A Good Duke is Hard to Find is the first book in the new Isle of Synne series. I loved the cover of this book and instantly wanted to read it. I love second chance romances, and this was a fourth chance at romance after her third fiancé leaves Lenora at the altar. After the last disaster, Lenora knew she had to leave London and her father’s attempts at finding her a husband. Returning to the Isle of Synne was painful but it was the only place she knew to go. I was so glad Lenora finally found her happy ever after finally. Peter Ashford was only on the Isle of Synne for revenge and had no plans on staying. But meeting Lenora made him rethink his plans. Could he give up his chance at revenge for love?

A Good Duke is Hard to Find (Isle of Synne#1). By Christina Britton. 2020. Forever (ARC eBook).

Miss Lenora Hartley has been engaged three times and yet is still unmarried. After her third fiancé leaves her at the altar, Lenora travels to her aunt’s house on the Isle of Synne in order to get away from society and her angry father’s next attempt at finding another suitor.

Also visiting the Isle is Peter Ashford and his friend and business partner Quincy, fresh from America. Peter is next in line for a dukedom that he wants nothing to do with. He’s been away for 13 years and now with the Duke of Dane on his sickbed he is back to repay a promise to stay with Lady Tesh for a month and to enact his revenge on Dane, who he blames for his mother’s death. But at Lady Tesh’s, he and Quincy meet several young ladies, one of which is Lady Tesh’s niece, the lovely Lenora. Having planned to quit for America as soon as possible, Peter is not ready for the attraction between he and Lenora.

This is a charming story. There is a lot of emotion derived from romance, guilt and vengeance. While there were a few times it felt like it dragged a bit, I did like Britton working a viking myth about the Isle of Synne that adds to the atmosphere and acts as a comparison to Peter and Lenora’s romance. A Good Duke is Hard to Find is the first in the Isle of Synne series and the first book I’ve read by Britton. There were interesting side characters that helped Peter and Lenora along and I look forward to reading their stories.

Great start to a new series and am looking forward to reading more.

I really liked the main characters together. Both having to overcome loss and family drama. Loved the unique location, which is great in a historical romance book in my opinion. Sometimes it's refreshing to read one that doesn't take place in London.

I also really enjoyed the inclusion of Norse mythology. I love learning new things when I read.

DNF at 30% - I wasn’t a big fan of the characters, and didn’t like the interactions with the supporting characters. The story was fine, but I didn’t feel like progressed enough to keep me interested.

Really enjoyed the setting. Was hoping for a bit more emotional connection between the couple, however. Overall, I'm interested in continuing on with the series though!

4/5 stars

I really loved Peter and Lenora together! Lenora had been jilted at the alter three times and looking to escape society for awhile at Lady Tesh's home. Peter was staying with Lady Tesh to keep a deathbed promise to his mother. This story was definitely filled with a lot of family drama and grief. It was a more emotional read than most romance stories which made it feel completely different. Peter and Lenora were both still dealing with loss and anger in their own ways for separate reasons. However, they managed to bring out the best in each other when together. Overall, I really liked this dramatic romance and can see myself picking it up again.

***Thank you so much to Forever publishing and NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really struggled to get into this book and it ended up not being a good fit for me. I really like the premise and I think the characters are well developed

Its an engaging story of two very different people leonara n Peter.
They were perfect for each other. How they fall in love was very interesting. The hero was quite stubborn and at times irritating.
Chritiana Button is a talented author. Looking forward to read more books from her

This was a fun historical romance. Thank you for letting me read and review it. I will be recommending it to friends and on the show.

I feel like this was a pretty solid romance.The writing is good and the pacing of the story is good. I enjoyed the setting as it's always interesting to get the Brits out of London. Also this cover is simply gorgeous. I could have used a little more depth in the relationship between Peter and Lenora though and as much as I love a good revenge plot, so much of Peter's behavior and motivations felt a little bit over the top. But I did enjoy the secondary characters. I will definitely read more from this author even though this book didn't quite blow me away.

