A most proper duke and his matchmaker...

It feels like forever since Jennifer Haymore had a new book out. This one is worth the long wait.
Joanna Porter is 27 and a successful matchmaker who loves love.
Matthew, the Duke of Crestmont (ever so proper and austere), is ready to marry the next eligible young lady, just to be over his search for a bride. He doesn't believe in love (tried it once, not going there again). So, he seeks out Mrs. Porter's matchmaking services, ready to order up a bride, any amiable bride, he can marry in three weeks, so as to not disrupt his schedule.

It was so much fun reading the banter between Matthew and Jo. Clever, funny, snappy and engaging.
Highly recommend, watching Jo puMatthew in his place time and again.

This romance was a fun time!
I really liked the main characters and their dynamic. Matchmaking plots can be hit or miss but I think Haymore does a good job here. The stakes are raised which adds to the drama, and kept my turning the page to see what would happen next.
I liked that the couple spent a lot of time together and shared interests. It was nice to see Matthew share his love of weather and rowing with Jo. I think this helped build their relationship a lot and made me want to root for them.
The steamy scenes were good but I would have liked a bit more variety. (That could just be my personal taste though).
Overall this was a wonderful Regency romance that was a lot of fun to read. Can't wait to see who Haymore writes about next.

I really enjoyed this story. Told in dual POV, the reader follows the Duke’s attempt to find a perfect Duchess by enlisting the help of a matchmaker. There was humor, angst, steam and good pacing. All the characters and situations felt realistic and relateable. I wonder if there will be more stories from this author involving Matthew’s friends? If so, sign me up!

The Duke’s Rules of Engagement is a Regency-era historical romance featuring a matchmaker and a duke. The Duke has very strict rules about who he wants in a wife, but he can’t stop thinking about the lively and lovely matchmaker.

I liked this historical romance because it dealt with challenging the societal norms of the Regency period.

Read if you like historical romances with humor and a little bit of steam.

3.5 rounded up

A very entertaining book.
Spoiler alerts.
This book is about a young-ish lady who is trying to support herself and her family on a small income as a matchmaker. She takes her job very seriously and can guarantee that her couples will love, support and be devoted to each other. She had recently matched a friend to an aristocrat, but she has a new client, and if she can match him, then her business will boom. Her new client is our hero. He is a duke and is looking for the perfect wife. He is very stiff and emotionless and has a complex that leads him to be arrogant. But he also responds to people being nice. He is constantly surrounded by people who want to be with him because he is a duke. He wants his match to be someone "...who can perform the duties of the Duchess of Crestmont. Perfectly, of course.". As a duke, he is perfectly ducal, but as a man he is obtuse. He met the heroine and was upset that she wasn't older and married. When she asked his about his preferences, he was very shallow. The hero did not want a match, he just wanted a bride. The heroine has her work cut out for her, and after the first meeting, while she is thinking about her strategy to find him the perfect duchess, her cousin is jilted by her true love. He doesn't say why, but with in a few days, the heroine corners her cousin's ex-fiance and finds out he jilted her cousin because he is bankrupt (due to his father) with four younger sisters and has to marry a rich bride. After working towards having to solve the hero's match and her cousin's heartbreak, she realizes one of her cousin's ex-fiance's sister would be a perfect match, a young lady raised as the sister of an earl, to be a perfect match for a duke or prince. So, it couldn't be easier, just match them. The duke would not be interested in an older spinster who has to support her family, right? Nevermind all of those butterflies that she has when she looks at him while he isn't looking at her. The heroine is surprised at the feeling she gets when she thinks of the hero and his possible match.
This story was enjoyable and comfortable to read. It was well written and the characters were likeable. The story was intact and didn't stray off into a dangling plot. The story is mainly played out in ballrooms and mansions and that lifestyle. I liked this story because it was about the hope of a young lady who believes in love and is smart enough to find it for herself and others. I enjoy HEA's and look for them. I gave this book 5 stars and recommend reading.

A duke falls in love with the matchmaker he hired to find him a wife.

I loved the grumpy/sunshine story. Matthew was so funny with his haughty, aloof air—acting as if he could acquire a wife the same way he acquired a waistcoat. Joanna put him in his place, showing a spirit he rarely encountered. These two are a perfect match!

