“My soul calls to yours and yours to mine, and that will never change.”

I loved this book. It was such a joy and a pleasure to read, I found myself absolutely swept away by the richness and beauty of it. It’s fairly standard in terms of the general plot line, as it is first and foremost a romance, but I felt that the basic structure left space for the rest of the work to come to life.

The only other Alexis Hall that I’ve read is Boyfriend Material, so I knew that I would be getting into something fun and witty with excellent banter, but the similarities end there. A Lady for a Duke is something else entirely, in the best possible way. The characters are beautiful and complex; Viola is a wonderful heroine and I loved her sense of humour, loyalty, kindness, her talent at needlepoint, and her appreciation of fine things. She was earnest and incredibly relatable, especially in her care for others; Little Bartholomew, Mira, Louise, and especially Gracewood. The chemistry was off the charts right away and I love that their story focused on their relationship as people, and didn’t centre around Viola being trans. Gracewood was also a perfect love interest, and some of his lines to Viola were absolutely swoon-worthy. While I don’t have PTSD or a physical disability, I can’t speak to the accuracy of the representation, but it generated some really interesting conversations around masculinity that were certainly refreshing in a romance novel.

I can’t say enough good things about this book, except that I think that you should read it. I definitely will be rereading in the future for a happy ending that still has a lot of substance. 4.5 stars!

As always, please do check the trigger warnings before reading.

TBH I was mixed feelings about this book and didn’t know how I was going to rate it but rounded up.

Violet lived the first part of her life as Marcus and when she went to war let him be ‘killed off’ in society’s eyes so she could live the life she was born to live.

I appreciated the transgender spin in this historical romance. I think he added in a great amount of emotion on Violet’s side, her family, and for her love interest (Gracewood) who used to be her best friend. The friendship between the duke and violet (when she was Marcus and after) was soo well done. You really feel for them as they work through all the emotions, grief and love.

I loved that Alexis Hall really have the trans character the same sex, passion and happy ending we see for hetero characters.many authors gloss over intimate moments for lgbtq but he did not and it was great to read! I also loved that he made Violet proud, strong and not ashamed at all in who she was!

My main issue was the pacing. It was long and the book should have been edited down. We get a good start start, a slower middle and then just rapid rushed pacing to finish. I also felt like we needed more connection between the duke house and their trip to London. I also didn’t appreciate how soon Gracewood came around to loving Violet and tv em admitting their feelings. It was rushed and more there was greatly needed.

Overall though much better than his first historical Something Fabulous. This was a more realistic take in most aspects of history and women who lived like this back then.

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Alexis Hall perfectly captures here exactly what she did so splendidly in BOYFRIEND MATERIAL. It’s hilarious, tender, romantic and incredibly well written, the characters are so incredibly thoughtful and I adored being in Viola and Gracewood’s minds. I really didn’t want to finish it. It’s a must read!

The short version of this review is that this book is entirely too long. Well-written, certainly, and I appreciated what this romance did, but there was honestly no reason for it to be as long as it was.

Additionally, I was lucky enough to receive an ALC from Netgalley and I really enjoyed the narration, but I might not have minded how long the book was if I could have sped the book up to my preferred 2.5x speed. It's unlikely though. It really was just... so long.

Anyway, I'll come back for the longer version soon, but for now, these short thoughts should do it.

So, it's been a bit since I wrote the tl;dr version you see above and if I'm honest, I'm still having trouble setting the length of this book aside to focus on what I actually liked about it. However, it is time. I mentioned that this book is well-written and I really think it is. I love the way Hall is able to portray the emotions of his characters. There's loneliness to go around in this book and I think it is really well shown. Actually, I really like the way all of the emotions are done in this book. But there are times where I think the focus turns to the plot, where I still hadn't recovered from the emotions, if that makes sense. There's a lot about personal freedom and being able to be truly oneself in here because of Viola choosing herself and becoming who she really is rather than continuing to live her life as a Lord. And I get why she didn't want to apologize for choosing herself because she shouldn't have to. But I think there should be a way to not apologize for choosing yourself and still apologize to your best friend for letting him think you were dead for two years. I don't know. Maybe that's just because I can't put myself in the same position as Viola, but personally, I would be DEVASTATED and so hurt if my best friend was allegedly dead and then it turned out they weren't, they just didn't want to tell me about this fundamental piece of who they were. If that makes sense?

