This is an adorable read, perfect for the Holidays.
Maxwell is fantastic and charming, Rose is extremely resilient. Both are wonderful together, with a good chemistry and relationship that builds over time.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Grumpy sunshine

They both inherited, even though Maxwell insists its his (its not, his father wagered it away).
He isn't above using bribery in the from of getting another man to court and wed Rose, so he can then get the property transferred back to him. I liked Rose, Maxwell, not so much.

What a delightful love story. It begins after a death and the need to correct a paste wrong. The characters were complex and strong-willed. After time spent enjoying life during Christmas time, feelings and thoughts drastically change, and a huge misunderstanding cleared up. I really enjoyed how beaulove comes out regardless of everything, and life ends happily. I highly recommend reading!

Bad decisions by the father has led to hate in the son. Upon meeting the arch enemy's daughter and dealing with her, his feelings begin to change. An easy read that was an enjoyable Christmas read.
I received an ARC from NetGalley and the Publisher and leaving a review by my own accord.

The Duke's Christmas Bride begins with suspense and mystery and continues to keep the readers engrossed. I was extremely fortunate to receive an ARC from Netgalley and all thoughts and opinions are my own.
Maxwell Alastair Hammond Burke, the Tenth Duke of Grantham, is set to seek retribution for actions committed against him and his father by a man named Ambrose. Rosamund Elizabeth St. Claire is living in the home Ambrose had taken her and her mother in when all others had deserted them. This seems to be a home where there are a bag of mixed memories and history for both Maxwell and Rose. Ambrose last will leaves the dilapidated home equally to the both of them. One wants to demolish it along with the memories, the other wants to maintain the home to cherish the memories. We see how sometimes there are two facets to the same person, and how sometimes, we have only the one-sided opinion of a matter. This is a wonderful story with the concept of looking beyond the obvious front and delving a little deeper to find the truth. Anna Bradley has outdone herself again.

When Rose St. Claire first meets Maxwell Burke, Duke of Grantham, she finds him trespassing in her home, only to fire her pistol at him, if not by accident. When they both discover that the home that Rose believed her late benefactor, Ambrose had left her, has now been left to both of them. Max has always believed that Hammond Court was stolen from his father decades ago and he is determined that he will regain the property, at all costs. However, Rose has no intention of leaving which forces Max to plan a holiday party, if only to find a gentleman who will marry her. Yet, as Max spends more time with Rose, it becomes apparent to him that he has no intention of another man, marrying her.
Another great addition to this series, but it is a standalone story. Rose is a delightful character and sees only the good in others, doing all that she can to bring some happiness into Max’s life. It was so sweet to see the large personality of Max, become putty in the hands of Rose. A delightful romance.
This book I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The third story in the Drop Dead Dukes, another engaging story in this series. Rose St. Claire and Maxwell Burke, Duke of Grantham meet when he comes to claim the house she is in, only to find they have both inherited the house. A well written Christmas story of enemies to lovers. I enjoyed seeing them with their ups and downs find love and a happy ending. I received a copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

The Duke’s stumped by a fairy child!

Charming story of a glowering tight lipped duke being bested by a fairy child of a young woman
In this enemies to lovers story Rose St. Claire inherits half the house she has lived in for many years, the other half goes to our terse duke, Maxwell Alastair Hammond Burke, the Tenth Duke of Grantham, Viscount Hammond.
Their battle for ownership is a thing of drama, loss and ultimately joy. (Their first introduction when the Duke breaks into the house is hilarious.)
The Duke’s hurts as a young child govern his actions as he grows into his inheritance. A dark and joyless time that reflects in all he does, until he meets Rose. He’d been dubbed the Duke of Ice.
Can he change, can he allow the magic in?