This is a quintessential historical romance. Broody hero, sweet heroine, and some serious slow burn romance. As a historical romance fan, this book was exactly what I loved. I very much enjoyed the story. A man bent on revenge. A woman who needs someone that believes in her. And together they help each other become better people.
This was a very quick read for me. I liked the story and really enjoyed the characters. I really enjoyed that they tied the mythology of the setting into the story. This was a cute and sweet read and I would certainly recommend it.

I wound up DNFing this one around 1/4 of the way in, so I don’t feel right giving it any type of starred rating (I don’t like to star-rate anything I DNF since my rating cant be accurate of the book in its entirety) but netgalley requires me to.

I could not get hooked into the story.
It felt like there wasn’t much of a plot developing, and maybe if I had kept going I would’ve been proven wrong. I just wasn’t feeling any type of emotional connection to the characters though,
I don’t think this is a terrible book-the writing style itself was good. I think it just wasn’t for me, although I do appreciate being given the opportunity!

A Good Duke is Hard to Find features a wonderful romance between a woman cursed in love and a duke’s heir out for revenge.

After being jilted by her third fiancé, Lenora Hartley decides to take a break from London and her father’s attempts to find her another match. The Isle of Synne, an isolated island off Britain’s northern coast, is exactly the right place to avoid the gossip. But soon after arriving, she runs into a mysterious man who attracts her far more than she expected. Peter Ashford is set to inherit a dukedom he doesn’t want, but his only thoughts are of getting revenge on the man who let his mother die. Determined to ruin the man and his legacy, he heads to the Isle of Synne to set his revenge in motion. But once there, he meets Miss Hartley who has him questioning all of his plans.

Lenora was an intriguing character and one I was interested to learn more about after seeing she had three failed engagements. It quickly becomes clear Lenora’s father plans to use a marriage to Lenora to further his own political career and Lenora has had very little input on her betrothals. It was easy to feel for Lenora in her situation and I think my one complaint about her character was how long it took for her to stand up for herself. Peter left England thirteen years ago after the death of his mother and it is only his own sense of debt to the woman who helped his mother that has him returning now. Peter’s situation as a child was heartbreaking and it definitely made it easier to understand why he was so hell-bent on revenge.

Lenora and Peter’s relationship was very much an opposites attract romance with the added bit of forced proximity due to the small isle they’re on. Peter is definitely a pessimistic person compared to Lenora, but as a fan of the grumpy-sunshine trope, that worked for me. Both Lenora and Peter have issues opening up to others which meant it took a while for their romance to progress. Plus, with Lenora’s father arranging another betrothal for her, she knows she’s not entirely free to follow her heart and Peter’s quest for revenge means he has no plans to marry. My one issue with their romance was how long it took for both of them to admit that their relationship was something they wanted. They definitely admitted their attraction to each other right away, but it took much longer for them to admit they wanted more.

Overall A Good Duke is Hard to Find was a very enjoyable read and I will definitely be picking up the second book in the series, Someday My Duke Will Come, when it releases next year.

**I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.**

This historical sounded so good. I must admit that I loved all the side characters much more than the mains. Lenora has had a real run of bad luck when it comes to men, Her father is terrible and having three broken engagements would put a dent in anyone's pride.
Peter was an issue for me. I love a good grumpy hero but Peter fell over grumpy into irritating and petulant. I was not a fan.
The story was okay and I can see that many people will love this book but it was not quite what I was hoping for.

Peter Ashford is only on the isle to exact revenge on the man who is responsible for his mother's death. Once he's completed the task, he'll return to America where his life can finally be his own.
His uncle refused to help to his mother during his illness. Peter was determine to make sure the dukedom ended with him.

Unknown to Peter, his father was blackmailing his uncle with knowledge of pass tragedy and demanding money to keep quiet.