Anyway, a good book, especially if you'd like a book with sad characters dealing with loneliness and trying to fight their way back to living a real and full life.

I have dabbled a bit into queer historical romance (Cat Sebastian mostly) so I wasn't sure what to expect here. Alexis Hall is the GOAT in all things so I knew that this would be a great story and it was.

Viola is now a lady's companion to her brother's wife but her life has changed immeasurably. After saying goodbye to her old self, she reemerged after Waterloo to live authentically as a woman. Given the times, she lost her title and home but is still able to be with her family. Her heart breaks everyday she's apart from her closest friend Gracewood who thinks she died. She's terrified of how he would react to her being a woman and tries to close the door on that relationship for good. Until Gracewood's sister writes and Viola & her sister-in-law decide to intervene. Gracewood is not in a good place physically or mentally and his sister needs guidance.

Justin (or Gracewood) lost his closest friend and he feels it was his fault for leading them both to battle. His injuries have him addicted to opium and he's living a shell of a life. He meets Viola, there to help his sister, and immediately feels a connection. They start to build a friendship until the truth comes out: Viola is his oldest friend now living as a woman. This scene tore my heart out. Alexis Hall is a master storyteller.

In the end, it's a happy ending. They work on their struggles and rebuild their relationship. The scenes of them coming together as lovers was beautiful and the epilogue was such a joy. I loved this book and look forward to more from this author.

“I love you as I believe in what is right and hope for what is good.“

This book was MAGNIFICENT. A LADY FOR A DUKE is my new favorite historical romance of all time, and now my go-to recommendation for anyone interested in the genre.

A LADY FOR A DUKE by Alexis Hall is friends-to-lovers/long-lost friends romance featuring a trans heroine and a straight man. Viola’s character is treated with respect, and her story beautifully shows how nuanced trans representation can exist without transphobia. Gracewood, Viola’s childhood friend-turned-love interest, is absolutely gone for her from the moment they reconnect.

Hall balanced the perfect amount of angst and yearning, while still ultimately penning a HAPPY and hopeful love story. His prose is gorgeous and swoon-worthy, in addition to containing wonderful funny moments. I loved the side characters, as well, particularly Lady Marleigh and Lady Lillimere. I found Viola, Gracewood, and all relevant side characters to be lovable, sympathetic, and three-demential.

Content warnings are listed before the first page of the novel, which is fantastic to see. All issues are challenged and/or handled with care, but I appreciate Hall’s willingness to normalize TWs. That said, transphobia is NOT included in this list. It was really powerful to see a nuanced portrayal of a trans woman, as she was truly and completely loved - both romantically and by her family.

A LADY FOR A DUKE is a standout love story. I devoured every single word.

This was such a good read! I’m usually not a fan of historical fiction, but this was right up my alley.

I loved A Lady for a Duke! A great queer historical romance! While I have read some great queer historical before, I believe this is the first one I've read with a transgender main character. While I can't speak to representation itself, I definitely found the characters and their story compelling. Viola is determined to leave her past behind to make her new self, even if that includes her former best friend, the Duke of Gracewood. But family and circumstance throw them back together. While Viola initially hides their shared past, Gracewood eventually figures out who she used to be known as. Despite his initial feelings of betrayal, a fragile truce is formed between Viola and Gracewood for the sake of his sister, who is coming out in society.

With the backdrop of high society and the events of the season, Viola and Gracewood slowly find their way back to each other. And lucky for them, they have loving family cheering them on. I loved all the characters in this book and can't wait to read more by Alexis Hall!

This is a fantastic book. I'm still relatively new to Duke related romances, but I've loved what I've previously read from Alexis and knew this would be good - and it was!

This story comes from such a great perspective and does such a good job of twisting together a story of loss and a story of discovering yourself at the same time.

The characters are incredibly complex and compelling but you still get moments of levity and joy throughout as well. The settings are described so well that you can picture them all and really picture the characters there.

I'm definitely recommending this book to everyone.

