I had a love- hate relationship with Nothing Like a Duke. I loved the strong heroine with a mind of her own and the soul of a fighter. I loved the mysterious intrigue that lived around ever curve and drove the story in an ominous direction. What left me lukewarm was the chemistry between the two central characters. I could take them individually but not enough sparks sizzled between them. I expected more.

Reviewed for Romance Reviews Today

NOTHING LIKE A DUKE – Jane Ashford
The Duke's Sons Series – Book 4
Sourcebooks Casablanca
ISBN-10: 149262165X
ISBN-13: 978-1492621652
May 2, 2017
Historical Romance

Autumn in England, early 18th Century

On his way to a house party in Northumberland, Lord Robert Gresham, son of the Duke of Langford, has his journey delayed when his carriage breaks an axle. During the rainy wait to find transportation to his destination, he finds a small, abandoned, and starving puppy. He keeps it, giving the puppy the name Plato, and begins a conversation with this wise-looking dog which continues throughout the story. Robert is a ‘pink of the ton,’ and his looks and manners make him sought for all ton events. Too bad his charm failed with the woman who interested him the most. Eventually he arrives at the manor of the Earl and Countess of Salbridge. Robert’s friend Laurence, the eldest son of his hosts, is not present, but the young daughter Lady Victoria, and the younger son Phillip, will help devise entertainments, some successful, some not. At the first evening gathering, where Robert’s main plan is to forget one woman, she walks into the gathering. When he asks her what she is doing here, she says she was invited, to which he responds she couldn’t have been.

At twenty-five and as a blue stocking, near on-the-shelf spinster, Flora Jennings doesn’t have high expectations. She comes to the Salbridge’s house party with her mentor Harriet Runyon, a friend of the countess. Flora knows that the haut ton turn their backs on members who marry beneath their social expectations, like they did her mother. She has a low opinion of these elites. Still, she doesn’t expect such a response from Robert. He had seemed warm, cordial and interested in her when she helped him study her father’s scholarly books on ancient cuneiform writing.

Robert and Flora’s inauspicious meeting after a summer of studying together remains bumpy even as they both try to gain the other’s interest. Others, often using under-handed methods, take great interest in Robert and try to deflect him from his determination to convince the very independent Flora they were meant for each other. One wants to marry Robert, another wants to harm Robert. The characters are interesting, and while references are made to events in previous volumes, readers will have no problem following the story line. It is a party and a romance filled with mayhem and merriment—a fun and romantic read.

Robin Lee.

Jane Ashford is a fantastic author. I really liked this book featuring Robert Gresham one of the Duke’s sons.  I read the first book in this series, Heir to the Duke, and liked that one also.  Somehow I’ve missed books #2 and #3, which would have been helpful while reading this one.  Situations in those books are mentioned in this one but it is sketchy to figure out, although not impossible.  It is rather obvious that Robert and Flora have met in a previous book and got to know each other.  Now they are at a house party together and falling in love.  There is a villain on hand to try and thwart the couple and he is definitely evil. There is also a young debutante who has her own eyes on Robert. This is a fun book with some compelling action scenes.  I do highly recommend it but please read the entire series.

Ashford builds on her previous book with a follow up that concludes with a satisfying g end for the villian and a sweet HEA for our protagonists. The story is very sweet and there is no graphic sex in this story whatsoever.

Quite a good read but very classic in its plot. I liked it but no more than any other historical romance I've read.

Thank you to NetGallery and Sourcebooks Casablanca for allowing me the chance to read this book before it's release date in exchange for an honest review!

Nothing Like a Duke written by Jane Ashford, is the first novel I have ever read by Jane Ashford series The Duke’s Son. The cover of Nothing Like a Duke is has a beautiful cover that is a depiction of a wonderful historical romance, although I wish the book itself could be more adventurous in the plot detailing. I found a lot of the events in this historical romance is rather mundane. There is a bored aristocrat by the name of Lord Robert Gresham, he is ripe for marriage while still being extremely hesitate to the idea. The Lord is interested romantically to Flora Jennings, but like all historical romance male love interest, he tries to ignore his attraction to the female character. The Lord escapes to the country side of a long party, who surprises us all to find that one of the guest to the part is actually Flora herself.

