Monday, April 29, 2019

Review: No Other Duke But You by Valerie Bowman

Title: No Other Duke But You
Author: Valerie Bowman
Genre/Age: Historical Romance
Series: Playful Brides (Book Eleven)
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Format: ebook via Publisher
Rating: ✺✺✺
SynopsisA lady with a love potion. A Duke who takes it by mistake. Romance and mischief ensues when plans go awry in No Other Duke But You by Valerie Bowman.


SINGLE LADY SEEKS DUKE

Lady Delilah Montebank has her marital sights set on the Duke of Branville. There’s just one problem: he barely knows she exists. But no matter, she’s got a plan to win him over with her charm, her wit—and perhaps the love potion she has in her possession wouldn’t hurt her cause...

Lord Thomas Hobbs, Duke of Huntley, thinks his best friend Delilah’s quest to become a duchess is ridiculous. He’s always said he’d rather give up all the brandy in London than commit to one person for life. Besides, he knows that Delilah’s love potion can’t possibly win over Branville…since she accidentally gave it to him instead. But perhaps this is the excuse he needs to show her he’s always loved her...

Delilah can’t believe she gave the potion to the wrong duke. Then again, Delilah could do a lot worse than win the hand of her handsome best friend. Could it be that the right duke has been before her eyes all along?





Delilah glanced up and down the dim hallway. It was well past three in the morning, she was still dressed in the pink ball gown she’d worn to the party, and she clutched the small vial of Cupid’s Elixir in her sweaty, guilty palm. She pressed her back against the shadowed wall not far from the Duke of Branville’s bedchamber. She could do this. More importantly, she would do this. She’d come this far, hadn’t she? What did a little sneaking about in the middle of the night matter?
She’d got detailed instructions to Branville’s room from Derek, who thankfully hadn’t asked any questions about why she wanted to know. According to him, the room was four doors to the right, just past the staircase on the third floor. The third floor was where all the bachelor gentlemen were sleeping. It would be a complete scandal if she was found lurking about alone at this time of night, but she’d waited until the household seemed quite asleep and then waited a bit longer for good measure. Anyone who saw her now would be skulking about themselves, which meant they would hardly be in a position to judge her. She briefly wondered if she’d run into Lavinia.
It was not as if she was out to do anything particularly scandalous. It was more silly and frivolous than anything else. She’d simply die, however, if Branville woke up and asked her what she was doing sprinkling pixie water in his eyes. She’d already decided to pretend as if she were dreaming, thinking she was Puck in the play. Sleepwalking. That would make all the sense in the world. Wouldn’t it? She swallowed hard. Probably not, but she wasn’t about to let the fear of being caught stop her. Besides, all of her and Lucy’s matchmaking had turned into a colossal mess. If a spray of perfume could sort it out, so be it. Of course, Delilah’s conscience reminded her that she hadn’t offered any of the perfume to Rebecca to use on Thomas. She didn’t want to even contemplate that. She’d already shared it with one other person, and that made her guilty enough. The image of Madame Rosa’s disapproving, craggy face had haunted her all evening.
Delilah shook off the thought and turned her attention back to the matter at hand. Pressing her empty palm against the darkened wall, she inched her way along until she came to Branville’s door. She felt like a spy. This was how professional spies did such things, wasn’t it? Too bad she was too embarrassed by her actions to ask the veritable house full of professional spies who happened to be asleep behind other doors right now.
She transferred the vial into her opposite hand and slowly reached to grasp the door handle. The metal was cold in her bare hand. She’d discarded her gloves, deciding that they would make her actions more clumsy. The last thing she needed tonight was to be more clumsy than usual. Decidedly, she needed to be less so.
She clutched the door handle like a lifeline and closed her eyes, steadying her shaking fingers on the knob. She was close, so close. Praying that the door wouldn’t squeak, she turned the handle slowly. The only sound was the thumping of her own heart in her ears.
When the handle was turned as far as it would go, she pushed it, praying fervently that it wasn’t locked. It took a moment before she realized the door was opening. Its hinges silent, merci a Dieu. Completely silent.
She slipped inside the cool, dark room. Steady, deep breathing came from the bed. Thank goodness, she hadn’t woken the duke with her entrance. She could barely see a thing, but she didn’t dare light a candle. A tiny stream of moonlight filtered into the room through a small opening in the curtains on the far window. She used that to identify the hulking bed in the center of the room. She tiptoed over to it slowly, taking care in case there was anything to trip over. No doubt she would find it if there was.
She made it to the foot of the bed without incident and paused, trying to quell her nerves and dispel her guilt. She clutched the vial more tightly in her palm, shaking with fear and anxiety. Now that she was here, she had no earthly idea how to drop liquid on a man’s eyes without awakening him. Besides, how much of it was she supposed to use? Surely not much. She would employ the tiniest drops possible so as not to disturb him, but she also needed to ensure the perfume touched his eyelids. Tricky business, this being a fairy. She had a sudden appreciation for Puck.
Holding her breath, she lifted her skirts with her free hand and tiptoed to the right side of the bed. Because it was summer, the bed curtains weren’t drawn. The window was open, and a slight breeze blew through the crack in the curtains.
The outline of the duke’s body was barely visible in the moonlight. He was turned away on his side, his back to her, his face toward the window. She would have to lean over his body to sprinkle the elixir on his eyes. The bed was tall. She must carefully climb up to do this task properly. She only hoped she didn’t jostle the mattress enough to wake him.
She waited in silence for a few moments to ensure his breathing remained steady, then she carefully lifted first one knee and then the other, bracing them on the mattress and pulling herself up, still clutching the vial. She winced as he moved slightly in his sleep, but he kept his face turned away. Blast it.
Once she was fully atop the bed, she paused and hoped the hammering of her heart didn’t wake him. He smelled good, a combination of soap and maleness that she wanted to breathe in. There was something vaguely familiar about his scent.
Shaking away that unhelpful thought, she moved gingerly across the mattress on her knees until she came to a stop at his side. His shirt was off. The beam of moonlight hit his smooth, muscled arm. She swallowed. The man’s chest was positively swoon-worthy. She took a deep breath to calm her nerves and uncorked the vial. Then she carefully leaned over as far as she could to locate his eyes. They remained shrouded in the dark, but she took a guess as to their general direction and tipped the little vial as slowly and carefully as she could. He turned then, and she was afforded enough light to see that the first tiny drop of liquid did indeed fall directly onto his eyelid.
He blinked, and she held her breath. When he settled back into sleep, she closed her eyes and said a brief prayer that she would get away with it a second time before tipping the vial once more to allow another tiny drop to fall on his other eyelid.
He blinked and rubbed at his eyes while Delilah held her breath again, paralyzed with fear. Soon, he settled back into his pillow and his breathing returned to its steady pace.
She pressed a hand to her throat. It was over. She was done. All she had to do was extract herself from the bed and the room without being seen or heard. The difficult part was behind her.
Still praying he wouldn’t stir, she backed away from the duke. Slowly. Slowly. She’d nearly made it to the edge of the bed when he flipped over to face her. A beam of moonlight slid over his sleeping features.
Delilah gasped.


