Home Alone as a gothic romance

I loved this book so much! Myrtle is just barely 18, and always seems to be the one in her large family that gets pushed to the margins. So it's no surprise that when the family takes off for their country estate just before Christmas, Myrtle is mistakenly left behind to fend for herself in a home devoid of servants and quite possibly plagued by would-be burglers. She's a delightful character, mature for her age but still a very young woman.

Val Bancroft, the Duke of Aragon, is still mourning the untimely death of his wife a few years prior, and has no intention of ever falling in love again. His despondency has led to rumors questioning everything he does, which is fine by him because it keeps his neighbors and prying Society from bothering him. Fortunately, it's no defense against Myrtle's cheerful optimism and determination.

I really enjoyed this romance. The writing was inventive and story just flowed so smoothly. It's a wonderful grumpy/sunshine pairing, and their HEA was absolutely divine. I can't recommend this book enough. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.

This romance penned by Christi Caldwell was delightful! I fell in love with Brooding Val and Myrtle who refused to leave Val be by himself. When 2 lonely souls meet, there follows a story one can’t put down.

The blurb of this book was definitely a selling point to me, I have read a few historicals with a similar theme of the heroine being left behind during the holiday season and of course falling for the hero as they both work together. This novel is overall an okay read, if you love Christi Caldwell and you enjoy a sweet and simple holiday romance you will probably enjoy this. This book to me was okay, will I think about it long after I finished it…no, was it enjoyable during the read…moderately. I think Christi Caldwell is a fine writer, I have enjoyed other works by her, but this novel overall felt slow in the pacing and the romance just did not fully hold my attention. This novel is a closed door romance, so if that is appealing to you, definitely pick this book up. Overall, this novel felt too long for the overall premise, the romance did not have an emotional depth and build up that I tend to lean toward, so I left this novel with mediocre feelings. Do I recommend Christi Caldwell, yes I do, she is a great indie historical romance voice so definitely worth checking out.

I love this time of year when Christmas stories begin and it puts you in just a joyous spirit!

Having just returned from school to her family home in London, Lady Myrtle wakes up and find her family has left for their home in Scotland for Christmas... without her!

When she tries to befriend the new neighbor next door, Val the Duke of Aragon, she finds a wonderful large dog and a grumpy, reclusive man. He had shut himself away with grief after the loss of his wife.

A delightful story as two people help each other and thwart some thieves while finding love

I really liked this story, and both characters of Myrtle and Val. They were well suited and their romance developed at a nice pace. The book was written well enough to make me hate Myrtle’s family for overlooking and forgetting her, and I loved the christmas time setting,

My only real complaint was that she was just too young. I can buy a certain age difference in historical romance but the fact that she only turned 18 during the novel was really hard for me to overlook. Her age pulled me out of the story a little bit. I liked them together, but I would have enjoyed the book just a little more if she had already had her debut seemed a little less naive.

When her family leaves London for the country for the Christmastide season, Lady Myrtle McQuoid finds herself left behind. It seems they just forgot about her. She hopes it won’t be long before they realize she is not with them and return for her. What to do until then? Val Bancroft, Duke of Aragon, wishes to be left alone with his grief and guilt. Silly rumors say he killed not only his wife, but his servants, and probably a couple of innocent animals. Myrtle doesn’t believe it, so, with time on her hands, she decides to meet him and check it out. It takes a while for Val to warm up to the chatterbox from next door, but she is hard to resist. Could the sprite be what he needs to restart his life? Could the duke be Myrtle’s Prince Charming underneath his gruff exterior? This is a cute grumpy/sunshine holiday story. There is a sullen duke, an ancient loyal butler, a loving brother, a huge dog, an irresistible chatterbox, and a spectacular ending. As always, Timothy Campbell does an excellent narration.
I received an ARC of the ebook via NetGalley and am voluntarily reviewing it.

Outside of family and staff, no one wants to talk to grump Val Bancroft except sunshine Lady Myrtle McQuoid in “The Duke Alone" by Christi Caldwell!!!

If you love the Home Alone franchise then you will love this retelling between forgotten, middle child Myrtle and the brooding, surly Duke of Aragon! I love this retelling because of course this is a romance and many things can happen in town and on the road north. Then her family makes you teary-eyed, especially her mother who tells her the story behind her childhood nickname!

If you love sad boys then you will love this book! Val wants to be left alone forever after losing a loved one, however Myrtle’s assertiveness, kindness, and singing gets through to him. Her easiness with his wolf-like pup also thaws him!

It takes the right person to make us feel alive again and “little star” Myrtle shone bright to Val. This book is emotional and funny, I highly recommend reading it!!

