Raised with love by her aunt and uncle as their own, heiress Henrietta Monfort finds herself blackmailed into marriage by an odious, fortune hunting cousin. He threatens her with a secret about her birth - a scandal that would ruin her and harm to her loved ones.
Findley Phillipson, Duke of Montrose and Laird MacGairbheith, has always had a soft spot for his childhood friend. Learning of her desperation and hoping she might love him one day, he steps in and offers for her hand.

Hettie and Finn elope. A marriage based on friendship and trust is soon infused with undeniable attraction. A dream! But reality calls. His castle and his late father’s legacy in the Highlands. A heavy burden he must bear in honour of his name, and a burden she’s willing to share even if his very Scottish mother is dead set against her. And just when love is starting to bloom, her blackmailer rears his ugly head. Fear sets in, trust is broken, the bubble bursts and all seems lost. Unless love, frail and unspoken, overcomes all…

📚 This road to love is paved with strong friendship, sweet romance, steamy passion, intrigue, determination and an extremely well-written third act break up. An emotional rollercoaster each of the MCs works through in their own way. He's stubborn and she's no push-over. Hurt, anger, insight, regret and some beautiful grovel on his part. This is my kind of romance: flawed and imperfect, but real. Truly a most captivating, sometimes heartbreaking, and definitely delicious, witty and colourful tale! A wonderful debut I highly recommend!
📚 Childhood friends, unrequited love, marriage of convenience, interracial romance, steamy, open door

Thank you to the author for this eARC! All opinions are entirely my own.

Thanks to Net Gally for this advanced readers copy of One Season with the Duke by Addy du lac. This was a Friends to Lovers, Historical Romance set in Vicotrian England. Hattie and Finn's relationship was based on the early foundation as childhood friends. Hattie, a Biracial daughter of a second son was left to be raised by her father's brother, the Marquis of Lindsey. Finn grew up as the next heir to the Duke of Montrose. The plot focused on Hattie being blackmailed by a cousin, and being forced to marry him. Finn came in and offered her another option, Marry him instead. The conflict became will she tell him why she was being blackmailed. Of course the 3rd act conflict dealt with this. I really enjoyed this story. The cultural element in this story could have been explpored more. Race relations in Victorian England should have been a side plot. Hattie and Finn's relationship/friendship was the heart of this story. Of course the 3rd act conflict made me want to punch Finn, but I understood the underlying issue. I gave this book 4 Stars and would recommend this book.

ONE SEASON WITHE DUKE was a good debut that brought a bit of uniqueness to the regency romance genre. We start off with our MC’s both in unsavory positions — the Duke is looking for a wife, Hettie has been betrothed to a squicky troll of a man, and through circumstances, they manage to find themselves in a position to agree to marry each other. Once childhood friends, they both enter in to this marriage of convenience not knowing they they each harbor a deep love for the other. Of course it’s a match made in Heaven, but outside forces and meddling family members make sure that their road to happiness is paved with gigantic, almost immovable boulders.

I really enjoyed this one and the different conflicts that both the Duke and Hettie have to work through. Hettie keeps quite a secret from the start, and this secret plays a pretty big role through the course of the story. I also liked how Finn stood up to his mother, who frowned upon his love for Hettie for years. I liked the inclusion of different cultures included in the ton and society and how hard some families, like Hettie’s, work to ensure inclusion and the same respect afforded to the white families, and that added quite a bit of depth to Hettie’s backstory and character.

The requisite conflict was well done, and I loved how they worked it through and eventually make their way back to one another. Of course said conflict could have been avoided with some communication, but that’s the joy of regency romance conflicts — simple things were much more complicated back then, relationships included. All told, a good debut and I’ll certainly be watching for more from this author. 4 stars.


*Digital arc received via NetGalley and the publisher.

I was sent an unsolicited copy of this book from the publisher and I couldn't help but accept because I'm a sucker for historical romances. Before I had even read the synopsis, I was enchanted by the cover design. The rich colors, beautiful heroine, and the harmonious composition all culminated into a spectacular book just begging to be read. Unfortunately, my fondness for the outside didn't match my enjoyment of the inside. The inside was a confusing mess. Everyone happened to be cousins, including the main romantic couple. The author really took the term "kissing cousins" to a whole new level. Yuck. I understand that was common practice back then, but do you really want to continue that trend for modern readers? I guess they're really using that Karen Smith logic for picking your future spouses.