From No Other Duke But You. Copyright © 2019 by Valerie Bowman and reprinted with permission from St. Martin’s Paperbacks.


Valerie Bowman grew up in Illinois with six sisters (she’s number seven) and a huge supply of historical romance novels. After a cold and snowy stint earning a degree in English with a minor in history at Smith College, she moved to Florida the first chance she got. Valerie now lives in Jacksonville with her family including her mini-schnauzers, Huckleberry and Violet. When she’s not writing, she keeps busy reading, traveling, or vacillating between watching crazy reality TV and PBS.


**Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book.**

Friends to lovers--done right!

This book would make a great movie. There are a lot of colorful characters, our main couple are incredibly likable, and there is a good deal of humor here also. The blurb mentions the love potion and I was a little disappointed to see it only made an appearance toward the end of the story. However, once it does come into play, boy does it make a splash.

I was thoroughly entertained from start to finish. I always tend to enjoy a friends-to-lovers type of story and this one was done well. Our couple have a tight bond, which we can see from the beginning. But we also get to watch it bloom into something more. Jealousy replaces comfort and our heroine starts to see her BFF in a new light.

There are a lot of characters in this book, so that is a lot of names to keep straight. We are introduced to the more important players, which makes it easier. But the rest of the secondary characters are sort of just tossed in. So reading the other previous books in this series would be helpful. Despite the many faces, this was a fairly easy story to follow along with.

In closing...
If you enjoy a friends-to-lovers story as much as I do, this one is for you! Four suns!

47 comments:

  1. Nice Post. I read all your Post and I feel this Post is better than other's posts. So thanks you so much for this Post.......

    ReplyDelete
  2. Call @ 9818003235, 9818003238
    IELTSCoaching - one of the most sought after exam after among contemporary exams of the English language testing. We provide PTE IELTS Coaching in Gurgaon or Delhi NCR For immigration. We have fully updated Courses and the latest Books for Preparation.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Nice Blog...
    In this blog I got valuable information about ....
    We provide Best SEO Service Provider in Gurgaon India for Digital Marketing by Sholly Technologies Pvt Ltd.

