Last Duke Standing by Julia London is fabulous! Humor, grit, and scandalous...this read will hook and leave readers addicted for more future reads by this talented writer! Historical romance to keep on one's shelf for sure!

I have read Julia London's books for years and she never disappoints, and neither did this book!
Last Duke Standing is the first in the new A Royal Match series and it's a brilliant start, this series is going to be soooo good, I can't wait to read more.
Well-written, charming and dynamic characters, lots of witty banter, laughter, scandal, emotion and pure heart. I thoroughly enjoyed the story, it is as always with Julia London's books are delightful and incredibly easy to read I whisked through it and was sorry when it finished but I am looking forward to the next.
This is loosely connected with the A Royal Wedding series, but you really don't need to read them in order for this is a solid standalone.
Cheerful and good fun!

Julia London did it again. This story drew me in and I ended up staying all night to finish the book.

A few things that I loved most about the book is how the characters were written. None of the characters are perfect, which makes them feel more relatable. The main characters, Crown Princess Justine of Wesloria and Lord William Douglas, aren’t an immediate live at first site. A reader will go from loci my them to wanting to shake them (everyone loves a little drama).

Finally I loved that the main character was a Crown Princess and there was focus on the difficulty that a young female ruler would encounter from external and internal forces. It was refreshing seeing the female lead being in a more powerful position/rank then the male character.

Overall this was a great read and highly recommend.

I enjoyed this audiobook and I thought the narrator Justin Hill did a good job voicing the different characters. I liked the various suitors and their unsuitable personalities that were brought in only to be rejected as the romance and trust between William and Justine developed. The ending had a different twist to it that was a nice surprise and I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.

It’s Victorian England and Princess Justine Ivanosen, heir to Wesloria, is en route to London to learn all things Queen from the formidable Queen Victoria. In London, there’s a matchmaker, Lady Lila, who is tasked with finding Justine a suitable match. Justine isn’t really excited about this possibility and wants to return home to her ailing father. Enter William Douglas, a future Duke from Scotland, who is assigned to be her escort when she meets with possible husbands. However, Justine and William have a past as they have met years ago and let’s just say it wasn’t good. As they spend more time together though, she realizes William isn’t so bad and perhaps they share some chemistry, too? But can they really be a match? His reputation isn’t good and Justine must marry well.

Fans of royal romances will especially like Last Duke Standing by Julia London; it’s the first installment in the new A Royal Match series. It was a bit too princess-y for me at times, but the drama surrounding the monarchy was too much fun to resist.

This book did nothing for me. I usually love historical romances but I struggled to make it through this one. I don't know if it was because Justine was from a make believe country or the annoying younger sister but it just did not click with me. I liked the premise but the middle of the book just dragged. It didn't help that the hero's Scottish brogue had me slowing down to read and decipher each and every word he said. I did think Justine was very immature and I got so tired of her whining about having to become queen. I have zero sympathy for the poor little rich girl I did appreciate that Justine and William developed a friendship before pursing a relationship, but that was about all that worked for me.

Fantastic story that got me hooked from the very beginning which doesn’t surprise me because I love Julia Landon’s books .

I do highly recommend .

William and Justine are so much fun!! What woman in any position wouldn't want a man, lover, to always be completely honest with her? Justone just wasn't used to anyone talking to her like William did, but she came to realize she liked it and it gave her courage to be the queen she was meant to be.

Each of their interactions had me grinning and several had me laughing out loud. Seeing William not pull any punches and be true to his word was lovely. Watching Justine fight aganst it and then come to treasure it and seeing her gain her own confidence was heartwarming. What a position to be in, never being totally sure who you can trust and siccophants always at your elbow.

Watching the parade of suitors was hilarious, all hopeless for one reason or another, until the Prince. At first I wasn't sure about Lady Alekander and her abilities, then I saw through it and realized what she was up to. She is a character I hope to see more of.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book through NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

I’m sure I’ve mentioned before on the ol’ interwebs that it took a ridiculously long while before I realized I should be reading historical romances. I love romances and I love historical fiction. So why not read the two together in one convenient package? It took a pandemic and Bridgerton before I started thinking seriously about the genre and I’ve read a number over the last couple of years. Last Duke Standing was one of the latest and I had never read any of Julia London’s books before so thought I’d start with a new series that sounded like a lot of fun. Ultimately that’s what it was, fun and entertaining enough for a quick weekend read.

