
Member Reviews

Twenty years after his grandmother's death, Wyatt is informed of an addendum to her will. If he doesn't marry by Friday, land and building in downtown London will go to a poetry society. A little odd, yes? Wyatt has reasons to have a grudge against poetry so his friend recommends a woman he's heard of who needs a husband. Fredericka is caring for her deceased sister's three children. Her cousin is threatening to take her to court to gain custody. There is no way a single women would win against her. She needs to marry quickly. Wyatt and Fredericka make an agreement. He will marry her to give her a better chance of keeping the children, he will get his inheritance, and Fredericka will stay in the country, Both leading separate lives. Oh, Wyatt and his friends spend all their time playing in gambling tournaments. Gambling on cards, cricket, shooting, fencing... The money goes to his hospital. Fredericka is prim, prickly, and proper. Taking anything Wyatt says in the wrong way. She loves the children but wants them to be perfect automatons. Just about anything else about her is unlikeable. Growing up, her cousin and sister, who were eight years older, never wanted her around. As an adult she thought no one wanted her around either. Somehow Wyatt, who takes on three kids not his own, gives them each a trust, spends time with them etc. falls in love with the angry and disagreeable Fredericka. There is zero steam and the one sex scene wording is laughable.

This is a marriage of convenience story, and I like those when well done. I found Fredericka aloof, very cold, but she needs to marry in order to keep her dead sisters's children, because her cousin is married and wants them with her. The Duke of Wyatthaven, will lose his inheritance if he doesn't marry by a certain date, thus we have a solution for Fredericka, and the Duke as well.. I think this story would be excellent for young teenagers, and I say that for me, the Duke and the female lead never had any chemistry, she was very aloof, and he was very immature for me, his continual bachelor days, not what you would think most young men would be doing, no, he was hosting at home card games, hmm. His love for the children is endearing, the chemistry between him and Fredericka is non existent. I highly recommend for teenagers.
Thank you #Netgalley
carolintallahassee

Yours Truly, The Duke is a "marriage of convenience" romance that sounded great in the description, but unfortunately falls quite flat in execution. Main characters Fredericka and Wyatt are weakly constructed and have no chemistry -- we are repeatedly told rather than shown that the two feel any attraction for each other, and the minimal love scenes between them lack any steam at all. Primary villain Cousin Jane is equally poorly constructed, with no redeeming qualities to help underscore why Fredericka is so insistent on remaining connected with her at the end of the book. I wanted to like this one so much more than I actually did.

When only marriage will do!
Frederika Hale needs a husband to stall her cousin Jane taking Fredericka’s sister’s children from her. Frederika has had charge of her children for over a year. Jane has never visited or had anything to do with the children but recently having accepted her childless state, has decided she is best situated to bring the children up.
The Duke of Wyatthaven needs a wife or else his grandmother’s fortune goes to a poetry society. The head of that Society is a man who taught Wyatt at Eton. A man who couldn’t punish the young heir to the dukedom, but his friends had no such impediments for the bully.
It was quite hilarious watching the duke and his dukely friends attempting to compose a letter of marriage. Even more amusing was what he ended up with.
It turns out Wyatt is quite an interesting man, far more than I found Frederika to be, who seems hampered by her own childhood insecurities
I enjoyed the duke’s relationship with the children, particularly Bella who called him Uncle, Your Grace, and howled with laughter at the image of the children imitating the duke and his friends holding a card night—complete with card, cheroots and cards. Jane was not amused. Fredericka was undone.
A marriage of convenience tale with some addictions that made for a lively read, although I just wasn’t fully feeling the chemistry between the main protagonists.
A St. Martin’s Press invite via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.