PS. This is a slow burn and closed door romance, but you get all the feels!

Thank you to Net Galley and Montlake for the ARC in exchange for a honest review.

I loved reading this charming historical romance, which to me was a close take-off of the Home Alone movie so many people have enjoyed. The author successfully offers us a grumpy character who enjoys being alone and another character whose family generally ignores her, but she manages to stay cheerful and sunny despite that.

Lady Myrtle McQuoid’s family mistakenly left her at the family home in London when they set off to celebrate Christmas at their country estate. Even though he tells her to go home and leave him alone, Myrtle manages to strike up a quasi-friendship with Val Bancroft, the Duke of Aragon, who lives nearby. She befuddles and overwhelms Val with her constant conversation and convoluted sense of reasoning. She has a vivid imagination and is sure the men who had been inventorying her father’s artifact collection before the family left, have plans to come back and heist the items.

I loved the author’s writing style in this work...I felt like I was experiencing what Myrtle was, it was that good. Several really good LOL moments. And also tenderness as the romance between Myrtle and Val blooms. She manages to warm his frozen heart.

I loved the story, the characters, the prose, and of course, Horace the dog. My thanks for being given an advance review copy of this work. All opinions stated are my own.

The heroine's family left her alone at home as they traveled to the country for the holiday season. As the heroine learns to cope with her current reality, she acquaints herself with her neighbor, the hero who just wants to be left alone. Yet the heroine doesn't realize that her home will be the location of an attempted robbery, and that her growing relationship with the hero will amount to much more than neighborly acquaintances.

This is a nice holiday romance story featuring an older hero and a younger heroine with plot twists that are reminiscent of some modern movies that may be familiar to readers. I like the premise, but the book could have been better with more details to enrich the story. I also wanted a better resolution to how the heroine is treated by her family. Overall, this is a nice holiday romantic read.

**Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. All opinions and thoughts in the review are my own.**

This was an entertaining, well-written book. It was fun, steamy, sweet, and held my interest. It even included an adorable dog. I enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more books by this author.

Left behind when her family vacates London for the country, Lady Myrtle spends Christmastide coaxing the reclusive duke next door out of his shell, and avoiding thieves set on robbing her house.

This Regency romance take on the film HOME ALONE is hilarious and heartwarming. Lady Myrtle is quirky and adorable, while widower Val is grumpy but honorable. As much as he wants to be alone, he can't help wanting to make sure Myrtle is okay. A must-read this holiday season.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

This was Regency England meets Home Alone - the person left behind was a few days away from her eighteenth birthday, Lady Myrtle McQuoid and yes, there were two thieves casing their home to steal collectables belonging to her father. Myrtle had just returned from being at a finishing school for four years and her family was leaving the next day for Scotland to celebrate Christmastide. She had never fit it with all her five siblings, and was just left on her own, so when she woke up this morning and discovered her family and servants had already left; well, she wasn't surprised, but she also had no idea how to take care of herself - lighting fires, candles, cooking, etc. had never been learned.

Valentine "Val" Bancroft, Duke of Aragon, is a neighbor of the McQuoids. He is a recluse, wants to be alone, he's surly, gruff and rude - and he has a wolf for a pet. He has reasons for his dark demeanor but rumors swirl about him murdering his wife, killing his servants and feeding their bodies to his wolf - none of it true but he did lose his wife and unborn child four years ago and the loss changed him from a laughing, fun-filled, smiling duke to the duke with a broken heart.

Myrtle needs help - Val refuses to be kind - they banter madly - his horse and his wolf both fall in love with her (which they never did) - things soften between them - feelings grow. I enjoyed the couple and loved, Horace, the wolfdog & Val's stallion, Lady (yes, Lady) but I felt the story was too wordy, they were so many characters at the beginning of the book that it muddled my mind and then we didn't see any of them again until the very end. I did enjoy the bantering, I thought there were too many pages of Christmas Carols, I missed the intimacy (even a small amount) after all they had been through but we only got kisses and fade to black. I still gave this 4 Stars as the author always writes such wonderful characters, but I definitely think this would have benefited being shorter or made a great Christmas novella . I voluntarily read & reviewed an Advanced Reader's Copy of this book; all thoughts & opinions are my own.

I normally love Christi Caldwell. I have read a large number of her books and have rarely been disappointed. This book, however, is one of those rare disappointments. I loved the premise - a wounded hero, a spunky heroine guiding him to healing. But Myrtle just comes off as so so so so so so young. She is seventeen/eighteen during the course of the story but she feels so much younger, and the romance with Val, who is at least 10-12 years older than her in age and thirty to forty years older in terms of life experience, just feels a bit...icky. I know that there are often large age gaps in regency era romances but here it just doesn't sit right. The love scene being largely behind closed doors - normally something I don't like - was welcome here.

