Member Reviews
I really enjoyed this book. I hope the author continues to write more books in the future. I can't wait to see what this author releases in the future.
This story has really awesome characters. Wyatt and his two best friends are all Dukes. He is forever making blunders that are just delightful. Frederica is a fierce mama bear taking care of her two nieces and a nephew. An arranged marriage is not the way to begin a relationship but it leads to lots of fun encounters between the couple. The children are the glue that holds them together and they will offer you lots of opportunities to laugh. It is a delightful book and a fun way to start a trilogy.
Yours Truly, The Duke
1st Book in the Say I Do Series
Rating: 2 stars
Thank you to the publisher for the ARC given through NetGalley for review. All opinions are my own.
Yours Truly, The Duke had one of my favorite tropes. Wyatt and Fredericka enter a marriage of convenience agreement. Their marriage will allow for Wyatt to claim his inheritance and Fredericka gains custody of her nephew and nieces.
***SPOILERS AHEAD***
Sadly this story did not work for me. I found the romance very lackluster, because honestly these two argued through most of the story. I think the custody battle overtook the plot of the story. I wanted to see these two fall in love and finally come to some kind of agreement when it came to how he could help her out. It seemed that his antics seemed to bring more conflict and concern for her.
They were complete opposites in how they believed children should be brought up. What didn't help was that they never had a conversation where they listened to each other without jumping to conclusions. It eventually got a little tiresome.
I enjoyed the kids. I felt bad for them because they were stuck in the middle of these people.
2.5 stars, rounded up
Fredericka Hale has had custody of her sister’s three children for a year when out of the blue her cousin Jane decides that she would be a better guardian for them. Jane is married, well-off, and childless, which is sure to sway the courts, so Fredericka needs a husband fast! She has been looking and is practically blindsided by the Duke of Wyatthaven who shows up and practically demands that they marry. Fredericka is taken aback but knows marriage to a duke will go a long way with the courts and agrees to a marriage of convenience. She will stay in the country with the children and he will return to London and the life he has been living. It seems like the perfect arrangement, but Jane isn’t ready to give up and stirs the pot, leading Fredericka to hightail it to London with the children.
“Wyatt”, the Duke of Wyatthaven was perfectly happy living his wild, hedonist bachelor life with no plans to marry anytime soon. So it is a shock to learn that if he doesn’t marry within 7 days he will lose his inheritance from his grandmother and the prime London real estate would instead be given to the London Society of Poetry. He wouldn’t care except the society is led by Percvial Buslingthorpe, a man Wyatt detests because of the treatment he received from him when he was a student at Eton. He failed Wyatt and was cruel to the other boys in the class. So there is no way he will let that man get the property, instead, he will marry. And his solicitor has found the perfect woman, Fredericka Hale, she needs a husband and is happy to stay in the country – it is almost like they are meant to be! But his carefree bachelor days are numbered once his new bride arrives in London with her nephew and nieces in tow. Can this rakish Duke reform and find happiness and love with his inconvenient wife?
This was a well-written, nicely-paced story that sadly didn’t work for me. I found their constant bickering and miscommunications tedious, repetitive, and annoying. And despite the tease of passionate kisses, the one and only “love scene” was disappointing and vague. The love scene aside, I just didn’t feel the romance between them, especially when he tells her that he has a mistress – but hasn’t seen her since he met Fredericka, not “I cut ties with her” I just haven’t seen her – WTH? And as far as the custody battle, it was ludicrous to think that once she married that any court would give the children to her cousin - Wyatt is a DUKE – I can’t believe that his title wouldn’t put an end to Jane’s quest regardless of their living arrangments. This author has always been hit or miss for me and while this was a big miss, I am still looking forward to Rick and Hurst’s stories!
*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.*
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I enjoyed this book a lot. The chemistry between the two main characters was fantastic!
They agreed to an arrangement to solve each other’s problem. Turns out, they got more than they bargained for. It is also a story of parenthood and the different ways of raising children, discipline vs fun, simply love. Both hero and heroine are likeable as well as admirable. A definite enjoyable read.
I received an ARC from Netgalley and leaving my review voluntarily.
I really struggled to finish this story. The writing came across as very clunky at times, and I didn’t find the build of the love story believable. There were several period inconsistencies that I won’t enumerate and I felt the author missed out on the opportunity to give a more realistic portrayal of a custody battle.
This was a pretty cute marriage of convenience historical romance! One of my favourite tropes is a marriage of convenience, so I knew that I would enjoy this book. I enjoyed the banter between the love interests, but they both did annoy me at times throughout the book. Overall, while I enjoyed this book, I probably wouldn't read it again.
