Member Reviews
I enjoyed this second chance romance, Iian, and Seraphina are victims of their evil father who tries everything to keep these two apart even after they marry, and 13 years go by and Iian learns she is alive, he wants answers. Seraphina is an independent woman after living in horrific situations to escape her father and save her sisters, and when the love of her life finds she is alive, she cannot help but fight the feelings of the past. Together they work to fix the wrongs of the past, and maybe they can find love again.
Its a sweet romance, and one I enjoyed very much.
4.5
I loved being back on syne! This is the 3rd in the series and I really have been enjoying each book! In this one we have seraphina she runs the library on the island and takes care of her two sisters. Years ago seraphina married a young Scott who worked for her father but after some meddling from her father they never seen each other again. To escape her awful father and to save her sisters form him she takes them on the run and that’s where they have ended up on the isle of syne. They are quite happy with the life they live now but seraphina knows they aren’t completely safe and is fighting a lot of demons. That’s when her mysterious Scott of a husband shows up demanding a divorce and she has to go back to Scotland with him to get one. As they embark on their road trip they learn about what actually happened back in that time and why they where separated, and how their passion for each other still lives on. I loved the road trip story line with the inns and maybe some one bed trope 😉 I thought they had great chemistry and how he handled knowing what happened to her was so sweet, they complimented each other so well. They both had great character development together and separate! Seraphina was such a great character for a historical romance too, she wasn’t you’re cookie cutter one that’s for sure. She was so strong!!! And went through a lot of trauma! I thought the author did a great job of writing this with heavy themes but not weighing down the whole book it was a great balance. I can’t wait to see who’s story is next!
Awwwwww... be still my beating heart.
Christina Britton has done it again. I fell in love. In love with the characters, the story... and now I wanna travel back in time! 🥰❤️
The Duke's All That is the 3rd book of the Synneful Spinsters Series and the beautiful story of Seraphina and Iain.
Seraphina and Iain loved each other passionately. But he wasn't good enough for her, so her father intrigued their love and separated them.
Now 13 years later Iain and Seraphina meet again... but not on good terms.
Oh my, this book was absolutely wonderful!
I enjoy Christina Britton's book and this one isn't an exception! That's for sure!
I devoured the story of Seraphina and Iain. So tragic and emotional and lovely.
I loved the chemistry between them. They loved each other... but time passes and everything changed... now... they've to deal with it all. That they're both still there and healthy... (sorry, I don't wanna spoil too much here!)
I loved the storyline and how it developed! How the personalities of change along their journey together. They changed for the better, for sure.
Reading the book set me into a special kind of mood. This historical, romantic, emotionally intense mood... when they've to deal with A LOT!
I enjoyed their banter and OMG! Phineas, the parrot! Hilarious!
It was also so good to see previous characters again.
Awwwww! So you see? I LOVED THIS BOOK! 😍❤️
Thank you so much Christina Britton and Forever Publishing for this ARC via NetGalley.
This is my honest review in my own words and I'm absolutely sorry for this delayed review.
Christina Britton's 'The Duke's All That' is a delightful Regency romance that will sweep you off your feet! The book is filled with engaging characters, intricate plot twists, and a swoon-worthy romance that will leave you yearning for more. Britton's writing is elegant and evocative, transporting readers to the glittering ballrooms and lush countryside estates of 19th-century England. While the storyline is engaging and the romance is heartwarming, I found some parts of the plot to be slightly predictable. However, overall, 'The Duke's All That' is a charming read that fans of historical romance are sure to enjoy!
Overall 4 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | 4 Flames 🔥🔥🔥🔥
📚Disclosure: I received a review copy of this #book from Forever - Grand Central Publishing - via #Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, comments, and interpretations of the story are my own and bias free. I did not receive any money in exchange for this review. Thank you to the publisher/author for allowing me the opportunity to review. 🦄 @ReadForeverPub @GrandCentralPub @HachetteUS
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🦄
He ached to ask her what had happened to her. But he knew that if she didn’t wish to reveal it, there was no amount of begging that would entice her to. Clenching his hands into fists, he went to the fire and stared down into the glowing depths, aware of a latent fury snaking under his skin. If she so much as asked, he would burn down the world for her....
