Such a enjoyable book! Would recommend this book. Received this e-book from Netgalley for a honest review. I just reviewed The Trouble with Dukes by Grace Burrowes. #NetGalley

This was a good book, but I don't think I liked it as much as I wanted to. The characters were good and so was the writing, but I just felt like there were too many side characters to keep track of, and so many other stories that I didn't know! The way the relationship with developed between Megan and Hamish was really sweet! But I think I'm just used to reading these types of premises(Beauty who isn't afraid of the big scary Beast tames him and finds that he really has a soft mushy heart) in HR, so this wasn't something too unique!

I really enjoyed Megan and Hamish's story!

Hamish is in town for his sisters and is only tolerating going out into society for their sake. Then he meets Megan and things start to look better. Megan is a part of the big Windham family, but when she finds herself in trouble, she doesn't want to bother them. She ends up confessing her troubles to Hamish and he helps her to solve the problem. I loved watching them together to solve Megan problems.

This was a great start to a new series and I can't wait to see what Burrowes has in store for us next!

I could not get through this book! I tried multiple times - I just did not find the characters to be engaging.

THEY CALL HIM THE DUKE OF MURDER...

The gossips whisper that the new Duke of Murdoch is a brute, a murderer, and even worse—a Scot. They say he should never be trusted alone with a woman. But Megan Windham sees in Hamish something different, someone different.

No one was fiercer at war than Hamish MacHugh, though now the soldier faces a whole new battlefield: a London Season. To make his sisters happy, he'll take on any challenge—even letting their friend Miss Windham teach him to waltz. Megan isn't the least bit intimidated by his dark reputation, but Hamish senses that she's fighting battles of her own. For her, he'll become the warrior once more, and for her, he might just lose his heart.



* * * * *



I do like my historical romance especially when the heroine is a strong, feisty woman. One thing that I have noticed however is that all the women are beautiful and perfect. I always wondered what happened to those women who weren't. Did they not find love? Well in THE TROUBLE WITH DUKES I have had my question answered.



Megan is a beautiful red head but her eyes are not that good. In fact, she wears glasses which really endeared her to me as I was one of those kids that were teased for wearing glasses. She is beautiful, smart but was unfortunately rather naive when she was younger which has her a bit of a pickle now.


Hamish is a true gentleman who had no intention of ever being stuck with an English title. He doesn't have a lot of use for the English especially with their games and gossip but he will do almost anything to make his sisters happy.


I really enjoyed this book and I just loved Hamish and Megan. The secondary characters are also well done with a lot of depth to them and they add a lot to the story. Their story flows with great pacing and witty dialogue. I think that any of my readers who enjoy historical romance should pick up this book especially since it is the beginning of a new series.



*** I received this book at no charge from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions expressed within are my own.

As always, Burrowes writes with verve and passion. While it's not my personal taste (not particularly interested in the Scotland Highland vein of romance novels) I did enjoy this one.

Grace Burrowes is one of my favorite authors. She did not disappoint! Between the outstanding characters and the exquisite romance, this book swept me off of my feet. It kept me entrapped until the very end. I also thoroughly enjoyed the nail biter of an ending. This, in itself, set the book apart from the many romance novels I read. The pace remained lively and upbeat throughout the book keeping it engaging and fun. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

The tone of this novel can be described as pleasantly domestic. The hero is a traumatized ex-soldier, reluctant duke and suitor, and the heroine is a nurturing bookworm with a mind of her own. They are so perfect for each other, and the pace is like a long, slow walk in the park in the sunshine, which is exactly what the grumpy soldier needs. Unfortunately, it was a little too slow for me. I wanted passion, rather than pleasant and pastoral.

This book was slow and sometimes (many times) I found myself confused about what they were talking about. Occasionally things are said or done that shouldn't be done for the time period (in my opinion). I just didn't care for this at all.

RATED 3.5!!

Author Grace Burrowes new series, Windham Brides, is certainly going to be entertaining just judging from book one, THE TROUBLE WITH DUKES. I will be anxiously awaiting book two.

A new set of books in the Windham family line titled the Windham Brides begins with The Trouble with Dukes.
Grace Burrowes is a perennial favorite of the RITA awards for a reason, her books are always well thought out with a plot that is pulled together along all the books in a set and series. All dates and event will line up her historical research is always well done leaving the reader to do nothing but savory every written word on the page and let your imagination fly.
The Windham Brides is a breath of fresh air in genre that can get repetitive. Historical romance collections must have books by Burrowes for discerning readers who value well written books instead of ones churned out by formulaic authors.

This was my first book from this series and I liked it. The characters are very interesting and lively, the dialogue filled with wit and humor, and the author's writing is so wonderful. Hammish though gruff around the edges and unpolished, was very charming and a honorable man. I quite enjoyed him and I loved how he fell in love with his Meggie. Megan was also a sweet and wonderful character, and though I wish she had a bit more gumption, I enjoyed her. This was an overall good read.

Grace Burrowes' new series is starting off strong, with this fantastic novel that features an amazing romance that grows and builds despite blackmail, society gossip and family interference. Some of Burrowes' previous characters show up, but in such a fashion as to be a perk to the novel, not just a reminder of previous books. There's a good mix between romance, humor and suspense. One of my favorite romance novels of 2016.

I selected this book to kick off our Read Something Different Theme Week: Historical Romance event on the blog. I thoroughly enjoyed the story of Megan and Hamish...and everyone else thrown into the crazy mix! I am excited to read more in this series

This is yet another example of Burrowes' prodigious talent. Her books enchant. They beguile. The story of a sweet, pure love that leaves the reader hopeful, warmed, and delighted. I treasure Burrowes' stories.

