Never Met a Duke Like You

"Because I've never known anyone like you, Vesper"
A Smile tilted her lips. "Stubborn?"
"Fearless"

Lady Vesper Lyndhurst has sworn off marriage and instead devotes herself to charitable causes and matchmaking while still following societies conventions and rules and not allowing most people to see her true self. When she finds herself caught in a rain storm, she seeks shelter at her neighbor's estate. The Duke of Greydon hasn't been home in years so she sees no harm in this. When she hears sounds while exploring the home that she used to play in as a young child, she unexpectedly gets locked into the attic with the Duke himself, who has made a surprise trip back to England due to his mother's meddling. Greydon and Vesper were childhood friends but Greydon snubbed her at her coming out and their friendship never recovered. Immediately their animosity for each other rears it's ugly head and my oh my, do sparks fly.

Amalie Howard has historically been a hit or miss author for me - I loved Always Be My Duchess (the first in this series) but have been on the fence about a lot of her others that I've read. But this one was SUCH a hit for me! It took me just a little bit to get into it but once I did, I was hooked! It was SO funny and I highlighted so many quotes.

I love author's notes and really appreciated Amalie's here - she talks about the research she did into the Lunacy Act and the efforts to overturn/change it, which is of course a cause that Greydon is incredibly passionate about through the book. Because of the Lunacy Act, Greydon's mother was able to institutionalize his father (leading to his death) after bribing two physicians for false statements regarding his mental health. Greydon seeks to get to the truth of what happened and punish both the doctors and his mother for this betrayal. The Author also talks about Vesper's causes - including the Ragged School Union which were charitable schools that provided free education to underprivileged and impoverished children. Therefore, this book feels really well researched and rooted in history, despite it being a romance novel.

Outside of the research that the author did, this book is incredibly hilarious and chock full of banter that had me literally giggling and kicking my feet! Both Vesper and Greydon have so much pride but also find themselves unable to stay away from each other, which is truly one of my favorite things to read. In the midst of the hilarity there are also incredibly sweet and passionate moments - once they get over their pride, they both see through each other's façade that they show to society.

This book is also HOT. There aren't an excessive amount of scenes but the ones that are there - HOOO BOY! The billiards game as foreplay was something I didn't know I needed but damn did I love it. That'll live rent free in my head for a while. The swoon throughout the book was the best and I'm already looking forward to rereading this.

Thank you to Netgalley and Forever for the eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The Hellfire Kitties are back at it again in this second installment of Amalie Howard's latest series! This book was sweetly sexy- the tension, the banter, the longing! I loved the main characters and their chemistry sparked off the page. This friends to enemies to lovers story was full of fun and joy- this friendship group is seriously one of my all time favorite in fiction. Also, "cat" was my favorite supporting character!

Thank you so much to Forever Pub and Netgalley for my copy.

It was great to be back in the realm of the Hellfire Kitties with this second book in the Taming of the Dukes series by Amalie Howard. I absolutely adored this one. Perfect for fans of 1995’s romantic comedy Clueless and Jane Austen’s Emma, Never Met a Duke Like You is sure to charm readers with its tension and chemistry, innuendo-laden banter, matchmaking machinations, and bespectacled, forearm-baring hero. (Yes, please.)

I especially appreciated the ADHD representation in Lady Vesper and how Aspen loves her for who she really is, not for how she presents herself to the ton; I would gladly attend a dinner party at Harwick House any day; and I was delighted when Howard’s love scenes once again raised the question, “Who needs a bed?”

What a lovable and enjoyable read! I devoured it and can’t wait to see what comes next for this tight-knit group of friends.

I received an advance copy from Forever and NetGalley. All review opinions are my own.