This is a Bridgerton-esque MM romance where an incognito Duke enlists the help of a disgraced gentleman to find his stolen heirloom. The writing sounded of the times, and took some adjusting to get used to. I laughed out loud a few times at the wit and banter between characters. I enjoyed both main characters and thought their romance was believable. It felt like quite a long book for a romance, but that could be just because of the historical writing style that I’m not used to. Overall, it was a fun time with a little spice and a lot of charm. Recommended for historical romance fans.

Vernon Fortescue Cassian George de Vere Crosse, the fourth Duke of Severn is a quiet unassuming gentleman. After his father's death when he was just six the Duke was brought up by his uncle. His uncle has always impressed on the Duke his obligations to the title and his dependants, whilst also impressing upon others how important the Duke is. As a result the Duke has been both cosseted and constrained by what is expected of him. When an anonymous encounter leads to him being robbed in his sleep of clothes, cash, and the Ducal Severn ring he knows he must recover it before his uncle discovers it is missing, what symbolises the Duke of Severn more than his ring?

When his cousins mock him at dinner for being unable to fend for himself, they enter into a bet, the Duke will live incognito, travelling alone as an ordinary gentleman by stagecoach instead of hiring a private carriage, carrying his own bags, for a month. At first the Duke makes a complete hash of things, he doesn't know how to order himself dinner at an inn, or request a room, he drops his clothes on the floor expecting a valet to pick them up and clean them, he doesn't know how to book a seat on a stagecoach. Then he encounters a man he knew vaguely at Eton who was disgraced when his father lost all their money gambling and killed a man before escaping abroad. The Duke knows this man, Daizell Charnage, is considered disgraced, tarred by the same brush, but he is clearly living on his wits, so in an impetuous moment the Duke begs for his help in finding the thief and his ring, introducing himself as plain Mr Cassian. Daizell can't believe his luck, this man will pay him £50 for a week's travelling (including food and board) which will keep him afloat for months if he is careful and leave him less reliant on the hospitality of friends and the small sums he can earn from cutting out paper silhouettes of people.

Together they career around the English countryside looking for a nondescript man who most certainly gave a false name. Travelling incognito forces the Duke to suffer various slights and indignities, a stagecoach crash, sharing a bed with Daizell. The pair also get embroiled with a runaway heiress and her reluctant swain, a vindictive guardian, and a corrupt magistrate.

I can give no higher accolade than to say it reminds me strongly of Georgette Heyer's writing, if she had written open door LGBTQIA+ romances. Some elements are similar to The Foundling in which the Most Noble Adolphus Gillespie Vernon Ware, seventh Duke of Sale travels incognito under the name of Rufford to retrieve some letters for a relative.

Anyway, gentler than the characters in the Doomsday Books series, Cass is more like Jeremy KIte in Death in the Spires in terms of our romantic MMC.

Thoroughly enjoyed this, as I have all books by KJ Charles.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

KJC is so hit or miss for me that I think it might be really saying something that this was a hit!

I am never going to get over the historical concept of an English gentleman. What do you mean it taxes your person to lay your shirt across a chair rather than throwing it on the floor where you stand? It's preposterous and in this one KJC seems to me to be very much aware of that fact and managed to poke fun at the concept without presenting Cassian as a loathsome figure. Dude just doesn't know how to take care of himself and KJC has us more laughing with him than at him.

Additionally, the misadventures of these two MCs are absolutely and without a doubt completely ridiculous. Yet KJC has a way of drawing us along from one event to the next that rather than seem ridiculous, each pickle these guys get themselves into only makes sense.

My only complaint is the third act. This book hits a deep lull around 70% and wallows in it for another 15% or so. I knew from the beginning that Cassian and Daizell would eventually have it out over the fact that Cassian is a Duke and lied about it. But I felt like each character’s response to that scene was inconsistent with their previous actions. I didn't think either of these guys were the type to go OTT with it, with all the wailing and the gnashing of teeth.

And afterwards, for a good long while, these two spend pages and pages individually thinking about the events of the book. They think about it, they recount it to others, and then they think about it some more.

Fortunately though, it picks back up again around 85% and has a very strong finish, complete with HEA.

The best though was when the MCs visit Shakespeare’s Birthplace in Stratford. I was there just last year and it was then just as it is described in the book:

“The half that remained a house was populated by aged dodderers who offered to show them Shakespeare’s own chair, his cradle, his wife’s cradle, his tragically lost son’s cradle, his pipe, or whatever other tatty old rubbish they had to hand, and who were all ready to recount their great-grandfather’s many stories from when he was the best of friends with the Bard. This was the sort of thing a gullible man, or an excessively polite one, could be caught in for hours.”

Excessively polite. Is me! I spent a good ten minutes listening to a woman tell me the story of glass in a window at Shakespeare’s Birthplace that has since been removed and replaced. And even though she was describing a thing that was no longer there, I felt it would be too rude to walk away mid-story. Ha!

KJC has a real talent for evoking the English countryside, in all its quirks and inconsistencies.

KJ Charles can do no wrong. Absolutely adored this one and loved the balance of these characters so much. This was fun from start to finish, with the perfect elements of surprise and predictability to make it a thoroughly enjoyable romance.

Thanks to Orion Publishing Group and NetGalley for the ARC!

I really wish the formatting would’ve been better on this and if has preventing me from going forward with reading. I also couldn’t bring myself to get through 20% of this.

This book was an absolute delight to read. It was funny, heartfelt, and kept me entertained and engaged the entire read - I did not want to put it down! 

MCs Cassian and Daizell meet while Cassian, aka the Duke of Severn, is living amongst the common people as a wager he made with his cousin, and also trying to recover his stolen ducal ring. Cassian hires Daizell to help him find said ring, but leaves out the whole Ducal bit (which would of course be against the terms of the wager).

Shenanigans ensue as Cassian and Daizell try to recover the missing ring. There are country inns, many public stage coaches, elopements to aid, horses to calm, and a villain to out. Cassian learns how to do for himself, Daizell learns he is of value, and together they are a bundle of mush and it was absolutely fantastic. Until that Ducal secret finally rears it's head and Cassian has to fix his errors. The ending was very satisfying, as Cassian and Daizell find a way to their HEA in spite of a Dukedom resting on Cassian's shoulders and the reality of being gay during the Regency.

The Duke at Hazard can absolutely be read as a standalone with an entire new cast of characters aside from some minor cameos. It's my favourite KJ Charles to date and I highly recommend it if you're looking for something a little soft, and a lot fun!

Thank you to Orion for an eARC via NetGalley. Opinions are my own.

(Review will be posted to Instagram closer to pub date)

K J Charles delivers another exciting and satisfying romp around the Georgian coach trails, as a Duke in disguise ropes a disgraced gentleman into a hunt to recover his stolen signet ring. I loved the Duke in this, he knows he's out of touch and scaffolded by privilege and so in a bid to gain some autonomy and independence he sets off on his own without his Dukely trappings. His determination to master the simple art of booking an inn room and navigating coach trips was very endearing. It all builds to him effectively throwing his Dukel weight around in a massively entertaining confrontation with the villain. It was great to see past characters from the series witnessing the chaos unfold, as you can't help but read it all with your jaw on the floor. If you want a fun adventure from the master of historical romance, then pick this up immediately!
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have been loving queer regency romances lately, but this one had a lot of boring moments in between action that would hook me in. The relationship was cute but I didn't connect with either character. If you like queer regency romances I'd still recommend

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.