Tropes: pretend engagement, enemies to lovers,
Steam level: 2-3
1st book in the series
3.75 stars rounded up

I always look forward to a new book by this author. Her writing style is excellent and her plots and characters engaging. There are a few secondary characters here who stand out here in particular: Verity's dad, Miss Snow, and the Reverend. You don't expect them to have depth--but they do. Additionally, this premise is fun: the MFC, Verity, and the MMC, Magnus, come from families with a history of enmity based on a bad investment that Verity's dad spearheaded. But when needled by a catty enemy, Verity pretends to be engaged to Magnus, in order to elevate herself socially. Of course, when arrogant, ducal Magnus comes to confront Verity, sparks fly.

Also true to the author, there is humor, so if you're not someone who enjoys occasional silliness in HR's, this may not be for you. However, what stood out for me most were the small scenes with a big emotional impact. For example, there's a beautiful moment early on where the Duke's stern mom tries to hide her tears while she watches Magnus try to pull on gloves that are now too small because he's labored so many years outdoors. There's also a heartbreaking conversation toward the end with MFC and her mom involving a dead baby bird.
These scenes set this book apart from your typical HR.

What didn't work so well for me was the slapstick stuff at Verity's expense. There's a fine line between klutzy and endearing with MFC's, and at times Verity crosses it. Also (this is a problem I have with many enemy-to-lovers romances), I got lustily-ever-after but not happily-ever-after vibes. To make Verity and Magnus believable as a couple, they needed more in common than just being the members of their families forced to be mature because everyone else around them was emotionally needy and draining. Verity is a free spirit who loves animals and nature, and I didn't see any commonality with Magnus there. And when Verity thinks of him as a friend around the 70% mark, I was a bit surprised, because he doesn't really treat her as one (he spends a lot of the storyline berating her, to the point that it turned me off him).

There's still a lot to like here, and I would recommend this book, with the caveat that there are scenes that can definitely be taken to heart, and others that you can't take seriously at all.

I read an advanced reader copy of this book and this is my voluntary review. Opinions are my own. Thanks to the author, publisher, and Net Galley for this opportunity.

Great characters and banter between them. Ms Lorret has done herself proud with this story. I’m definitely looking forward to reading the future books about this family.

**Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley in exchange of an honest review. **

omg I loved this book. It's everything I love about historical romance - a duke who couldn't stand the lady but then he's totally GONE for his lady, suspense and thrills, a strong female protagonist, witty banter, and swoons. lots of swoons. I love that it's setting up a new series and I can't wait for the next books.

thanks to netgalley, Avon, and the author for the eARC in exchange for my review.

I received an ARC from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I've been reading ARCS lately, and they've all been misses but thank God Vivienne Lorret knows how to write a funny and entertaining enemy to lover's romance. Some other authors should take notes about how well she pulls it off.

Verity Hartley always tells the truth, until she doesn't, and her one lie is so big that it involves a pretend betrothal to the Duke of Longhurst, who is about to propose to someone else. He marches himself right up to the country to interrogate Verity but knows the only way out of this mess is to make their betrothal real for the time being then have her end it. Unfortunately, he can't stop thinking about the wrong woman, and love is what happens when you're busy making other plans.

The passion, the chemistry, the funny moments, the couple were all chefs kiss perfection. I loved Verity and Magnus together, and those special moments between them. At one point, I actually teared up when they were talking about their love and that's what I am talking about. There were actual moments in this story where they went from being enemies to being something more. These moments build their emotional connection to each other, so I believe they actually care about each other enough to throw over anything and everything that gets in their way.

I mean, I can't wait to get a print copy for my keeper shelf because I just adored this one. It was too freaking cute.

It Had to Be a Duke by Vivienne Lorret is a delectable world brimming with intricate and captivating characters. With a delightful blend of passion and comedic moments, this novel offers a well-crafted narrative that sets the stage enticingly for the next installment in the series.

We’ve all lied at least once in our lives. Have you ever lied saying you were engaged to a Duke you’ve never met? Well, that’s how this story begins.

Verity didn’t mean to blurt out she was engaged to a Duke, but did he have to be so angry when he found out about it? Now Magnus and Verity have to gently end their engagement to save face, but sometimes it’s harder to say goodbye than one could ever think it would be.

This book was a lot of fun. I loved the enemy to lover story. There is something about watching people fall in love who fight it so much along the way.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon Books for the ARC.

Is there anything better than a little mystery alongside a Pride & Prejudice-style story?! This is one of the better Regency romances I've read in a while! I love anything with this style of enemies to lover's romances with that witty ol' English banter!

One of my favorite parts of this book is that our heroine, Verity, is described as the plain sister. There really wasn't any 'fixing' your looks back then... you just were who you were. Your hair, your face, etc... and I loved reading about the sister who was beautiful in her own right without being traditionally pretty!

NOTES:
- 🌶️🌶️/5 Slow burn with some open-door situations
- Would be a fantastic audiobook! The plot developed quickly and parts were definitely funny.
- I would purchase this one for any regency romance lover!

**Thank you to Avon and Harper Voyager, & NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. I received this book for free, but all thoughts are my own. – SLR 🖤

How is this only my second Vivienne Lorret book? I enjoyed It Had To Be a Duke so much! Verity and Magnus got under each other's skin all the time, and I loved how Verity never backed down from a confrontation. She was no meek damsel and held on to her own, even while falling in love with the Duke of Longhurst. Magnus believed that he had to keep focused on his duties, and couldn't afford getting distracted by the woman who lied and said that they were engaged. He was frustrated to have to spend time with her, and craved her presence when he was away. She thought that he wanted to strangle her, and he was obsessed with how much he wanted to kiss her. A recipe for a delicious story!
First book in a new series, It Had To Be a Duke delivers on what it promises: antagonism, pretend engagement, a stern Duke bound by his duty, a "plain" spinster who makes him wild, some funny moments, angst, and lots of feels.
I look forward to reading the rest of the series!
Also, can we agree that this cover is a stunner?

