“You’re not broken, Aspen. Sometimes the people who are meant to love us, hurt us the most. And we’re all misfits in our own ways. What matters is whether we find a way to accept who we are, flaws and all.”
Amalie Howard is back with the 2nd installment in the Taming of the Dukes series, Never Met a Duke Like You. NMADLY follows Aspen Drake, the Duke of Greydon, and Lady Vesper Lyndhurst in a steamy, enemies to lover’s romance.

Vesper is known among the ton for her beauty, impeccable grace, and sparkling reputation. A closet romantic, Vesper enjoys meddling and matchmaking for those in her circle of friends; unconcerned with finding a love match for herself. She gave away her heart a long time ago and has no plans to try again.

Aspen has been all over the world studying paleontology and archaeology but is forced to return to London when his scheming mother begins to take control of the dukedom. He has no plans to stay but will remain while he finds his newly debuted ward a marriage match.

After a disastrous reintroduction, Aspen decides to enlist the help of Vesper to help find a husband for his ward, Judith. As they become reacquainted, Aspen and Vesper struggle to untangle their complicated feelings for one another. As childhood best friends and neighbors, they have many happy memories together and a decade of history. But is Vesper the fearless, caring girl he remembers from childhood or the superficial and selfish woman he remembers from their adolescence?

I really enjoy historical rom-coms and this one was a treat. I really enjoyed the banter in this book; Vesper is quick witted and gives as good as she gets. She has the biggest heart and keeps her work with underprivileged and undereducated youth a secret to protect her image. It was a journey watching them get to know each other as adults and heal the hurt of the past. Vesper’s father is one of a kind and I loved the relationship he has with Vesper as well as the relationship he developed with Aspen- very sweet!

There was only 1 thing I struggled with in this book and it was the vocabulary. I think I have a pretty decent vocab but I highlighted over 30 words to look up. It was a lot! Some of them I hadn’t even heard of before. It really started to impact my reading.

Highlights
• Clueless vibes
• A Cat named Cat
• Strong & feminist female friend group
• Witty dialogue and banter
• Mental health representation
• Close father/ daughter relationship

Thank you so much to Forever Publishing for the ARC- all thoughts are my own.

4.5 Stars!!

Lady Vesper has an obsession with love and matchmaking. That is, for everyone but herself. Several seasons have come and gone and she’s yet to make a match and has sworn off love. Similarly, The Duke of Greydon returns to London to deal with some family drama and take over the family estate and keep it out of his mother’s control. Though he’s gone for years avoiding society’s expectations of a marriage and an heir, now that he’s back in London, it’s hard to ignore. When he runs into Lady Vesper, an old friend turned enemy, sparks fly. Will they be able to stick to their guns and deny their chemistry?

I LOVED this story!! Progressive historical romances are QUICKLY becoming my favorites. I am HERE for strong, fierce and outspoken FMC who tackle the parts of society people were embarrassed to look at during the late 1800’s. That’s exactly who Lady Vesper is. The banter, the tension and the chemistry between her and Aspen were positively DELICIOUS. There were several instances where I was squealing and kicking my feet! This book also hits on mental health and the way it was poorly handled during this time period and I think it’s such an important sub plot of the story! I immediately checked out more Amalie Howard books at the library after reading this!

Thank you to netgalley, Amalie Howard and Forever publishing for the opportunity to read and review this ARC! All opinions and thoughts in my review are honest and are my own.

What to say about this book. I liked it. This is a very loose telling of Clueless. I hadn't realized that while I was reading. The characters had chemistry but neither expressed their feelings very well.

3.7 stars
One Liner: Quite good

Lady Vesper Lyndhurst considers herself an excellent matchmaker. After all, didn’t her nudges lead three (or is it four) couples to the altar? As a duke’s daughter, Vesper has everything she wants and fills her days with activities. She’s too busy arranging things to have time for her own marriage or love.
Aspen Drake, the Duke of Greydon, had to return to England to save his estate and deal with his mother. The last thing he wants is to spend time with the ton but has no choice even if nothing has changed, and people are as petty as ever.
It doesn’t take long for Vesper and Aspen to meet again. The childhood friends-turned-enemies cannot help but snap at each other. But there’s more to their bickering than either would like to admit. Nevertheless, the two can find a way forward only if they sort through the past.
The story comes in the third-person POV of Vesper and Aspen.