I found the premise of them being alone and unsighted in London - and then expecting to make it to Scotland without being seen - a bit problematic. London might shutter, but there would still be people around. There is zero chance Myrtle's reputation would not have suffered or been destroyed. The "villains" are a bit boring and the ending was underwhelming. I did love Horace but this book is overall a miss.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book. The opinions herein are my own.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I love a good Christmas romance, and The Duke Alone is Christmas romance perfection. This story blends elements of grumpy/sunshine, Home Alone, and A Christmas Carol and references Pride And Prejudice. Oh! I can’t forget Horace – Val’s lovable monstrosity of a dog!

Val is a widower who has become an angry and bitter recluse, shutting himself off from friends, family, and any happiness. Only Val’s butler and his dog, Horace, are left in Val’s life. Val blames himself for his wife’s and unborn son’s deaths. Myrtle is a middle child in a vast family. She is misunderstood and ignored mainly by her family. Through it all Myrtle maintains her sunny disposition. When Myrtle gets left behind by her family at Christmas, she and Val strike up an unlikely friendship that evolves into something more.

I did something I rarely do in novels, I cried. Val’s haunting, heart-wrenching pain was so organic that it ripped at my heart. Also, watching Myrtle heal Val piece by piece grabbed me and resonated with me viscerally. Val’s pain and Myrtle’s cheerfulness collide to create a fiery attraction that builds into a unique romance.

The plot married drama, romance, and humor perfectly. It took many literary elements and blended them perfectly. There were some scenes I felt could have been shortened and some scenes I would have liked lengthened. The Duke Alone stole my heart! Val and Myrtle are two characters I will remember lovingly for a long time. Christi Caldwell has made holiday magic with an eye-catching enchanting romance.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book through Netgalley and the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I rarely read closed door books, but I made an exception for Christi Caldwell, because I love her books and her writing and I couldn’t miss this book. And I wasn’t disappointed at all! The story is so good, inspired by the movie Home Alone, and this time it’s the heroine who’s left behind by her boisterous and chaotic family. And the characters are sweet and there’s chemistry between them. The one fault I can find is that the heroine is much too young and inexperienced for the hero and maybe their relationship is somewhat unbalanced. I would have preferred an older heroine, less unsure of herself. But I loved the book all the same. An inspiring Christmas tale of love and healing.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Val, Duke of Aragon was still grieving from the death of his wife and had virtually cut himself off from family and friends. Myrtle was back home from boarding school but even amongst her large family, she felt lonely and the odd one out. I think her singing off key would have got on my nerves though and also her chatter about random things. I particularly liked the ending which did redeem the story. I’ve always enjoyed this author’s work but unfortunately this one didn’t seem up to her usual standard. I received a copy and have voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Christi Caldwell is amazing. Her ability to capture the essence of details, draw her readers into her characters lives, make them feel their turbulent emotions is mind blowing. I was very fortunate to receive an ARC of The Duke Alone from Christi Caldwell via Netgalley. Myrtle McQuoid has always tried her best to live up to her family's standards, but she is invisible to them. She is an enigmatic, full of life, intelligent young lady.
Valentine Bancroft, the Duke of Aragon, a solitary widower, is continually bothered by his neighbor and keeps thinking of Myrtle as a problem, a nuisance of sorts. He enjoys his loneliness as repentance for having lost his wife and unborn child. Their first encounter with each other is unbelievable, so charismatic, so full of wonder, so completely unexpected. In this story,  we see two people who feel alone in this world, but together, they make a dynamic duo. We sometimes lose our faith with the occurrences in our lives, but there is always a reason for every action. This is a must read, especially if you wish to laugh out loud reading some of the banter and fall in love with a brooding hero who learns to live again.

Grumpy meets sunshine.

Myrtle is left behind during the holidays next door to a duke. A grumpy duke. Val is a widower, once a rake, but now a grumpy, cantakerous, duke who only likes his dog Horace and his solace after loosing his wife and child.
Myrtle has always felt invisible in her boisterous and large family, after four years of finishing school, she gets left behind (sort of Home Alone-ish). I enjoyed this grumpy duke meets Lady Myrtle.
Recommend.

I have enjoyed this book because it is so much fun and more than that, it is one of the sweetest books that I’ve read. This is a Christmas novella about a girl of almost 18 whose parents barely notice. She’s the middle one in a bunch of six children and a similar number of cousins and she has spent four years in a finishing school. One day her parents announce that the house needs to be renovated and because of that the family must leave it and go to their Scottish lands to spend the holiday season. But the morning they leave they forget about Myrtle and she finds herself alone in a very big very empty house.