I am a fan of Ms Grey’s writing. Normally I love her stories. Not this one. Her writing as always was well done. Her characters were yucky.
Fredericka was a stick. She was so busy reliving her poor lonely childhood, she was unable to see life in the present. I really got tired of her not listening to Wyatt, or anyone else. And if she had half a brain she would have wanted the children to enjoy life. She also would have fired the incompetent governess.
Wyatt was a duke who lived his life like he was the only person in the world. If one looked for Self Involved in the dictionary, his picture would be the perfect example. He seemed unable to think before he spoke. He was interested in the children and liked them for who they were, which is more than Fredericka seemed able to do.
Neither one of these people were anyone who I wanted to have as a friend. And that meant this book was hard for me to finish.
The 3 children were the only characters I liked. At times they acted like actual children. Doing the wrong things, being silly and mostly being kids. An actual governess would have been all they needed to make their lives better.
Finally, for me, the villainess was ridiculous. There was no reason to continue to allow her to be involved with the children. And there was no way a lower person on the totem pole would defeat a duke. But, most of all, she was over the top hateful, and for Fredericka to allow that in her home was rather dumb.
I look forward to Ms Grey’s next book. I know she will produce something I enjoy. This was not it.
I received this book from the publisher through NetGalley. I am voluntarily writing this review and all opinions are completely my own.

This was the 2nd book I’ve read from Grey, and the first in a new series.
Fredericka Hale (20) is raising her orphaned nieces and nephew and needs a husband, as her cousin (who is unable to have a child) is petitioning for custody. The Duke of Wyatthaven needs a wife in a week to meet his grandmother’s will stipulations. While both feel an immediate attraction, they are often at odds over what’s best for the children. As her cousin makes her move, will they have the chance to overcome their obstacles and become a true family?
I actually liked Wyatt’s character more than Fredericka’s here. He was sweet, laidback and unfortunately often misunderstood while she could be annoyingly obstinate and unnecessarily short-tempered with him.
Nothing really that original about the story, but I’ll give it a little praise for Wyatt.
My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s for providing the free early arc of Yours Truly, The Duke for review. The opinions are strictly my own.

Yours Truly, The Duke is a historical, marriage of convenience romance. Due to a stipulation in his grandmother’s will, Duke of Wyatthaven or Wyatt needs a wife quickly. When Fredericka Hale‘s sister died, she became guardian of her two nieces and her nephew but her married cousin is trying to take away her guardianship. A marriage of convenience seems to be the answer to all their woes but when life forces them to actually spend time together the sparks fly. The couple butt heads over everything and especially the children as they work towards an HEA neither was expecting. The story runs sweet and the characters enjoyable for a memorable marriage of convenience to true love, heart tugging, smile inducing enjoyable read. My voluntary, unbiased review is based upon a review copy from NetGalley.

Family dynamics are interesting and can be dysfunctional but eventually things can be worked out if all parties want it to. This family is no different. Wyatt and Fredericka make you think about your own family and what could be better with a little work.

I received this from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This is the start of a new series by Amelia Grey. I do enjoy the marriage of convenience stories and decided to give this a shot. This was a pretty enjoyable story. The characters just got really annoying at times. I wish they would just have talked and explained things to each other. It would have made things a little better. I do look forward to more in the series.

It was a well written novel. I did like a lot of the aspects to it, but I did feel that the pacing was a bit slow at times. I liked Wyatt more than Frederica at times, which was surprising. I also really enjoyed his friends and hope they end up getting their own HEAs. What I found to be difficult to believe or swallow was the need for Frederica to be forgiving to Jane. I am not in the habit of forgiving some a wrong simply because they are "family". There were funny moments that I enjoyed and truly the writing by Ms. Grey was lovely. I will definitely be looking into more of her books to add to my to be read lists.
*ARC provided by St. Martin's Press via NetGalley, and I have given my honest and voluntary review.*

2.5 rounded to 3.
I was provided an ARC of this book by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I have read my fair share of historical romances, with all sorts of tropes, and I must say that this one did not resonate with me. Miscommunication can be done well in romances, but Wyatt and Fredericka spoke at each other without ever listening to the other throughout the entire book. They were constantly at odds, and not even in a cute, romantic tension way, so their inevitable exchange of "I love you" felt forced and awkward. I did enjoy the children's personalities and seeing Wyatt and the children bond. Overall, though, I can't say this was a favorite of the genre for me.