    ReplyDelete
  4. गुड़ कैसे खाये - गुड़ खाने के फायदे - गुड़ की तासीर - gud ke fayde - jaggery benefits - Yoga & Ayurveda
    गुड़ कैसे खाये - गुड़ खाने के फायदे - गुड़ की तासीर - gud ke fayde - jaggery benefits for men or women

    ReplyDelete
  5. Online gambling 928bet 24 hours a day and there is no withdrawal free

    ReplyDelete
  6. Top parenting books, Awesome article, it was exceptionally helpful! I simply began in this and I'm becoming more acquainted with it better! Cheers, keep doing awesome!

    ReplyDelete
  7. The Article are written by the author are very informative and have a unique idea to share. Thanks for sharing this Information with us.
    We provide english speaking course in gurgaon at very resonable price with 100% Sucess rate by AIBEDUCATION.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Your website looks so great. If you want, you can participate in the award-winning blogs event contest. Our contest that attaches importance to web content and focuses on original writing has started; voting will be done by the jury. Join now and win promotions and prizes. It should be appreciated that your content is interesting and beneficial to humanity. We believe you will make this event fun. By being included in the web directory, you can thus increase your visitor numbers and the followers of your website. Do not miss the opportunity now and join now.

    Web: www.webawards.tk

    ReplyDelete
  9. Wanna RITE summorr in Seventh-Heaven, dear?
    999+ ... oemnillion×oemnillion novels?
    Then, follow us to the Great Beyond:
    ♡ en.gravatar.com/MatteBlk ♡
    Love you.
    Cya soon.
    be@peace.
    -GBY!

    ReplyDelete
  10. MakeMyWebsite is a Award-winning website design company in Brisbane, Australia. We offers Affordable Custom web design and development services in Brisbane. Our agency specializing in creating conversion driven user-centric websites and Our approach towards web design Brisbane is unconventional as we leave no stone unturned to provide you with a finished product that you anticipated.
    website design brisbane

    ReplyDelete
  11. Nice! Thanks for sharing
    Visit: https://gobookmart.com

    ReplyDelete
  12. The post is really superb. It’s varied accessory information that consists during a basic and necessary method. Thanks for sharing this text. The substance is genuinely composed. This web log is frequently yellowstone beth dutton blue coat sharing useful actualities. Keep sharing a lot of posts.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I have just read this blog and I’ll surely come back for more posts, and also this article gives the light in which we can observe the reality of the topic. Thanks for this nice article! Now read this too...civil defence shortlist

    ReplyDelete

  14. If you are searching best mobile app development company then the Einnovention Software Solution LLC is one of the best Mobile App Development
    companies. Our USA-UK-based companies configure your businesses precisely to your requirements.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Very good write-up. I certainly love this site. This blog is really helpful. I found very interesting things here. Feel free to read about Grant For Single Mothers

    ReplyDelete
  16. Your content has made a ton of sense and your points are second to none. Kudos to this interesting content. Checkout Love Messages For Her From The Heart

    ReplyDelete
  17. Thanks for sharing with us. I appreciate your thought... I want to share info about Apartment on rent, You can find 1 BHK to 4 BHK Flats for rent in Noida, India. Please visit on our website ApartmentOnRent.com


    ReplyDelete
  18. Spot on with this write-up, I absolutely believe this website needs far more attention. I’ll probably be returning to read through more, thanks for the information!. how to raise my credit score 40 points fast

    ReplyDelete
  19. Tsur Ben David

    Founder and acting CEO

    CET Enviro was founded by Tsur Ben David, a former Air Force pilot and serial entrepreneur in the field of cleantech. With over 27 years of management experience in the energy and water industries, and leading development and global projects in cleantech, technology and product companies, Tsur Ben David is instrumental in bringing goal-oriented and pragmatic approach, and an uncompromising urge to deliver quality results.

    Tsur Ben David, who has an extensive experience in local and international business development, specializes in identifying and developing commercial relationships in potential international markets, and recruiting strategic partners. He is known in the field as a creative and committed professional with diverse experience in managing international businesses, channel development, technologies and markets.

    The company and its employees all support the CEO's vision of combining business values with values to contribute to the preservation of the planet by keeping global water sources free of pollutants and preventing the waste of energy that releases pollutants into the atmosphere.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Our range of card-based prepaid G1.6 Gas Meter provides a smarter alternative to the traditional mechanical gas meters with an intelligent, low cost, and high-performance solution.

    ReplyDelete
  21. The global busbar market is being driven by rising investments in developing efficient power supply networks across residential, commercial, and industrial establishments. Its adoption is being preferred over other options because of its ability to supply high voltage power in building structures without requiring additional space. Increased investments in the refurbishment and replacement of ageing transmission networks and increasing adoption of smart grid technology are adding to the market size.