Valentine, duke of Aragon lives just next door to the family. He’s a widower who lives in mourning despite the years that have passed since the accident that killed his beloved wife. He loves his solitude and begs all of his servants to go stay with their families during the festivities, so soon he’s left alone with his dog Hector. And a very alone, very scared, very innocent young neighbor.

This story is both inspired by “Home Alone”, the movie with Macaulay Culkin, and gothic stories. The book is very short for it is a novella but the romance doesn’t fully bloom until the last part, although you can see it growing as Val’s metaphorical shield cracks. He’s a very dark very grumpy hero who used to be a rake until he fell in love with the sweetest woman and married her only to lose her a couple of years later. But Myrtle, step by step, knock after knock on his door finds his true self and gets into his heart. That was very sweet and lovely.

However I must say that there was an aspect of the story that disturbed me a bit. Myrtle isn’t a girl but she’s not yet a woman. She’s not only very young but she is very naive and she has moments when her behavior is more childish than mature. That’s appropriate because she’s in that nowhere land between childhood and adulthood, that was not the problem. The problem is that when we read the way Val sees her sometimes, he sees a child, a young girl, a very young woman who is about to make her debut. There is a scene in which she’s taking a bath in the kitchen and while she’s at it she asks him to find her some clothes in her bedroom, the way he describes her undergarments as very white, very childish with a pink bow on them was a bit shocking. Of course in that day and age girls of 17 were of a marriageable age, but he sees a child in her. That’s not a nice thing to read honestly.

A Duke Alone is available on NetGalley as a Read Now option. You don’t have to request the book. The book will be archived on November, 1, 2022.

This Christmas tale reminded me a little of the movie Home Alone if it was set in Regency England. Overall, I did enjoy this Christmas story, but I think some tweaks here and there could have made the story even better. The story takes place over around two weeks. It is a story about healing and opening oneself up to love again.

Tropes:
Grumpy/Sunshine
Age Gap
One Bed

Lady Myrtle McQuoid(h) 17 turns 18 in a few day. The name Myrtle had me thinking of Moaning Myrtle in Harry Potter.

Valentine “Val” Bancroft, The Duke of Aragon (H) It didn’t say his exact age. He might be 30ish but I’m sure.

Told in dual 3rd person pov

London, England
December 1813

Myrtle has just returned home from being away at finishing school for four years. Myrtle’s parents chose to send her away to finishing school rather than hire a governess for her. She is one of six children. Myrtle’s father is the Earl of Abington. Sadly, Myrtle always feels like the overlooked child. Myrtle feels that her relatives still see her as a small child. When Myrtle was younger, she used to play pranks and do stuff to try to get more attention.

Myrtle loves celebrating Christmas in London. Unfortunately, this year Myrtle’s family will be celebrating Christmas at their estate in Scotland. The reason they are celebrating in Scotland is because Myrtle’s father hired a man to do repairs on their London Townhouse because it has a leaky roof, rotting floor boards etc….

Myrtle becomes suspicious of two of the men that have been hired to work on the house. The men say that they are doing inventory on items in the house. Myrtle knows that her father wouldn’t just let anyone into his “curiosity room” because the room holds many valuable objects. Everyone else is busy getting ready for the upcoming trip that they don’t really pay much attention.

In the parlor, Myrtle sees her older sister Cassia and her cousins staring out the window. They are looking at their mysterious neighbor, Valentine Bancroft, The Duke of Aragon (I think Aragon sounds like some mythical land). There is this gossip that Val killed his wife and staff. None of that is true. Val moved to town around 4 years ago with his new bride. Shortly after, Val’s wife was killed in a carriage accident on the way to his mother’s Christmas party. Sadly, Val’s wife was with child and the unborn child died too. Ever since, Val has shut himself away from everyone. Christmas used to be Val’s favorite time of the year but now it just holds traumatic memories for him. Val doesn’t even spend time with his mother and brother. However, Val’s younger brother Sydney never gives up on him. Every year Val’s mom and brother hope that he join them for Christmas. Val ends up catching a curious Myrtle, snooping around his home. He just wants to be left alone.

I loved how Val’s dog Horace took to Myrtle right away and Val’s annoyed.

The morning Myrtles family leaves for Scotland is very chaotic. It’s snowing and they have a bunch of carriages. Poor Myrtle ends up getting left home alone. Everyone thought Myrtle was in a different carriage. For a moment, Myrtle is happy to be home alone but quickly the reality of the situation hits her. There isn’t really food at the house. She doesn’t know how to make a fire. There is the fear of those shady workers c lurking around the house.