After her third fiancé leaves her at the altar, Lenora Hartley is beginning to think she's cursed. One thing's for certain: she needs to escape London and her father's tyrannical attempts to find her yet another suitor.

Lenora escaped to her aunt's house on Isle of Synne hoping to start a new life.

Lenora met mysterious Peter and knew she had to help him find a way to heal his family.

I was super excited to read this book, because Christina Britton has been one of my favorite authors for the last few years, ever since I read her debut novel. She never fails to write an enjoyable book, and this is certainly no exception! There was so much drama in this story, that I wasn't always sure what direction she was going to take it, and that kept me in suspense the entire time. The characters were all so unique, and what I felt was especially nice to read was villains that weren't so obvious. In this story, you have an idea that the father is not particularly friendly, so it's not super surprising that he's not winning Father of the Year. But I also thought other people were villains who were not, and then there were characters whose villainy completely shocked me. It was a la Frozen with the whole Hans fiasco, where the entire movie theater gasped - it was that level of NO that my mind shouted, because you want people to be good. When they're not, and you had faith in their "goodness," it feels like the worst sort of betrayal. And that shock factor is the mark of a good writer.

Miss Lenora Hartley has lost another fiance. It's the third one, and her father is at his limit with the scandal each broken engagement has caused. Granted, none of them have been her fault, but it doesn't matter. She must leave society for a time while the gossip dies down, and what better place to go than her childhood "happy place" - the Isle of Synne. WIth her best friend, Margery, in tow, they go to visit Margery's grandmother, and as they arrive on her doorstep, they are greeted by a handsome yet gruff man who just happens to be the heir to the Duke of Dane. Peter Ashford has no wish to be a duke and only returned to honor a promise he made to his dying mother years ago. Wrangled into staying for a month with his great aunt, he is stunned to find that he'll be sharing the house with not just the older woman but the two young women at the front door. Lenora catches his eye, but he realizes that he must keep his eye on the real prize - the ruination of the man who condemned his mother to death, the Duke himself.

Ah, what tangled webs we weave when revenge is on the mind. I know that's not the saying, but I think it still applies. Majority of the story was wrapped around Peter's incessant need for revenge, even in the face of evidence that said revenge might not be as justified as he once thought. He became distracted at times by Lenora and her kindness, but he always came back to his ultimate goal. It was sad, really, when Lenora was such a sweetheart. While I would have liked her to stand up for herself more, particularly when Peter was rude so often, her soft spoken ways were a great contract to his bluster. They worked as a pair, if only Peter could see anything beyond his revenge. I found the second half of the book to be much faster than the first half, as conflict arises with the addition of another suitor and, of course, Peter goes off half-cocked rather than trying to find out the truth. As always in romance books, eventually he comes to his senses, but it is slow in coming and the reader will find themselves in a tangle of nerves by the end.

Being the first in the series, I am eager to read what comes next! Peter's friend, Quincy, was a hoot, and perhaps my favorite character in the book. I had many highlights in my Kindle of his lines, and you're sure to love him too. His book is bound to be a favorite of mine.

**I received a free copy via NetGalley and this is my honest review.**

A GOOD DUKE IS HARD TO FIND is the first book in the ISLE OF SYNNE series, and I am looking forward to reading more. The characters have depth, the story lines are woven together skillfully, and the author knows how to tell a great tale.

Lenora doesn’t have luck with love. Her father is unfeeling and treats her like his property. When she must get away from their home in London (after her third failed engagement), she and her best friend run away to visit her friend’s grandmother on the Isle of Synne. Little do they know what a difference that visit will make in Lenora’s life.

Gran’s great-nephew also comes to be there, and Lenora and Peter have a definite attraction. Gran may also be playing a little at matchmaking even if others can’t see it.

There are surprises in the story, secrets and scheming having to do with Peter’s family. Although Peter and Lenora’s relationship is up and down, they are perfect for each other. Unfortunately they have to learn to communicate better.

