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When The Duke Loved Me by Lydia Lloyd
Series : The Rake Chronicles #1
They are both pretending to be someone else for the
night...
When Catherine Forster asks a handsome stranger to lead her
out of the ballroom and into the Tremberley gardens, she
hopes to glimpse its renowned Roman ruins…and maybe steal a
kiss. But when she and her delectable escort are discovered
in a scandalous embrace, Catherine is horrified to learn
that she has been kissing John Breminster, heir to the man
who ruined her family.
Given that the Forsters are his sworn enemies, John had no
choice but to walk away from Catherine that night. But he
has never been able to forget their close encounter—and,
even years later, still longs for her touch. Worse, when his
father dies, John, now the Duke of Edington, finds himself
with a problem that only Catherine can help him solve.
Catherine agrees to aid him in his quest…for a price. On
their journey, they soon begin to give into temptation, even
as they uncover troubling revelations about the past. Will
John and Catherine overcome this shared history? Or will its
secrets tear them apart forever?
I was kinda intrigued by the idea of a family feud/scandal keeping
the protagonists apart. Thankfully it wasn't as angsty as I'd
thought it'd be 😂
Catherine Foster and John Breminster meet each other for the first
time in an unexpected way as they'd both been hiding their
identities while seeking some freedom. But their moment of passion
is abruptly cut short when they discover each other's actual
identities, as both of them have been deeply affected by the family
scandal that changed their lives. After many years John, now the
Duke of Edington, has no other option but to seek her out again as
he needs to find her aunt to fulfill a part of his father's will. So
they work out an agreement and team up to find her aunt. And this
puts them in close quarters as they also re-discover some past
events while fighting their attraction to each other.
As much as I enjoyed watching John and Catherine pining for each
other, I think I'd have liked it a bit more if there had been some
emotional development in the past too. It starts off with
insta-attraction here and kinda revolves around it. On the other
hand, I did like how they communicated with each other. Even when
John runs hot and cold, Catherine calls him out on it. And I think
most of the hurt sentiments were resolved within a few chapters(even
when John is being an ass).
I liked most of the other characters except for Catherine's aunt
Mary and John's dead father. They were quite selfish and uncaring
about the others. The twist towards the end surprised me though! And
I do think it worked out well in the end. I guess the next one might
be Henrietta's story 'cause I think that'd be interesting!
Overall this was a solid debut with a good mix of tropes and
enjoyable writing!
You can also find this review on my bookstagram here
*I was provided with an ARC in exchange for an honest review*
Lydia Lloyd is a writer of historical romances set during the Regency
period. She likes to write complex heroines with strong desires,
heroes who are both roguish and emotionally intelligent, and plots
driven by high-quality conflict. She is also an avid reader of
historical romance and enjoys chronicling her reading and writing
journey here and on Instagram @LydiaLloydRomance. She is represented
by the Kathryn Green Literary Agency.
Her debut historical romance, WHEN THE DUKE LOVED ME, was released by
Tule Publishing in August 2023. This novel is the first in a four book
series, the Rake Chronicles.
In her other life, Lydia holds a PhD in nineteenth-century British
literature and works as an academic and teacher.
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