Wyatt, Duke of Wyatthaven, has to marry to save the inheritance from his grandmother before it goes to a charity he despises.
The Duke of Stonerick, called Rick and Hurst the Duke of Hurstbourne, friends and fellow team mates of Brass Deck Club.
Jane Tomkin, her husband Nelson Tomkin. Cousin Jane wants the children of Angela, Charles seven, Bella nine, Elise five.
Fredericka Hale is raising her dead sister Angela's children. Working hard to raise them as her sister would have wanted them.
Marriage of convenience with a flair! Both Wyatt and Fredericka need to marry and quickly for different reasons. However, those reasons get complicated when words are taking with the wrong meaning or surroundings. How you say something or the tone is very much the heart of this story and the reasons they hide it from one another.
As Fredericka deals with her guilt and past treatment by her sister and cousin Jane, she believes that if the children follow good manners and discipline this will prevent them from doing the mistakes she preseves she did.
Wyatt as an only child followed his father's guidance thinking it was very wise. He witnessed injustices from his title in his youth which filled him with guilt. He now does things to help others anonymously.
As Jane works to take custody of the children, Fredericka does what she thinks is best for them. Wyatt and Fredericka butt heads on what the kids need which gives the conflict in the story but very much comic relief.
Come join in to see what antics the kids get into with and without Wyatt. Does Jane get them or does Fredericka? Does past guilt win or is it concurred? Will Wyatt and Fredericka get to know the other? Will they have an HEA? With great world building, characters, and easy writing flair this story comes alive
Marriage of convenience is one of my favorite tropes so I was eager to read this ARC. I felt the beginning started off strong but the constant misunderstandings gradually got tiresome. I liked Wyatt and his innocent bumbling of relationships and child rearing, His interactions with the children were adorable. I thought Fredricka’s strict and overbearing parenting was OTT. Unfortunately, I wasn’t really invested in their relationship as their interactions as a couple were few. The author didn’t provide many one-on-one occasions for an emotional relationship to develop. And most of their conversations ended up in arguments and hurt feelings anyways.
I absolutely loved this book! Wyatt and Fredericka had a marriage of convenience that was working out well for the both of them. Until a crisis caused Fredericka to suddenly appear in London with the children in tow. Living under the same roof caused conflict but it also forced the couple to reevaluate their feelings for one another. Fredericka was extra strict with the children because she feared losing custody to her annoying cousin. Wyatt understood her worries and tried to help. The internal monologues of both characters were helpful and the conversations were well-written. Wyatt had two bachelor friends that really added to the story. I'm sure that they will both be getting married in future books.
I've never read anything by Amelia Grey before and I feel like my review is not doing the book justice. The story is low-steam but tastefully written and very swoon-worthy. The fears and desires of the characters seem very real. I will definitely be reading more from this author in the future.
I received a free ARC from NetGalley and this is my honest review.
Fredericka needs a husband to help her retain custody of her late sister's children. Wyatt needs a wife so he can inherit the property left to him by his grandmother. A marriage of convenience—leading separate lives—will serve them both. But conniving relatives aren't easily put off. Will their struggles to keep their family together lead to love?
This book is charming, with Fredericka's efforts to create the perfect image of family continually undermined by children behaving like children, and Wyatt enjoying a good time. Wyatt has a good heart, and Fredericka wants the children to be able to enjoy themselves. But the threat posed by her cousin creates a constant strain. The book is full of heart and shows how complicated family relationships can be.
Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.
I liked the basic set up for this book; arranged marriage, dukes, kids as secondary characters, and forced proximity. But there were too many pages of explanations, inner thoughts, background and not enough dialogue and action. For example, the butler introduced the dukes friends and about 3 pages later they walked in the room. I found myself skipping pages to get through this book.
Yours Truly, the Duke by Amelia Grey
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A marriage of convenience. Both Fredericka and Wyatt need to marry for their own reasons. Soon. However, they cannot deny there is chemistry from the first day they meet.
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What I liked:
-I don’t read much from the marriage of convenience trope, but after this book I wouldn’t mind reading more. This trope was a lot of fun to read.
-The back stories for our characters were well done and I was rooting for each of them.
-Fredericka’s storyline really had me stressed! I was so worried for her and her nieces and nephew!
-There were some conversations towards the end between our lovers that were excellent and really helped them with their individual arcs and their relationship arc that I especially enjoyed.
-I really liked the ending and that there will be books for the other two dukes. 👏🏼👏🏼
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4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This was a lot of fun to read, when I wasn’t worried, and I want to read the next two books when they are done!
