A Duke for Miss Townbridge by Sophie Barnes is a lighthearted story of how Miss Sarah Townbridge teaches Matthew, the Duke of Brunswick, how to love and how to live. When the Duke suddenly and unexpectedly proposes to Sarah, without having met or engaged with, Sarah turns down his proposal. As the Duke chases after Sarah, he learns to court, love, and find joy along the way.

This was a sweet and easy romance to read, and Sophie Barnes is definitely one of the better writers of historical romance. Recommended!

Nice read in a one sitting book. William just returned home after a year in Portugal. His family is so excited to see him again! William is happy to be home but a little leery about his matchmaking mama. He is thrilled with the new French cook Eloise cooking....simply delicious! He goes in search for a late night snack and couldn’t believe the beauty in the kitchen. Sparks fly and society rules get in the way. There is no way a Noble can be with a hired help. Or is there?

Matthew Donovan, Duke of Brunswick, has been searching for a wife for 2 years and has set his cap at Miss Sarah Townsbridge even though he's never been introduced to her. When he shows up unexpectedly at a Townsbridge house party and with no preamble proposes to Sarah. She's shocked, but soon recovers enough to reject the duke's offer. Sarah is humiliated when all the other men at the party distance from her. She's furious at Brunswick until she learns his back story and decides that she can help him overcome a childhood trauma.

I enjoyed this story and loved Sarah. I was glad to see that Sarah stand her ground and not kowtow to the duke. She was generous and compassionate as she agrees to a plan to get to know him. I felt bad for Brunswick, but his treatment of Sarah was appalling. Through her patience and compassion, Brunswick will finally learn to open his heart to love.

I enjoyed reading this book. While it was a little more "graphic" (and even then not really) than I am used to reading in a romance novel (I typically stick to clean romances), I enjoyed the storyline and getting to see both characters' perspectives on their situations. This was my first introduction to the Townbridge family and series, and after reading this one, I will read the others. Sarah Townsbridge is on the cusp of becoming a spinster. She loves a good project, especially when it comes to fixing something or, in this case, someone. However, other than knowing that the Duke is her neighbor, she knows absolutely nothing about him and he proposes to her! Matthew Donovan, the Duke of Brunswick, has a tortured soul, and knows he can never love anyone because he fears the loss due to his past. He knows he must marry and provide an heir and hastily decides his neighbor, Sarah, is the right woman. He believes she is independent, quiet, will keep to herself, and, most importantly, will not need his companionship or love. It is fun watching the grow closer to each other and find their happy ending, together.

I received a free ARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

4.5

Matthew, the Duke next door who's never even spoken to Sarah or her family in all the years he's lived there, decides Sarah would be the perfect wife for him. Sarah's just about too old to be considered marriageable. Just when eligible men are finally paying attention to her, Matthew proposes to her... In front of all her prospects! Sarah turns him down, and thus begins the merriment! Is he chasing her, or is she chasing him? He thinks he can hide all his pain from her, but he's underestimated just how perfect she is for him, and try as he might, she always succeeds in penetrating his walls. (I could've done without the love scene, but I just skipped those couple of pages.) It was a fast paced page turner and I really enjoyed it!

This is book 4 in Sophie's series. Although I did not read the previous installments I had no trouble at all understanding the premise of the story. It was a very good read with great characters, lovely romance and humor. I fully intend to read the first three books. This was a wonderful and entertaining read!

What is a girl to do but say no when a Duke proposes marriage out of the blue? For Sarah, she wants what her parents have. For Matthew, Sarah will make him the perfect wife, forget about all of that love stuff. But what happens when they fall in love with each other is magical.

Another great romance by Sophie Barnes! Ms. Barnes has become one of my favorite romance writers and her newest book did not disappoint. I was completely drawn in as soon as Matthew proposed to Sarah in the middle of the party. I love that we get POVs from both Sarah and Matthew rather than seeing everything from only Sarah's perspective. I really liked both of these characters and enjoyed following their stories as their relationship grew. I wanted to smack him for leaving her for 5 weeks (!) but loved that she refused to sit at home crying and set out to search for him when it was clear he was not going to be either coming home or sending her any kind of message as to where he was. I will admit that I found some satisfaction when Charles punched Matthew when he ran into him at the hotel. Sarah might be a little too forgiving of some of Matthew's behavior, but that also just shows that she prefers to leave the past behind and focus on the future.