Myrtle and Val seem to be the only two people left in town. Myrtle’s lonely and she thinks Val is lonely too, so she keeps going over to his place. Eventually, al finds out that Myrtle is alone at her house and he is concerned for her well being. He does to sweet things for her. She begins to thaw his frozen heart and cheer him up with her sunny disposition. For years Val couldn’t stand the sound of Christmas music because it reminded him of happy times with his wife. I like that Myrtle sang a lot of Christmas song in the book. She sings off key but it adds to her charm.

Danger does lurk around the corner. Myrtle catches those men scoping out her house. She tells Val about it but he doesn’t believe her. In the movie Home Alone, Kevin makes all these elaborate booby traps to fend off the burglars. In this story, Myrtle talks about playing pranks on her family when she was younger, so I thought Myrtle would use those skills more to ward off the potential threat. There weren’t really any elaborate pranks. However, Myrtle is a smart girl and tries to make it appear that her family is still home to try to deter the criminals. Together, Myrtle and Val end up saving the day and protect her home.

It ends up being a good thing that Val and Myrtle get to spend this time alone together because they are able to get to know each other in a way they wouldn’t if Myrtle had a chaperone present. I did think that they were sweet together and enjoyed their scenes. There were some funny scenes in the book.

I really liked the clever way the author incorporated Jane Austen into the story. Myrtle’s Aunt is a neighbor of the Austen family. Myrtle has spent time with Jane and her family. Myrtle loves Jane Austen’s works. Pride and Prejudice is one of her favorite books. Myrtle ends up giving her copy of Pride and Prejudice to Val and he actually reads the book.

However, I didn’t like all the mentions of Myrtle’s unattractive appearance. When Val first meets Myrtle he thinks she has a slightly too pointed face. <b>When Val first meets Myrtle he thinks, “hardly pretty but certainly interesting to look at, in a peculiar way.” He mentions Myrtle’s teeth being really crooked. I was thinking, okay that’s enough. Meanwhile, the dead wife was one of the diamonds of her season.

Val does like Myrtle’s smile and he is transfixed by her curly locks of hair. He does like more and more things about Myrtle as the story progresses.

“He’d always had a preference for blonde, and yet, those midnight-black strands gleaming at the ends, hopeless to be constrained or tamed, perfectly suited her. She was a fey fairy always up to mischief. A mermaid who’d found her way to shore and retained an ability to cast her net out to unsuspecting captains and land men.”
I didn’t like that Val brought up several time Myrtle being between “ girlhood and womanhood”. There was a part where he said her cloak was big on her that she almost looked like a child. Myrtle was young and innocent.

I think the book kind of skirts the line of a clean romance. It seemed like there was build up to a love scene in the book but it ended up being a fade to black scene. I wish their first time would have been shown. Other reviewers mentioned that the author has written love scenes in other books of hers. There are some scenes where Val mentions being aroused. There is a scene where they kiss and grind against each other. There are a few scenes where Myrtle takes a bath. He wasn’t watching her take a bath. He was outside the room. Val’s reaction was funny when Myrtle asked him to help her with the bath because he misinterpreted her request. Myrtle asked for help getting water for her bath. It was a lot of work getting a bath. They had to get water from the well and boil buckets of water to make sure it was hot. It’s a reminder of how much we take running water for granted.

The ending skips ahead a week and ends on Christmas day. I wish there would have been a second time jump. I wanted to see them have a baby since he lost his first child. I wish there had been more interaction between Val’s family and Myrtle’s family. I wanted to see Myrtle meeting Val’s family. I wouldn’t mind some of the siblings getting stories like Val’s brother Sydney, Myrtle’s sister Cassia, and Myrtle’s brother Dallin. I thought this was a sweet read for the Christmas and parts of the story put a smile on my face.

Safety Info:

Trigger Warning: Val’s first wife died in a carriage accident around Christmastime. She was pregnant when she died, so the baby died too.

Myrtle (h) is 17 at the start of the story and turns 18 within a few days.

Myrtle is a sheltered virgin

Val has been celibate since his first wife’s death about 4 years ago.

Myrtle and Val share their first kiss when she is still 17 but she turns 18 the next day.

Val (H)- Val’s exact age isn’t mentioned. He’s maybe 30 ish.

Val is a widower. He married for love. He loved his dead wife very much.

Story skirts the line of a clean romance. There are mentions of the H and h getting aroused. There is a scene where they grind against each other while kissing. There a few kissing scenes.

One fade to black love scene. It skips to after. It’s premarital sex.