Ms. Britton is a new-to-me author. I look forward to reading more of her books if this is her caliber of writing.

A Good Duke is Hard to find was a wonderful romance that I couldn't put down. The characters were rich, well developed, and loveable!

After being left at the alter by her third fiancé, Miss Lenora Hartley is at her wit’s end. She’s only sure of her need to escape London and her father’s obsessive determination to find her yet another suitor. She joins her best friend, Margery, and her grandmother, on the Isle of Synne, isolated off Britain’s northern coast. There Lenora can escape society’s judgments and her father’s threats, but she must also face the ghost of her first fiancé and the guilt she feels surrounding his death. Lenora certainly doesn’t expect happiness, but all that changes when she meets a mysterious stranger who causes flutters she’s never experienced before.

Returned to England as the heir to a dukedom he has no interest in, Peter Ashford is only focus on taking his revenge against the man who refused him the aide that could have saved his dying mother. As soon as that’s finished, he plans to return to America with all of his debts wiped clean. But when he inadvertently meets Miss Lenora Hartley, he can’t help his almost immediate attraction to her. He must determine if he can give up his need for revenge in exchange for the happiness that has continually eluded him with the woman he’s come to love.

This was a really sweet story. I loved that Peter was such a grumpy hero and that he showed so much development over the course of the book. I was happy Lenora finally learned to stand up for herself and make her own decisions. This was definitely a slow burn and I think Peter gave up too easily there for a while. I would’ve liked to see more of that tension between Peter and Lenora continue instead of stalling out and restarting later. I also wish Lenora had let go of her secrets and guilt sooner because this got a bit repetitive to read after a while. Similarly, Peter’s focus on his revenge got a bit old and perhaps went on too long. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the emotion in this book and the writing and scenery descriptions were lovely. I was very interested in the supporting characters here and will be continuing this series.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Heat Factor: Blip on the radar
Character Chemistry: I am not buying what they’re selling
Plot: She’s for sale to the highest bidder for her father’s social advancement. He’s only interested in revenge.
Overall: It must be me, because people seem to really like this book, but I just cannot

Have you ever had an acquaintance for whom you held an irrational dislike but all your friends think the same acquaintance is SO NICE?

That’s me with this book. Everywhere, I see people so excited about how charming and lovely A Good Duke is Hard to Find is. It got a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly. Every time I texted Holly and Ingrid, annoyed about something, I was informed that I was probably being just a wee bit unreasonable. I acknowledge all of this. But I honestly could not open the book without gritting my teeth. (Why didn’t I DNF it, you ask? I am, at times, stubborn to a fault.)

We (the book and I) just really got off on the wrong foot. You see, there are some aspects of this story (many aspects of this story) that I find tired. Now, I’ve consumed upwards of 200 romance novels in 6 months, and I have been reading a lot of smut since my teens, so I suppose I’m more likely to be tired than an average reader. If you’re a 40-60 book/year reader, you will probably also find this book charming. The writing is technically very nice. Lovely word choice and text construction. There must be something wrong with me!

For the sake of argument, I will try to dissect my issues. These few things from the early chapters are what started me on the path of dislike:

1. Lenora, our wallowing heroine, has been engaging in self-indulgent guilt since her first fiance died because she killed him because she didn’t love him enough. (He died in an accident.) She doesn’t deserve happiness!

2. Peter, our grumpy hero, is never going to get married or have children because he’s been seeking revenge against the duke “responsible for his mother’s death” (true? not true? IDK, doesn't matter) since he was thirteen, and as the heir, twisting up his own life is the best way to get that revenge.

3. Peter and Lenora keep exchanging confidences that they never share with anyone else because … I’m honestly not sure why. They start doing it before they actually have an emotional connection. Honestly, it just starts because Lenora’s being nice and asking a question. (But it’s so meaningful!)