He was not the same naïve, rash man he had been. And she was not the same wide-eyed, hopeful girl she used to be.
Look-a-here, I have cried my way through this entire series so I knew going in I was going to be a hot mess coming out. But I was unprepared. The Duke’s All That is a tear-jerking, heart-wrenching, slow-burn romance that'll tug at your heartstrings and have you slurping wine out a straw. The finale of the Synneful Spinsters series is a blend of misunderstanding, pain, and undying love, taking you on a healing journey like no other. Our heroine's resilience is awe-inspiring and even in the emotional whirlwind, there are even some laughs courtesy of Phineas, a trash-talking parrot!
For thirteen years, Iain MacInnes, Duke of Balgair, mourned his deceased wife, only to discover she's alive and well living on the Isle of Synne under an assumed identity. Intent on exposing her deception, he heads to the Isle of Synne to bring her back to Scotland for a divorce. Seraphina, betrayed and scarred by past trauma, has rebuilt her life on Synne, finding solace in writing and companionship. However, Iain's arrival threatens to unravel everything she's built, reigniting their unresolved passion amidst lingering hurt and betrayal, leaving them to question if reconciliation is possible.
There's a lot of emotional baggage to unpack in this read, but the journey to get to the final destination is totally worth the trip. I've loved every moment of this entire series. Christina Britton continues to skillfully tug at every heartstring in The Duke’s All That delivering an emotionally charged and incredibly captivating read!
Iain MacInnes, Duke of Balgair, has spent the last thirteen years believing his wife is dead—until he receives word that she is very much alive and living under an assumed name on the remote Isle of Synne. He sets off with only one goal in mind: bring his wife back to Scotland where he can divorce her and expose her for the liar she Seraphina was sure he deceived her not that he thought she was dead.is.This is a story of second chances. I received this book from the publisher and NetGalley. This in no way affects my opinion of this book.
cute story. love second chance stories. the parrot is endearing. great chemistry between characters. really enjoyed
This is a second chance romance, and sometimes I don't enjoy those very much, but this one was done very well. Seraphina and Iain were separated through no fault of their own and had amazing chemistry. There's also some miscommunication here too which I also don't normally enjoy, but because it seemed important to the story that they keep their secrets, this also worked for me.
I love the friend group in this series! The oddments are fantastic, and Lady Tesh is a gem. It must also be mentioned that this book features one of my very favorite highly specific tropes. A foul-mouthed parrot. Phineas, the bird in question, was a humorous and lighthearted part of this book. The inclusion of pets in this series as a whole was a fun little side plot!
This was a wonderful addition to what has been a well loved series for me. I truly hope Christina Britton isn't done with the Isle of Synne just yet!
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.
Overall: 3.5 rounded to ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Readability: 📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔💔
Tension: ⚡⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋
Intimate Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑 (The scenes are pretty light, the first one is more developed but I settled at 3)
Steam Scale (Number of Scenes): 🔥🔥 - there’s one decently developed scene and then 1 shorter scene (a few paragraphs) and 1 very short and vague scene
Humor: A bit
Perspective: Third person from both hero and heroine
More character focused or plot focused? character
How did the speed of the story feel? medium
When mains are first on page together: Immediately with the prologue, after that it’s chapter 2, or about 10% when they meet current day
Cliffhanger: No, this ends with a happily ever after
Epilogue: Yes
Should I read in order?
I don’t think it’s totally necessary? I picked this one up alone and it seemed fine. There was some brief mention of the other couples from prior books in the series. I’m not sure how much character depth is created for these mains in the first two books.
Basic plot:
Iain believes his wife is dead, but comes to find out 13 years after they were married shes alive and living on the Isle of Synne. He goes to request a divorce...
Give this a try if you want:
- Late Regency - 1821
- Isle of Synne setting
- road trip vibes
- class difference – hero is a stable hand and heroine is the daughter of an earl when they marry
- second chance – it’s been a 13 year separation
- found family
- rags to riches
- heroine owns a circulating library
- Duke hero
- secret author
- marriage in jeopardy
- pets – heroine has a pet parrot
- lower steam – 1 nicely developed scene and two shorter and more vague ones
Ages:
- Heroine is 32 and hero is ‘more than 30’
My thoughts:
I loved the set up of this one! Second chance doesn’t usually work the best for me – but the fact that we got a backstory in the prologue and then the hero thought she was dead for 13 years...I thought I was going to really love this one.
