5/5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley, the publishers, and Christi Caldwell for allowing me to read and review this book.

I absolutely loved this book. The characters and plot are so well written and entertaining. There is so much humor in this book and so much back and forth between the characters.

The tropes in this book are: age gap, grumpy x sunshine, and holiday romance. There is some spice, but the only sex scene is fade to black. There is also mention of death of a spouse and unborn child. There are Home Alone aspects of this book as well.

I read this book in two sittings. I highly recommend this book for anyone looking for a regency historical romance book with the grumpy x sunshine trope and fade to black scenes and some Home Alone scenes.

The Duke Alone by Christi Caldwell follows Lady Myrtle McQuoid. She has been forgotten at the family's London townhouse. She is sure they will realize their mistake and return for her. Widower Val Bancroft, the Duke of Aragon, enjoys being left alone with his dog. His broody nature does not enjoy the chatty young woman next door. When Myrtle detects a threat, she must enlist the help of the duke. Unable to leave her vulnerable, Val agrees to help Myrtle. Soon Christmas magic does its thing and love blossoms.

The Duke Alone is a very cute Christmassy historical romance. I liked how it took inspiration from Home Alone!

I’m going to be honest, this wasn’t for me. There was just too much going on with a bit of home alone, beauty and the beast and pride and prejudice wrapped into one. I feel like if the author had just focused on one it would have been so much better.

This book was fantastic. The characters had me hooked right away. I was deeply moved by Myrtle's plight and her constant feeling of being left behind, which kept me turning pages. At first, Val was a brute. Thus, his transformation was all the more moving. I did have some problems with Myrtle's personality. Funny enough, Val actually found all the things I found annoying about her endearing. However, there was no denying her fortitude and optimism, which ultimately led Val and me to overlook those minor annoyances. like her need to talk nonstop and fill the room with noise.
The focus on characters, I believe, was what I enjoyed most about this book.
Whoever enjoys a humorous tale with a happy ending should read this book and I can't wait to read more about this family.

The Duke Alone is a great historical romance about the importance of love, loss, and cherishing family. I wish it was steamier. Otherwise, I really enjoyed it.

I received an ARC of this book, from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for a fair and honest review.

What happens when Home Alone meets Historical Romance.. A series of hi-jinks, romance and healing.

I really enjoyed this story, loved the couple even though Myrtle is on the young side. I've read many books by this author and I know she can write some heat and it was disappointing not to have any in this book. One fade to black scene is not enough.

I am writing this review a while after reading the book so some of the minor details about the book I have forgotten, I still remember feeling happy and satisfied after I finished it.

I highly recommend it. A book to bring out and read every Christmas.

Whilst the premise sounded fun, I'm afraid this regency romance failed to really grip me. I'm still fairly new to the genre, which may have been part of the problem

It has been a very long time since I've read anything by this author. I liked the story for the most part but I just couldn't get over the age gap between Myrtle and the Duke for some reason. The storyline took me a little too fast. The duke when from being in exile from everyone to falling in love with Myrtle in a matter of days or weeks. I am willing to give this story another read, maybe ill feel different.

I liked thsi quiet holioday romance, and the cast of characters and really liked the two leads, quiet and lovely people who found each other.

I honestly was not a huge fan of this story- I love historical romance but I am not a Home Alone fan- I don’t think I’ve ever watched it the whole way through. The fact that this was inspired by Home Alone immediately made me a little bit cautious. I also didn’t love the familial relationship, nor Myrtle’s attitude of self-pity. I don’t like change, I whine about it sometimes, but it does not make a character particularly likable. I also am not a huge fan of the widower trope. If you do love Home Alone, try this out… but I think a lot of the story was lost on me.

Hundreds of things are rattling around in my mind to describe this book! Marvelous, fantastic, superb ... just aren't strong enough to describe the talented Caroline Warfield's 1st book in her Entitled Gentlemen series. Gideon, our brooding hero and Mia, our strong-willed heroine are thrown together amid a house of bad memories, a hateful staff, a scheming relative (or two). Oh, you just have to read the book to find out how these two sift through truth and fiction to come together. Again, hundreds of things I can write but I don't want to give anything away. LOL

I love Christi Caldwell but unfortunately, I had formatting issues with this book.

As always, I will be buying this and I'm sure it is as fabulous as her other books!

Poor thing! Myrtle's family literally forgets about her and goes off on vacation. Good thing her neighbor Val is in residence.. Oh he doesn't think so at first, but we know where this is going! Fantastic story and I just love this author!

Historical romance,typical of the genre. Brooding ,handsome hero, pretty naive heroine. An easy read without much drama.

This wasn’t for me. I read a few chapters and I could not get into it. All of the characters were terrible.

BOOK: The Duke Alone by Christi Caldwell
GENRE: Historical Romance
CLIFFHANGER: No
RELEASE DATE: October 18, 2022
This is a clean historical romance. Sweet Home Alone set in 1800 England.

Meh. A week in and I’m at 50% and have lost interest. Val is an interesting character and I like watching him begin to come out of his shell again but I find Myrtle to be too naive for my taste.

Caldwell delivers the romantic fiction version of Home Alone with The Duke Alone. It is quick, solid read, especially for fans of Caldwell. The characters are likable and you are rooting for the HEA. I thoroughly enjoyed this book!

There's nothing better a Christmas time than a holiday Regency Romance. An angry antisocial Duke and a Lady full of Christmas cheer, both alone and deeply lonely. This was such a lovely sweet story and the Home Alone vibes were awesome! I can see myself reading this charming holiday tale year after year.

I voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I enjoyed the first half of this book a lot. It was fun watching the dynamic between the two protagonists and coming to understand their struggles and history. However, in the second half I just lost a lot of the interest I had in the characters and plot. Part of the reason was because the climax that was built up was over very quickly and it happened in the middle of the book, not towards the end. Overall, it was an enjoyable book and I think most historical romance fans would really love it. It just wasn't entirely for me and I don't care for singing in books at all and there was a lot of it in this book.

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