It was great to read Sarah's story in the continuing series of the Townsbridges. Sarah is now on the search for a husband and the reclusive Duke next door, whos been admiring her from afar proposes on the spot-even though they've never formally met. She makes it clear that he's going to have to work for her hand, Then she finds out about his tragic past. Sarah has a history of resuing and healing every sad stray animal that crosses her path, and now she turns her sights on Duke Matthew and decides to turn him into her latest rescue project. Matthew wants to get married but in his experience, love only leads to pain and he isn't ready for that. She will accept nothing less. When his worst fear is realized and he believes he has lost her, he finally realizes she had his heart all along. I loved this story but I was disappointed in the abrupt ending. Still, it was definitely worth the read! I look forward to the next book.

I was captivated from the beginning to the end. Sarah is so kind, gently frank, fanciful yet content, strong-willed and compassionate. I truly felt sorry for the Duke but Sarah is perfect for him. Humorously entertaining take on the escapades of the regency with characters that I absolutely loved reading about and enjoyed getting to know. Excellent, couldn't put it down!! Never a dull moment!

Marrying a stranger is not so unusual, but what if he was your neighbor? Matthew proposes and Sarah declines, but she is intrigued by her reclusive man next door! She decides that in order for her to be able to discover more about him then he has to be willing to get to know her. After a few dates she is thinking that she might be able to fix him, but he is having something else in mind!

Will these two come together? The author takes us on a amusing journey of dialogue that will keep you turning the pages.

I received an advanced copy from NetGalley and these are my willingly given thoughts and opinions.

I received an ARC of "A Duke for Miss Townsbridge" by Sophie Barnes from Netgalley.  Duke Matthew Brunswick has decided that Sarah Townsbridge will be the ideal wife for him. What he doesn't realize is that she is also the only woman who can help him fight his demons. This is a beautiful simple love story... a marriage of convenience that turns into a love marriage. A sweet quick read.

I loved this book! It is part of a series called The Townsbridges, I have not read any other book in this series and I was not lost at all, if anything, I think I would like to read the other books that came before this and the one which is coming after. Sarah Townsbridge’s mother throws a party so Sarah can meet some gentlemen and get married. Sarah really wants a love match. At this party, their neighbor the Duke of Brunswick (Matthew), who she really does not know, and they never talked comes in and says “Marry Me”. Sarah says no, and Matthew is shocked, he thinks, who would not want to marry a Duke? After this awkward meeting, they both decide to get to know each other, and their love story is so enjoyable I could not put the book down until I finished it. Sarah is the perfect partner for Matthew.
I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley for my honest review.

I love this novella series! The Townsbridges are such a wonderful family, I could just read about them all day long! In this book, Sarah suddenly gets proposed to by her next door neighbor who has never spoken to her. Of course, she says no but Matthew is determined to win her over. Sarah has to breakthrough his barriers though before she even considers a future with him. These stories are delightful. If you’re looking for something light & fun to read, I highly recommend these books.

* Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

loved this story of two people so meant for each other but were afraid to pursue that love fearing it would cause pain to others. And even though there were numerous editing issues, it didn’t take away from a great storyline, so I still gave it a 5-star rating!

4.5 stars

A Lively romance. There's a darker, more tragic side to Matthew's searching for a one sided relationship which Sarah understands but is not willing to capitulate. Sarah's parents are a good model of how a marriage can be a meeting of two minds and she is determined that her own marriage will go the same way. I'd not read Sophie Barnes stories before and now I can add her to my" look out for list".

I think you will enjoy this book, it's a series but I didn't find jumping in at the end a problem.

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

This is a short novella. The heroine, Sarah, is a lady who knows her mind and what she wants. She wants a marriage based on love. So when Matthew, Duke of Brunswick, a man she has never met, walks into the middle of a party,goes down on one knee and proposes, Sarah is shocked. Of course she says No. No thank you.
Matthew is determined that she will be his bride, after all he's been observing her for 2 years. And so the love story begins.
A good kind of rushed, condensed story. I enjoyed it. But that's what novellas are, short and abbreviated.
4 stars
I want to thank Netgalley for the chance to review this book.

This is my fair and honest review, voluntarily given and in my own words, for this ARC. I always try to find something good in each and every book I read. In this case, it would be the story. It was an interesting concept. Unfortunately, to me, it was a bit flat.

This was such a cute romantic little read. It was a quick read. I was able to finish it in a couple of hours. The buildup was perfect, the characters were fun. I wish it had been a little longer.

Love Sophie Barnes in general and this is one of the good ones. I like the characters. They are actually people that you would be friends with in real life. They are terrific together. The dialogue sparkles. I had a great time reading time. I finished reading this in one day.