    Also Read: tea market, tomato processing market

    ReplyDelete
  22. Our link extras up to 42 kV are described by safe arrangements with dependable capacities for long haul activity. Our Medium voltage cable accessories designing experience and persistent item advancement empower us to offer items that meet future necessities for dependable frameworks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. https://lakshyaiasacademy.com/

      Delete
  23. What you'll learn
    1. Discussion on art and nuances of Essay writing. Essay paper is a low-hanging fruit as you just have to package the content you have in a presentable manner. But this entails a creativity quotient and skills to write an above-average essay.

    2. Understanding the basics of the Essay writing without which it becomes difficult to score good marks in essay paper. How to connect one paragraph to another , what should be the flow in the essay , how many dimensions to discuss to score good marks. All this will be discussed in classes.

    3. Learning of various approaches to Essay writing in general and Introduction and Conclusion in particular. It is well known that many times students can write content for MAIN BODY of the essay , but when it comes to Introduction and Conclusion of Essay they can’t do justice with it.

    4. Essay writing is an art and so by the very definition can be learnt by practicing it correctly. During classes there would be brainstorming sessions on the previous years topics of UPSC Essay paper. This would help you learn how to unfold an essay topic.

    5. Most importantly, stress to be given to PHILOSOPHICAL topics which are becoming the darling of UPSC in recent times. It is here that normal candidates are lacking to express themselves. After the classes you must be able to deal with philosophical topics confidently.

    6. Learning how to structure an Essay. As an unorganized and unstructured Essay is the one which gets poor marks in Main Examination. Hence if you know how to structure your essay you can ensure good marks in this paper.

    ReplyDelete
  24. With EN331 certification and CE marking, Kimpex Flow ball valves manufacturers offer precision and high performance with the long working life of more than 20 years. They are used in natural gas and LPG pipelines.

    ReplyDelete
  25. The image of Madame Rosa’s disapproving, craggy face had haunted her all evening. Thanks for sharing this article and great information. Now it's time to avail jupiter florida airport for more information.

    ReplyDelete

  26. This blog in very informative for us

    ReplyDelete
  27. Amazing information. I genuinely enjoyed reading this blog and the discussion by the people. Learn further about Travel insurance: Your essential protection for worry-free journeys. Don't travel without it! !Travel Insurance this is right place for you

    ReplyDelete
  28. Such a fantasting article is. I really enjoyed while reading this. The image you shared on cover is very eye capturing. Thankyou for share. Now its time to avail Car Services in Orlando for more information.

    ReplyDelete
  29. I loved 'No Other Duke But You' by Valerie Bowman. It's a charming and delightful read. Her storytelling captures the essence of romance beautifully. Thank you for sharing this recommendation. Now it's time to avail car service boca raton for more information.

    ReplyDelete
  30. Great blog! Beautifully written review on "No Other Duke But You" by Valerie Bowman. Loved the insights on this captivating topic.

    gardening tool online

    ReplyDelete
  31. Fantastic blog! The review of "No Other Duke But You" on Up 'Til Dawn Book Blog is captivating. Beautifully written and thoroughly enjoyed!

    Search Engine Optimization Services

    ReplyDelete
  32. Great blog! Beautifully written review of "No Other Duke But You" by Valerie Bowman on Up 'Til Dawn Book Blog. I loved your insights on the topic.

    Panchtatva

    ReplyDelete
  33. Great blog! The review on "No Other Duke But You" by Valerie Bowman is beautifully done. Loved the insights on this captivating topic.

    Senior Wing in Faridabad

    ReplyDelete
  34. Great blog! Engaging review on "No Other Duke But You" by Valerie Bowman. 📚💖 Thoroughly enjoyed reading your insights!

    Packers and Movers in Chomu

    ReplyDelete
  35. Great blog! 👏 Engaging content, beautifully presented. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about this topic. 😊

    E-commerce Solutions

    ReplyDelete
  36. 👏 Good blog! 🌟 Beautifully written and loved your insights on 'No Other Duke But You' by Valerie Bowman. 💖 Looking forward to more! 📚

    GD Goenka​ - CBSE Schools in Faridabad

    ReplyDelete
  37. Great blog! 🌟 Beautifully written review on 'No Other Duke But You' by Valerie Bowman. Loved your insights! 👏

    Panchatatva

    ReplyDelete
  38. Engaging content on "Immortal Girl5" at Up 'Til Dawn Book Blog. Loved the insights and the beautiful presentation.

    Depression Online Therapy

    ReplyDelete
  39. Engaging review on "No Other Duke But You" by Valerie Bowman. Your insights captivated me. Looking forward to more from Up 'Til Dawn Book Blog!

    Packers and Movers in Mansarovar

    ReplyDelete