My Thoughts:
This is a Regency friends-to-enemies-to-lovers (frenemies to lovers) book with some enjoyable moments and some not-so-good ones. It has a quite lot of tropes, which again give mixed results. It’s the second book in the series, but works as a standalone.
The book begins with a quick note, explaining that the content can be darkish and talk of asylums, torture, medical mistreatment, etc. It’s all told and not shown.
Since Vesper and Aspen are childhood friends (estranged for a few years), we can see they know each other enough to deliberately rile up the other for fun. A few barbs were too sharp, but there's a reason behind them (both were hurt and had some preconceived notions). However, this is balanced out by genuine concern and growing attraction.
The pacing is decent, and I like the slow-burning steamy romance (2.5ish) between the lead couple. Aspen has ADHD, which is shown through her restlessness and the need to always do something.
Misunderstandings and miscommunication are galore in this one. Some of it is annoying. The constant humor (with a good dose of sexual innuendos that are somehow well done) made it bearable.
The side characters are sweet and entertaining. Judith shines in her limited space. There’s a strong hint about the next book, and knowing what little I saw of that character, I am excited to see how it goes.
There’s a kitten, too, not-so-lovingly named Cat by Vesper (she is allergic to animal hair). You can see this little fluff ball on the book cover.
There’s a third-act breakup, too, but Aspen saves the day. Though, I do blame both of them for not sharing complete information with the other. At least, it’s sorted in a rather …. way, so we move on to the last scene.
What I totally dislike about the book is the resolution (or the lack of it) about the villain. People ought to face the consequences of their actions, at least in books. And what that character did is evil. Maybe in book #3?
There’s a detailed epilogue, making me happy enough to round up the rating to 4 stars (I brought it down to 3 after the confrontation scene). There’s an author’s note at the end without more information and inspiration about real-life people who worked for the said causes (better lunatic asylum rights and schools for poor kids).

To summarize, Never Met a Duke Like You is a fun and entertaining book that touches upon some dark themes without getting graphic or depressing. The only graphic part is the steam, so go with the right expectations. ;)
Thank you, NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing), for the eARC. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

It was easy to root for Vesper and Aspen. Once friends these two enjoy riling each other up. They also love exchanging sharp banter and even have scathing nicknames for one another. I know this was supposed to be Clueless-inspired but it felt more Emma-inspired to me because of the darker things Aspen was dealing with.

Lady Vesper Lyndhurst is popular and beautiful, she surrounds herself with a good group of friends and raises money for various charities that help the less fortunate. She's not looking for love after what happened during her first season but as a self-professed matchmaker, she enjoys nudging people together.

The Duke of Greydon has spent many years away from England, however, estate business has forced him to return. He was happy being away from the vicious nature of the ton and his mother. Not much seems to have changed including his vexing neighbor Lady Vesper.

The attraction is hard to deny between these friends turned enemies, it's to ignore and even harder to resist.

Thanks so much to the author and Forever for this ARC to review.

Another great one in this series! These two are childhood friends that over the years, struggles, puberty and time have separated. Though they have always had a tendre for each other though they were trying to protect themselves.
It took some friends and family interference even when a other family member was trying to be devious.
Definitely recommend this series and author if you love historical romance!

Love how mental health is represented. In the way that it would have been stigmatized and treated at the time. But the people who mattered loved them for who they were.

Thank you readforeverpub for the e-ARC for my honest and voluntary review.

Never Met A Duke Like You is my first regency romance and while I really enjoyed this book, I’m not sure that I’m a regency romance fan.

I enjoyed the characters & their stance in doing what is right. Aspen in proving that his mother wrongfully had his father imprisoned in a mental institution, while Vesper was on a mission to help out the less fortunate.

I enjoyed the relationship of the characters and the banter was laugh out loud.

For not being a fan of regency romance, I did really enjoyed Amalie Howard’s writing. It read like she did a lot of research on that era & times, and while it took me awhile to really to get to the binge worthy spot that I didn’t want put it down, I blame being sick and not the book itself.

Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest reviews.

I was a fan of Always Be My Duchess and I love Clueless so I knew I had to read this one! I really enjoyed Aspen and Vesper's story!

When the hero and heroine are childhood friends and then he sees her all grown up and falls for her I am always a fan! I also really enjoyed the clueless references though I did think the story gave Vesper a bit too much credit to truly be Cher. Vesper seems aware of her wealth and privilege in a way Cher is not. Vesper's journey is more about getting over worry about her reputation. That being said I would have liked to have seen both characters grow a bit more during the book. This story was more about admitting feelings than growing into them.