What a sweet historical romance! I loved this friends to lovers story featuring two former soldiers, one of whom was believed to have died at Waterloo but actually saw the battle as an opportunity to finally live as herself. Despite gender and trans identity being important to the story, Hall managed to create plenty of internal and external conflict that had nothing to do with either which was so refreshing. Highly recommend.

This one ripped my heart out and then put it back together.

Hall hits home with a whopper in this story about a lady who reconnects with her best friend in the middle of a crisis. Though said friend believed she was dead.

His Grace, Justin de Vere, believed his best friend to be dead until Viola Carroll appears. She was his past, no living in her new future and he’s a shadow of his former self without her. But can they recover from the scars of war and the results of their losses?

Viola is adorable in her hesitance and how she navigates her new life. Though I’ll admit tearing up a bit as she encounters Justin and is exposed to the reality of how her ‘death’ affected her best friend. Justin is equally tortured, first by the loss of this friend and the discovery that Viola is alive. Justin made my heart break all over again. He’s riddled with guilt, suffering from physical injury, and believes himself to be a shadow of his former. Much of this story is how Viola and Justin learn to be comfortable in their new selves, along with finding closer connection then they expected.

Of course, there is a villain in this story and while he hides in the shadows for a good portion, the only reason this book didn’t get a higher rating from me is because I felt the villain didn’t get punished enough.

The end of the story is satisfying, the romance sweeping, and my heart was re-made with Viola and Justin finding new purpose and a future together.

For those who love historical romance with sweeping tales and others who enjoy Carolyn Jewel, I highly recommend A Lady For A Duke.

~ Landra

It's always so interesting to read one of your favorite authors when they're switching up genres and in Alexis Hall fashion, he's delivered a queer historical romance featuring a trans heroine which I was excited about, and seriously how awesome is it that we can be reading something like this?!

Viola, in her former life when she was known as Marleigh, had been unhappy in his body and the world his body inhabited. When Marleigh was severely injured during the Battle of Waterloo, he took advantage of being presumed dead to disappear for a while and eventually rebuild her life in a way that finally felt true to herself. Now as Viola and reunited with her former best friend Gracewood, she sees what the loss of Marleigh's presence and their friendship has done to him. Gracewood has thought all along that Marleigh was dead. In a way, yes, the Marleigh he knew no longer exists. But meeting Viola, and sensing a connection he hasn't felt in a long time, pulls him from the deepest recesses of his grief and addiction back into the light.

The story is heartbreaking but also so, so sweet. There's so much pain and doubt and some regret yet so much to love as Viola is determined to live her life without apologies. I felt all her fears as well because as much as she feels free in one sense, she's also bound herself to a life and a role that limits women, something she's getting used to. And she's nervous about being recognized, outed and shunned. It becomes more complicated with Gracewood as she wants to, on the one hand, reveal herself to him to ease his pain and because she loves him. She misses their camaraderie as much as Gracewood does, and can't help but slowly fall in love with him. On the other hand, she wants him to live a happy life free of any trouble, with a beautiful wife and children, and that would certainly not happen should they give in to their feelings.


Y'all, my heart broke for them so many times! I think that's the grueling part of this story - seeing how much their pain and trauma have consumed them, and how society would never accept or condone Viola's choice over her own body or Gracewood's choice to love whom he chooses. Then there are the most spectacular moments of the most intimate connection between two people and all I could do was swoon and want to rail against the world and remake it just so that they could exist as they'd like. You know that's some good writing when you feel that way!

Now I am not LGBTQIA+ so I can only review this story from my perspective as a reader who enjoys a good story and wants to grow and gain a better understanding of the world. It gets a bit slow in the middle but picks back up with the help of some entertaining side characters the way only Hall can create them. As a romance it hits the markers of drama, the great love of your life, second chance, redemption, and of course, the happily ever after. But I defer to folks within the LGBTQIA+ community to comment on the rest. For me, A Lady for a Duke is breathtaking and romantic and I'd definitely recommend it.

~ Bel

CW: grief, abusive father (memories), addiction, panic attacks, PTSD (war), bullying (side character), kidnapping (side character)

Really loved this book. Alexis Hall did it again! I’m not a large historical fiction fan but I loved this! It had everything you could want. This book had great representation and interesting characters while still be hilarious.