The root of their attraction is that they constantly disagree with each other. They constantly bicker with one another that doesn’t feel romantic in it’s nature but annoying. There was bickering in Jane Austen Pride and Prejudice between Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth, but they're bickering was quick wit as well as direct. The storyline is fragmented in its content but there is no romantic scene to compensate for the week narrative that the author creates with her characters.

The author many goes off in many different directions about the nonsensical conversations for her characters which I found hard to read, and rather distracting.

I  just feel that this book was not for me, I did not enjoy it but I feel that the author is very talented the characters were just not connecting with me.

Happy Reading

Lia!

I want to be fair but giving this a three was being very very fair! It was so boring I actually had to force myself to finish the book. Now, having said that I will say this... This author is usually a super read for she is very talented. I am not sure what happened here but the book was a very big disappointment. Tired story line, characters that could of been fantastic but the life was just not in the book. I was given this book in return for an honest review. Anna

Duck out of water story and the hero is great. Who doesn't love a house party? A good addition to the series.

Nothing Like a Duke ⭐⭐⭐ written by Jane Ashford

This was a rather mundane attempt at a historical romance.
A bored aristocrat, Lord Robert Gresham, ripe for marriage but still hesitating. He is apparently  enamored with a bluestocking Flora Jennings but tries to ignore the attraction.  He escapes to the country for the longest party I have ever read about only to find Flora a guest as well.

It seems the root of their attraction is that they constantly disagree. Their bickering really wears thin. The storyline is fragmented and they is little to no romantic scenes to compensate for a weak narrative. The author many times goes off on nonsensical conversations for her characters which I found distracting.A Book Obsessed Review Team Selection.
I was given this book by Netgalley for an unbiased review.

This is the first of Jane Ashford’s books that I’ve read, and while I did have a bit of confusion coming into a series on book 4, I definitely enjoyed myself. Flora was an engaging heroine, and although she did start out a bit too much in the “I’m not like other girls” mindset for my tastes, she very much did develop as a character. Our hero, Robert, is an absolute darling (although not a Duke). But I'm going to adore any character who rescues a dog in their first scene. And there were plenty of sweet and touching moments between Flora and Robert, which was nice, I’m a big fan of those.

There was A Lot of drama in this book, and at times it felt as if there were too many plot lines and obstacles for me to quite keep track of, but the engaging side characters (even the antagonists) were enjoyable enough for me to not be as bother by that as i normally would have been. There were a few moments when I wasn’t 100% sure if the hero and heroine actually liked one another at all, and their chemistry was a tad erratic- sometimes it was there, and I could really feel it, other times, not so much. But I really did enjoy how Robert respects Flora and her desire for agency, and how this book deals with the limited scope of the ability of women in the ton. I do like openly feminist romances, particularly when they don't feel like they’re preaching to me.

Despite my issues with it, and that fact that the writing style wasn’t my cup of tea, I really did enjoy reading this. I was enjoyable, well-paced and good fun, although I’d have liked some sexier sex.

I so thought I'd enjoy this book more. Sadly it was a disappointment.

Nothing Like a Duke by Jane Ashford is a hilarious yet romantic historical read. I loved the main characters. Their arguements were amusing. The sparks that flew between was fun to follow as the clever plot unfolded. Fast-paced, exciting, and one that will keep readers constantly on their toes. I didn't know what to expect next. From a woman trying for a Duke's attention when his heart is set on another to...a cheater found at the card table. Then, more danger is soon discovered. The unique part about Jane Ashford's latest title, was how intelligent and stubborn her heroine was in wanting to save herself. The restrain of any man to hold back as he watched the danger unfold to a woman he loves...was amazing. Suspenseful but good. I cant imagine any man being able to ho,d back because he knows how important it was to the woman for her to 'save herself'. Sacrifice, determination, and a love to light up my night. This was definitely a fascinating story. A real page turner. Addictive plot lines and charming characters. Overall, I highly recommend Nothing Like a Duke to readers worldwide.