One Season With The Duke certainly ran with the cousin concept and even made the villain her cousin too, separate from the hero of course. I can't imagine the monkey puzzle of a family tree between these two characters. The villain was barely featured and his plot was easily foiled within the first quarter of the book. Despite the uncomfortably close blood relations between our couple, they were very sweet. They were very tender towards each other and I would have been more supportive of their union if they didn't share similar relatives. It gave me big Queen Charlotte vibes. Our couple was interracial, with the heroine being biracial and the hero was Scottish. I haven't read too many interracial romances, especially historical ones. I loved how natural it felt and I would love to see interracial romance flourish in the publishing industry.

I'm very grateful for the free unsolicited copy of One Season With The Duke. I wasn't expecting it and it's always a nice surprise when I receive ARCs in my inbox. My biggest problem was honestly that the couple was related. Incestuous plots are taboo for a reason. I couldn't fully root for them knowing that they were literal kissing cousins. I had no problem whatsoever with their interracial status and fully supported that aspect of the novel. I just beg for future books to have couples be oceans away from the same gene pool. I don't believe I'll continue with this author, but it was neat to know we're from the same city. I appreciated her tenderness and gentleness between her characters, but I'd prefer One Season With The Duke to not share any branches on the family tree.

Title: One Season with the Duke-a standalone
Release date: 7/18/23, read 7/9/23
Author: Addy du Lac, new author for me
Book cover: beautiful, love Henrietta's purple gown
Format: e-book
Page Count: 300
POV: heroine-Henrietta
Setting: London 1838
Genre: Historical Romance
Tropes: age gap, interracial couple, friends to lovers, marriage of convenience
Representation: Indian, African descent
Rating: 4 *
Source: Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. I voluntarily give my honest review and all opinions are my own.

Quick summary: Hettie receives an anonymous letter questioning her parentage and legitimacy. She succumbs to her cousin's blackmail until old friend Lord Findley comes to rescue. He offers her a marriage of convenience with the hopes of making her fall in love with him.

Content warnings/triggers: blackmail, kidnapping, racism, classism

Characters: Main and Minor
Heiress Henrietta Monfort/Hettie-22, orphaned as a child as her parents died at sea. She was raised by her aunt and uncle.
Phillip Fletchley-Hettie's cousin
Duke of Montrose/Laird of Mac Gairbheith(Lord Findley/Finn) -27, a Scottish Duke who had a crush on Hettie since he met her @ 16
Lady Aoife-Finn's mother, Finn's father- Lord Liam Desmond Yves Phillipson(deceased)
Gabriel and Anastacie-Hettie's aunt and uncle. Marquis and Marchioness of Lindsey
Alastair-Hettie's cousin, friend to Lord Findley

Review: This novel had hints of Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series. It mentions the failed Jacobite Rebellion. Finn had duties as Lord protecting his tenants just like Jaime did at Lalla Broch. Finn and Hettie's intimacy scenes were swoon worthy too. I loved the diversity and understood Phillip's desperation to be in the ton even though he's mixed race. He was out to prove he was as "good" as them, and he became stalker crazy. Hettie was a damsel in distress until the end. I loved her "rescue" of Finn, and his response was hilarious. Lady Aoife was an intriguing character. She played the disapproving mother-in-law, but with strength and understanding.

Lord Findley (Finn) has been carrying a torch for his friend Henrietta Monfort (Hettie) for years. When he needs to marry in order to restore wealth to his dukedom, and Hettie needs rescuing from a blackmailing relative, the two enter into a marriage of convenience that burns bright from the beginning. But, their honeymoon period is brought to an abrupt halt when a large secret is revealed and both Finn and Hettie's affections and commitment are tested. Will they be able to find their way back to one another or was their relationship doomed from the beginning?

The first quarter of this story felt as if it encompassed an entire romance plot and I was left wondering how I was going to connect with a romance that moved at the speed of light. But, I was pleasantly surprised as the story progressed and du Lac tested Finn and Hettie in different ways, slowly increasing the strength of their love through trials and tribulations as well as small moments of connection.