I really enjoyed this sweet but substantive historical romance! Viola is a completely compelling leading lady with wit, heart, and courage that has you rooting for her the entire time. Her love story with Gracewood has so much depth, while also being punctuated with joy, humor, and heat. Hall found the perfect balance and it’s totally satisfying to read.

A huge highlight of the book is the dialogue. The banter is smart, fun, and feels totally original and rings out not only between Viola and Gracewood, but amongst all the characters. Everyone gets their zingers in, which makes this romp even more delicious!

My only qualm with the book is the loss of momentum in the middle of the story. When the action moves to London, I distinctly felt a lull, as if the story was getting its feet underneath itself before moving forward. The romantic tension and tender moments between Viola and Gracewood kept the story going, though, and ultimately led to a very satisfying end.

Swoon worthy and chalk full of heart, I recommend A Lady for a Duke.

I debated between a 4 and 4.5 stars rating but finally decided to go with 4 star because of how long it took me to finish this book. At first, the emotional feels were too much and I needed to space out reading it. After the first 40% of the book, the feels died down a little and I was able to read it faster but it did take me a little longer to connect to the storyline. Unlike my usual feelings about books and wanting more, I actually think A Lady for A Duke would have benefited from being a bit shorter. There was a bit that felt receptive that could have been cut to make the story flow.

A Lady for a Duke follows the reunite of Gracewood and his friend who is now Viola. Guilt is a major plot point in this book and both Gracewood and Viola struggle with it. Gracewood feels that his friend’s death is his fault while Viola suffers guilt over needing cause Gracewood hurt to be able to live her life as a woman. There is so much emotional healing that is needed for both of them and that makes for a bit of slow going in the beginning. Once Gracewood learns that Viola is his decreased friend, the plot of the book picks up. There are absolutely adorable moments between Gracewood and Viola, such as their dance, that really show the connection between the two of them. As their relationship moves to the physical, the role of communication and trust is really highlighted and it provides a good contrast to see how far they’ve come. There are some plot points I questioned towards to end of the book but they didn’t detract from my overall enjoyment. This story was an emotional roller coaster but also beautifully written.

Though it was the war that tore them apart, Viola Caroll and Justin de Vere, the Duke of Gracewood, have been fighting for their lives since long before Waterloo. Born into a body and societal expectations that were destroying her with every breath, Viola seizes a new life from the battlefield in a sacrifice more costly than she could have imagined. Despite the power and wealth his name has granted him, the only light Gracewood has ever known came from his dearest friend—and the ghosts that remain are slowly killing him. Still, if the dead can breathe, the damned can love. And he’s not about to see it lost a second time.

In many ways, A Lady for a Duke was very difficult to read. Not only has Viola lived through the blood and death of war, she has spent her entire life struggling to be herself. She fears that, if any of the lie she was forced to live for so long touches the truth she’s fighting for now, everything will be taken away from her—a restraint of other people’s making stretched too far, snatching her back into a darkness she knows she won’t survive. Likewise, Gracewood suffers from a leg injury he received in battle, as well as PTSD (though there is no vocabulary for it within the novel’s setting), and is well aware that, if the stigma of the former makes him barely tolerable among the ton, the latter would see him ostracized and ridiculed beyond bearing.

Happily, if unsurprisingly, I found most of the secondary characters in A Lady for a Duke to be wonderful in their own right. Lady Marleigh for her often-irritating, yet well-meaning (and infuriatingly accurate) instigation of much of the narrative. Miranda for her worry and anger, and her curiosity and forgiveness. Pretty, somewhat vacuous Badger for being…Badger. Of all of them, however, my absolute favorite was Lady Lillimere. As a widow of considerable status and means, she has satisfied her duty to both family and husband, and is free to say and do what other women are not. Which makes her kind of perfect.

Not everything in A Lady for a Duke is dark and serious. When it is funny it is snort-your-tea funny, thanks largely to the above mentioned Lady Lillimere. Her observations on the hypocrisy of the aristocracy, the value of husbands as commodities, not to mention her accurate, if delightfully brutal, estimation of Miranda’s fiercest rival, etc. were both fun and appreciated. Also…Lord. Wankerbunk. Additionally, Viola’s interactions with Little Bartholomew (her nephew), were welcome, sweet diversions that I enjoyed a great deal.