The other aspect of this story that frustrated me was that common generic scenes were deployed, and I felt that they were exclusively present to create specific opportunities for the protagonists to engage with each other. Which is a ridiculous thing to think, because that’s, like, how every book works. In this case, I think my beef was that I felt that the scenes were created to throw the protagonists together, but other avenues to the same end result that might occur more naturally (except that they didn’t throw the protagonists together) were not addressed. To me, the progression didn’t feel natural and organic, it felt like, “OH! OF COURSE that’s what we’re doing right now. Because how else can we possibly show that these two are connecting?”

Take, for example, the dancing lesson:

Lady Tesh has bargained with Peter to the tune of dinner parties and dances. Does Lady Tesh consider whether or not Peter can dance? Apparently not, until she is actually with him at the ball. Peter is also staying at Lady Tesh’s residence with his best friend of 13-ish years. Peter’s friend knows that they are attending dinner parties and dances. Does he talk to Peter about being able to dance? Don’t be ridiculous! He doesn’t care in the least about Peter’s ability to dance until he’s given the opportunity to speculate about where Peter learned to dance at the ball.

No, no! The only person who gives the least thought to whether or not Peter knows how to dance is, of course, Lenora, who surreptitiously ascertains Peter’s ability and offers to teach him after hours. Oh la la! And so, three days before the ball, under the cover of darkness, Peter and Lenora meet. And she teaches him three dances in two hours. That’s it. And he dances without grace but also without making any mistakes at the ball after one two-hour lesson, during which time the only music was Lenora humming, and there were no other couples to form the squares.

And if anyone else had given any consideration to Peter’s dancing--even if he’d said he was hiding his lack of skill from his best friend!--I wouldn’t have cared. But as it was, I felt that the only reason the whole thing was present was to get the characters from A to B, and it felt contrived. Also this is their opportunity for a first kiss because of course it is. Why else would there need to be a scene where they’re dancing in the dark?

I could delve deeper into every “WTF is even going on right now?” moment that I experienced, but that would be a waste of my time and yours. Suffice it to say that the dancing interlude was not the only time I asked the question, “But WHY tho?”

Bullet points for your further consideration, to save us all some time:
- I’m not convinced Lenora and Peter really know each other at all. They spend most of the book refusing to communicate about the things that are actually important to their relationship. AND THEN PETER PROPOSES BECAUSE WHY WOULDN’T YOU ASK SOMEONE TO MARRY YOU AFTER REFUSING TO TALK TO HER FOR 11 CHAPTERS?
- The secondary characters are only developed and present insofar as they are needed to advance the plot/hover/scold.
- These characters make truly incredible leaps of logic and understanding.
- Given the choice between being an asshole or not being an asshole, Peter chooses asshole nearly every time.
- Lenora’s best friend treats her like a child. It was unappealing in the extreme. Don’t check a grown woman’s temperature and then say with surprise, “You feel fine!” when she’s already said she’s fine.
- Meddling matchmakers who concoct schemes that result in public scenes are not cute. That’s totally crappy behavior. Yeah, yeah, it’s all meaningful that Lenora isn’t worried about appearances anymore, but there is no reason that anybody, including all the bystanders, need to be subjected to a public discussion of what is, at its core, a private reconciliation.
- Peter thinks Lenora “could chase away the demons, bring a peace and contentment into his life he would never have dreamed possible just a week ago.” And I have concerns about love as a happiness cure when people are unwilling to do the heavy internal lifting, because other people can contribute to one’s happiness, but at the end of the day, all that happiness and contentment is sourced internally.

Am I unreasonable? Sure, fine. I’ll take it. Every book doesn’t have to be for everybody. This one apparently wasn’t for me, but if you aren’t exhausted by an overabundance of tropes that reinforce generic verisimilitude seven ways to Sunday, you might really enjoy this book.

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. We disclose this in accordance with 16 CFR §255.

This review is also available at The Smut Report.