Here’s the book’s description:
When Crown Princess Justine of Wesloria is sent to England to learn the ropes of royalty, she falls under the tutelage of none other than Queen Victoria herself. Justine’s also in the market for a proper husband—one fit to marry the future queen of Wesloria.
Because he knows simply everyone, William, Lord Douglas (the notoriously rakish heir to the Duke of Hamilton seat in Scotland, and decidedly not husband material), is on hand as an escort of sorts. William has been recruited to keep an eye on the royal matchmaker for the Weslorian prime minister, tasked to ensure the princess is matched with a man of quality…and one who will be sympathetic to the prime minister’s views. As William and Justine are forced to scrutinize an endless parade of England’s best bachelors, they become friends. But when the crowd of potential grooms is steadily culled, what if William is the last bachelor standing?
My biggest issue with this book was that I could not for the life of me figure out what, exactly, Justine and William hated each other. Their backstory was explained multiple times but only the barest of details were really revealed. Maybe it was just my brain but I couldn’t understand how a game of musical chairs gone wrong meant they despised each other but also were both attracted to each other? There was supposed to be some history between the two of them and it just didn’t make any sense to me.




Even though I’m not a fan of the reformed rake story, I absolutely loved William. I liked how London wrote him as I could tell he had had some fun in his youth (he’s in his early thirties in the story) but I also knew that he was an upstanding guy who cared a lot about his family and making sure the estate was looked after. I really liked him as a hero and liked that the story was told partially from his perspective.

Justine on the other hand…she was harder to get a read on. I really liked her but I didn’t feel like I got to know her as well as William. I also admit I may have struggled with the fact that she was supposed to be so clueless of her beauty, brains, and charm because her mother was constantly putting her down and comparing her to her more vivacious sister (who was supposed to be Justine’s closest confidante but she was so young and idiotic that I struggled with her too). I knew Justine was a wonderful, strong, capable woman and would make a fantastic queen, and William knew that too but Justine did not. It could be that it’s to be expected when you’re raised knowing you’re going to be the ruler of your country after your father dies. That’s a lot to deal with and I felt Justine’s struggle. But I think I just needed more.

Even though I didn’t understand the history behind Justine and William’s feelings for each other, I did very much enjoy reading as they got to know each other as adults. Their feelings grew and changed and it was fun to read along as they realized they had managed to fall in love with each other. It made the Happily Ever After very satisfying.




All in all, Last Duke Standing was fine. I had fun reading it but I don’t think I’ll be picking up the next book in the series. I’ll have to try another of Julia London’s novels in the future, though, and see if perhaps I just need another couple to make me fall in love with her writing.

*An egalley of this novel was provided by the publisher, Harlequin, via NetGalley in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I had a little bit of trouble getting into this book at first because the pace is slow in the beginning. But then it got better from there and I started to really like it.

LAST DUKE STANDING is the first book in the A ROYAL MATCH series. It’s a historical romance set in Wesloria and London. The book is a little slow when I started, but once I got into it, it has a nice flow.

Crown Princess Justine is sent to London where she will meet with Queen Victoria as well as a matchmaker. Princess Justine must find a husband soon since her father, the king, is very ill. She’ll become the queen of Wesloria upon his death.

William, a Scot, is tasked by her prime minister and his father to help find her a husband. Justine isn’t keen on the idea but she and William do have chemistry and keep getting drawn together, especially when he keeps nixing her matches. I laughed out loud a few times since the matches were so not worthy of being the prince consort, and many did not realize they would not be king when Justine rose to power.

The Scottish and Weslorian words that are sprinkled throughout give the proper flavor to the story. Princess Justine’s relationship with her sister is lovely and funny, though their chaperones are hard to like. The book is filled with beautiful and vivid descriptions of the culture and countryside. There is some closure with the epilogue that takes place one month later back in Wesloria. And the love story is well-told with rich characters.

Ms. London is an author whose books I’ve enjoyed, whether contemporary romances or historical. I look forward to reading more of her books.

I liked this book at first, but it seemed to fall apart toward the end. I adored Justine, William, Lila, even Amelia, which surprised the heck out of me, and I loved watching Justine and William banter and fall in love. But once Lila entered the story and started introducing Justine to dickbags on purpose, the plot seemed to get a bit out of hand. It got more and more frustrating that Justine, William, and Lila all had the same goal but were working against each other when they should have been working together. Then that big bad secret of William's seemed tacked on at the end like an afterthought, and Beck and his family were almost more endearing and interesting than the actual protags, and the overall execution of the story wound up being a little messy. Regardless, I liked the book, loved the characters, and found it quite entertaining.

This book was an absolute delight and exactly what I needed. It touched my heart with its depth of emotion, had me snickering over snarky banter, and laughing out loud with its well-placed humor.