In the end, I found Alexis Hall’s A Lady for a Duke to be complicated, necessarily affecting, often charming, optimistically loving story. The obstacles Viola and Gracewood must overcome, both singly and together, are significant, and the author addresses the gravity of the greater struggles they represent extraordinary well. And still, with just enough teasing moments of joy and well-placed levity throughout the narrative to provide needed balance, this truly was an exceptional read.

This was such a sweet romance and I loved every second of it! I really hope Alexis Hall writes more historical romances because I would read every one.

Representation: Trans woman MC. Other MC is a former solider disabled by war, has chronic pain, PTSD, and drug dependency.

Viola Caroll came back from the war more true to herself, but to achieve that, she had to let herself be presumed dead. In doing so, she lost her wealth, title, and her closest companion, Justin de Vere, the Duke of Gracewood. She keeps her distance after the war, thinking it’s the best for everyone. However, Gracewood has taken the loss very hard. He’s retreated into his own grief, drinking and taking drugs for his pain but also to dull the loss of Viola. On a visit to the Gracewood estate, Viola sees this and barely recognizes the man before her. She decides she has to try and bring Gracewood back to himself, perhaps at risk of discovery and everything she’s built, but perhaps giving rise to something new and impossible.

Rating: 5/5 I want to be clear, Viola is a trans woman. She was raised with Gracewood, and took the opportunity to transition and reimagine herself as her true self once she found out she was presumed dead. I really, really enjoyed this Regency-era historical romance. Viola’s transness does impact the story, but it nearly never becomes the main focus. The fact that she’s a woman and has to live by all of society’s rules takes precedence, especially when she’s around Gracewood and there’s a whole new dynamic that they have to navigate. There is so much queer longing in this, Gracewood for his old friend, and for Viola. It goes the other way as well, with Viola realizing that her feelings for Gracewood have evolved into something that she didn’t have a name for before. Gracewood did have an initial struggle upon learning who Viola was, but quickly accepted her as who she was. The few other characters that know about Viola’s transness have their own relationship to it, but they all accept and support her. Viola is definitely haunted by her past, coming face to face with all of the things she used to do that she can’t now that she’s a “proper” lady, learning how to navigate society as a lady’s companion. Alexis Hall is a fantastic author, and I think he did a great job with all the banter. I didn’t connect it until later, but he’s also the author of Boyfriend Material, which I also enjoyed very much! If you enjoy historical fiction, especially one set in Regency-era society, I would absolutely recommend this.

Hall is the author behind so many of my other favorite romances, like Boyfriend Material and Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake—so I was entirely delighted when I learned that he was not only writing another historical romance, but one that would be primed to personally devastate me in the best possible sense of the word. Hall is already a name to follow in romance, but with A Lady for a Duke, he cements himself even further as a writer who pushes the genre beyond its previous borders and helps to reestablish a new definition altogether.

There are the trademark trappings of a Regency romance, of course, in all their most entertaining incarnations, but ultimately our heroine, Viola Carroll, has previously been living a lie—not just to herself in her past, which finally led to her embracing her true identity as a woman, but also to her oldest and dearest friend in her present, who believes her life had been lost on the battlefield at Waterloo years ago. Understandably, the story deals in many heavy subjects, and readers will be taken on a journey of many emotions, but the end result is a book that delivers on both its angst-laced premise and the reassurance of happiness by its conclusion.

Alexis Hall really is a wonder - "Boyfriend Material" was such a delight and a comfort read to me, so I went into this book hopeful but not sure how the hilarious banter of a contemporary story would translate to a historical setting. I really needn't have worried. I was so sucked into this story that I could not put it down. I was constantly sneaking peeks at the story while in the middle of all the other tasks I needed to be doing, because I couldn't bear to leave the story. I loved following along with Viola's journey of making the choice to be herself but dealing with all the things she had to give up, particularly with the constraints on women in the 19th century. I fell in love with the entire cast of characters, and could happily hop back into this world to see what any of them were up to. It was a joy to read from the very first page, and had all the humor and delightful banter that is Alexis Hall's hallmark. Viola's and Justin's journey back to one another was so beautifully spooled out, and you could really feel all the emotional beats of them trying to figure out to communicate with each other. I think that this is likely to be a book I return to again and again.