Daring To Love The Duke's Heir

I won’t say I’m surprised, I won’t say I never expected Janice Preston to be able to outdo her last novel because it would be a lie. I KNEW she would, because Janice Preston is a talent and utter gem in writing regency romance. The stories just get bolder and wittier as we go along. She has the ability to conjure such vivid scenes in her readers head. While reading it would be so easy to close your eyes and see what she was describing as if you were in their world. The attention to detail is impeccable.

Both hero and heroine are a delight to read. This is the most perfect opposites attract book I’ve read this year. They clash, the banter is funny and I did sit there laughing to myself even while not reading. Just because I’d remembered something funny I’d read an hour ago! Looking like a loon on the train is something I understand, because authors such as these just fill my heart with love and joy. Talking of joy…

Liberty Lovejoy (I have to say this is the best name for a heroine I’ve ever seen in any genre. I grin ear-to-ear just saying it) is a lively, outspoken, stubborn headed woman so far ahead of her time. She is definitely a heroine I related to on a personal level, as she all but was a mother to her younger siblings. She’s protective, and doesn’t care what she has to do to keep her siblings on the straight and narrow, she forgoes her own freedom as it were to make sure her siblings are happy and content. This is how she meets Dominic, when she goes to confront Alex, Dominic’s brother, about his galavanting and influence on her brother.

Dominic Beauchamp was introduced to us briefly in the previous book and from that glimpse I knew I certainly loved him. Head over heels in love with him I would say. As the eldest son, he was set to inherit his father's dukedom once he came of age. The only thing left for him to do is find a suitable wife to become his Duchess. He has in mind the qualities his perfect bride must have and a list of eligible young ladies to fill the role, but do we really think it’s going to be that simple?

Liberty comes crashing into his life like a mini hurricane. She’s audacious and downright hilarious in her approach to bringing her brother back into the fold. Dominic’s plans for the perfect wife soon look to be a distant memory as his attraction to Liberty builds. And builds it does, this is a very drawn out romance. Perfectly paced to pop and sizzle, give stolen moments, perfect bickering and teasing all leading to the most perfect, swoonworthy ending. By the time we got there I was a blubbering mess, I’d become completely engrossed in them, their love story was so beautifully written my heart is just set to burst.

Dominic Beauchamp, Lord Avon, is a powerful duke’s heir and it’s his duty to marry well. His bride must have impeccable breeding, manners and grace. So he makes a list of names. Then he meets Liberty Lovejoy who’s like a breath of fresh air she’s from a merchant background, too bold & forthright. They are constantly thrown together & their attraction grows as does their friendship. Liberty also becomes friends with Dom’s sister Olivia.
An engrossing read of the straight laced upstanding Marquis falling for the almost spinster, I loved their verbal spats & they way he was so drawn to her but insisted he’d marry for duty. I loved both Dom & Berty who were so right for each other & the road to their HEA was highly entertaining, his speech at his parent’s ball was lovely & brought a tear to my eye
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

Dominic, Lord Avon, is the heir to a prestigious dukedom and has realised that he needs to marry and provide a suitable heir. The lady he marries must have impeccable breeding, elegance, class and be from the right family, he has even come up with a shortlist of suitable young ladies! However when he meets Miss Liberty Lovejoy he finds himself thinking of her more than perhaps he should...

Liberty is in London to have a season and to support her sisters. Her twin brother, Gideon, has unexpectedly inherited an Earldom following a fire killing his distant relations. Liberty wants to protect her brother and believes that the person who is leading him astray is Lord Alexander, the younger brother of Dominic. She heads to the Dukes house to confront him and ask him to curtail Alex in a hope that it will stop the destructive patterns of behaviours and the past times that Gideon is getting into. The Duke however isn't home and instead she confronts Dominic, at first believing him to be his brother

Dominic tries to protect Liberty, he knows better than she what could damage her reputation and her sisters prospects and they end up in a series of unconventional encounters across London

Can they overcome the social differences to be friends or more? Are they willing to risk themselves for actual happiness? Will their arguments and bickering, their closeness, attract too much attention and pull them apart?

I loved this book, I did a bit of a binge read, starting on the train to work and finishing at bedtime (sort of...) and I laughed more than once!

It is really well written and the characters feel real, this comes through especially in the voices of Dominic and Liberty. They had a good split of narrative and it helped me to feel more engaged with them and to understand their thought processes, why what was happening was happening and what they actually wanted

I would recommend this book to those who enjoy a historical romance in which the main characters who have a bit of fight between themselves, a good energy and a fast paced story