There were two plot threads at work in this story and they both were compelling and strong in creating physical and emotional conflict. At times I found myself wondering why a character did or did not react the way I thought they should, and the author did a seamless job of showing each characters' imperfections and ultimately, their growth.

I also must add that Hettie was an absolute delight. She was a wonderful character and I truly enjoyed her quiet strength.

I believe this might be du Lac's debut novel and I thought she did a brilliant job. I look forward to reading their future works and highly recommend that you pick this book up and give it a read if you enjoy historical romance with a blend of Scotland and England, a friends to lovers relationship, and a marriage of convenience trope.

I read and reviewed an advanced eARC of this book thanks to Entangled Publishing via NetGalley. All honest opinions are my own.

Hettie is in trouble. A distant relation has dirt on her, and threatens to expose what he knows unless she's willing to marry him (and give him her dowry). Luckily, childhood friend Finn is here to rescue her. A whirlwind marriage later, and Hettie finds herself on his sprawling estate, trying to prove her worth. Hettie and Finn learn each other and grow fonder of each other every day. But once Finn discover's Hettie's secret, everything is in danger of falling apart. Deception, loyalty, trust, and especially love are explored in this historical romance featuring a gorgeous heroine.

The first 30% of this book were an absolute dream. I adored Finn, and their bashful interactions as they were growing from friends to lovers. I also loved reading an historical romance that showcased a heroine with dark skin. The love scenes were really gorgeously written! I admired Hettie's strength through all of her trials. The Scottish highlands, and gorgeous highlanders were fun to read about!

Ultimately I found this to be a really challenging read. Finn flips a switch after discovering Hettie's omission about the reason she was being blackmailed. The way he behaved, having tantrums and saying terrible things to Hettie and her mother...it soured everything else for me. Finn comes off as mercurial, hotheaded, and not a hero I would want Hettie with in the end. I was very unhappy with how Hettie was humiliated throughout the book, by her cousin, tennants, mother-in-law, and especially her husband, even while carrying his child. I'm glad she had a happy ending, but overall it was difficult to enjoy after that first 30%.

Trigger warnings: gaslighting, bullying, violence, guns, emotional abuse, a man slaps a woman's hands away

I'd like to thank Entangled Publishing and Netgalley for the e-ARC of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

One Season with the Duke by Addy du Lac

Published: July 17, 2023
Entangled: Amara
Genre: Historical Romance
Pages: 333
KKECReads Rating:
I received a copy of this book for free, and I leave my review voluntarily.

Addy du Lac was born in the tropical paradise of Trinidad and Tobago, and moved to the US with her mother at the age of twelve. She began writing historical romance while she received a double major in History and Creative Writing from the University of South Florida. She enjoys writing books with diverse characters and steamy happy endings. When she isn’t plotting her next series, she enjoys watching movies and Asian Dramas, traveling, and tempting her fate with new recipes. Addy Du Lac lives in Florida with an eclectic library of books and a carefully curated wall of beautiful men.

“So, there it was, the only truth that mattered laid out plain and bare.”

Hettie has known a life of love and kindness. Her aunt and uncle have raised her as their own, but her safety stops when a cousin threatens her with a secret that could ruin everything.

This was sweet. I enjoyed the build-up, the dynamic in relationships, and the cultural infusions. The way this story was told was pure and sweet, with sensuality and love.

Hettie was such a bold character. I loved that she was brave but always kind. She wanted to be safe. Finn was stubborn and loyal, and his desire to protect Hettie was admirable.

I enjoyed how this story developed. The pacing was swift and engaging; the characters were well-written. The relationships felt authentic. I enjoyed getting lost in this romance.

Henrietta is being blackmailed into marriage by her cousin because he feels the money her parents left her should have been his. When her childhood friend Lord Findlay, that she hasn't seen in years but who grew up well, offers to marry her to save her from this situation she initially rebuffs him to protect him and her family from scandal.
Finn has been infatuated with Hettie for years but they were to young when he saw her last, but he is in town looking for a wife and hoping it will be her when he finds out she's engaged. When he learns the circumstances and she turns him down he tells her she has till her wedding to change her mind and is so happy when she does even though he knows she isn't in love with him. Things go ok for a bit and then chaos ensues.
This is only my second 5 star romance this year but it had everything I love, friends to lovers, marriage of convenience, smart characters, angst and a really good(if not quite perfect) grovel, 100% recommend this!

