Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆
Audience: Regency Romance
Length: 256 pages
Author: Heidi Kimball
Publisher: Covenant Communications
Release Date: March 2nd, 2020
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads
BOOK SUMMARY:
A broken man. A fiery young woman. Neither one’s heart will come away unscathed.
Juliet Graham fervently counts the days until her twenty-first birthday, when she can claim the inheritance that will grant her the freedom she has always craved and the guardianship of her younger brother. Until then, she is trapped under her aunt Agnes’s domineering will. When forced to accompany the family to a house party at Shaldorn Castle, Juliet’s only objective is to keep to herself. That is, until a chance encounter with a boorish stranger stirs up an unexpected whirlwind of emotions in her. Thrown off-balance, Juliet does the unthinkable: loses her temper and insults the man—who turns out to be her unwilling host, the Duke of Halstead. Fully expecting to be sent away, Juliet is surprised when the brusque and callous duke instead takes an interest in her.
Drawn to the duke in unguarded moments, Juliet finds herself more and more intrigued by the man who shuns Society’s rules as completely as she does, and over the next few weeks, their unlikely friendship deepens into a connection neither expected.
But even as Juliet comes to recognize her true feelings, her scheming aunt issues an ultimatum that threatens the future she was just beginning to hope for. Juliet must choose: either break the promise she made to herself years ago, or lose the man who has captured her heart and soul.
OFFICIAL REGENCY FAV.
Oh my goodness, I LOVED THIS. I kept this on my TBR for far too long. It’s an absolute favorite and if you don’t feel like reading this review, don’t worry, my answer for you would be READ IT. Thank me later.
From chapter one I was hooked. The initial banter and chemistry between Halstead and Juliet gave me all the feels and setup for an amazing read. I love the way the passion between them and the incredibly tender moments that had me swooning over and over. If you’re worried about a miscommunication issue, that isn’t a problem here! The conflict has been led to the entire time and it works out the way it should. Not to mention, that ending was PRECIOUS. I am still in a gush over the romance. There’s no steam here, but the wait Kimball builds heat and dynamic won’t leave you missing it at all.
I really liked the overall plot. It’s set at a castle (!!) and the writing sweeps you away to another time. There’s some general characteristics of regency romances but this holds its own with a unique story that had me finishing this in a day. I am an official fan now of Kimball’s and can’t wait to read her other books.
Overall audience notes:
- Regency romance
- Language: none
- Romance: kisses
- Trigger/Content Warnings: emotional/psychologically/physically abusive family member, a runaway child, loss of parents
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