This was my first Olivia Drake book and I really enjoyed it. It was a second chance romance. Abby and Max, the heir to a Dukedom, share a secret romance as teenagers. They are torn apart when Max is forced to leave his country estate for London following his mother’s death. He goes on to become the intimidating Duke of Rothwell—one of London’s most eligible bachelors and notorious rakes. Abby is forced to stay in the country to nurse her ailing parents.

Fifteen years after leaving his country estate, Max returns to find Abby serving as a governess to his sister. Sparks immediately fly between the two of them as they deal with a mutual distrust of each other.

I thought this book was well written. There were maybe too many plot lines (the boxing match) and secrets at times. But, in general, the book was engaging, fast paced, steamy, and filled with interesting secondary characters. I would highly recommend to anyone who enjoys historical romances.

5 Bramble ⭐️

I received this book via NetGalley.

This is a second chance romance with a spinster and a rake which is my catnip. Rothwell was a rake, and I loved him. It was hard putting down this book (when life interrupted) because I was so vested in these characters. I believed in Rothwell’s and Abby’s HEA. I enjoyed all the secondary characters and am looking forward to the next book in the series. I am hoping for books for Ambrose, Lady Gwen, and Valerie.

3.25*
I’ve received an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

So… I’m not the biggest fan of the second chance trope, but this book was great. I really enjoyed it, maybe because the thing that had separated the couple the first was handled… well, not right away, but almost. Which meant they didn’t really had much stopping them from getting back together.
Abigail reminded me of… me, in a way. And I liked how she finally took the reins of her life and started making her own decisions. Go Abby! You can’t let your family make all the decisions – especially if they’re bad for you.

Max, on the other hand, is our typical moody, secret-y hero. Because talking never helped anyone, right? Abigail is good for him. She tries to keep her distance, but she really likes her new job as Max’s sister’s governess, so it’s hard to be away from him for a long time.

The love they once shared is still there, even if different, since they are now changed people.

I just didn’t like that Max didn’t really consider his sister – he always says he’s worried about her, and cares for her, but he rarely sees her, and then takes a group of strangers – with bad reputations – to his house, where his sister lives. The excuse he uses is okay in the beginning, but… it wasn’t credible enough for me.

Apart from that, I enjoyed this book, it was romantic and sweet, I just wished it had a more developed plot.

I received an advanced reader’s copy of this novel.

Abigail Linton is a spinster who was first taking care of her parents then her brother’s and sisters children. She longs for the chance to live on her own and make her own choices. She gets a job on the neighboring estate the belongs to Maxwell, the Duke of Rothwell. Rothwell had broken Abigail’s heart but he’d not been to the estate in years and she didn’t expect he would ever return. Rothwell does end up back at his estate with some friends and their paths cross again. Abigail and Maxwell wrestle with their attraction and feelings for each other despite the years that have passed.

I thought the pacing was pretty good throughout except for a few places where I felt it could have been tighter. The various characters were unique and I really liked that some of the minor characters experienced some internal change. The descriptions of the settings and characters were done well.

Overall, this is a well written, enjoyable story.

Such a sweet story with a duke and a governess who met again after 15 years and a lot of misunderstandings. I enjoyed the whole story a lot and was happy to read Olivia Drake and her story because she was unknown to me and now I have some of her other books to read :)

Storia molto romantica, con un duca ed un'istitutrice che si rincontrano dopo 15 anni ed un sacco di fraintendimenti dopo. La trama non era particolarmente complessa, ma mi é piaciuto ed ho scoperto cosí una nuova autrice, Olivia Drake, che non conoscevo e della quale ho molti libri nuovi tra cui scegliere :)

THANKS NETGALLEY FOR THE PREVIEW!

“The Duke I Once Knew” was a good read. I liked the main characters and the secondary characters as well. It was great to see Abby and Max get a second chance at love.

Miss Abigail Linton, Abby meets Max, the Duke in a coach.
Drama over another woman, plenty of angst and steam.
Fasted paced read.