Final Score - 5 Stars!
I adore marriage of convenience stories and this one now holds a special place in my heart. The slow burn build up to Wyatt and Fredricka's love story was SO worth the wait. These two needed to not only get to know each other but they needed to get of each others way and let things progress naturally. The children were the cherry on the top of this delicious confection, especially Bella. I laughed each time she referred to Wyatt as "Uncle Your Grace". OMGness, how adorable!
I am SO looking forward to see Wyatt's friends, Hurst & Rick, find their own happily ever afters.
This book was a marriage of convinces, which is one of my favorite tropes. I enjoyed the book a lot, and it even had me laughing out loud. I read an ARC of this book, and I don't know if that was why I didn't love it, but I could tell that it needed a lot of work. I hope it goes through several more edits before it is published, but it honestly should not have been given to readers in this state.
I think my main issue with this story was that it was more attraction rather than falling in love. They just didn't have enough interactions with each other for it to feel genuine. I did like the plot though. I liked how he needed a wife to get his inheritance and she needed a husband to keep her sister's children. Although, as I stated, they needed more interactions with each other throughout the story.
I wish I would have enjoyed this one more than I did, but I did like the story overall.
Yours Truly, The Duke is the first book in the Say I Do series. This story is about two people who need to marry quickly for very different reasons. Fredericka Hale needs to marry a man soon in order to be able to keep her deceased sister's children from her cousin.
The Duke of Wyatthaven, who has a notorious reputation, has found out that he must marry within 7 days of being notified that if he is not married by Friday, he will lose his grandmother's inheritance. His solicitor gives him the name of a woman who is also needing to be married. He sets out to meet with her to offer marriage and they come to an agreement. But marrying the Duke does not dissuade Frederica's cousin from taking the children. If anything, it makes her more determined to have them.
Frederica and the Duke will have many obstacles to overcome in order for them to become a true family for the children to overcome their loss.
This was a wonderful story of individuals doing the right thing for others. Frederica is a tad too prickly to the Duke's casual lifestyle. But it would appear that opposites attract which make this thoroughly entertaining. I really enjoyed this story and am looking forward to the rest of the series.
1.5 stars. This is my second book from this author that I've rated 2 stars or less and I think this will probably be the last one I try. I struggled with both Fredericka and Wyatt. I felt like the author hated Fredericka and tried to paint her as the villain for no reason while trying to make Wyatt the good guy when he was absolutely awful and irresponsible. I don't get the appeal of this book at all. It was exhausting to read. Also it was written like it was going to be open door when the one intimate moment was so vague that if you aren't paying attention you'll miss it entirely. I could go on and on, but it isn't worth my time to write more.
It's more of a 3.5 ⭐
Ambivalent is how I feel about this book. It seems like there are a lot of assumptions and misunderstanding between Fredericka and Wyatt. It started off really well and then it seemed to flounder a bit in the middle and again I have mixed feelings about the ending as well, though I can understand how things had to go.
In terms of the main characters:
- seems very one sided in terms of character growth: Wyatt seems to have a lot of character growth throughout the novel but maybe it's because he is at a different starting point?
- I love how he does fall first
- chemistry between them was great
- lots of misunderstandings between the two and their communication
The kids were so adorable and I couldn't help having my heartstrings pulled by them, especially after such a loss.
The writing was good though at times it felt a bit slower than I'd like or have less emotional pull, which was surprising given the kids involved. I'm also glad that there was more nuance to the relationship between Jane and Fredericka, though it seemed odd that Jane initially just wanted Charles but not the girls?
Note that the steamy scenes are reminiscent of old school romance novels that involve a lot of adjectives and no actual nouns....
Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC and provide my honest opinion.
Heart flutters: ❤️❤️
Steam: 🔥
First off, can I just say how much I loved that the letter that gives this book it's title and that the duke spends so much time worrying over is never actually read by Fredericka? Which is probably a good thing since it was so direct and arrogant she would have probably thrown it out and refused to see him. I saw in some reviews that people didn't like Fredericka, but I don't know why. She is often her own worst enemy, but losing her parents so young and then being treated like an unwanted nuisance by her sister and cousin would make it difficult for her to believe others could like her for herself. And her cousin is pretty much the worst, she kind of redeems herself towards the end but I'm not sure how genuine she was really being. I found myself wanting to reach through the pages and smack Wyatt on multiple occasions for how he handled things. It was good that Fredericka and Wyatt eventually found a way to communicate with one another. I also liked that they made one another more balanced - he taught her to loosen the reins a little with the children and she taught him to make things not all about himself.