This story had such potential to be a great read! It's a lovely romance between an intellectual young lady named Flora and Lord Robert, and is part of a series as I understand it. I haven't read the previous books in this novel, and while I am moderately curious about them, I think I'll continue from where I started instead. It's a quirky story with an seemingly all knowing pooch and a very long house party. The antagonists come in the form of the hosts' spoiled daughter and a couple of uninvited guests. To be honest, there wasn't enough conflict in it for me, and there were a lot of things that I wish Ashford would have elaborated on or even incorporated into the story. Two come to mind specifically, and those are the interactions between Flora and Lydia Fotheringay as well as the murder mentioned but never really discussed (especially because its stressful for Flora throughout the book) of Anthony Durand's "friend". Some of the characters seemed really superficial at times (especially Robert) , leaving me wishing that Flora had wound up with Robert's rival instead. Despite these things, it was still quite a quick and enjoyable read. Thank you!

Even though I found some of the characters a little over the top, I was hoping I'd find more depth as the story progressed. Very disappointed.

Nothing like a Duke by Jane Ashford is about a bluestocking finding love? I couldn't get past page 45, I found it insanely boring. I'm sorry, I really wanted to like it but I just couldn't bare it any further. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for a honest review. (I'm not posting on Goodreads since I didn't get very far)

This is about the house party that never ends. I lost count of how many days, weeks that it went on. At one point it jumped by 2 weeks alone. Other than that, I thought this story was pretty good.
Flora doesn't have any qualms about speaking her mind. And what an intelligent mind it is. She is often ridiculed because of this and her age. Which she takes good naturedly. 
Robert plays a bored aristocratic when he needs to very well. He finds a mutt on his way to the house party that seems to be a main character. He seems almost human, it's rumored that he might have been one in a past life. Reference from the last book in this series was talked about here.   
Together they actually make a boring couple. Which for me was nice, it is almost normal.

He'd probably be an event planner today. 

Honestly, I'd rather know her than anyone at this house party. She's way more interesting. 

It's not a crime to learn to play an instrument, Randolph. Relax. 

Whoa. Victoria is kind of scary. And delusional. 

She was kidnapped? 

It's funny how Robert think she needs protecting from Society, and she is doing the same for Frances. 

Can Victoria just assign parts to people who didn't even want to audition? She has a screw loose. 

This is a crazy play. What the heck do Flora's lines mean? 

I like how strong she is. She has a plan for dealing with Durand, and she sticks to it. No hysterics here. 

Geez, Philip. There's young, and then there's idiotic. Who cares about your boot right now? 

 That was too easy. Durand should have put up more of a fight. 

 A shame the library is now tainted with the stench of Durand. 

And the proposal was going so well...If the story took place today, I'd swear Victoria had the house bugged. 

Geez, man! I'm all for letting her use her wits, but she and I were both scared!

Although the little dog was charming, this romance had too much back story contained in other books in the series to be read as a stand-alone, and too many distractions, especially since we got a single bedroom scene.

I did not finish this book as I did not engage with the story or the characters.

This was a good story. Robert has been lingering in the previous novels, so it was nice to get his story. He has been going head to head with Flora for a while now. They tend to argue about a lot of things. Flora isn't much into society, being a bit more scholarly than others find fashionable. She's the opposite of Robert, who is all about society and fits in everywhere he goes. I had been hoping for a bit more heat on the pages. The couple doesn't do much arguing here, and the biggest action happens at the very end of the story, so the whole story was a bit of a slow build to the finale. It would not put me off reading further in the series, though. I received a copy from the publisher via netgalley for review.