Customer Reviews

The Duke's Dilemma (Signet Regency Romance)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As anyone who's seen my reviews of her other books, I am not a fan of Nadine Miller; in fact, I would never buy another book by her. But this is actually the first book of hers I read, and on the strength of that I went out and bought several others.

THIS is a great book - and I still want to know what's happened to Miller since she wrote it!

Jared, the Duke, has decided that it's time to marry, and so he's asked his elderly female relations to gather together several possible brides for him (shades of Emma Jensen's Best Laid Plans here). One of the possibles has brought with her a cousin/companion, Emily - a slightly overweight, plain little mouse of a woman, and certainly not someone who would be thought to attract a Duke; only she doesn't meet the Duke. She meets someone who calls himself Jared, and who seems to be an ordinary local farmer - but who, judging by his strong resemblance to the Duke, must be a half-brother. Emily has absolutely no doubt that he is not the Duke, however - he couldn't be. He's charming and rogueish and fun to be with, while the Duke is top-lofty and disapproving.

An entertaining and occasionally heart-wrenching story follows, in which the Duke gets himself more and more deeply entangled in a mess entirely of his own making.

There are also some great secondary characters here, including Jared's heir and his secretary, Edgar Rankin - I would have liked a book with Edgar as the hero, since there was clearly a story here, strongly hinted at in conversations between Jared and Edgar. Those two had a 'past,' and I wanted to know more.

Highly recommended, even if I can't recommend any of Miller's subsequent books!

I laughed out loud when reading this book. For me, that is the greatest compliment. The duke has a dilemma. Should he marry the woman he loves or should he marry the woman who is "right" for him? Of course, he chooses true love over societal dictates. The minor characters make this book ever so more enjoyable, especially the duke's secretary, his cousin, and of course his dotty old aunts. The characters push the plot forward with outrageous humor. I've read this book several times and I laugh every time.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It features two refreshingly different characters from those in usual Regencies: a heroine who is most definitely not a simpering, shallow schoolroom miss, and a hero behind whose jaded sophistication lies an intelligent but lonely spirit.

Emily is from an impoverished and decidely un-tonnish background, and seems to face a future either as a perpetual companion to selfish and demanding distant relations, or living quietly in the country, perhaps as the wife of a vicar. She is at present companion to her beautiful cousin Lucinda, who may be about to receive a proposal from the very rich Duke of Montford. On a visit to the Duke's country estate, during which the Duke will make his choice of bride, Emily meets a well-spoken but rough countryman named Jared, who bears an uncanny resemblance to the arrogant Duke - and therefore must be an illegitimate half-brother - and who ignites in her stirrings of passion she never realised she possessed.

The Duke finds Emily intriguing, but is aware that she is completely unsuited to be his bride. Despite the disapproval of his secretary - who threatens to woo Emily for himself - Jared continues his masquerade until the worst happens: he unintentionally ruins Emily's reputation. Only when he cannot find her does he realise how much he cares for her.

This is a lovely and well-crafted story, which I will definitely keep and re-read. All of the characters in the book are extremely well-drawn, and of the minor characters the most interesting is Edgar Rankin, the Duke's secretary and friend. It is surprising that Ms Miller has not returned to the character of Rankin in another book: he definitely deserves to have his story told. There are hints in this book of an intriguing past shared by the Duke and Rankin; and it would make a wonderful finish to this story were Rankin to find an intelligent and loving bride of his own, particularly someone who would provide a friend for Emily.

I absolutely adored this book. It's well written, with characters that are three-dimensional and very likable. There is a lot of warm, wonderful humor that makes this book a true joy to read.

This is the perfect Regency story: A dark, arrogant, stuffy aristocratic hero with a surprising secret. When he is looking for a wife, she must be beautiful, fashionable and high-born. Our feisty, witty, plump little heroine is none of these things and therefore does not qualify as a candidate to become a duches. So why can't our hero stop thinking about her ? Why is he so afraid to tell her of his secret ? When disaster strikes and she is unwittingly compromised and abandoned by her family he knows that he must find her and save her from a cruel fate. He realizes that he loves her, butcan he find her in time ?

Nadine Miller has done her period research to perfection and every detail of Regency life and custom is spot on !! The language is right for the period too, aristocrats as well as "cockneys"
A well-plotted, witty story with loveable, credible characters.

For those who love the Regency period, it is
always a pleasure to find a new author who does
justice to the genre. Ms. Miller's first book has an
admirable heroine, a blunt bluestocking a little on
the plump side, and a duke whose lofty propriety
occasionally gives way, no doubt due to an
unknown thatchgallows hidden somewhere in his
ancestry. The strongest secondary characters
include the hero's secretary, and the chinless heir,
who comes through with sufficient chin and
backbone when he is most needed

Other reviewers have stated the storyline so well that I will not re-hash it here. I loved that Emily is plain and overweight - as she states herself "she inherited her mama's mousy brown hair and pudding bag figure." What a wonderful twist to actually make the duke prefer (and eventually come to love) such a plain woman when he had four lovely blond beauties awaiting selection as a bride. A Regency novel just like the TV show "The Bachelor!"

Jarad (the Duke of Montford) truly did have a dilemma - in fact several. And he was getting no where close to solving them. Most Regency's never supply men solid friends outside of drinking and gambling clubs, so I especially enjoyed Jarad's relationship with his cousin/secretary. All the other characters are well fleshed out with stories of their own to follow.

Highly recommend. I could hardly put it down!

A well written book that not only is a romance, but also is an image booster showing once again how beauty isn't everything. An excellent regency full of accurate and appropreate details of life then. A delightful, relaxing read, one that I've read 5 to 6 times since August.

The romance entitled The Duke's Dilemma was a very enjoyable read. The story was well written. If you enjoy a Cinderella story with a happy ending, this book is for you.