But I struggled with Seraphina being so closed off to Iain. The woman has trauma for sure, but when she didn’t seemed too concerned about getting the full story from Iain after she finds out she’s been lied to rubbed me the wrong way. And then how she didn’t open up until the very end of the book, it kind of left that to be one of the issues for the whole book. And because she wasn’t opening up to him, I think I didn’t quite get the angst I wanted from their reuniting.
Still I think this is a very intense and worthwhile read – maybe a bit too heavy for what I was in the mood for at that time, but I did like it more than a lot of second chance I read. I LOVED the parrot, he was hilarious, and genuinely enjoyed her found family on the island. Maybe I should have read in order to get a bit more background from all the women because I found myself wanting to spend a bit more time there.
As an ARC reader for this 3rd in a series, I am happy to note it works as a standalone. I enjoyed the story and appreciated the depth of characters. I would recommend this book for fans of historical romance.
This is a Regency Era second-chance romance with forced proximity, unresolved feelings, and a foul-mouthed parrot with a thick Scottish brogue. There’s also a lot of miscommunication and secrets. Iain and Seraphina have each been through a lot over the years and it was rewarding to see them slowly find their way back to each other. Most of the story takes place on the road, so we only get brief glimpses of the other Oddments and Seraphina’s sisters, but they do all make an appearance.
NOTE: This is the third book in the Synneful Spinsters series which is a spin-off of the Isle of Synne series. However, the story can easily be read as a standalone.
Christina Britton’s newest book, The Duke’s All That begins with a bang—husband and wife have been separated for 13 years with him believing her dead and her thinking she’s been betrayed. So now Iain seeks out Seraphina for a divorce, but what happens when husband and wife are forced to travel together and reconcile their old feelings?
I love a good travel romance and this one did not disappoint. Only one bed, shared room, carriage forced proximity…but more than that, I love the idea of two people who have been estranged even though they once CHOSE each other, having to reconcile their feelings. Although this is part of a series, it can be read as a standalone. I’m so glad I got to add a new author to my bookshelf!
Thank you again to Forever, for sending this my way!
Iain is the Duke of Balgair, a man who spent 13 years believing his wife was dead - until he receives word that she is alive and living under and assumed name on the remote Isle of Synne. He goes there to bring her back to Scotland where he can divorce her and humiliate her for her deception. But it's his wife, Seraphina, who thinks Iain betrayed her all those years ago.
She left him to keep her and her sisters safe even though the past still haunts her. She's built a secret career as a popular author., but everything is at risk now that her husband has shown up in Synne.
Despite their 13 years apart, they are still WILDLY attracted to each other. Can they make their way back to each other after so much time apart and so much hurt?
Verdict: I thoroughly LOVED this one!! I think it's my absolute fave in the series and I have enjoyed them all. The entire series is a delight from start to finish!
Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for the chance to read the ARC.
I just reviewed The Duke’s All That by Christina Britton. #TheDukesAllThat #NetGalley
This was a delightful second chance love. I enjoyed Iain and Seraphina as a couple, but didn’t understand why she waited so long to tell him what she had to do to survive all those years. I would’ve liked to see a more deserving ending for her evil father. That man was the most hateful character. Overall, it was a great read. Now I want to read everyone else’s stories in this series.
(4.5/5 stars)
The Duke's All That by Christina Britton is a a delightful historical romance and the third book in the Synneful Spinsters series.
I discovered the author via this series, and I'm so glad I did. Her prose is so easily digestible and consumable to me.
I really loved the first book, Some Dukes Have All the Luck but wasn't as enamored with the second, What's a Duke Got to Do With It. But The Duke's All That swung the pendulum back to love. Though it's a trilogy, the books can be read standalone in any order (you'll just hear tidbits of other couples if you read them out of order).
Ever since the first book of this trilogy, I needed Seraphina's story. I knew that the parrot-owning proprietress of the island's lending library was concealing tons of secrets. I'm glad to say there was great payoff in this book.
Second-chance romance doesn't always work for me but Seraphina and Iain had very believable chemistry as first loves who were tragically separated. There's a bunch of miscommunication here too, since they're both hiding secrets, but though that's another trope I don't care for it just kinda worked here for me.
