Evan Bellwether, the Duke of Fallon, is stunned when Madeline Goddard takes a tumble attempting to flee a ball...and accidentally falls into him! But that’s the least of the duke’s worries when the compromising situation forces them somewhere Evan didn’t want to be—the altar! At first, his new bride appears painfully shy. Could the key to discovering the real Maddie lie in unlocking the passion of their marriage?

I liked Maggie's character growth, from an abused girl to a woman discovering her place in the world. Evan's growth was more subdued--he'd spent his life trying to live up the the rules his father had given him only to discover the late duke hadn't followed them himself. Evan's world was tilted on its axle and he had to decide what kind of man he wanted to be. The great thing about this story is both of these characters need each other to change themselves and fall in love along the way.

I received this book from the publisher but this is my honest opinion on the book.

Title: Awakening His Shy Duchess
Author: Christine Merrill
Genre: Romance; Historical Romance; Fiction
Main Characters: Maddie (the shy duchess), Evan(the Duke Maddie married), and Alex(the stepbrother that was supposed to marry Maddie, but refused)
.
.
It starts out with a ball and kinda ends with a ball ☺️, but Maddie( or Madeline,), is being married off, by her father, to a Duke. And they’re attending a ball to introduce them and then they will quickly be married in a week or so. When getting to the ball, Maddie, notices Evan, the stepbrother of the man she’s supposed to marry, but she doesn’t know this.. (She hoped it was Evan she would be marrying, but he wasn’t him). But she finally meets the Duke she is to marry and that is Alex, Evan’s stepbrother. 😲🫢 She’s disappointed and a matter of fact, Alex, is too, because he doesn’t want to marry, so after they dance he whisks her off to the side and tells her so. He tells her it was all a mistake. So she is embarrassed to say the least and she hates everything going on at this time and having to be forced to marry. So she walks out to the garden and decides quickly that she’s going to run away and climbs up the garden wall to get away. And then she meets Evan, Alex’s(the man she was supposed to marry) stepbrother, the man she noticed, first of all when entering the ball. And after that, it all goes uphill and downhill, as well,😩, but it doesn’t stay in the downhill though.😃 This is an enjoyable book to read. It’s engaging to read. I didn’t want to put it down. I loved Evan’s and Maddie’s story. It’s comical at times too. There is sexual content, as well, for those of you who doesn’t like it in your reading. The content isn’t terribly bad, but in places, sometimes it can be. I really don’t like it either, but I had already gotten attached to the story and was reading for Net Galley to review, so I just continued. Just wanted to give those who doesn’t care for it, a heads up. No bad language though, if so, I can’t recall it.
Thank you to #NetGalley , the publishers, and author for giving me the opportunity to read and review #AwakeningHisShyDuchess for my honest review and thoughts.

Maddie is the daughter of a wealthy man who uses her to gain a foothold in society. On the night her engagement is to be announced to one duke, her attempt to escape her fate winds up with her engaged to a different one. To her abusive father, one duke is as good as another, and he has no intention of listening to her objections.

Though he extolled the virtues of marriage to his stepbrother, Alex, Evan has no intention of marrying anytime soon. He is not pleased when his attempt to assure himself of Maddie's welfare goes hideously wrong.

I enjoyed this story of how two very different people found that they were perfect for each other. It was not an easy journey. Evan was raised by his father to follow strict rules regarding his conduct and his father's somewhat skewed vision of marriage. Evan is very confident, except in one area - anything to do with mathematics or numbers. He describes it as looking at a row of numbers and seeing them dance over the page. Evan suffers from Dyscalculia, dyslexia of numbers, and t has left him unable to handle the finances of his estate. He is in financial trouble and unable to find his way out. Marriage to Maddie will bring some much-needed cash to his life.

Maddie has been living under the thumb of her emotionally and physically abusive father. She is accustomed to staying in the background as much as possible and doing whatever is necessary to keep out of her father's way. Because of him, she buries her true nature and adapts her actions to his demands. She is quiet but very intelligent, with a fascination for anything related to numbers.

When Evan and Maddie marry, she has high hopes of finally being able to be herself. Unfortunately, she finds herself at the mercy of Evan's views of women and marriage. His idea that all women are the same and spend their lives shopping, painting, and embroidering frustrated Maddie (and me). She hates traditional female pursuits and would much rather spend her time studying math books and solving puzzles, but she tries to force herself into Evan's mold to make him happy. When she stumbles on the estate's account books and sees their mess, she attempts to fix them before being shut down by Evan and his estate manager, Ramsey.

I spent a good part of the book wanting to shake Evan. He knows he has problems with numbers and that the estate is in trouble. However, his pride won't allow him to admit the problem to anyone, so it keeps worsening. Seeing Maddie's talent with numbers should have been a wake-up call for him, giving him someone who would be on his side in straightening out the mess, but instead, he keeps trying to shove her into the box created by his father's training.