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

This book was kind of a blast! I love the idea of seeing a matchmaker during this time when titles and money seem to rule marriage matches was great.

Now Jo (the matchmaker) and Matthew (the Duke) were so good to watch together. The Duke had to thaw a bit and he got more comfortable around Jo mostly, I think, because of her fun personality!

It had to be the most awkward feeling to fall for a client of this kind. But it was such a fun journey to see these two fall for each other!

4 🌟's!

📝 tropes: duke x matchmaker, businesswoman, mutual pining, angst, class diff, workplace rom
🌶 spice: 3/5

very pleasantly surprised at how much i enjoyed this one omg!! i am honestly growing to love the microtrope/character trope of matchmakers because it brings forth so much angst and pining from both parties I LOVE IT. it made this so addicting to read and i found myself keep coming back to it, so much so i finished it in 2 days :)

my only qualm i had with this is the last 20% of it dragged for me a bit and i was skimming but overall, i loved the other 80% and definitely think that if the matchmaker trope is something you're interested in, you'll definitely want to check this one out!

also, was kind of surprised at how steamy this was :000 no complaints ofc.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to the publisher Entangled: Amara for this e-ARC via Netgalley. Releases September 27th, 2022!

The Duke's Rules of Engagement by Jennifer Haymore
⭐⭐⭐

This was a cute romance about Jo, who works as a matchmaker to support her mom and good friend, Lilly. Jo fiercely believes in love and that is her goal with her matchmaking and has been successful so far. Then the Duke of Crestmont comes looking for help. He does not believe in love after a disaster earlier in life when he thought he was in love. Shenanigans ensue. It was a light read with no surprises. I am wondering if this will be part of a series as the Duke has a couple of friends that were mentioned a lot in this book. If you are looking for a light, cute romance with some sexy scenes, this is for you.

Thank you to #NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Jo is a matchmaker hired by Matthew, the Duke of Crestmont, to find him a wife. As you can probably guess Jo and Matthew fall in love despite Jo finding him the perfect wife. I had some difficulty getting past Matthew wanting to have sex with Jo numerous times despite the fact that he was still expecting her to find him a wife.

It has been a long time since I read a Jennifer Haymore book. I have always loved her books and it was so great to see her back at writing - she is such a talent. This is a feel good, fun good. I know this is a romance, but as your reading this you have to wonder if Matthew and Jo will find their HEA (of course they will but still…). Man did Jennifer get me at the end of this story, I had to get out the tissues. Such a great book!

I can see where Matthew’s friends get their own books. These guys camaraderie is so refreshing to read.

Joanna Porter…a spinster who finds love matches for others, has a warm and confidante persona, has just landed a most important and impressive client.
Matthew Leighton…Duke of Crestmont, has a cold and impersonal persona, and is in need of a wife. This is definitely an enemies to lovers story but with a twist. There is also an underlying passion for meteorology in the story. The h wholly believes in love and strives to match each couple with this precept in mind. The H does not believe in love and just wants a suitable wife, but learns that the h does not match make without a thorough interview of the match seeker. The H and h each have their own agenda and the mind set that they will be the victor in the “battle” for finding the perfect duchess. There is some steam.

The One Matchmaker and the Duke:
Let me say that I enjoyed this story very much. An engaging story that has all the pleasures one could want while reading this romance story.
The entire cast of characters were totally intriguing and made the story speed along smoothly, but there were a few big bumps in the road I had a few Oh No 's some Yes, yes, yes's and some Oh My's, before Jo and Matthew would discover their happy ending.
The epilogue made this heartfelt emotional story completely enjoyable to the end.
A shout out for the duke's loyal and street savvy friend Jameson. I would love to read about him in a future book.
Adult Advisory:
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy.
All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book was so much tropey fun. We’ve got Matthew, Duke of Crestford, who hires a matchmaker to find him the perfect, proper Duchess. He swears he’ll never fall in love so that’s not a requirement. Of course, the one woman he’s actually attracted to is the matchmaker herself, Joanna, who is nothing like the list of accomplishments he wants in a wife. She even - gasp! - works for a living. Society dictates they should never be together, and it’s obvious from the start that we’re in for a fun ride to see how they get past that.