London's characters were well developed and portrayed so vividly that they seemed to leap from the pages. I felt an immediate affinity with William though it took me longer to warm up to Justine. I liked that, as it allowed me to experience her growing self-confidence once she was out from under the pressure of the "minders" in her country. It was fun (sometimes hilariously so) to watch these two come to terms with their growing feelings with each disastrous marriage candidate the matchmaker presented to Justine. It was heart-tugging to experience the emotional peaks and valleys as they faced challenging obstacles in their paths. But that's what made the conclusion of their journey, William's unexpected gesture, and Justine's confident strength, so swoon worthy and satisfying.

Last Duke Standing is loosely connected to London's A Royal Wedding trilogy and it is in these books that we first meet William and Justine, as secondary characters in A Princess by Christmas. London inserts details of their previous encounters in such a way that readers should be able to begin their story in this new book without missing any of the nuances of their previous encounters. However, if want to experience those earlier encounters or you're intrigued by some of the secondary characters in Last Duke Standing, specifically Donovan, the male governess (though he prefers governor) to Beck's daughters, you may want to check out these books: The Princess Plan, A Royal Kiss & Tell, and A Princess by Christmas.

4.5 Stars
ARC received for fair and unbiased review

Julia London is fantastic at what she does and this book is no exception. The premise was fantastic and loved the bevy of side characters she included.
Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review.

The Last Duke Standing by Julia London was a delightful ‘enemies to lovers’ historical romance. I enjoyed Crown Princess Justine’s character. She was witty but also uncomfortable in large crowds. The banter between her and William was fun.
William was perfect for her.
I enjoyed the scenes with the matchmaker. The matchmaker brings in quite the characters for Justine to meet. William was more than happy to share is unsolicited opinion of each of the bachelors. And the bet regarding how accurate William was on his assessment was charming.
I had not read the other books; but it appears that some of the secondary characters were from other books.
I would recommend the series and I look forward to her sister Amelia finding her match.
Sexual content – two intimate scenes
Language – 2

A Royal Match Book One.
Follows the A Royal Wedding series.

Justine Crown Princess of Wesloria is being forced to search for a husband due to her father's ill health, but Jus has a hard time being around other people. She needs glasses to see up close and crowds make her anxious. After her one romantic engagement ended in scandal, the Queen decides to send Jus to Queen Victoria for a mentorship. Under the care of Victoria, a matchmaker and her sister, yet another companion is forced upon her in the form of William, Lord Douglas. William pushes her and becomes a comfort to her as they spend more and more time together. How can she possibly resist him?

If you're looking for an enemies-to-friends-to lovers story with cameos from previous series, this is the book for you!

Audio Review:
Justin Hill creates a world with many different people. He even gets to bring out an American accent!

I enjoyed Last Duke Standing by Julia London and as the first book in the series, anyone can pick this up!

The characters were well developed and I couldn't help feeling Justine's pain. She is continually compared to others and in the end, just needs someone to support her as she is. William was great and I loved how they were with each other. His role of keeping an eye on the royal matchmaker definitely was interesting and I thought his letters were one of the best parts of the story as it allowed the reader to get that bit of the story that we wouldn't have experienced otherwise.

I also thought the story flowed well. It was a fairly quick read and I will definitely pick up the next book in the series as I'm curious to see what happens with Justine's sister.

I thought that this was a very fun read. This slow burning romance between Justine and William kept me engaged and invested with its entertaining combination of witty dialog, cuteness, charm, drama, sweetness, humor, twist and heart. I thought William was decidedly swoon worthy and my heart was a bit achy for Justine. I felt they made a really wonderful couple that fit beautifully together.

Justine is witty and well read. She can do so many things that most women don't do. She fences, this is where William spots her on their second encounter. The first was a disaster many years ago. This time she has to find a husband. William has been tasked with looking after Justine to make sure she gets a suitable husband. He loathes the idea. She wants nothing to do with him. As they look for suitable prospects, things take a turn. They both begin making bets with one another. It turns out they don't dislike one another as much as they once thought.

A royal romance that is no Cinderella story

Finely drawn characters, a bit of snarky conversation and a delightful matchmaker are the key ingredients for success Julia London’s new title, LAST DUKE STANDING.

Crown Princess Justine has always known she must be queen of Wesloria one day. She has been groomed for the role, but some of the duties literally make her sick. She is sent to England to learn from Queen Victoria — and to find a husband.

The typical machinations of court are included, which means that William, Lord Douglas, will be her escort. The two met years ago when Justine was a teen and a bit of a brat. These two pick up where they left off with animosity run amok.

London does a beautiful job showing us where Justine is nervous about her role and how her response to that brings out the snark. Williams has his own secret shames that affect his life, too.

When our delightful matchmaker arrives — hired by Justine’s mother — our plot takes off and it’s a rousing ride to the final HEA for our couple.

LAST DUKE STANDING is Book 1 of London’s new A Royal Match series. This new series takes place in the same universe as her earlier A Royal Wedding series, but those books are not necessary to enjoy this book.