Series: The Widow Rules #1
Published by St. Martin's Publishing Group on June 29, 2021
Genres: Fiction, Historical, Regency, Romance, Historical Romance
Pages: 400
Format: eBook
Source: ARC
"If...looking for something new with Austen’s spirit, humor, and dashing heroes, they can’t do better than MacGregor." - Entertainment Weekly
Get ready for lost wills, broody dukes, and scorching hot kissing all over London in A Duke in Time by Janna MacGregor.
Katherine Vareck is in for the shock of her life when she learns upon her husband Meri's accidental death that he had married two other women. Her entire business, along with a once-in-a-lifetime chance to be a royal supplier, is everything she's been working for and now could be destroyed if word leaks about the three wives.Meri's far more upstanding brother, Christian, Duke of Randford has no earthly clue how to be of assistance. He spent the better part of his adult years avoiding Meri and the rest of his good-for-nothing family, so to be dragged back into the fold is...problematic. Even more so is the intrepid and beautiful Katherine, whom he cannot be falling for because she's Meri's widow. Or can he?
With a textile business to run and a strong friendship forming with Meri's two other wives, Katherine doesn't have time for much else. But there's something about the warm, but compellingly taciturn Christian that draws her to him. When an opportunity to partner in a business venture brings them even closer, they'll have to face their pasts if they want to share each other's hearts and futures.
I have had the pleasure of reading MacGregor’s work before (you can read my review of Wild, Wild Rake here) and I was excited to have a chance to read this as an ARC! The plot sounds solid: Christian, Meri’s brother, has avoided everything to do with his family. That lasts only until Meri’s sudden death forces him to return and clean up the troubles left behind. Troubles like Meri’s three wives. Absolutely scandalous and I admit I love a good scandal.
This review is a bit tough because I don’t have harbor any strong feelings one way or the other. While the premise was solid, the execution lacked some of the heart and chemistry that I’ve seen in other MacGregor novels. I struggled with Christian. I enjoyed the camaraderie between Christian and the soldiers he served with that are now employed within his household. Outside of that, his anti-Meri fixation and sudden infatuation with Katherine were off-putting. The romantic overtures and steam I hoped for were present, and yet I didn’t feel the least bit swoony.
Katherine was a bit better; intelligent, determined, and loyalty for women she has just met. I thoroughly enjoyed the linen business part of her story! Together though, Christian and Katherine were missing the spark that I was hoping for. Somehow this was insta-love with the slow pacing I expect from a slow burn romance. I think what it boils down to, I enjoyed their time together as co-workers, but the romance left a lot to be desired.
Overall, A Duke in Time eeks in at a 3 (barely) because there were a few near-DNF moments from lack of care about their HEA. This rating was saved by Katherine’s grit and determination to land the royal contract and kindness towards the other widows and Christian’s desire to support his comrades.
*I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
[…] A Duke In Time by Janna MacGregor […]