A Kensington Books ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

I enjoyed this delightful enemies to lovers, grumpy-sunshine Christmas romance novel, which is brimming with twists, banter, irony, witty inner monologues, LOL moments, tender emotions, sizzling chemistry and a bit of steam. The author‘s playful storytelling makes it so much fun to read! The main characters are endearing and I loved their battle of will, Rose‘s compassion, her kindness, her joyfulness and her love for Christmas. Max may be a Grinch but he stands no chance resisting Rose‘s zest for life.
I also enjoyed reuniting with the characters from the previous books of the series.

As a child, Maxwell „Max“ Burke, Duke of Grantham had to watch his father gamble away the family fortune, including Hammond Court to his then friend Ambrose St Claire, where he spent many happy moments. After that, his life became a nightmare. Max was teased at school, his father drank himself to death and Max's only thoughts were to get his lost fortune back and take revenge on Ambrose, who he believes robbed him of his childhood.
Now, years later, Max is known as the Duke of Ice for his ruthlessness and coldness. He has managed to get back all his losses except Hammond Court, the last piece of the puzzle to his happiness, which he wants to tear down. When Ambrose dies and Max receives a cryptic message summoning him to Hammond Court, Max expects the property to be returned. To his horror, however, he is confronted with Ambrose's adopted daughter, who has inherited half of Hammond Court and has no intention of leaving the dilapidated estate. Rose loves the estate too much and will not allow herself to be blackmailed or bribed by Max. So he has no choice but to trick her, even if it means hosting a hated Christmas house party and finding a suitor for her. But soon he cannot resist the kindhearted, joyful woman who has made it her mission to drive away his loneliness and make him enjoy life and Christmas again…

If you like heartwarming and humorous opposites attract romances with broken heroes and determined heroines, you will certainly enjoy this book!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Overall: 3.5 rounded to ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Readability: 📖📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋🦋🦋 (There were things I didn’t love about this book, but there were still some scenes that grabbed my heart! I felt the angst and had some heartbreak and longing with the characters)
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔💔
Tension: ⚡⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞💞 (While I did get frustrated with the hero, I thought both characters did romantic things for each other and there was a lot of sweet moments in this story!)
Sensuality: 💋💋💋💋 (I -LOVE- Bradley’s kisses and intimate scenes. Love love love. This book was a bit lighter than some of her others I’ve read, but still had so much I crave in romance scenes)
Intimate Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑🍑 ( I love how much time Bradley spends on her kisses and intimate scenes. They get so emotional and I get so wrapped up in them – LOVE!)
Steam Scale (Number of Scenes): 🔥 (I might have missed one???)
Humor: A bit – more if you like that enemies to lovers banter play
Perspective: third person from both hero and heroine
More character focused or plot focused? character
How did the speed of the story feel? medium
When mains are first on page together: It's pretty soon in, about 3%
Cliffhanger: No, this ends with a happily ever after
Epilogue: yes, about 2 years later

Should I read in order?
I don’t think it’s necessary. The mains from the other 2 books are at the house party within this book, but the main focus is on the main couple. Maybe you get a better feel for Grantham (the hero) if you read the series in order -I’ll admit I didn’t pay a lot of attention to him in book 2 when I read it haha.

Basic plot:
Maxwell Burke wants Hammond Court back after his father wagered it away – except he isn’t ready for the feisty Rose St. Claire that is within residence.

Give this a try if you want:
- Regency – 1819
- English countryside setting – Gloucestershire
- class difference – hero is a duke, heroine is an adoptive daughter of a gambler
- sunshine (her) and grump (him) vibes
- close proximity – the hero and heroine were each given half of a house and also are together at a house party
- bespectacled hero
- house party
- holiday vibes – this has a winter/snowy country backdrop and includes Twelfth Night and Christmas celebrations – ice skating and sleigh rides too ;)
- bit of a size difference (taller hero)
- rags to riches
- lower steam – I believe there’s a few kisses and one full scene?

Ages:
- hero is around 31, heroine is 21

My thoughts:
Sadly, I was a bit disappointed in this one – I adored book 2 of this series.