Shannon C’s review of The Trouble With Dukes: The Windham Brides, Book 1) by Grace Burrowes
Historical Romance published by Forever 20 Dec 16

Grace Burrowes is one of my favorite romance authors working today. It’s hard for me to be objective about her books. I go to them when I want to visit a warm, comfortable place I’ve been before, and then I invariably read three or four of her books. This first volume in her Windham Brides series brings nothing new to the table, but I wasn’t expecting it to, and I was charmed as I read it anyway.

Hamish MacHugh was fierce in battle during the Napoleonic wars. But he doesn’t want the bedamned dukedom that’s fallen into his lap. His sisters, though, need to come out and have seasons of their own, so he stays in London and, basically, tries not to make an ass of himself. The bright spot in his life? Megan Windham, who gently guides him throughout London society and makes sure he doesn’t stumble too badly.

This is the first book in a spin-off series to Burrowes’ previous books about the Windham family. Megan is the cousin of those characters, and so I think you could pick it up without having read about any of the other Windhams. They all show up anyway, so if you like that sort of thing, you’ll probably end up reading all of their books like I did.

What I love about Burrowes’ books is that she gives her characters a chance to be friends. In other variations of the wild-savage-stuck-in-the-city trope, the more refined character at first views the savage with condescension. I like that Burrowes doesn’t have Megan go that route. She’s kind to Hamish from the start, and always smooths the way for him the best she can, because it’s the decent thing to do. In return for which, Hamish is quick to see Megan’s worth the way that others – excepting, of course, her male relatives – have not. Their romance is conflict-free, which makes it, unfortunately, unmemorable, but it is sweet.

Objectively, there are definitely flaws. The book needs a bit more of a driving conflict to keep these two crazy kids apart, other than Megan’s loathsome suitor, who is a one-note villain who all but kicks puppies for fun. The presence of the Windhams gets tedious at times, and while Burrowes writes her men with shades of nuance, she has yet to do so with many of her women. And I’m not super fond of Hamish just starting to call Megan Meggie without really consulting her about whether he should.

That all said, I pretty much devoured this book in one sitting and then went on to read three more Grace Burrowes books. She is the Lays potato chips of authors – I can’t ever read just one, and I’d still recommend this one.

Grade: B

This is the first in the Windham Brides series which explores the cousins of the original Windham siblings that started with The Heir.

Hamish MacHugh has inherited a dukedom, which he doesn't want and includes becoming part of a society he doesn't care to understand. Megan Windham has a suitor that is blackmailing her into marrying him. When the two of them meet Megan starts teaching Hamish how to behave in London society and falls in love with him. Hamish, knowing he is rough Scotsman, thinks she should do better but leaving his Meggie may be harder than he thinks.

Overall I liked this story. Megan and Hamish are sweet together. Hamish also takes no flack from Megan's numerous relations, who all have their own books. I will admit that I haven't read any of the Windham's series and so I relied on the family tree at the beginning of the book a lot.

Hamish is gentleman and her never forgets it. He respects Megan from the moment he met her and I adored that. I liked Megan and her near nearsightedness was interesting. I only wish that she had swallowed her pride a bit talked to someone in her family about her problem. No one knew what Fletcher was doing and if Megan hadn't met Hamish, she would have ended up married to Fletcher. It felt a little like if she hid from the problem it would go away. I did really liked the ending when she pulled her head out of the sand and that she ended up rescuing herself.

I look forward to Anwen's book.

Brought to you by OBS Reviewer Daniele

The Trouble with Dukes is a sweet Georgian-era historical romance that will probably please fans of Grace Burrowes.

Hamish Mac Hugh has reluctantly inherited a dukedom from his great aunt’s side but really has no interest in high society, especially in London. However, his family always comes first, and he agrees to see his younger sisters through their first season. He has a reputation of being rather uncivilized (he is a Scot, after all), and rumors of his time in the military have dubbed him the Duke of Murder. In an effort not to embarrass his sisters, he agrees to Megan Windham’s offer to help him smooth out the rough edges. Megan is the daughter of a duke and well versed in what is expected of her station, but she has some worries of her own. A foolish youthful indiscretion haunts her and has provided Sir Fletcher Pilkington fodder for blackmail and to push Megan into marrying him. Megan seeks Hamish’s help in releasing Sir Fletcher’s hold on her, and the two quickly fall in love. But, will the pair be able to right this wrong in order to have their happy ending?

Hamish and Megan are interesting enough main characters. Hamish is haunted by his time in the war. He is fiercely loyal to his family and is charming in his own rather coarse way. Megan is spunky, yet refined, and her poor eyesight actually makes her more relatable. Sir Fletcher is a sufficiently evil “villain”. Yet, in spite of these good attributes, I never really warmed up to any of them. Their back stories, especially Hamish’s, should have provided fodder for complex, richly drawn characters, but I never felt like they ever met their full potential, and this made for a one-dimensional read for me.

The Trouble with Dukes is the first book in the Windham Brides books, and I mistakenly thought this meant a brand new series, but it is not and features many characters from Burrowes other books. Since I have not read any of these books, I felt that I was missing something throughout. I suppose I would like all the secondary characters if I knew anything about them, but not knowing any of their back stories really hampered my enjoyment of the this book.

I could have overlooked all of this had the plot been innovative or even well executed. Unfortunately, the story here is shallow, a cookie cutter plot with nothing new brought to the table. It is just an “ok” read for me, and I fear I will quickly forget the whole book . Its saving grace is that I did feel transported to the era of the book.

I recommend The Trouble with Dukes to die-hard historical romance fans and those who enjoy Burrowes other works.