Thank you to the publisher for the ARC via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Vivienne Lorret does the surprising fall in love so well. Verity and Magnus were so sweet and seeing two idiots fall in love is one of my favorites, they learned so much about each other and grew as people, separately and together. Made me smile and cry.

Cute and fun and a totally pleasant way to spend an afternoon. Not my favorite from Vivienne Lorret but I already can't wait for the second book in the series.

A self proclaimed spinster, Verity Hartley has resigned herself a life on the sidelines. She’s been snubbed twice and has thrown in the towel. She hides behind a boisterous family’s but a lie from her own lips, to shut a bully up launches her center stage and back into the life she’s given up on.

Magnus, “The Duke” and the “spinster” are not friends. Their families are feuding, and the last thing they want to do is be together. We get to see their relationship grow with each page and it was highly entertaining.

This was a new to me author, and I can’t wait for the next book in the series. The family comes alive on the page and it was impossible to not smile through the whole book. The Liars Club is going to be a fun world to dive into.

I have been in a bit of a reading slump lately, but this picked me up out of it. I enjoyed this book a lot and finished it in two days. I would recommend this to my library's patrons and hope to read more in the series.

When a little lie starts two people on a journey to love. I had so much fun with this one. Great plot, interesting well thought out characters. Just seeing how Verity tried to get herself out of the situation only to become more and more tangled up in her story. I absolutely cant wait to read more from this author in the future. Thank you to net galley and the publisher for the pleasure of reading this book!

I received this rom Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I really enjoyed this story. This was a fun read and cannot wait for the next one.

This has to be one of the best historical romances I’ve read all year. It was angsty enemies to lovers deliciousness and I devoured every word! I can’t wait for more from this world.

This was my first Vivienne Lorret book and since Avon publishes my favorite historical romances I wanted to read this one to see if Vivienne could be added to my list of HR fave authors.

I really enjoyed the dynamic between Magnus and Verity. They were very fun and their idiots to lovers energy was the best. They basically compete to see who dislikes each other more and their first hate kisses were the best. So, I really loved this part of the book and they are the reason why I finished.

I struggled a lot with the writing, so this is a me issue. I’ve read the reviews for this book and they are all amazing and I do agree with them, but the writing style stopped me from enjoying as much as I could. Even though I’ve read several historical romances, the writing is still determining for me. I think I could love Vivienne’s books when I am more immersed into the subgenre and more used to the styles!

ARC provided by Avon and NetGalley. Opinions are my own!

I received an ARC from Netgalley for an honest review.

I am a huge fan of Vivienne Lorret and was excited to read this first entry and I give it 4/5 stars.

The story between Verity and Magnus was funny and enjoyable to read. What starts off as a lie Verity tells to save face in front of her arch-nemesis, turns into an enemies to lovers fake courtship love story. The chemistry between the two is enjoyable and steamy. Verity's inability to lie gets her and the pair into some hilarious situations and I enjoyed reading about the Hartley's and look forward to reading their stories. If you enjoy her previous books, then this one is sure to be a hit.

There were a few things I didn't like about the book that knocked it down a star for me. The biggest one for me was Magnus's repetitive reactions to any encounters that they had, <spoiler>immediately insulting/rejecting her after giving into a kiss or embrace</spoiler>, happened so many times that it started to make my eyes roll. Verity's treatment by others, and even herself, as the 'ugly duckling' of the family was also something that got very old, very quickly for me. The last thing that I did not like was how quickly and abruptly the story seemed to end while cramming as much in the last 5-7 pages as possible to setup the rest of the books in the series. Ultimately I feel that this book struggled with the task that most first books in a series does, it has to take too much time establishing all of the characters and that draws away from the main couple's love story.

Even with those 3 things that I did not like, this was still a very enjoyable read with funny, and enjoyable characters and left me interested in seeing how the rest of the series goes.

I had so much fun reading this story! The enemies-to-lovers/fake dating tropes were excellent. Verity and Magnus's families have a terrible history, so the enemies portion of the story makes a lot of sense as they truly despise each other for a significant portion of the story. It is a slower burn, but the banter and attraction are present from their very first meeting, and I loved it! This is my first book by Vivienne Lorret, but I can't wait to pick up more of her past books! I also really hope she writes more books in this story! The final chapters set up some amazing romance plotlines that I cannot wait to read!

Thank you to Avon and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I've enjoyed basically every Vivienne Lorret book I've read, and this is no exception! I was worried based on the premise that it would rely heavily on the miscommunication trope, or have the characters lying to each other a lot, but despite the lies told to others, the main characters are largely truthful with one another. I loved how Verity owned up to her mistake with Magnus and his grandmother. The chemistry between Magnus and Verity grew slowly enough that it felt really believable, especially given how much they initially disliked each other. I really liked Anna and look forward to reading her book, which I suspect will be next. Not gonna lie, as someone who loves a good queer romance, I was almost rooting for Anna and Verity to fall in love (or possibly have all three of them fall for each other). All together, this is a fun first book in a new series from Vivienne Lorret!

I fell in love with It Had to be a Duke! It's the first in the The Liars Club and will leave you anxious for the next in the series. Vivienne Lorret has a writing style that I thoroughly enjoy; she's filled this story with characters that are well thought out and each one comes across clearly, as their individual personalities become more than just part of the tale they pull you into their story, the plot brims with great dialogue, witty banter that left a smile on my face, hilarious situations, fiery passion, enemies to lovers, which brings this read together perfectly and make this one outstanding read that you won't want to miss.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.