In spite of the familiar tropes (which I loved, don’t get me wrong), there’s enough here to make the characters and story feel unique. Matthew and Joanna have so much in common, including a shared love of meteorology, which I can definitively say I’ve never seen in a book before. The progression of their relationship felt so natural, the pacing wonderful. It wasn’t love at first sight, and that made it feel stronger when it finally happened.

I loved the supporting characters, especially Matthew’s three best friends in his rowing club. I don’t know if this is the start of a series and each of those men will get their own book, but my fingers are crossed. I’d happily read about each of them.

I could sit here and criticize the third act conflict as something that could have been resolved faster with a simple conversation, but that’s not a knock on this book. It’s a knock on all third act conflicts everywhere. But I will give this book bonus points for featuring a hero who knows he’s in love BEFORE the inevitable conflict, rather than realizing it as a result. It was a refreshing change of pace.

Rule number one of being a matchmaker? Never fall for your client.

Of course, rules are made to be broken which is why The Duke’s Rules of Engagement is so entertaining. Jennifer Haymore spins a delightful yarn of a London matchmaker who manages to break through the walls of a duke’s heart.

Joanna Porter loves love, even though she’s never found it for herself. When the Duke of Crestmont comes to her doorstep seeking the perfect duchess, she knows this will be her most challenging client yet. The duke doesn’t want a love match, which goes against everything Jo stands for. To find him the ideal wife, Jo has to first get past the duke’s walls. The only problem with that is she soon finds herself falling for a man who could never wed someone like her.

Jo is an endearing heroine. She’s kind, determined, and just a good person you’d want as a friend. I love that she made a successful matchmaking business in Regency London and that she really worked to find the perfect partner for her clients. Matthew, the impossible-to-please duke in question, has a marshmallow heart behind his stone walls. He was hurt badly in the past and seeks to keep himself from experiencing that kind of pain ever again. He knows he needs to marry and beget an heir, but none of the perfect ladies Jo introduces him can tempt him when the matchmaker herself is so distracting. Matthew is a handsome duke, yes, but he’s also quietly vulnerable and a bit of a geek; I loved how Jo also became fascinated by his interests. The two of them simply fit, if they could ignore class differences long enough to see that they’re perfect for one another.

The Duke’s Rules of Engagement is a wonderfully entertaining historical romance and Haymore makes it easy to be swept up in Jo and Matthew’s love story. It’s not all smooth sailing for these two, but the happily ever after makes it worth it. This is the first book I’ve read by Jennifer Haymore and I look forward to reading more by her, especially if the books involve Matthew’s best friends.

This was just a miss for me. I didn't connect with the characters, the romance didn't make me swoon and the pacing was bogged down by lengthy descriptions that I ended up skimming most of.

Will he understand what is right in front of him is the answer to everything he never asked…

This is my first read by the author, so I was curious how will she revisit the common scheme of the working heroine and the titled peer.
I liked Joanna immediately, a romantic in the heart, a woman who might never the chance to cross love but who knows it does exist, a precious spark to protect and nurture.
Enter Crestmont, he requires her services for all the wrong reason, still it would be quite a coup to fulfill a lofty peer’s search for a bride.
At first, she tries to break through his reserve until a scheme that will help many persons around her form in her mind.
He will get his perfect duchess, her friend will have her Beau and his family shall be rescued from the pauper house.
Crestmont after one heartbreaking attempt to the altar has put the heart sentiment aside, an amiable well breed lady is now all he requires, be it she must not see him as a means to an end, if possible but it will be an sort of exchange of services.
Yet the way he lists his requirements, it is very much a transaction as no feelings are to be expected, only an exchange for every qualities to make the up to his standards duchess he demands.

I liked watching Jo breaks his defenses, a bit less the last curveball thrown at them, as I did not see the real wrong she had done by matching him with a lovely lady with his required attributes when he from the start told her it would not be love match, so the potential spouse he demanded for which she would gain nothing directly.
So her return in his good Grace lacked a bit of groveling on his side for me.
4 stars

𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹 onscreen lovemaking scenes

I have been granted an advance copy by the publisher, here is my true and unbiased opinion.