This one, I loved the idea of it – I like revenge plots (this hero was enemies with the heroine’s father), and I love the close proximity of being in a house that both characters want. But, the beginning felt really repetitive to me and I got a bit bored. I struggled with the hero – he was a bit unpleasant, which I can get behind, but he held onto it a bit too long for me.

But still, this one had elements that I loved in it. Some of the scenes gave me those angsty feels I am always chasing in Bradley’s books, and I really appreciated the all is lost ending and make up.

In the best tradition of Christmas stories set in Regency England, Anna Bradley has gifted readers with a heartwarming confection full of joyous redemption, ginger nut biscuits whose taste and smell evoke memories long forgotten, and a slow burn but spicy romance between a penniless, but kind and beautiful commoner and a surly, jaded duke hiding a hurting boy inside. It’s light on the angst, but enriched with romantic gestures, honest, heartfelt conversations, and friends who provide loving guidance to both Rose and Max, Duke of Grantham. Although it’s set at Christmas, there’s very little mention of festivities until the latter part of the story other than Max’s bad memories associated with the holiday. Regardless, it’s a welcome addition to the genre. Although part of a series, it can be read as a standalone although the couples from books 1 and 2 make an appearance. Recommended.

Fairford Gloucestershire - December 1819

Rose St. Claire lives in Hammond Court with just her maid. Her father, Ambrose St. Claire, has recently died and many creditors are coming to her wanting to be paid for Ambrose’s debts. The house is crumbling and she doesn’t know what she is going to do.

One morning, a beautiful carriage draws up and a dashing man steps out. He is Maxwell (Max) Alastair, Hammond Burke, the Tenth Duke of Grantham, 31. When he was a young man, Ambrose managed to cheat his father and take Hammond Court from them. Today, Max is wealthy and wants Hammond Court back. It was his mother’s home and while he has another grander home nearby, this place is sentimental to him. But Rose greets him with a pistol in his face. After a chat, he explains the situation to her and also shows her a note from Ambrose telling him to come and get the treasure. He then leaves but returns the next day to meet with Rose and her solicitor. Ambrose’s will shows that Rose and Ambrose own the house equally and one cannot evict the other without losing their right to the property.

When Rose and Max get to know one another better, they realize that they are attracted to one another. Max just wants to help Rose and so he invites her to stay with him at his nearby home Grantham Hall. It is a gorgeous home filled with beautiful things. Rose agrees and is comfortable there. When max learns how much she loves Christmas, he decides to have a house party and invites a number of his friends. He and Rose enjoy sleigh rides and all of the joys of Christmas. When she finds his grandmother’s original recipes for ginger biscuits that he loved as a child, she makes them for him and he is totally smitten. Ah, but there is a fly in the ointment in the form of a man named Dunwitty who tries to destroy their relationship and almost succeeds. Will Rose and Max stand a chance of finding a love that will last forever?

Oh my! What a delicious romance with some great humor thrown in as well. I loved the characters and, as always, this author has knitted some great twists into this story. Enjoy!

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Maxwell Burke, the 10th Duke of Grantham returns to his hometown village of Fairford in an attempt to regain access to his family home, Hammond Court but when he arrives he discovers the home is already occupied. Rose St. Clair is the adoptive daughter of Max's nemesis, Ambrose St. Clair who is recently deceased but has left the home to both of them. Neither Max nor Rose want to give up the house, for Rose its the only home she knows and for Max it has a lot of bad memories. Despite the angst they have towards each other, there is an attraction that they cannot deny. Max tries to use all of his old tricks to get Rose to sell him here part of the home and even plans to marry her off so that the spouse could sell him the property. Of course, it all backfires and he must rely on friends, the Duke/Duchess of Montford and the Duke/Duchess of Basingstoke and the magic of Christmas to help him save his relationship with Rose. A cute story just in time to get readers ready for the holiday.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and I am voluntarily leaving a review

This was an entertaining, well-written book. It was charming, fun, steamy and I didn't want to put it down. I enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more books by this author.

