This review is going to be incredibly short because the crux of the matter is just that this was not the kind of romance that suits me. It’s entirely probable that this is an outlier of a review and opinion and I’m perfectly happy with that. There are other K. J. Charles books that I have loved and will come back to. My YMMV issue here was simply that I prefer my romances to have a bit more bite to them. If you enjoy two big ol’ softies being big ol’ softies to one another, then this could well be the book for you.

I snatched up an ARC of KJ Charles' latest without even knowing what the story is about. I'm such a fan and loved diving right in. Thank you to NetGalley and Orion for providing a copy to me ahead of the publication date.

This historical m/m road trip romance took takes us on a journey on romantic discovery between the two main characters and of course also across England.
And despite talk of previous assaults and murder, current danger, threats and violence, I perceived this is a rather gentle and kind read overall with a colorfully painted background cast, an unlikely Duke who's described as unassuming, an a wronged gentleman with a kind heart who's trying to make the most of his misfortune.

While I found it a tad slow to get in to, the pace picks up considerably once Duke is on the road and the adventure begins for real. I loved how everything wrapped up at the end but would have loved to read an epilogue for the happy couple a decade down the road.

Can't wait to read the next KJ Charles book.

4.5 stars. K.J. Charles' 2016 blog post about British nobility titles yielded this gem: "'Duke’ is an immensely important title, with only a handful existing at any time, except in romantic fiction where they outnumber the servants." So now that KJC has finally decided to give her latest MC that rare title, you can be sure he will not be a cliched handsome, arrogant rake. In fact, the fourth Duke of Severn's looks are unremarkable, and he is in the midst of a dandy existential crisis. He's gradually losing the struggle to fulfill his obligations to the title without completely losing himself in the process. That doesn't mean it's not fun to watch the clueless "Cassian" master such mundane skills as riding in a public stagecoach or getting a laugh in a crowded bar room, but there is significantly more depth to his character than Poor Little Rich Duke.

Daizell Charnage has a unique artistic skill that has kept him off the streets and enabled him to cling to a few shreds of dignity after being ruined financially and socially. Once he and Cassian become lovers, it's inevitable that the reveal of The Duke's Big Secret will not go well. Where Luke in KJC's A Nobleman's Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel was hiding an ulterior motive, Cassian is lying by omission about his entire identity, which is arguably even worse. Even if Daizell is the forgiving sort, how can the Duke of Severn and a disgraced near-pauper have a future together?

The chemistry between Cassian and Daizell is somewhat slow to develop, but once the Only One Bed trope is deployed, things heat up considerably. This is definitely a kinder, gentler KJC, with a low body count and villains who are wealthy, entitled asshats instead of spies or assassins. The Duke at Hazard can easily be read as a standalone, although characters from The Gentle Art of Fortune Hunting play a not insignificant role in the climactic scene.

KJC has proven that she can breathe new life into an old romance novel staple. Perhaps she can do the same for vampires next?

ARC gratefully received from the publisher and Net Galley in exchange for objective review.

I was lucky enough to get an ARC through Netgalley. KJ Charles is one of my favorite authors, and she did not disappoint in this latest book! I was charmed from the first page by the Duke; his many names, the role he is suffocating under, and his desire for male companionship of course. Cassian, the Duke of many names, as one of the most privileged men in England, could very easily have been an insufferable character, but Charles manages to write him as a complex human, somewhat aware that he's been cocooned his whole life from the hardships of the world, but still not quite realizing the depth of that privilege when it comes to how his choices might impact other people. It can be difficult to write a sympathetic uber rich man, but Charles manages to capture the double-edge sword of that that kind of wealth and position. The isolation, the loneliness, and for a man who has been the Duke since he was a small child, the difficulty in carving one an identity beyond the title and obligations it comes with.
I love that this is a dual POV, so we also get inside Daizell's head, the once-respectable disgraced gentleman that Cassian hires to help him retrieve his stolen ring. Listen, I love me a wounded MC, and poor Daizell has been through it, desperate for love and terrified of being rejected yet again. He was a compelling match for Cassian.
I was particularly intrigued by some of the historical activities we don't have anymore that Charles clearly research thoroughly: the cutting of people's profile was one, as well as what public transportation looked like before cars (yikes!).
I won't go into spoilers, but Charles did manage to surprise me with a few plot twists, which was nice. The plot felt solid, and I'd entirely forgotten that this is set in the same world as Robin and Hart from The Gentle Art of Fortune Hunting until they appeared in the last part of the book! I highly recommend this book, regardless of if you've read book 1.