This book has a beautiful cover and I was so excited for this story, but the conflict seemed to shift around and get lost. Was it the blackmail? Then she didn’t love him? It felt a little scattered. The writing is so well done. I loved the idea of it. I just never got completely settled in.

I loved this book. I would recommend to anyone who enjoyed Lisa Kleypas or Julia Quinn.
Childhood friends, blackmail, quirky family members, steamy sex scenes 🔥and quick wit. Sign me up.
The characters are real, complex and relatable. There are moments of shock and drama yet there remains a fun banter between all the characters throughout the novel.
Something I liked best is that the characters are flawed. They aren’t perfect. They make mistakes and assumptions based on their own past experiences/trauma. I found myself going back and forth with which side I was on. Even the villain had moments where I felt bad for him…very short moments but still.
The playful banter and quirky supporting characters keep the mood light while also dealing with some darker themes. Feelings of abandonment, unworthiness, loneliness, duty, trust, redemption. It’s about letting yourself be loved and loving someone for who they are, not just the fantasy.
I am looking forward to reading more from this author and I’d like to thank @NetGalley for letting me read an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is a wonderful and romantic story between a cross racial couple. Henrietta is a young black girl in the Ton. She is pleasant and wealthy. Findley is a duke who is working hard to restore his inheritance. These two have been friends since childhood. The plot is exceptionally good and gives the reader something to be excited about. The characters are interesting and entertaining. This story will definitely become a reader favorite.

Hettie and Fin are interesting, captivating, relatable, entertaining characters. They captured my attention from the start and held it until the very end. I enjoyed both their romance (including the bumps along the way) and the intrigue subplot. I found their time on page together both entertaining and fun. I have mixed feelings about Finn’s mother. She did add to the story in her way. I enjoyed many of the secondary characters. I wish that the ending had been clearer in a few ways, but overall I really enjoyed this story and the characters’ development.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I cried!!! This book was so good and had me in my feelings left and right!
When childhood friends and crushes become something more, you know I’m there—especially when it’s a historical romance! Henrietta is being blackmailed by her cousin into marrying him. He believes she belongs to him, that because they both have dark skin she is his for the taking. But Henrietta’s old friend and Scottish Duke Finn comes back into her life just in time to steal her away to life as his Duchess. I really loved Finn for the most part because he is such a wife guy. Who doesn’t love a romance where instead of the MMC barely tolerating the FMC, he adores her? This book was steamy too! The main issues of the book come from Hettie’s cousin and the interpersonal issues between Finn and Hettie — especially inspired by the unequal affections they share in the beginning. I will say that the issue with the cousin really undercuts Hettie’s intelligence because she doesn’t seem to doubt a word he says. Meanwhile the issues she has with the Duke are far more prominent to me because they are all tied to emotional responses—so however irrational they might be, the strength of the response seems plausible and poignant.

Overall, I had a good time reading this book. I keenly felt Hettie’s sense of alienation and uncertainty. I sympathized with Finn and the burden of his responsibilities. I loved all the romance, especially when things were going well. It was a very emotion-driven book and I enjoyed that too! I’m now looking forward to reading more from this author.

This book starting off fast and then the pace changed soon after where the story focused on the relationship between the main characters. Hettie is in a dilemma that she hopelessly feels that she can't get out of. In comes Finn who she hasn't seen since they were younger, and who each have fond memories of the other. When all hope seems lost there is a way that Finn can help Hettie, but without knowing the full story, will that ruin what they have slowly built once Finn finds out? It was a nice pleasant read, and I while I did enjoy the story, and was curious on how it would play out, I did find myself disengaged from time to time. I think it is a nice story overall and think others will enjoy it. Thanks to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for this ARC.

Historical romance. Victorian-era England. Standalone novel. Hettie is the niece of a marquess and suddenly being blackmailed by her slimy cousin (who I didn’t catch or remember how he’s related to her) into marriage. She doesn’t like him at all, but seems to go along with it because she doesn’t want to jeopardize her family’s reputation. Meanwhile, her childhood friend Finn is finally back in London having been away for many years taking care of his estates in Scotland. He’s disappointed to learn that Hettie is already engaged, but offers to rescue her from her dire circumstances. These two elope pretty early on in the book and I was really expecting a road trip romance with a big chase from the blackmailer, but we ended up with an overbearing mother-in-law story instead. Plus Hettie’s still keeping the secrets of what she was being blackmailed with, Finn is both arrogant and self-doubting and insecure, and really, the villain took way too long to catch up with them. The childhood friends to lovers romance was nice and I liked how Hettie stood up to her mother-in-law, but overall, this book was just ok.