4.5 stars, rounded up

After the death of her father, Joanna “Jo” Porter moved her family to London and started a matchmaking service. Over the years, her reputation for excellent matches has grown and she is now very sought-after and is able to support her family. If that means that she is destined to be alone, so be it, at least her dearest friend and companion, Lilly has made a love match and is expecting a proposal any day. But when Lilly’s beau Charles suddenly ends their courtship, Lilly is heartbroken and Jo is furious. Jo confronts Charles and learns the truth – he loves Lilly, but he is broke and has five sisters to dower, so he needs a rich bride, but sadly, Lilly has no dowry, so he broke things off with her. Jo understands his dilemma, but she is heartbroken for Lilly. But when Matthew Leighton, the Duke of Crestmont hires Jo to find him a “perfect duchess” and insists that he doesn’t believe in love and he certainly isn’t looking for a love match, Jo wonders if she can kill two birds with one stone by matching the duke with Charles’ sister, Harriet, she would make a perfect duchess, and then Charles will be able to marry Lilly – it’s perfect! What could possibly go wrong?

Matthew is intrigued by the matchmaker and to his complete surprise, he finds himself telling her things that he has only told his closest friends. He tells her of hobbies and his parent's death and his grief, he even tells her of the girl who pulled him out of despair, showed him love, and then crushed his heart all over again, when his uncle revealed her deception. Heartbroken once again, Matthew decided then and there, that there would be no love for him, but he needs an heir and for that, he needs a wife and he decides that Harriet will make an acceptable duchess. Jo can’t believe that he doesn’t want love and hopes that he will find love with Harriet. But the more time they spend together, the more they dread his eventual betrothal to Harriet. Will Matthew let his heart take a chance on love or will the past repeat itself and leave him heartbroken yet again?

This was a well-written, fast-paced story with a familiar trope, wrapped in fresh ideas. Jo and Matthew are both very likable characters and have instant chemistry. I really enjoyed Matthew’s hobbies of rowing and meteorology – those are things that I don’t recall ever reading about before and it was an interesting and fun change from the “norm”. This book is filled with secrets, great secondary characters, steamy love scenes, the most uncomfortable chair in London, a little heartache, a duke getting a dressing down, and finally a HEA complete with an epilogue. This was a fun start to a new series and now I am anxiously awaiting the next book in the series and wonder who will be the next Rowing Club Lion to find their HEA!

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own.*

4.5 stars
The Duke of Crestmont has decided that it's time he marry and in order to get it done quickly so he can retire to the country at the end of the season he hires matchmaker Joanna. Joanna excels at making love matches for her clients which makes the duke a challenge as he doesn't even care if he really likes his wife as long as she will be the perfect duchess.
Joanna is a big believer in love and the fact that the duke doesn't feel the same makes her all the more determined to see him fall in love and if she can get him to fall for the right woman maybe her best friends love life will work out like she hopes at the same time.
It was a lot of fun watching her trying to crack his shell and find his feelings and him slowly falling for her efforts and then them falling for each other. It took me a few chapters to get into this story because it felt very familiar, but the characters are great and the story line was fun, it managed to make me laugh and got me a bit misty eyed at one point as well.

You really have to suspend disbelief with this one. The duke in question needs a wife so he can get an heir and a spare. But he’s determined not to love his future wife, because….reasons. His parents really loved each other but died tragically and he had a bad teenage romance so he’s sworn off love forever. I guess I’m really tired of the protagonist swearing off love, especially with such weak sauce for reasons. We all know that the protagonist will change his or her mind just in time for the HEA and it seems like such an artificial plot device.

So the Duke hires a matchmaker, a charming, smart, and kind woman who comes from the very minor gentry. She has to work to support her family. But somehow this woman living on the very outskirts of society can make money matching up people in the society that she barely inhabits. How is she supposed to compile lists of possible mates? I guess that she decides that the best idea is to match the duke with a woman whose marriage will help her best friend make her desired match. I bet you can predict what is going to happen from there.

I just didn’t buy the plot and was impatient with how seemingly blind everyone was to what was happening.
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book that I received from Netgalley; however, the opinions are my own and I did not receive any compensation for my review.