The house is falling apart, but it is house he lived in as a child before his father gambled it away. He wants it back. Rose is the adopted daughter of the man who won the house from his father. She loves the house and wants to keep it. Ambrose St. Claire had the perfect solution. When he died, he left it to both of them. That might not work out, or he might have known just what he was bringing about. This is a charming story with wonderful characters. There is lots of fun (sometimes you have to laugh), a house falling down, misunderstandings past and present, and a slow-burn romance. Rose and Max are Both have another side that is caring and protective. The secondary characters, Max’s staff, Billy, and Addy, are delightful. Enjoyable story!
I received an Arc of this book via NetGalley and voluntarily reviewed it.

They were brought together by a man she thought was the most wonderful man while he thought him a scoundrel. Until she brought joy and the magic of Christmas into his heart and they found the home in each other. Wonderful and enchanting story.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and leaving my review voluntarily.

The Duke's Christmas Bride is the 3rd book in the Drop Dead Dukes series, yet there's only a loose connection to the previous books with characters making a cameo appearance. Unfortunately, I found Max and Rose's story less than compelling. While I quite liked her and felt a bit sorry for him at the beginning, there was very little happening given the length of the book and I found myself skipping pages to get to the sweet HEA.

What a wonderful book. I was captivated from the moment Max broke into Rose's house and she aimed a pistol at him. I knew we were going to be down for some real shenanigans and I was going to love these characters! This is the third book by Anna Bradley this year and what a joy to have found another fantastic author.
Thank you to netgalley for the ARC. Opinions are my own.

4.5/5 The Duke’s Christmas Bride is the third book in the Drop Dead Dukes series.

This was an emotional and enjoyable read that started off having you on the edge of your seats and unraveled into a story about letting go and choosing joy. It had an overall lighthearted feel thanks to the abundance of holiday traditions. I loved that it was a full-length novel so that the Christmas and winter traditions were sprinkled throughout making it perfect to read any time of the year.

I enjoy a good revenge plot as I eat up the transformation the MC makes as they realize the error of their ways and what matters in life. But also liked that it was a different take on the revenge plot.

It was fun as Rose slowly got under Max’s skin and the progression of their feelings. Rose also unknowingly finds a way to break through the Duke of Ice’s heart through his stomach.

Holiday and winter traditions includes holiday baking, decorating, ice skating, sleigh riding, and more.

The MC from the first two books are supportive side characters in the second half but reading their stories first isn’t necessary to the plot.

This is a slow burn with one encounter, some kisses, and a fade to black in the epilogue. While there’s no consummation, the one scene is long and detailed.

I received an advance ecopy from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

The Duke’s Christmas Bride by Anna Bradley is the third book in the Drop Dead Dukes series. The series focuses on Dukes who are forced to relook at their lives after meeting their soon to be duchesses. This novel is about Maxwell Burke, Duke of Grantham and Rose St. Claire,

Rose St. Claire has been left a mansion that is falling down around her. To top the indignity of the situation, it sounds like someone broke into her home. Maxwell Burke, Duke of Grantham kicked in the door to break into his house! Bothe believe the house is theirs and theirs alone. The surprise comes when they find out they both have inherited the house. Rose is not willing to sell it and Maxwell is determined to get the only house that was his home.

Maxwell ends up saving Rose when the roof fell in and then manages to convince his friends to come for a Christmas Party and bring their wives to chaperone Rose. Rose’s enthusiasm for life and Christmas brings a whole new way of looking at life for Maxwell and soon she is all he can think of. However Rose is ready to give up and leaves. Now the last of the drop dead dukes needs to make a decision and follow Rose and let her know he loves her.

I enjoyed Rose’s enthusiasm and love of the season. Her joy at the simple things will fill hearts this Christmas. The Duke’s Christmas Bride by Anna Bradley is a fun read.