The Duchess Deal (Girl Meets Duke, Book One): Tessa Dare

"WHEN GIRL MEETS DUKE, THEIR MARRIAGE BREAKS ALL THE RULES...

 

"Since his return from war, the Duke of Ashbury's to-do list has been short and anything but sweet:  brooding, glowering, menacing London ne'er-do-wells by night.  Now there's a new item on the list.  He needs an heir--which means he needs a wife.  When Emma Gladstone, a vicar's daughter turned seamstress, appears in his library wearing a wedding gown, he decides on the spot that she'll do.

"His terms are simple:

They will be husband and wife by night only.
• No lights, no kissing.
• No questions about his battle scars.
Last, and most importantly...  Once she's pregnant with his heir, they need never share a bed again.

"But Emma is no pushover.  She has a few rules of her own:

• They will have dinner together every evening.
• With conversation.
• And unlimited teasing.
• Last, and most importantly...  Once she's seen the man beneath the scars, he can't stop her from falling in love."

And we're back to Tessa Dare!  This is her newest book and I was SO excited to start reading it.  I've plowed (no pun intended) my way through the rest of her books and was desperate for some new reading material.  Dare is easily my favorite period romance author.  I have some others whom I very, very much enjoy, but none quite so much as Dare.  Her characters always manage to charm me with their quirks and their extremely unique personalities.  Dare is one author I could never accuse of "recycling" plots or characters; each is so individualistic that I find this to be her trademark.  She writes unique, powerful characters -- each with their own mannerisms, speech patterns, and appearances.  One of my favorite aspects of her writing is probably the fact that she imbues each of her characters with some sort of "flaw," whether it be physical, emotional, or psychological.  This book was no different.

I'm about halfway through this book and Ash has very quickly become one of my favorite characters of all time.  His personality and penchant for Shakespearean insults are spectacular.  I will say that some of his (more comedic) comments thus far feel a bit more "modern" than I am used to in a period book, but I still found them incredibly amusing.  His wit and sense of humor are wonderful.  It took me a minute to understand just why he spoke so archaically, but, once I did, I appreciated him all the more.  It's no secret that he's horribly scarred from his accident at war.  I very quickly saw this book as a variation on Beauty and the Beast, but there is so much more to this book than that...think Beauty and the Beast meet Batman.  This sounds utterly absurd, I know, but you'll understand what I mean once you read it.  I picked up this book believing I would find another physically-and-emotionally damaged, gruff, surly male hero, but I have discovered so much more in Ash.  His character is so refreshing and so very different from the stereotype I was anticipating.  This is not to say that there's anything horribly wrong with the stereotype, just that I am extremely pleased to have encountered such a different hero.  Of course, Ash certainly is physically and emotionally damaged, but it's how he handles his life and his encounters that is so fun (not a very good word, but oh well) and enjoyable to read.

I really enjoy Emma thus far.  She's so spunky and I particularly appreciate that she's so far outside the realm of a "shrinking miss" that they're not even on the same continent.  This needed to happen for the plot to work and for her to match Ash's very powerful personality.  His character very easily could have overpowered his female counterpart in the story, but Dare has managed to make a very nice pairing with both their backgrounds and personalities.  Her backstory is rich and I can believe that it helped to shape her into the woman she was when she met Ash.  Having just read another story with a vicar's daughter as the female lead, I can confidently say that I enjoyed this rendition a bit more.  She felt more human and flawed.  Granted, Emma and the other female lead had very different backgrounds and experiences with their families, so this probably played a big role.  As a character, Emma successfully bridged the chasm between vicar's daughter and romantic lead -- things I, personally, have never really felt went together well.

The reading continues onward and I'll return with the completion of my review.

***

So I ended up devouring the rest of the book mere hours after finishing the first part of this review.  Ash is easily the best male lead I've encountered in a very, very long time -- if not my all-time favorite.  His sense of humor was absolutely charming and wholly unexpected.  He's a goofball.  (I suspect I may have enjoyed him so much because it reminds me a bit of my husband -- he can be very gruff and abrasive sometimes, but he's a totally different man and his personality really shines when it's the two of us and he's comfortable and can just be himself.)  He feels a great deal younger than he actually is, which was rather fun.  I was still completely enamored of his use of Shakespearean insults, even at the end of the book.  While his damaged body, mind, heart, and soul were a huge part of who he was, I sincerely appreciate the lengths Dare went to in order to make him more than just the sum of his broken parts.  He was SO much more than another beast waiting for his beauty to heal him and make him whole; to show him that he was worth loving.  His personality was outstanding and really made this book a success.

Emma, as I suspected, turned out to be the absolutely perfect foil for Ash.  She remained fiery and determined, no matter the circumstances.  She was strong and willful, romantic and sweet.  She was going to prove to Ash that she was attracted to every single thing about him -- whether he liked it or not.

There are a few good twists and turns in this book that kept the plot moving along at a very pleasant clip.  The Monster of Mayfair was a particularly fun aspect and I'm sticking to my earlier statement that this book is Beauty-and-the-Beast-meets-Batman.  It makes complete sense once you read the book...I promise.

I already CANNOT wait to read the next book in this series.  The premise was already put into place in this story and we were introduced to some fantastically unique female characters in this book -- I can only expect that Dare plans on creating a story for each of them.  I'm already itching to get my hands on the next story!

Dare has once again solidified her place as one of my favorite (if not my VERY favorite) author of this genre (or even in general).  This is supremely high praise and I don't think it is overblown in the slightest.  Her characters are rich, charming, and easy to love.  She imbues each and every last one of them with personalities and quirks which really bring them to life.  Her plots are exciting, unique, and steamy.  The romance is believable and fun.  I am absolutely enamored of her writing style and creativity.  I simply cannot say enough about Dare and I HIGHLY recommend her to anyone who is a fan of period romance, or is even just interested in this genre.

EDIT:  I forgot to add one of the main reasons I enjoyed Emma so much...  I mentioned before that she's no shrinking miss, but I failed to mention just how naughty she is.  As opposed to feeling over the top or bordering on just plain erotica (usually where there is very little substance to the characters), it was fun and playful!  She wasn't afraid of experimentation, nor did she shy away from Ash's appetites.  While the mentality was probably a bit more modern, it was SO refreshing.  I didn't realize how tired I'd grown of cautious women who shirk away from anything but the most vanilla of acts.  Few characters (and authors) can pull this off with such ease and believability:  Emma and Dare are the perfect example of this.