I had mixed feelings about this book. It started great but I felt it was all over the place and didn’t keep me interested. It was a shame because I have read other books by her and enjoyed reading them.

A quirky and delightful story of independence and love. Tessa and Justin compliment each other in the best sense.

I really like her writing and plotting. Truly, no one else is doing this kind of stuff right now. There was a little too much happening in this one, though. It took me out of the main story. There is a great girl gang of characters, and I laughed out loud several times at their interactions. Good banter between the main characters, and great side characters.

No one is more surprised than I at the fact that I did not devour Kate Bateman's latest. I was so looking forward to Second Duke's the Charm. It sounded absolutely intriguing, and I always tear through this author's stories.

The beginning started off well, but for whatever reason, the story stalled fairly quickly for me. I don't know what it was.....the pacing, the lack of connection between Tess and Justin, their names? (I kid. Sort of. I truly don't care for either of those names though.) Either way, the story kind of dragged for me, and like I said, I did not expect that at all.

I'll still come back for the next one.

***I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advance Reader Copy generously provided by the publisher via NetGalley.***

Loved it! Big, grumpy, hot hero. A heroine with gumption, grace, and a brain. A marriage of convenience with benefits, and a smattering of jealousy and My Wife (!) feelings. Sigh. Kate Bateman is the Tessa Bailey of historical romance. So, so good.

I received a copy of this book from St. Martin’s Publishing.

Reading a Kate Bateman book, for me, is like settling down with a box of chocolate truffles. I know I'm going to enjoy every minute. This one delivered all the elements I particularly expect from Bateman: a saucy heroine who's a softie on the inside, a grouchy but terrifically handsome hero who melts like butter when he finally falls in love, supporting characters who run off with every scene, fun banter, and love scenes so steamy I get self-conscious if reading in a public place, like the hair salon.

There are a lot of devices in this plot and I admit I was at first worried they might cloud the story. There's the sudden death of Tess's husband, the duke, on their wedding night, leaving her a virgin. Absolutely no consequences to this, as Tess goes on to be an independent widow and start an investigative agency with her funny best friends. Justin Thornton, the new duke through a long series of accidents, is rich, handsome, successful, and lucky. He wants one last fling before he sets out a-wife hunting; she wants one real kiss. So they meet as a riotous house party, leave without knowing one another's names, naturally meet up again in London, and decide a marriage of amorous convenience is their obvious solution. It's all quite fun.

There's a long, passionate interlude as they honeymoon on the estate, with a side of truffle hunting; I love that Bateman always brings in something unique. But they're both still stuck behind their masks: Justin believes it is unwise to fall in love, and Tess is keeping her investigative business from him. Then, quite suddenly, there are threats on their lives that need to resolved.

These two never really worried me that they wouldn't get together; they were essentially together before they even met. Turning pages on this one was having the truffle put in my hands before I even had to reach for it. I enjoyed every bite.

Forced to marry the first time but her gross elderly husband dies of a heartattack when he sees her the first night. Thank goodness. Now 3 or so years later the long lost heir has been found on he wants a ready made duchess. Ready to keep her freedom she reluctantly agrees. Great romance and heat. Wonderful ending.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with guidelines.

I enjoyed the book. The characters I felt are all interesting and bring to the storyline some interesting entertainment to keep busy by reading. The romance starts as a challenge for the two main characters, but as the story progresses things starts to warm up rather quickly. My interpretation of the main character Theo us that he is a Rake personified. The man may have looked like a hot god in my imagination, but he reads like someone who needs to be pulled down from that cloud of his and Tessa is the right woman to do that for him. I will say for Tessa’s character. I would have liked for her age to be a lot older. Perhaps twenty four or older. The writer can also give a guesstimate age range.I found the book a good read.

This book starts off very strong. It has what I want: a likable heroine, an intriguing mystery element, and marriage of convenience trope. The banter of Tess and Justin was enjoyable and the spice was giving but sometimes, was a bit excess on the steam. Justin also isn’t my type of hero so I couldn’t root for the couple as much as I’d hoped. Also, by the half-way-point, my interest in them as a couple peters out. Overall, this is well-crafted and charming book but isn’t the most memorable historical romance I’ve ever read. Yet, I still would read the rest of the series!