Abby has devoted her life to her parents after her mother had a debilitating fall from her horse. Abby was now approaching her 30th birthday and her parents having passed away the previous year all that awaited her was the expected roll of looking after her family’s young children. Abby needed to escape so took up a position as governess to the Duke of Rothwell sister. You are taken on a delightful journey with Abby realising lost love and becoming a spirited individual who will make her own decisions in life.
I was given an ARC of this book by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I've been on a very good historical romance streak lately, reading many enjoyable romances and The Duke I Once Knew by Olivia Drake continued the said streak. I loved both Abby and Max, and I loved their relationship and their chemistry. Abby's meddling family drove me crazy and they certainly added some drama to the story. Not to mention some of Rothwell's friends who tried to come between him and Abby. But, of course, this is a romance novel, so Abby and Max got their HEA despite all the interferences. This is the first Olivia Drake's book that I've read but it won't be the last. I am looking forward to the next book in the series, even though I can't figure out whose story it will be. Maybe Valerie's?

*I received a free copy from the publisher via Netgalley and chose to leave a voluntary review. Thank you!*
This was the first time I have read an Olivia Drake book - now I am trying to find all the previous series. Character development and a real story that catches your attention. Terrific historical romance fiction. Highly Recommend!

It was a pretty quick read. I like Abby when she finally got a little backbone and stood up to her family as well as when her sister came to visit. I loved Max and how some things change when it's pointed out that his sister is at the house and how his actions would affect her standing. The only part I wished was different was that we could see what was done to the person who hurt Abby in the end. Thank you NetGalley for the advanced readers copy!

Mac and Abby where in love when they were young and after years of being apart they are reunited again when Abby becomes his sister's Governess. Mac is determined to go d a replacement for her but when old feelings start appear again he is not so sure he can let her go again.

Both Mac and Abby must overcome old hurts to find true love in each other again .

I received this book from Netgalley for an honest review.

“For what are star-crossed lovers but a soul for another soul meant.” –R A I N

Rating: MA: mature, due to sexually explicit scenes

Our story opens with 29-year-old Abigail Linton cloistered in the bosom of her family. Abby was the youngest child of five, born late to her parents, whom she lovingly cared for until their deaths. At a family gathering, Abby watched her sibling in a heated debate as to which family Abby should live. Her eldest brother [heir to the estate] needed a companion for his wife. Her other brother, the vicar with the living on the estate, needed help [secretary] transcribing his notes and sermons. A sister needed help [a nanny] with her rowdy children. Abby’s other sister’s daughter, making her curtsey in the spring, needed help [governess] preparing for her coming out. Everyone needed Abby’s help with one thing or another.

Abby, suddenly seeing the rest of her life as an unpaid servant to her siblings, took matters into her own hands and applied for the governess position to Lady Gwendolyn Bryce. At least this way she would be paid. Rothwell Court, the neighboring estate was his estate. Since Maxwell Bryce, the Duke of Rothwell, had not set foot on the property in fifteen years, she felt like she would be safe. Famous last words.

“I’d lost myself in the abyss of someone else’s tyranny… again.” –Cassandra Giovanni, Love Exactly

During flashbacks, we learn of young love between our main characters. At the tender age of sixteen and fifteen, they pledged their love to each other and he asked her to marry him and to wait until he reached his majority when he would come for her so they could wed. They promised to write to each other in the meantime. Neither would receive a single letter.

“She’s my best friend, and I’m hers. Nothing needs to change between us.” He was afraid, not because he thought she wasn’t the one. He was terrified, because he knew she was.” –Mirella Muffarotto, Every Boy is a Book

You can only guess what happened to those lost letters. This was a story of enduring love and redeeming the life of a confirmed bachelor and rake. ‘Max’ was tortured with lost love and family secrets he had been forced to keep since he was too young to be under such a mandate. He compensated by riotous living, multiple mistresses, rakish ways, women, gaming, women, prizefighting, and… did I mention women?

Lady Elise Desmond reminded me of Blanche Ingram from ‘Jane Eyre’ and Caroline Bingley from ‘Pride & Prejudice.’ While His Grace might consider the widow Desmond as mistress material, that brass strumpet had one goal in mind, and one only, Duchess of Rothwell. Once Max was reacquainted with Abby, he had another thought entirely.

It is not very often that we see romance stories with an older heroine. I found this very refreshing.

I volunteered to read an uncorrected digital galley from the publisher St. Martins Paperback via NetGalley. The views expressed are my own. Projected publication date: Dec 21, 2018.