However, this book had some wonderful steamy scenes, a trouble-making kitten and the setup to what sounds like it is going to be a really interesting enemies-to-lovers story in the next book. I thoroughly enjoyed it and if you are a fan of Clueless it's a must-read!

Never Met a Duke Like You is the second book in the Taming of the Dukes series and to say it packs a punch would be an understatement. This book is filled to the brim with delicious tension and witty banter to the point where you can't help but root for the main character, Vesper. She is sassy, proud, and brings life to the page, no matter what she is doing. It was wonderful to see such a strong character take charge of her own life and spend her time trying to make the world around her a better place.

Normally, I despise the miscommunication trope, I find it hard to justify not telling the truth when it would make everyone's lives so much better. However, the trope was done well in this book when paired with each of the character’s pasts. Vesper and her old nemesis, the Duke of Greydon, spent their time rekindling their friendship and bonding over their shared past. The process helps them find ways to overcome their preconceived notions of one another in the most fun ways possible.

Having read the first book in the series, I appreciated all the nods to characters and events that happened just before the Duke of Greydon moved back into town. There were so many wonderful characters, that it was great to see the wrap up of some of their stories. The friendships that expand from one book to the other were beautiful in their constant loyalty to one another.

The sub plot within the Duke of Greydon’s life was the only part of the book that fell flat. Despite taking up so much of the book, it never really felt resolved. What little resolution there was, felt forced to the point where I didn't understand where the story was going for a little bit. It felt as if the characters lost some of their prime characteristics by the time the climax of the problem reached the peak.

Overall, this fun and feisty second entry into the Taming of the Duke’s series does not disappoint.

⅗ Spice

⅘ Stars

Thank you to Netgalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Never Met a Duke Like Me by Amalie Howard
Taming of the Dukes series #2. Historical romance. Mental health partial topic.
Lady Vesper Lyndhurst is a member of the ton. She fills her days with friends and matchmaking. She’s sworn off love herself. She won’t admit it’s because no one can compare to her former friend Aspen.
The Duke of Greydon returns to London hoping to revive his family’s estate and stop his mother’s spending and underhanded manipulation. Getting locked into seldom used rooms with his former friend turn enemy, Aspen and Vesper are forced to acknowledge their attraction is stronger than ever.

An epic romance that twists through the ton, matchmaking, friends, politics, and a cat that mixes things up. There are also underlying manipulations and pressure from the matriarch of the family that everyone will to slap down.
Vesper and Aspen are hot and steamy together. Their feelings haven’t gone away and clearing up a misunderstanding makes them closer but they still have society and their own issues to deal with.
Oh, when Aspen declares himself! So heartbreaking because ….well, I don’t want to spoil the story.
I loved Aspen and loved their resolution against his evil mother.
The authors note is worth reading and a reading guide is included at the end.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. I also purchased copies to keep and share.

This was an enemy-to-lovers story with lots of witty banter thrown in. Aspen, the Duke of Greydon, has returned from America after a lengthy absence from London before his mother can declare him deceased. Aspen and his mother have a very contentious relationship all because of her abhorrent behavior in committing his father to an insane asylum so she could control the ducal purse strings. Aspen had another reason to stay away from England in the form of the delectable Lady Vesper Lyndhurst, who was his childhood friend. Children grow up, and Vesper has become a beautiful and proper young lady. Now that he's in her company again, Aspen must use all his willpower not to fall under her spell again. He has vowed not to marry when his mother pushes her ward at him. He will not give in and marry a woman he doesn't love just to satisfy his mother's machinations.

Lady Vesper has been in love with Aspen since they were children, but when she makes her debut he ignores her, and that hurts her deeply, especially since his actions were witnessed by so many. She has vowed never to be the subject of gossip again. When Aspen finally returns to London, sparks fly between them as they fling barbs at each other.

I admit that I was a little bored with this story about the 40% mark on my kindle and almost DNF, but I was glad that I continued to read the book. I loved the role the fluffy white kitten played in the love story. It was adorable. The banter between these two was great fun, and their chemistry was off the charts. Even though they fought their attraction to each other tooth and nail, the ending was delightful. I loved the scheme to expose Aspen's mother for the awful person she was. It was good to see her get her comeuppance.

This book was sweet but nothing can beat the first book for me. I loved the love story between Vesper and Aspen, but the side plot was not my favorite. I also wish the the main villain got more comeuppance.