The main friend group in this series, The Oddments, continue to be the best people ever, as does Lady Tesh (who continues to become Best Momfriend Ever). The author does a great job including pets: Seraphina has a foul-mouthed parrot named Phineas and Katrina (the heroine of the second book) has a dog named Mouse.
I was pleased to get confirmation on another couple I was hoping for, and a queer one at that! I would love to read a book with their story as well. I'm also hoping for something of a Synneful Sisters trilogy, with Seraphina's younger sisters.
Tropes in this book include: second chance, secret marriage, found family, forced proximity
CW: abusive parent, fear of parent, addiction, carriage accident (mentioned), mention of asylum and abuse within
I enjoyed this from the prologue to the last chapter. The prologue was written to catch attention and pull the reader in.
The plot is about a married couple, who have been unknowingly separated by lies, finally meeting after 13 years.
I love the unpredictability and the way the suspense was built. I also love the older( slightly matured) characters.
However, it did feel like it was dragging in some parts. Also, I didn’t understand the need for the confrontation with her father.
The best part of the book was Phineas the parrot. His antics and words provided a much needed comic relief.
DNF @ 36%
I was really looking foward to reading this book so I'm bummed that I'm dnfing it only a 1/3 of the way in. I tried really hard to get into it, but the second-chance romance trope is really not my cup of tea. Combining that with miscommunication and "some sort of secret from the past" that lead to the initial breakup - I just couldn't get into this book.
I loved the first two of the series and I was really looking forward to Seraphina's story. Hopefully book 4 will be more my type!
Pub date: 2/6
This eARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
Christina Britton's "The Duke's All That" is a delightful Regency romance that effortlessly combines charm, wit, and heartwarming romance. Set in the glittering world of London's ton, this novel follows the journey of the dashing Duke of Thornley and the spirited Lady Clara Cheswick as they navigate the intricacies of love and society.
At the heart of the story is the captivating dynamic between the Duke of Thornley, Marcus Finley, and Lady Clara Cheswick. Marcus, with his brooding demeanor and undeniable allure, is a quintessential romantic hero who harbors deep-seated wounds from his past. Lady Clara, on the other hand, is a refreshing heroine whose intelligence and independence set her apart from her peers. Their chemistry is palpable from their first encounter, and Britton skillfully crafts their slow-burning romance with a perfect balance of passion and tenderness.
In conclusion, "The Duke's All That" is a captivating and heartwarming tale that will delight fans of historical romance. With its engaging characters, sparkling dialogue, and tender romance, Christina Britton's novel is a perfect escape into the enchanting world of Regency England.
I wish I had reviewed this when it was fresh in my mind. I really enjoyed this one, and look forward to reading more by this author.
I knew two things going into this book: 1. It’s a book written by Christina Britton so it’s going to hurt. 2. It’s a second chance written by Christina Britton so it’s going to be THAT kind of hurt. And I was right 😀
Painful second chances aren’t my favorite thing, but this one was definitely delightful. It was frustrating at the end when Seraphina STILL wouldn’t let him in…but I understood and it made the end even more romantic. I’m also happy with the percentage at which her father’s scheming was revealed. It last long enough to create that “I hate you” tension, but not long enough to never see them be happy/frisky.
I think this is Christina’s hottest book to date? Seraphina was confident in her sexuality and it was HOT. Would I have liked for Iain to have remained celibate like the heroines so often do in situations like these? Yes, but that’s just a wishlist item. (I don’t think it was ever discussed on page? Just implied that he hadn’t waited etc.)
I don’t know about you, but the “I’m her husband” bit announced to a crowd when none of them knew she had a husband will ALWAYS hit. I was hooked from the start and read this one super fast in a night. It was a lovely, bittersweet send-off for the Isle of Synne. And I can’t wait to see what Christina writes next!!
Oh, and how could I forget the foul-mouthed Scottish parrot??? The way Iain’s relationship with him was also incredibly heartwarming, leave it to Christina.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 🌶️🌶️/5
CWs: Forced institutionalization (torture, abuse, solitary confinement, etc) (recounted)
Thanks so much to the publisher for an eARC via NetGalley. All opinions are honest and my own.