This is a lovely start to Ms. Grey's Say I Do series. It's a clean, marriage of convenience story with a slow burn romance. Fredericka and Wyatt were a lovely couple and I enjoyed getting to know them and watch their relationship grow. I was easily pulled into the story right from the beginning. Fredericka is an independent, strong-willed woman and she is caring for her sister's three young children after her passing. She is in jeopardy of losing guardianship and believes a husband could help sway things in her favor. She's not looking forward to a marriage of convenience, but she is willing to do anything for the children, so she accepts the offer from Wyatt, the Duke of Wyatthaven. He in turn needs to marry in order to keep his inheritance. They will marry and help each other, but then they will lead separate lives. Although they both agreed to this arrangement, neither can stop the growing feelings and attraction that has developed between them.
I enjoyed this story very much and liked seeing the relationship between the two blossom and grow. The characters were lovely and well-developed and the story had a nice smooth flow. This was a very entertaining story and I look forward to continuing the series.
I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

Wyatt has only a very short time in which to find a wife. Fredericka needs to find a husband so her sister’s orphaned children are not taken away from her. They enter into a marriage of convenience thinking their lives will not change much. That hardly is the case at all. I received an ARC from NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my honest review.

I love the concept of the story, but was not a huge fan of the constant lack of communication. The main female character was quite annoying and the main male character was aloof for half the book and an ass the other half. I couldn't bring myself to like any character in the book, except maybe the Dukes friends.
Also, I don't mind books that have fade to black scenes or little to no spice... but the scenes in this were not described well enough to be considered either and it was odd timing.

A proper country Miss, Fredericka Hale needs to find a husband quickly because a nasty cousin wants to take her late sister’s three children whom she has been raising. Fredericka will do anything for the youngsters including hastily marrying a man she does not know. When the handsome and equally needy Duke of Wyatthaven comes calling with an astounding proposal, Fredericka feels she had no choice but to accept. She is content to remain in the country while Wyatt returns to his reprobate life in London.
The Duke of Wyatthaven, familiarly known as Wyatt, needs a wife just as fast, or he stands to lose a big inheritance from his grandmother. He is immediately enchanted with the lovely Miss Hale; however, Wyatt is well pleased to live apart because he is not ready to be a man with a wife and ready made family. All those plans go awry when Fredericka and the children show up unexpectedly on his doorstep because the cousin has upped her game to take the children.
There is quite a bit of settling in with several misunderstandings, missteps, and a big learning curve for them to all live together. Fredericka and Wyatt have a lot of emotional family baggage causing them both to make choice that are not in their or the children’s best interest. Wyatt seems like the quintessential feckless ton member spending his days gaming, drinking, and rabble rousing with his equally high titled friends. Although their motives are purer than would appear, Wyatt acts in some very immature and thoughtless ways towards Fredericka and the children. Fredericka constantly stresses and strains with the goal of having the children behave perfectly so they will not be taken away.
A fair amount of Fredericka's time and mental space is spent dealing with the very unpleasant woman, Jane, who wants possession of the children. Fredericka is so uptight and overwhelmed she can scarcely breath at times. Although he is what should be mature at twenty-eight, Wyatt still needs to grow up fast so as to handle not only his feelings for Fredericka, but become a respectable father figure. Because of their interactions with the three children and working to secure their future, not much page time is spent for the romance to develop so I believe the story suffers from that aspect

Thak you to Amelia Grey, St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. Yous Truly, The Duke comes out March 28, 2023.
Yours Truly, The Duke is a historical romance featuring a marriage of convivence. Fredericka must marry to keep custody of her nieces and nephews and Wyatt must marry to keep his inheritance from his grandmother. So it is the perfect solution is for both of them to marry, they will live separate lives for the most part and be completely happy. That is until everything goes wrong and they must live together where they find out that living separately might not in fact make them happy. Honestly I was super excited for this book but when reading it I was kind of let down. I thought that Fredericka was portrayed in such a ridged and harsh manner towards the children and the duke, it was completely unenjoyable. The one with the most character development was Wyatt and he still had his frustrating moments. Overall I thought the book had so much potential but fell flat.