There's something about Kate Bateman's writing that will always have me hooked. She has a great sense of humor and her heroines always have a well-rounded, full personality. Plus, the heroes always have me kicking my feet. This one is no different.

Anything and everything Kate Bateman writes gets added to my to be read list. I was fortunate to obtain an advanced copy of this book for my honest review. Run, don’t walk when this book hits the shelves, I finished in one sitting, Tess carves a life for herself following a wedding night disaster with the help of her best friends. Justin inherits the title after a lengthy search and what follows is a meeting for the ages. They have to learn to trust each other while slowly letting go of their insecurities and hidden agendas. Looking forward to the next book in this new series.

I devoured "Second Duke's the Charm" by Kate Bateman, and I can't stop gushing about how much I loved it. The story revolves around Tess Townsend, the Dowager Duchess of Wansford, who unexpectedly finds herself in possession of her newfound freedom and a mystery to solve when her elderly husband dies on their wedding night. Her journey as one of Her Majesty's Rebels, alongside her two closest friends, is both intriguing and empowering.
When Tess encounters Justin Thornton, a cynical shipping magnate who inherits a dukedom, their lives take an unexpected turn. Justin, an unexpectedly endearing and practical character, proposes a marriage of convenience and passion to meet their mutual needs. The chemistry between them is electric, and you can't help but root for this unconventional couple.
The plot is a delightful blend of romance, intrigue, and humor. I couldn't put the book down, and I found myself fully immersed in the charming world Kate Bateman has created. The secondary characters, including Tess's friends, add depth and dimension to the story. If you're a fan of historical romance with strong, independent heroines and witty, lovable heroes, "Second Duke's the Charm" is an absolute must-read.

I'm a bit torn on how to feel about this book. The romance? Great, really enjoyed the interplay between Tess and Justin, they sizzle on the page and I buy what they see in each other. All of the other conflict? It completely petered out.

The first 20% of the book isn't my favorite, it's a lot of set up and it is a definite slow start to the romance until it hits the accelerator big time. Justin is barely in town for a minute before he proposes a marriage of convenience and then the relationship plot is off with a bang. This was the strongest part of the book for me, seeing Tess and Justin interact and play off each other. Tess is a really fun character who has secrets, but she holds firm to who she is at all times. Her friendship with the other girls is great and I loved their dynamic. Justin isn't as full fledged as a character, he feels more like a stock version of a romance hero, who doesn't want to fall in love and is a self-made man, but he sparks when combined with Tess. I am also not immune to the "hardened man discovers jealousy for the first time" trope.

The problem is that I never really cared about the blackmail plot or the "who is trying to kill Justin and/or Tess" plot. It feels like an afterthought in the book with both plots wrapping up relatively easily and without much fanfare. One of them even wraps up entirely off the page and we're just told about it later. It leaves the ending as more of a whimper than a bang.

ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

When Tess's husband dies on her wedding night, it solves all of her problems--she doesn't have to be married to an old man she has no interest in, she's still free from her father, and she has money and a place to live--and she's free to keep running an investigation agency with her two friends. But two years later the next heir to the duke is finally named, and when he shows up, Tess recognizes him as her dalliance from a party she attended in disguise,
Justin Thornton, the new duke, proposes a deal: they'll marry, so neither of them has to worry about finding a new spouse or their place in society; and they'll be lovers, so both of their needs will be satisfied. This deal will last three months, at which time he will retreat to his own residence, leaving Tess with the houses and more than enough money to live on. She agrees, hoping he won't discover that she's completely inexperienced in the bedroom.
Meanwhile, Tess and her friends are investigating a matter for the queen, and Tess is keeping this part of her life secret from her husband. But accidents keep befalling the two of them, and Justin is getting suspicious, thinking she has a lover on the side.