Things to look forward to:
-a cat named Cat
-a romance between a matchmaker and a paleontologist
-the fountain scene
-a great circle of friends
-steamy outdoor sex scenes
-hilarious nicknames

Pub date: Out Now!

This eARC was provided by the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Lady Vesper has sworn off love for herself but is an eager matchmaker for those around her. The Duke of Greydon isn’t your typical Duke and has just returned to England to take control of his family’s estate. He too has sworn off love, not believing in its existence. When the two find themselves stuck in an attic alone together, the two childhood frenemies find their perspectives on love being challenged.

Abuse, mental health and parental neglect are all explored but not deep enough to do them any justice. The book was setting up an evil villain nicely only to have the big moment when they were confronted kind of fall flat. I feel like the villain has failed. She deserved her moment of comeuppance and I feel like what we got happened so quickly yet it was a huge part of shaping Greydon but also for the two characters not to be together.

The relationship between Vesper and Greydon definitely delivered the spice but I wasn’t overly compelled by either one’s personality. They both had really strong independent personalities but we never really got to see either in their element. Vesper’s desire to help the underprivileged was only ever talked about and never shown. It would have been nice to have Greydon confronted with an a-ha moment where he realized the girl he always crushed on was something more. Instead he just hears about it and eventually decides to take it at face value. The second half of their book is when their relationship starts to find their rhythm and it was then that I became more engrossed in the story.

There were also a lot of modern phrases and it kind of ruined the reading experience. I cannot be convinced that someone was uttering “tomayto, tomahto” in this era.

Thank you to Forever for providing an early review copy through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Overall: 3.5 rounded to ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Readability: 📖📖📖 (The first half especially I struggled. It was just too much bickering and enemies vibe for me)
Feels: 🦋🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑🍑
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥🔥 (plus a partial and a short epilogue scene I didn’t count)
Humor: Yes – especially if you like sarcastic banter
Perspective: Third person from the hero and heroine
When mains are first on page together:
Cliffhanger: No, this ends on a happily ever after.
Epilogue: Yes, a few months later
Format: voluntarily read an advanced reader copy through NetGalley

Should I read in order?
It’s not necessary but there is some cross over of characters.

Basic plot:
Vesper hasn’t seen Greydon in years, but when they are locked inside an attic together, they kind of pick up right where they left off – trying to take each other down a notch.

Give this a try if you want:
- Victorian (I didn’t see a year, but it’s after Darwin was publishing work and I have book 1 in the series marked as 1865)
- London setting
- Clueless retelling
- childhood friends
- billiards lessons
- enemies to lovers
- neurodiverse heroine – Vesper has ADHD
- prodigal hero returns
- lots of social action – garden parties, balls, masquerades...
- bespectacled hero
- pets – the heroine gets a cat
- very light touch of hero nurses heroine back to health
- paleontologist hero
- low to mid steam – I have 2 full scenes, a very hot partial, and a short epilogue scene

Ages:
- Heroine is 23, hero is around 25

My thoughts:
I am really sad I struggled with this one! I think part of it may be I really love the movie Clueless and just rewatched it before starting this book. So I probably had some of my favorite scenes/ideas and when it didn’t go that way I was a bit disappointed.

I think another part of what I didn’t love is the non stop bickering and fighting Vesper and Aspen do in this story. Maybe if my children haven’t been fighting non stop it wouldn’t have been so noticeable. But this is why I struggle so hard with enemies to lovers. And I know our relationship dynamic with Cher in the movie was like this but I felt like theirs was a bit more playful and fun. They still did stuff together and seemed to enjoy each other's company - In the beginning this one really feels like hatred.

We’re told that Vesper behaves perfect socially – she controls herself and her emotions rigidly due to her ADHD and she’s worried she will make a misstep. I felt like I never really saw this side of Vesper though – and part of it is that Greyson throws her off but she seemed to always be acting a bit angry and filled with outbursts with him in social situations and it seems like that was the opposite of what I was told about her. Losing her temper with him, basically making scenes, I couldn’t reconcile what I was getting on page with what I was supposed to think of her character as and it did bother me a bit.

I LOVED the matchmaking aspect. I adore when we have a matchmaker in the story, so I really appreciated this aspect of Vesper’s personality. I also really, really loved the steam in this one. I think it really worked to connect the characters and propel their relationship forward. Most of the scenes were decently long and detailed too and I really loved that. I think the latter half of the book I connected with way more than the first half.