Interesting twist on standard historical romance plot! I can honestly say I've never read a historical romance featuring African American characters as part of the elite crowd. The isolation Hettie would have felt would have been tremendous I'm sure.

Overall the book was very engaging and I read through it pretty quickly. I can't say I loved the mother in law although her character type was probably par for the course in that era. I would have enjoyed the firing scene for that serving wench that did Hettie wrong though.

As for the romance, I think it was just about perfect. It didn't go overboard but the author captured a sweet new love feeling that definitely made me root for them to make it.

BOOK: One Season with the Duke

GENRE: historical romance
TROPES & THEMES: childhood friends, secrets, betrayal, marriage of convenience, friends to lovers, hero falls first, meddling parents, sweet heroine
HOTTIE METER: 🔥🔥🔥
RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
RELEASE DATE: July 17, 2023

<i>read an arc copy of this book all opinions are my own</i>

This was a very surprising read and I enjoyed it very much. Knowing that it is a debut and that makes me excited about what is to come. There is always room for new voices in historical romances.

Perfect sweet romance with friends to lovers for people who loved when the hero falls first.

Very strong first half but then characters changed and gave up their convictions and it all went down hill from there.

I found the authors writing itself to be very readable and smooth. I was flying through it at a rapid pace. Very enjoyable, great romance building. I was so engaged.

Then I feel like we threw so much of it away. The conflict was not well balanced and gave into conventions from Old School Historical Romance that were better left in the past.

This left me feeling disconnected from both characters and I had little interest in their reconnect and HEA.

I would read this author again though! I see great potential, I just didn't click with this story.

3 stars
2.5 on the spice scale

I voluntarily read and reviewed an eARC of this book via NetGalley and Entangled Publishing, LLC, Entangled: Amara. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rating: 3/5 Stars
Publishing: July 17, 2023
Series: N/A
Pages: 333

This is a first time read by Addy du Lac, new author to this reader. I have enjoyed regency in color novels and “One Season with the Duke” was an enjoyable and refreshing read. The story begins with Henrietta “Hettie” Monfort who loves her aunt and uncle dearly and would do anything to prevent their ruination in the eyes of society. She attends a ball with her family in search of the person wearing a red flower in order to gain information of her true parentage. Unfortunately, the person in question is her cousin Phillip. She agrees to a dance and later is blackmailed into a forced marriage or suffer the consequences of being ruined if he exposes the information he has discovered.

Lord “Finn” Findley has been a childhood friend who has become enamored of Hettie. He arrives in London to visit her cousin also hopes to offer for Hettie only to find out that she is already engaged to Phillip, her villainous cousin. Observing their interaction, he becomes suspicious of their relationship and eventually learns of the blackmail. Hettie confronts her uncle and tells him the awful truth and they agree to make plans for her and Finn to marry…something she has longed for some time. Finn and Hettie speedily elopes to Edinburgh staying one step ahead of her treacherous cousin.

This trope of friends-to-lovers and marriage of convenience was a nice read although there were some developmental issues throughout parts of the story. The hero of the story at some point becomes unrecognizable in the latter part of the book and his mother took issue with different things that was contradictory in the story. Although the main characters are likeable individuals, character development was lacking. I think there should have been more details on the relationship between Hettie and her cousin and why she disliked him up until their conflict. In addition, the conflict with her mother-in-law could have been drawn out a bit more.

There is chemistry between Finn and Hettie that was sweet. As with historical romances, the steamy between the couple was tasteful, however the angst in the storyline overshadowed the characters a bit. What I loved…the occasional Gaelic language and memorable characters. This was a good read but some things that transpired were unconventional during the time period such as public displays of affection and modern usage of words. The author could have research prior to inclusivity in the story. I must agree with one reviewer that there were some sub-characters that would have made for good cameo appearances if this were a series. Overall, a good read.