along with the Duchess. She is in danger of becoming a spinster but has no real desire to leave the estate. The characters are really wonderful and well developed. The relationship between Will and the Duke is sweet and innocent and reminds the reader of simpler times. When all the secrets are revealed there are many happy people and the beginning of healing for the family.

*** UPDATE: I just learned the author will be writing "A Giant Series Epilogue" (her words) that will release within a couple of weeks of the publication of this book. The author is currently taking questions and suggestions for what to include in that epilogue. So, while that doesn't make the conclusion of this book any more satisfying, it does give us the opportunity to see what happens and get the answers we are craving. I'm leaving my review as I originally published it because this new book doesn't change what I thought of the book. However, it does offer us the opportunity to get our grand wrap-up in another book. *****

Well – what can I say? I absolutely loved the romance between Will and Philippa and would have rated it 5-stars, but I don’t think I’ve ever read a more dissatisfying series ending. The wrap-up was just suddenly there and then it was just as suddenly gone and left me wanting more information, more interactions, more completion. For me, that wrap-up was a 2-star at best. I think the book either needed at least two more chapters OR a super-long epilogue.

The Prologue was the polar opposite of the Epilogue. It was a wonderfully heartwarming story of the meeting between the Duchess of Carlyle and 3-year-old Philippa Noor un-nisa Kirkpatrick. I hadn’t previously been a fan of the Duchess, but as I read that scene – and then learned more of the family’s history throughout the book, I did warm up to her a bit.

Philippa’s mother was Indian and her father, a Colonel, was English. Her parents met, fell in love, and defied everyone so they could marry. After the death of her mother, Philippa’s father meets, falls in love with, and marries the daughter of the Duchess of Carlyle. After the deaths of her stepmother and her father, Philippa is raised as the beloved granddaughter at Carlyle Castle. Philippa is everything you could want in a heroine – she’s sweet, considerate, caring, intelligent, realistic, wise – and a bit sly at managing the Duchess.

William (Will) Montclair and his brother Jack have arrived in London at the behest of their father, to set up a branch of Montclair and Sons (a merchant shipping company). Will was in charge of getting the business going, but he really didn’t want to be. Will really wanted to be out of the business because he didn’t enjoy it – and his brother Jack did, so why not let Jack be the one in charge. After all, their father was all the way across the ocean in Boston. When an opportunity presents itself, he takes it. Jack is in charge of setting up a London branch for their shipping company and Will is off on a new adventure as a steward for a large estate. What can go wrong with that scenario?

Everyone at the estate quickly falls in love with Will – well, everyone except the Duchess. She takes an instant dislike to him and would gladly dismiss him. How dare he challenge her, argue with her, tell her she was wrong? But, her son finds him delightfully entertaining and thoroughly enjoys Will’s company. Since the duchess will do absolutely anything for her son, Will stays employed.

The growth in the relationship between Will and Philippa is delightful to see and I could thoroughly believe the attraction and the relationship. I also loved that it was all pretty much angst-free. So – kudos for the delightful romance.

However, the romance isn’t the entire book and the rest of it left much to be desired. I had more questions at the end than I did at the beginning. For instance – two mysterious French characters are introduced and then they just disappear. They aren’t mentioned again, so what happened to them and their scheme? Do we really have a new heir for the duchy? How about the new heir's relationship with the duchess? In my humble opinion, the secret should have been revealed a bit earlier and then the subsequent chapters could have dealt with the aftermath, re-establishing relationships, etc. – OR – add a couple of additional chapters. At any rate – the end was just too abrupt, too incomplete, and I just felt a bit cheated.

I do recommend the read because the romance is lovely, but don’t expect to end the series feeling good about the whole thing.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Will and Jack Montclair have been sent from Montreal to London to establish a branch of their family’s shipping business. Will is mostly bored by the business and Jack adores it. It’s not going that well and they are short on funds, so Will decides to take the position of Steward at Carlyle Castle for one year to bring in enough cash to buy Jack more time to make contacts in the business world of London.

This is the same family that has been the subject of Caroline Linden’s two most recent Desperately Seeking Duke novels. The St. Jameses are in crisis as the elderly Duke suffered a brain injury as a young man and never married or sired an heir. Two distant relations (heroes of the former two books in the series) are now in line for the position, but both have established themselves elsewhere and are not resident at Carlyle. There is one outstanding line of inquiry to find a nearer heir, a son of one of the former Dukes who went to France and whose children may have immigrated to America somewhere.

Will arrives to find the place in extreme disrepair as basically nothing has been done for nearly 30 years since the Duke’s injury. But at first he’s not aware of this fact. He only knows he can only speak to the Duke through his mother, the Dowager Duchess, or his adopted niece, Miss Phillipa Kirkpatrick.

On his first day surveying the Estate he is late to a meeting with the Duchess as he has stopped to help one of the farm families with a collapsed bridge. He makes quite a negative impression on both Phillipa and the Duchess, but soon impresses them with his knowledge of the land and also his extensive list of what needs to be fixed.