Overall, I found this book very fun. I loved the dynamic between Tess and Justin, and Tess's friends were great, as well. I wish it had been a little longer (I would have loved to see just a little more of Justin falling for Tess) but my only real issue was Tess's preoccupation with not being seen as a prostitute. A line or two about that would have made sense (especially as she reckoned with the fact that she was, in her words, selling herself to Justin) but there was a section of the book that focused on it way too much, which was especially disappointing considering Justin's views on prostitution were actually quite refreshing. Aside from that, I enjoyed the book and will definitely be reading the rest in the series.

This book hooked me from the start. I love a regency romance but I couldn't put this book down. The friend group was exceptional. I loved everything about this book.

A charming, solid start to a new historical romance series, Second Duke's the Charm showcases all of Kate Bateman's strength as an author: charming banter, sharp, contemporary writing (I would say her books are a great place to start for readers new to the genre), and a good balance between plot and romance.

I particularly enjoyed the all-females, 'Charlie's Angels', detective agency setup, and the novel actually put this aspect to good use with some decent sleuthing sequences. The arranged marriage trope was also well-executed, even though the resolution to the third act conflict felt abrupt and rather inconclusive (however it was definitely 'grand'), and one could argue this novel leaned into the recent 'spicy romance' preference with its abundance of steam—while I appreciated the variety, it did feel a bit excessive and indulgent at times.

Second Duke's the Charm doesn't break any new ground, and isn't the most memorable historical romance I've ever read, but it's overall well-crafted (I was hooked from the very first paragraph), fun, and filled with plenty of endearing details—sometimes that's really all one needs.

Thanks for giving an advance of this book. I actually really enjoyed it but my favorite parts were the interactions between Tess, Daisy, and Ellie. Not many romances focuses on friendships, which is fine, but it’s always very refreshing to see this be included into romances. I’m not sure I found Justin as a compelling love interest. I liked his idea for his grovel but I always just want more. My only complaint is that some times the chapters ended kind of abruptly? Other than that I liked it! I will be recommending this.

I was extremely fortunate to receive an ARC of Second Duke's The Charm by the amazing Kate Bateman from Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Tess Townsend was forced to marry a very old man, though he was a Duke, he was a decrepit man. Fortunately for her, he died on their wedding night. The new Duke of Wansford, Justin Thornton, makes a proposition to Tess. He marries her for the connections she has, and she gets to stay and continue to be the Duchess. What neither of them realize is that the terms they have set pre-marriage may or may not still be valid as the more time they spend with each other as well as the blooming attraction between them. I love this story for its simplicity though there is some duplicity involved between the characters. A great read!

“Second Duke's the Charm” by Kate Bateman
A TRUE PAGE-TURNER STORY
I truly did enjoy my time within this story. It was so addictive that I begrudged anything that took me away from reading just one more chapter or page. A fun easy reading story. Yes there a few scenes that may have a tad too much detail for some readers; but you can quickly turn those pages and get on to the next scene. This is too good a story to not read. Happy Reading ! !
Note: This review expresses my honest opinion.
I received an ARC of this story from the publisher via NetGalley

This starts very strong, with a heroine who very much deserves to have a happy ending and her two equally deserving friends, who hopefully (and presumably) will be the heroines of the rest of the trilogy. Tessa's alcoholic father forced her to marry a wealthy, elderly duke for the money, and the best thing to happen to her is when he drops dead before consummating their marriage - and the second best is her father's unlamented demise shortly thereafter. Newly wealthy, Tessa and her friends Daisy and Ellie launch an investigative service aimed at helping women escape bad situations. Things get rough when a new duke is (finally) found, and that's when the romance plot kicks off, with Justin and Tessa falling madly in lust at first encounter.

Sadly, once they've met the book peters out a bit. Tessa and Justin as a couple just aren't quite as compelling as Tessa and her friends, which is a definite issue in a romance novel. Their chemistry is good, but between the anachronistic underwear (no drawers during the Regency, people, or at least not how they're always described) and Justin's bland insistence that he won't fall in love, things become much more by-the-numbers than in other Bateman books I've read. It's still good, don't get me wrong, but it also isn't as good as it could be. That, however, will not stop me from reading the rest of the series.