While the premise sounded charming I knew from the first few pages that this was not going to be a good fit for me as I do not care for this particular style of florid writing. I also did not really like either of the characters. Abby is judgmental and fond of drawing incorrect conclusions. Max has no real substance to him. My favorite parts of the book were the scenes where Abby's family appeared. I did enjoy the depictions of their thoughtless self involvement. Otherwise I did a lot of skimming,

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is a good second chance at love story with a rakish duke and his lovely neighbor, reunited around her sudden freedom from caring for elderly parents and his visit back to the estate to sponsor a boxing match. Throw in interfering relatives, irresponsible teenaged girls, a catty, social climbing widow and you have a path which forces them to earn a HEA.

I love a reunited lover story. It is one of my favorite tropes in romance. I haven't read much by Olivia Drake, but this book has made me realize that I need to.

From the beginning this tale was filled with emotion. The chemistry between Abby and Max jumped off the page and I was cheering for them to let go of their past and embrace their future.

I will definitely be looking for the next book in this series to come out.

Historical romances are my guilty pleasure so I jumped on the chance to read The Duke I Once Knew. The synopsis held promise of the type of light and fluffy romantic read that I love losing myself in once in a while. I am a complete sucker for “lost lovers over time”.

While I found this book to be a fairly quick and somewhat enjoyable read, I honestly couldn’t wait to get to the end of it. I needed this book to be finished. I couldn’t get enough of the storyline of a second chance romance but I could not stand the characters at all! Any of them! Well, except maybe Goliath. Him I enjoyed.

I was expecting Max and his friends to be your typical rogues; flirty, temperamental and just all out impossible to live with. That I was prepared for. What shocked and annoyed me was Abby. I had such high hopes for her at the beginning with her want for independence but all my hopes were just shattered. I understand that women were meant to be seen as obedient and meek during this time period, but come on! I had such respect for this woman holding her ground and speaking her mind but she turned out to be such a doormat, especially when it came to Max, that I just lost interest in her. I also got the impression of a snob from her. I mean, there is being prim and formal and then there is taking it a little too far. Sure, she had her moments where her guard was let down but those were fleeting and far between. I prefer a female lead with more spunk and tenacity than compliance and apologies.

I probably could have forgiven Abby her conflicting personality traits had I not been constantly reminded of them. It seemed every page or so was Abby second guessing something, wondering if she had misread something, thinking about how improper her thoughts were or trying to decide how things would have been if something had played out differently. We got a lot of this from Max as well, but I found it more irritating coming from Abby for some reason. I think I had just expected more growth from her character.

There was also a lot of repetition throughout the book that made me feel that it could have been done at least 50 pages earlier. During those moments, I found myself skimming a lot because there was no new information, just a lot of facts and thoughts that were unnecessarily repeated.

Though I did have some issues with The Duke I Once Knew, I did find the overall story quite enjoyable and the parts that held my interest were very quick to read through. This was my first work by the author and I will keep an eye out for other titles by her.

I received this copy from NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press to read and provide my own opinions.

This is escapism at high level, suspend your belief and be ready to entertained! This was a lovely book, well written, and with great characters.
I really liked it and hope to read other books by this writer.
Recommended!
Many thanks to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for this ARC

4.5 Stars!!! Great book! I loved this book. Max & Abby were cute together. I felt bad for how Abby was basically an unpaid servant to her family! I did roll my eyes at how easily the rift between Max & Abby could have been avoided. It was still a great book! I do wish there was a longer ending & an epilogue. I feel like the story just ended with a lot left to tell. Other than those few things, it was a very entertaining story & I would recommend it to anyone who likes romance, especially historical romance!
*I received this book at no charge from the publisher.*

The Duke I Once Knew by Olivia Drake was a delightful second chance romance that was provided to me by NetGalley for my honest review.

Abigail is a spinster daughter, who has set her life aside to take of her ill parents, then her sisters, brothers and their families once their parents passed. Unfortunately, they treated her as a servant, with no thought as to what she might want, so she took it into her own hands to apply as a governess to the younger sister of Max, the boy she loved as a child. They had planned a life together, but when he moved away after his mother's death, they lost touch. Once Abby's employed Max returns and the sparks are palpable...but they each harbor an anger towards the other for not writing years ago. But they had, so what happened to those letters? Could Max get past his reputation as a rogue and find his way back into Abby's heart? Could they both forgive? An enjoyable story!