The Duke of Severn has been groomed to be Severn since his father's ring, still warm from his father's recently dead finger, was put on his hand. He has never had the chance to be simply Cassian.
When the Severn ring gets stolen (in ... er... less than salutary circumstances) and his cousin rashly bets him that he can't survive a month without the trappings of a Duke, the Duke of Severn leaves everything behind and travels forth as simply 'Cassian'. The first priority is to get his ring back, but really, for Cassian, this is a month of freedom to live as normal people do.
When the hopelessly out of his depth Cassian meets the disgraced gentleman Daizell Charnage, he hires him to help smooth his way.
Cassian is so quiet and unassuming, seeing himself as completely separate from his title. He is trying so hard to be capable. I love that he bought a knife, so that he could be a bit more like a man who is calm and capable in a crisis. Daizell is worldy wise out of necessity but also curiously naiive in some ways. They make a delightful pairing. I loved how they both (Cassian especially) came into their own.
I also really liked the dynamic in Cassian's family - the way they carefully tread a fine line between deference to the Duke and the love for their cousin.
It was lovely to see Hart and Robin make a cameo appearance too.
I got a review copy of this book from Netgalley (thank you, Orion). I highly recommend this book!

The Duke at Hazard is so very well placed in the universe of Gentle Art of Fortune Hunting: it's a very similar type of story, gentle and quiet and not overly fond of dramatics. It finds its pace in quiet humor (so many laughs at the sheltered experience of being a duke), in striving to be a better person, in desire to be one's whole self and form connections on that basis. It's not high stakes or blool-boilingly exciting like some other of KJ Charles novels (so don't come into this book expecting the same vibe as, say, her conmen, spies and smuggler novels) but it is a perfectly warm read for an evening when you want a warm comfort and for things to be alright.

I love books by K.J. Charles, especially the combination of wit and pining, both ingredients in The Duke at Hazard. And still …

I liked Cassian’s and Dhazell’s story; I just didn’t love it. Situations that should have made me smile didn’t do anything more than sometimes pull up my lips a little; I lost my concentration while reading the ‘There’s just one bed’ scene, and even though the pacing was fast, I was reading so slowly.

I do not even have the inspiration to write a full review. For me, this story was just okay. Nothing more, nothing less. Please check out other reviews if you want to read this one!

KJ Charles has this uncanny way of making you feel both at the edge of your seat with tension and assured that everything is going to be absolutely alright at the same time. This tropey, romping adventure of secret identities and stolen rings is no different. With Charles’ signature cast of side characters that you fall absolutely in love with and main characters as flawed as they are loveable, this is another perfectly devour-able adventure. KJ Charles’ research and detail in the setting of the novel really shines through in this one; from the sightseeing to the carriage wreck, I believed every moment. Charles’ books never let me down. They always deliver on intrigue, humour, romance, and thrills.

I can't stress enough how much I loved this book. It's delightful m/m romcom goodness, all about discovering yourself and your power and the people who make you more than yourself, and utter perfection. It features a runaway Duke, a down-on-his-luck scoundrel with a heart of gold, and more ridiculous hijinks than a Georgette Heyer novel. (It specifically kept reminding me of The Corinthian which happens to be one of my favorites.)

KJ's books are always, always winners, and I would swear up and down that my favorite is, well, the one I've read most recently. So for now, this is my favorite.

I love that the poor smothered Duke gets to live his month of freedom as a common man and falls in love in the process. I love that he eventually discovers his power and, most importantly, how to use it for good. It felt so satisfying to see him use it to take down dastardly villains and save damsels in distress and poor relations, and scoundrels wronged by the wealthy, and you can just see how much good he'll be able to do - especially with Daizell by his side because lets face it, he has the brains of the operation - in the future.

I haven't read much in the past month but I devoured this in a day and can't wait until it's released on audio so I can devour it again in a new format.

10/10 Absolutely a must-read.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Orion for providing an early copy for review.

This was a sweet and emotional story with two of the sweetest cinnamon roll heroes. I enjoyed this a lot and am on my way to read more KJ Charles.

First, Thank you Net Galley and Orion Publishing for allowing me to read and review this ARC✌

Book name- the Duke at Hazard
ratings- 4.1 ⭐

This is my first KJ Charles book and that's a mistake I intend to rectify ASAP!

This book is about to say in short, about a quiet Duke and a fallen gentleman! It's about both of them finding each other and changing each other's lives.

The Duke of Severn is an assuming man whose life is dictated by his loving yet overbearing Uncle and Valet, walters. When the opportunity arises, The Duke takes matters into his own hand and tries his luck outside his comfort zone, where he finds his future beau and currently a rogue gentleman.

Together they embark on a journey, to find something important(your guess if I'm talking about a thing or sentiment) in between they find each other!

All in all, I love both of our protagonists and other side characters who were, in their own unique way, quite amazing...even Lady Wintour! (Haha)

However, I couldn't really invest in more 18+ scenes for reasons I'm unaware of! Over all, their love was, though, the most precious thing❤

To quote Cassian himself, "𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗜 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻'𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀"

That's all I've to say about this lovely book!