Upon her sister's untimely death, Fredricka takes custody of her children, all is well until Fredricka learns her childless cousin, Jane is petitioning the courts to gain custody of the children for herself. Fredricka is in despair, Jane's husband is well known amongst the ton and well connected, Jane has his backing along with the stability of being married, something that single Fredricka does not have. Her only way to even have a chance of keeping the children is if she were to marry. But who? Living away from town, her social life is much on the dismal side, so she starts a list of potential grooms from the local village, enter Wyatt, Duke of Wyatthaven, Wyatt needs a bride, fast, by Friday to retain his inheritance from his grandmother. They enter into a marriage of convenience, Wyatt going back to his life in London, Fredricka remaining in the country with the children, until a threat from Jane about her sham of a marriage sends her running with the children to London, to the Duke's townhouse, to a party in session, to the Duke dancing in the arms of a beautiful young debutante!
This is a fast-paced, enemies-to-lovers, regency romance, that is filled with a cast of likable characters, wonderfully rich atmosphere that sparks between Fredricka and Wyatt, and a HEA ending! Can't wait for book 2 in this "Say I Do" series.
Thank you St. Martin's Press and to Net Galley for the free ARC, I am leaving my honest review in return freely.

Yours Truly, The Duke is the first in the Say I Do series by Amelia Grey and it is a marriage of convenience regency romance. Fredericka needs a husband that will give her credibility because her childless cousin Jane is petitioning the court to take her orphaned nieces and nephew away. Wyatt needs a wife in order to obtain his grandmother’s inheritance and seeks out Fredericka when he finds out she needs a spouse as well. Things are going as planned for a bit until it doesn’t. Upset and needing his help, Fredericka heads to London to make sure Wyatt holds up his side of the bargain/marriage and persuades the court to rule in her favor. Things don’t go smoothly from the moment that she arrives at his home and finds him hosting a grand ball and dancing with another woman! Trouble ensues with each encounter these two are together and the attraction slowly builds creating a delightful story.
The author starts a promising new series with the characters needing to marry and how they go about it. Between Wyatt’s male friends and the three young children, the story slowly unfolds to show the underlying reasons for Fredericka and Wyatt hesitating to open up and reveal their feelings about their past. Ms. Grey is one of my favorite historical romance writers and has created a story that is sets up two likable individuals that start off with a business transaction, to slowly develop a real love for one another, making this a very satisfying read.

Wyatt gets Frederica to marry him so they can help each other obtain what they want. Soon feelings and 3 adorable children start to make chaos that they weren’t prepared for.

The Duke of Wyatthaven (Wyatt) has seven days to get married or the inheritance from his grandmother will be given to the London Society of Poetry. Wyatt would not mind losing the inheritance, as he would still have plenty of wealth, but he cannot abide the inheritance going to support poetry. While at Eton, he had a poetry professor who was a strict disciplinarian and acted cruelly towards any students who made mistakes. Wyatt, as the son of a duke, could not be physically punished as harshly as other students, so the professor punished Wyatt's friends instead, which resulted in a permanent hand injury for one friend (Grant). Wyatt regrets not speaking out against the abusive professor.
Fredericka Hale needs a husband. Her sister and brother-in-law died a year ago, leaving their three children in her custody. However, her cousin, Jane, is trying to gain custody of the children. Fredericka's chances of retaining custody will be improved if she is married.
Wyatt has learned of Miss Hale's situation and sees it as an opportunity for both of them to get what they want without having to disrupt their lives, as he is not really ready to settle down with a wife, and he believes Miss Hale would prefer to stay at Paddleton. While they will enter into a marriage of convenience, it is contentious from the start, as Wyatt has a tendency to make statements to which Fredericka takes offense, and being strangers, they do not know or understand the baggage the other carries. However, there is a powerful and unexpected physical attraction between the two of them, which they attempt to resist. Moreover, the arranged marriage does not have the expected benefit for Miss Hale, as her cousin Jane works harder to gain custody of the children. Miss Hale goes to London to be with Wyatt and seek his assistance, which will upturn their lives and those of the children, but ultimately in a positive fashion.