A Duke of Her Own is the final book in the Desperate Duchesses sextet. Its hero is the Duke of Villiers, a character who has played a pivotal role throughout the series. Despite this being the last title in the series, it stands alone well and could also be enjoyed without having read the previous five books.
Eleanor, the eldest daughter of the Duke of Montague, is determined to wed – and only a duke will do. She decides to put aside her doomed love for Gideon, the married Duke of Astley, and find another man to marry. In an effort to remain true to Gideon, Eleanor long ago announced her intention never to wed anyone lower in rank than a duke. As eligible dukes were scarce, this effectively protected Eleanor from unwanted suitors.
Following her younger sister’s recent marriage, Eleanor realizes she’s wasting her youth pining for Gideon. Unfortunately, her earlier lofty pronouncement is proving something of an impediment to finding a husband. The ton regard her as snobbish and unfashionable, and eligible bachelors are not exactly tripping over themselves to win her hand. When her sister, Anne, learns that the notorious Duke of Villiers is in the market for a wife, she insists on giving Eleanor a make-over in an effort to seduce him.
Leopold, the Duke of Villiers, is in something of a quandary. He’s recently taken over the care of several of his illegitimate children and is searching for more of them. Money is no object to providing for their care and comfort, but Villiers wishes to go beyond that. He wants to establish his children in such a way that they are accepted by the ton. Only the support of an equally well-born wife could achieve such a feat, so Villiers must marry a duke’s daughter. He has a choice of two young ladies: Eleanor and Lisette. Society considers the former an insufferable snob, and the latter is deemed insane. Whatever is a duke to do?
Despite the ridiculous premise, A Duke of Her Own is a brilliant book. From the opening scene onwards, I was sucked in. Eloisa James writes beautifully and infuses her prose with warmth and humour. My criticism of many of her previous books is her tendency to let secondary characters steal scenes. This is not the case here. The story is tightly focused on the hero and heroine, both of whom are unique and extremely likeable.
I adored the interaction between Eleanor and Villiers, two people who are woefully misunderstood by their peers. Although they have an undeniable chemistry, watching their budding friendship grow into love was the highlight of the story for me. The subplot involving Villiers’s illegitimate offspring could have turned into a farce but was handled masterfully. The scenes with Tobias and Villiers were priceless.
This is by far my favourite book by this author. When she reigns herself in and cuts out the superfluity of secondary characters and their attending subplots, she is an excellent writer of historical romance. I hope Eloisa James continues to write in this style in future books. Grade: A-
Also Reviewed:
This Duchess of Mine (2009) by Eloisa James (Book 5 in the Desperate Duchesses series)
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This one is my favorite too! I completely agree that the secondary characters stole the show in most of this series, especially in the beginning. This one is completely focused on Eleanor and Villiers and I loved that. While I was reading Desperate Duchesses, I would have found it hard to believe that I could have enjoyed this one so much, but I’m very glad I persisted!
I’ve got this one on order–now I can’t wait to get it! I love Villiers.
exqueeze me but, “He’s recently taken over the care of several of his illegitimate children and is searching for more of them.” WHAT?!?! That makes it sound like he has 8 or more by-blows! You mentioned Ms. James handled it well, but that many bastards smacks of irresponsibility and TOO many wild oats being sown. Not very romantic sounding!
This reflects my feelings on the series exactly! I quite liked Desperate Duchesses but despaired of An Affair Before Christmas (far too many characters, all vying for attention). The third book was an improvement and I really enjoyed the last three titles in the series. Perhaps I should amend my post to include all their titles.
@Mary Beth Villiers is nothing short of brilliant in this book. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
@Lusty Reader There are six children in total – five biological and one adopted. I know it makes him sound like a total skank. Not to give anything from previous books away, but Villiers decides to do the right thing by them following a life-altering event, hence their presence in this book. Despite liking Villiers throughout the series, I was reluctant to pick up A Duke of Her Own because I thought the storyline with the children would never work. Somehow, it does.
Every time I read the word “rake” in a historical romance, I have to consciously stop myself from dwelling on thoughts of venereal disease and a slew of illegitimate children!
If you haven’t enjoyed any elements of Eloisa James’s writing in the past, or if you dislike farce, this book probably isn’t for you.
I really need to get on board with reading this series, don’t I?
@Sarah
I’ve only ever read Kiss Me, Annabell by Ms. James in the past and I really liked it. I got Duchess by Night and An Affair Before Christmas for free at RWA here in DC this year, so I will hopefully get to them on my TBR soon!
I’m looking forward to finally reading this series. I gave up after book 2 and decided not to keep going until I had all the books in my possession, because the overarching story arc was driving me nuts!
Just curious, which other EJ books have worked well for you, Sarah?
@Kat Yep, I hear you on the subject of the second book. If I remember correctly, the Desperate Duchesses series was originally intended to be a quartet but was then extended to six books due to the popularity of Jemma and Villiers. I had the feeling that Eloisa James tried to cram too many characters and subplots into An Affair Before Christmas to tempt readers to read the next four books. Although the individual scenes were very well done, the main couple in the story had far too few pages devoted to them.
With the exception of the Pleasures trilogy, I’ve read all of her novels. I’ve enjoyed some more than others. The ones I remember particularly liking are Duchess in Love and Much Ado About You, both of which are the first books in their respective series. I also liked the one about the estranged married couple, Rees and Helene, although I felt it suffered from an overabundance of secondary characters. I think it’s called Your Wicked Ways.
Eloisa James writes beautiful prose but my criticism of many of her books has been the ensemble cast. I know some readers love this but I want enough attention to be devoted to the main couple for me to feel that it’s truly their book. The last three titles in the Desperate Duchesses series have focused more on the main couple and I hope this trend continues in her future romances. The next one she’s working on is a stand alone, so I think it’s safe to assume it will do so.
Oh, Enchanting Pleasures is probably one of my most reread books! Midnight Pleasures is also great (my second favourite EJ), and neither of these books have ensemble casts. I’m glad the DD books improve towards the end because EJ was demoted to my auto-buy-but-not-immediately list after book 3.
@Kat I’ve heard mixed reactions to Pleasures books, which is why I’ve never read them. Good to know you enjoyed them. The absence of an ensemble cast is a definite point in their favour.
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