I wonder if at this point (when I´ve already read most of KJ Charles´ books) would be surprising if I say I love her stories.
In this particular one, we get a roadtrip with a duke who has no idea of how to manage on his own without using his power / title and a disgraced gentleman who´s been stripped out of his privileges because of some unfortunate events that not necessarily were all his fault.
I especially liked Cassian, the duke, perhaps because he behaved like a stray puppy most of the time (until he began to actually act like a duke, with the authority needed, in certain situations towards the end) and it was no wonder the guy was robbed not once, but several times all through the novel. Despite the fact that he accepted a wager to have an excuse to look for the thief that stole his ring, and hired Daizell (the gentleman with dubious reputation) to help, this read like a very cozy and wholesome romance book.
I mean, wholesome if you ignore the carriage incident... And the elopement with the evil landlord... And possibly the murders as well.
But look, I´m not picky and I like blood. So for me this is a total win.

A delightful romp filled with KJ’s signature tight plot, great character insight, and delightful cast. This is one of one of her more cozy stories, but that’s not to say there aren’t stakes or conflict. KJ’s books are always immaculately edited and constructed, with deep feeling and rich historical detail and this is no exception. We’ve waited a long time for a Duke and this one is a delight.

Such a wonderful book - Sev / Cass is delightful and Diazell his perfect match. Swoony, funny and a little sad - perfect. Kj Charles once again proves why she is one of my always pre-order authors.

As usual, KJ Charles doesn't disappoint. It was a pleasure to meet with Cassiel and Daizell and follow their journey as they try to track down a thief. Cassiel is conscious of his privilege, and wants to discover the world and himself during a month of freedom gained through a wager. Daizell drift through life, doing is best after having seen his reputation destroyed.
They meet in an inn, Cassiel, travelling incognito, asks Daizell for help against a reward, which Daizell accepts, intrigued and needing the money.
What ensued is a sweet, beautiful, entertaining romance, where each characters grow and change as they face various challenges and have to find their own place in the world. Cassiel is so quiet and soft, but still strong, lovely. He needs to be more than the Duke and lands himself in trouble. I found him so endearing. Daizell is as much endearing in his own way, outgoing but hurt, wanting, needing to trust. I loved them.
The plot moves in a good pace while leaving place for quiet moments for the characters to witness their feeling grow, creating a believable romance with a solid plot as a scaffholding.
Lovely !

If you are looking for a fun and fast-paced romance book that keeps you engaged, this is the book for you. Cassian and Daizell are two amazing characters to follow around, and learning more about them as their romance develops was fun to do. The pacing in this book was very good, and it keeps the story moving in a way that doesn't bore the reader but also doesn't rush their developing relationship. I love finding queer romances that are based in this time period, and this book didn't disappoint.

This novel, set in the captivating Regency era, is the second installment in the Gentlemen of Uncertain Fortune series, promising readers a rich and immersive experience.

The premise is that the Duke of Severn is robbed after a brief and mysterious encounter. While he keeps the details of this encounter hushed, his family relentlessly mocks him for his inability to navigate the world sans the privileges and supports that come with his title. He enters a bet where he will live as the common man for a month, buying him time to track down his stolen ring and perhaps sew his oats. It is during this bet that Severn, aka Cassian, meets Daizell. Daize is a disgraced gentleman living on his ability to do silhouette portraiture. Cassian hires him to help him track down his encounter and the ring.

The story is a thrilling adventure, as Cassian and Daize face numerous challenges in their relentless pursuit of the stolen ring. Along this perilous journey, their relationship deepens, adding a layer of emotional suspense. Fans of KJ Charles will surely be captivated by this novel, which is a rich tapestry of adventure, class, social mores, love, and suspense.

Both Cassian and Daizell have experienced the blessings and constraints of their societal positions. They have also tasted the bitter-sweetness of the other side, with its own set of advantages and disadvantages. Now, it is up to them to seize control and shape their lives according to their own desires.

The Duke of Severn is young, bossed around by his entire family, and something of a non-entity in society. During an - ahem - encounter with a young man, he gets all his things stolen, including the ancestral signet ring. He doesn't tell his family that it's gone, but makes a bet with his cousin that he can travel with "only" 100 pounds and a small travel bag and he sets out to track down the thief.

He has NO idea what he's doing, gets pick-pocketed of 20 pounds on his first stage coach journey, and at an inn meets Daizell Charnage, a boy he knew slightly at Eton whose life has been in a disastrous downward spiral ever since. Daizell doesn't recognize him, so the Duke calls himself Mr. Cassian. He offers Daizell 50 pounds to help him track down the thief and they set off.

This is a road trip book with coaches and inns and horses. And card games and bets and elopements. And murder (in the past), abandonment, and kidnapping. A few nights in jail, a stage crash, lots of thievery, and a Big Bad who's behind an awful lot of misery for an awful lot of people.

This is also a book about growing up. It's only a few weeks, but Cassian grows enormously in confidence and personality and self-reliance. Daizell stops letting his life spiral and chooses to DO something about it.

And, of course, it's a m/m romance and it's by KJ Charles, so there's sex and love and betrayal and so on.

It's a very satisfying read, but on a re-read, I'm going to have to pull out a map of the UK and figure out where they're going.