The only thing that brings Evan and Maddie together is their undeniable attraction for each other. I liked Evan's patience and willingness to wait until they knew each other better before consummating their marriage. Their passion is evident when they do, but they still don't TALK to each other. It becomes increasingly apparent that each has trust issues, and I wondered how they would get past them. Matters become more complicated when Maddie makes a discovery in the account books, and Evan refuses to listen to her about it.

Evan makes a boneheaded mistake in trying to send Maddie to the country, while Maddie finds her backbone and makes alternate arrangements. I loved watching her come into her own with other women of like minds. Meanwhile, Evan has some serious soul-searching to do. The catalyst for his awakening was a surprise, and I loved seeing Evan break free of the past. I loved his big moment at the end and finally seeing him and Maddie accept their differences and embrace the love they share.

I liked this fine, but it was hard to root for them because it didn't seem like the hero really got it, I am looking forward to the next in the seris about his brother who seemed more intuned with things!

Get ready to be swept away in Awakening His Shy Duchess love story.

I adore Harlequin romance books. They are short and sweet (or sometimes spicey) and a great way to escape the world for a few hours. I enjoyed reading this book. I loved watching Madeline break out of her wallflower shell and become this shelf-assured woman that knows what she wants. Her character really was what stood out most for me. She has this beautiful quiet strength to her, and she is brilliant. I loved watching her stand up to her bully of a father and her idiot of a husband. The story is slower-paced and focuses on the growing relationship between Madeline and Evan.

Fans of forced marriage and miscommunication tropes will love the romance between Madeline and Evan. It was obvious that they felt a connection from the first moment they saw each other, but neither one actually wanted to get married. But when they are caught in a compromising situation, they have no choice but to marry. The relationship between Madeline and Evan is full of bumps. There are plenty of miscommunications between these two, and Evan’s constant mood swings often strain things between them. There are reasons for Evan’s mood swings. He struggles with family expectations and how his growing love for Madeline changes his views on marriage. One thing I felt this book was missing was that moment of gravelling that I felt Evan needed to do to win Madeline back. He does act like a big idiot throughout this story, and I wish he would have just fallen to his knees and begged for Madeline’s forgiveness.

Awakening His Shy Duchess is another great Harlequin romance.

Thank you, Harlequin, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

She's not shy...

I was so looking forward to this book. Maddie is not shy. She has been abused by her father all her life, as has her mother. She attempts to run at her engagment party by climbing over the wall and ends up on top of Evan, her replacement fiancé's step-brother (Alex jilted her first). Evan is pretty and pretty vacant. He has dyslexia and cannot fathom numbers, so of course he puts all his blind trust in Ramsay, his grubby man of business, who he gave a raise to, instead of admitting he knows zilch about math. Whereas, Maddie is a mathematical genius and hosts a math society.

Maddie's rapid growth and trajectory from an abused victim to confident person is vast. Whereas, Evan seems to be going in the other direction. He bumbles about, not learning anything. His continual belief in his father, Ramsay and his constant belief that all women are alike (in the dark and in the light of day) wears on the reader. It was frustrating.
But I could appreciate Maddie's evolution.
3.5 stars.

Forced to marry, Evan and Madeline couldn't be more different. He's a confident duke, and she's a timid young woman from an abusive home. Though she learns to trust Evan, it's difficult for her to assert herself. Can he learn to give her what she needs before it's too late?

This is a character-driven story about two strangers struggling with conflicting expectations. Neither Evan nor Maddie are ready for marriage, but they both do their best, making mistakes along the way. The affection and the physical relationship are a start, but they have to become vulnerable to find true happiness.

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

There are certain books that are just simply fun to read and "Awakening His Shy Duchess' is simply one of those text. Grab your favourite drink and fall into a simple tale with fun characters and plot developments. This book is easy to read and perfect for summer or your next holiday/vacation.

Maddie and Evan are forced to be married after being caught in a compromising position. Through trial and error they learn to love each other. Sweet romance.

I have read Christine Merrill before and enjoyed her but this book was a complete miss for me. Maddie is a complete doormat, too afraid to show her new husband anything real about her. I give her grace for the abuse in her past, but she was a frustrating and occasionally annoying character. Evan is just terrible. His expectations for married life and for Maddie herself are sexist and without true reasoning of his own. And then suddenly they are in love with the other? There has been zero emotional honesty or intimacy, so where did the love come from? Good sex is great but love requires at least some semblance of the other.

Two stars. I would be willing to read more of Christine Merrill's books, though, based on previous experience. Thank you to Harlequin and to NetGalley for a complementary ARC of this book. The opinions herein are my own.

Maddie and Evan are forced to marry about a catastrophe in the gardens compromises Maddie. Promised to one brother but now married to another, Maddie's journey to becoming a duchess and eventually loving her new husband is challenging. This forced marriage of convenience becomes anything but, and Christine Merrill once again delivers engaging characters and a romantic regency story.