I was glad the villain activity didn’t take over the book like I was worried it would when I saw blackmail mentioned. I don’t like the ending result of the whole villain thing – I am pretty blood thirsty when it comes to punishment and was definitely disappointed in this. I feel like this is one of those things that is a problem waiting to come back and affect them in later years and it just niggles at me and I don’t feel as strong of a HEA for the couple…

But, overall this book had some things I really loved and I appreciated the Clueless nods throughout the story.

In the latest addition to the TAMING OF THE DUKES series, the heroine is a self-proclaimed matchmaker who isn't looking for love, but in this book, she finds it with the hero. The hero is looking to revive his family's fortunes while also realizing that a lot has stayed the same even after his return to England, including the heroine. Then a fateful accident entraps the hero and heroine together, which changed the relationship they had towards something more.

This is a nice addition to this Amalie Howard series. I did find the story an enjoyable read, but it does need more details and better resolution in the book. Like any character, the main couple each have their strong and weak points, and as such there were certain actions of the main couple that I didn't find pleasing at all. The book also could have a better resolution for a certain secondary character, their actions being intolerable considering the sensitive subject being explored in this story. Overall, it's not a bad book to this particular Amalie Howard series and I still want to read more books from the author in the future.


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

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

I don’t think this was as strong a book as it’s predecessor. Emma is not my favorite of the Austen heroines (although I do love Clueless). Lady Vesper - is this a common name now? I kept picturing Vesper Lynd from the James Bond movie - is kind of a mashup of Emma AND Cher, which was a bit jarring. Aspen started off as a real a-hole. I didn’t really buy the reasons he cut Vesper out of his life. Then there was Cat - why on earth would you give a person who (a) dislikes pets and (b) is allergic to cats and (c) has repeatedly said NO, a live animal?! No reputable so-called “rescuer” (or real friend) would do that. And THEN there was the dowager duchess, Aspen’s mother. I was really disappointed in how her situation was resolved.

This was cute, and a fun read, but I preferred the first in the series. Overall I like Ms Howard’s writing style so I’d definitely be on board to read another one. This one just wasn’t my absolute fav.

Another amazing addition to the Taming of the Dukes series by Amalie Howard. This is a second chance, frenemies to lovers regency romance.

Vesper tries to never think about her first love that led to her first heart break with her best friend, Aspen. Rather than focusing on her own endeavors on the marriage mart, she directs her attention to matchmaking her friends. Now that Aspen has returned to London, he needs Vespers legendary skills to secure his ward a marriage proposal. Vesper and Aspen must navigate the rocky road of repressed feelings and decide what or who their dreams truly are.

I loved the tension between Aspen and Vesper and the verbal sparring! *AMAZING* I also enjoyed that Aspen and Vesper’s love and relationship was built upon their friendship as young kids that has naturally progressed into more. The cast of supporting characters are amazing, and I am crossing my fingers that we get to see Effie and Briar’s stories in the near future!

This book gals, if you want a fun read with a lot of snarky comments, a lot of sexual tension and a lot of innuendos, run out and get this book. It was such a fun story. Witty banter is so exhilarating and this story is one electrifying read. Aspen and Vesper (aka Lord A** and Viper) were such great characters. This story is the epitome of enemies (sort of) to lovers. Amalie’s writing is superb and easy to read (you just cannot stop).

So far, this series has been a breath of fresh air. I love historical romance, but reading it with all the tropes and styles that are prevalent in contemporary romance is just so much fun. Our hero and heroine, for example, don’t meet at a country house party or ball, they have an actual “meet cute” moment. One that I don’t think I have ever read before. At times their antics felt a tad hokey, but in the best way. Sure, it’s a romance full of misgivings and misunderstandings, but the modern virtues of the characters and the banter make for a truly funny story. I definitely felt the connection to Clueless, and of course Emma, but it wasn’t direct, more subtle.
Overall it’s a great intro into historicals, for the contemporary or non-romance reader, and a quick, witty read all around. 3.8 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC, in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

Such a good frenemies to lovers romance! The miscommunication runs high in this one, but that is fairly common in regency romance because no one talks about their pesky feelings. And everyone can see the feelings between Vesper and Aspen for miles, but they staunchly ignore the obvious.

There was an interesting undercurrent of intrigue in this one that I was very invested in. And I’m sorry to say that is was not resolved to my satisfaction. I really wanted more consequences for this character!

I haven’t read the first in this series and now I want to!