Sparks fly between him and Phillipa and they both warm to each other as Will leans into repairing things at the estate and generally making himself useful to everyone. An accidental encounter with the Duke, himself, begins a friendship between the frail older man and the young steward and Will begins to cheer everyone up with his humor and good sportsmanship. The Duke even begins to venture out of the house on small expeditions with Will, to ride in the carriage or go fishing. As the Duke warms to Will, so does Phillipa and it is soon clear even to the Duchess that something is going on between her adopted granddaughter and the young Steward. So she sends Phillipa off to London to find a husband.

Will’s year is nearly up when Jack calls him back urgently to help him land a very lucrative contract with a French businessman. While in London, Will realizes all he wants to be doing is taking care of Carlyle and that he hates the shipping business even more than he thought. But he has made promises to his father and to Jack. So he has to decide between his love for Phillipa and Carlyle and his family business.

That’s not all there is to it, of course. There’s far, far more to Will than he’s letting on, and a great deal of agency and choosing on Phillipa’s part as well. But those would be immense spoilers and you need to read this for yourself.

This romance absolutely grows with Will’s involvement with the estate and the family. The people of Carlyle fall in love with this hard-working and admirable hero along with the reader. Every bit of this story feels entirely satisfying and earned, so much so that you find yourself wishing it went on just a bit longer and that the ending wasn’t quite so truncated. It feels almost like it needed a few more chapters. The story is all there, but you wish it went on, and maybe that’s the best recommendation for any book.

Rating: 4.5 Stars

All the Duke I Need took me by surprise in the best way! I went into this book with no expectations but found it so cute and ended up loving it by the end. The romance was adorable, and I loved how Caroline Linden brought all the pieces together to solve for the lost heir to the Carlyle dukedom that has been central to the plot of the Desperately Seeking Duke series.

Raised by her guardian, the Duchess of Carlyle, Philippa Kirkpatrick is one of the greatest heiresses in England, but she has little desire to leave the Carlyle estate for a season of husband-hunting in London. William Montclair is in London to expand his family’s trading firm, but he has no passion for that work. Impulsively, he takes a job managing the Carlyle estate but promises his brother he’ll do it for one year only. Philippa is shocked by the handsome, scandalous new steward, but is determined to help him win over the Duchess as she sees how much he cares for Carlyle as she does. Will is falling for everything about Carlyle, including Philippa, but he cannot stay beyond a year or risk upsetting his family.

I was pleasantly surprised by the romance in this one! While not the steamiest, I felt like it delivered on the emotions. I loved how Philippa and Will managed to get under each other’s skin. They needle each other in the best way to try to fight off their attraction, which, of course, means there is great banter. Linden did a great job building the sexual tension as I kept screaming at them to KISS ALREADY – it was the perfect balance of wanting them to get together and actually being together. The romance is relatively low angst in terms of drama. There is a bit of the “we cannot be together,” which is driven by her status and the temporary nature of his job. Overall, I found the romance incredibly sweet and endearing. I loved Will and Philippa together and was so glad they got their happy ending.

I also loved that Philippa is a mixed-race female lead. She’s half-Indian and half-English. While not related to the Duchess of Carlyle by birth, she’s treated as if she were the Duchess’s blood granddaughter. I loved how competent Philippa was – she was essentially running a huge Dukedom on her own and was respected and admired by the staff for her efforts. She also knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to go get it – even when it comes to the nature of her own heart. She cares little about what society thinks and would instead do what she loves with the people she cares for then find a wealthy, noble husband.

Will was a really interesting male lead. While he “dressed like a pirate, he looked like a rake, and he sounded like a Frenchman,” there is more to Will than meets the eye. He intrigued me as he was so devoted to improving the Carlyle estate – and so GOOD at being the estate manager despite never being one. His commitment to his job and improving the lives of all on the Carlyle estate was admirable. He’s got a bit of a loveable rogue, and I enjoyed his personality as he was serious about his duties, but his personality was not too serious. He wasn’t afraid to be charming and playful. He brought out the best in others.

I correctly called that this book would tug at my heartstrings on page one, and it did by the end! We finally get to meet the Duke of Carlyle, whose at the center of the series yet rarely seen. Every scene with him broke my heart a little bit as he was a man struck down in his prime. He’s more perceptive and aware than anyone gives him credit for, but I also understood why Society would judge him harshly. Seeing the Duke also made me understand and sympathize with his mother, the Duchess of Carlyle, more. She can come off as a bit harsh, exacting and set in her ways, but she’s doing it to protect her son. She’s suffered SO MUCH heartache in her life, and she’s willing to do whatever it takes to ensure her last living son is happy.

And let’s talk about that ending! Ugh, my heart! The ending was both what I expected and not what I expected in the best possible way. I don’t want to get into any spoilers, but I loved how Linden made you assume one thing based on all the breadcrumbs of information she presented, but the end result was slightly different from expected. The ending packed a punch to the emotions and made me teary-eyed. I would love to get another book in the series as I feel like there is more to explore with the revelations at the end of the book.

All the Duke I Need is hands down my favorite book in the Desperately Seeking Duke series. The romance delivered and I loved how Linden brought all the pieces together to present such a beautiful and emotional ending! While this can be read as a standalone, the ending packs more of an emotional punch if you read the full series. Regardless, definitely pick this book up when it publishes!

Thank you to Avon/Netgalley for the ARC. All thoughts, ideas and opinions expressed in this review are my own.