Book Review: The Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare

I am on a mini romance kick. I need a little "lovely" in my life right now.

The Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare

Released August 2017

Romance  |  Goodreads   |  Amazon

Source:  Overdrive Borrow

When girl meets Duke, their marriage breaks all the rules…

Since his return from war, the Duke of Ashbury’s to-do list has been short and anything but sweet: brooding, glowering, menacing London ne’er-do-wells by night. Now there’s a new item on the list. He needs an heir—which means he needs a wife. When Emma Gladstone, a vicar’s daughter turned seamstress, appears in his library wearing a wedding gown, he decides on the spot that she’ll do.

His terms are simple:
- They will be husband and wife by night only.
- No lights, no kissing.
- No questions about his battle scars.
- Last, and most importantly… Once she’s pregnant with his heir, they need never share a bed again.

But Emma is no pushover. She has a few rules of her own:
- They will have dinner together every evening.
- With conversation.
- And unlimited teasing.
- Last, and most importantly… Once she’s seen the man beneath the scars, he can’t stop her from falling in love…

My 2 Cents For Free!

I read a lot of horror but I'm also a fan of an amusing romance. I realize the two do not go together and many people can't wrap their heads around this but I do not care. Romances help me clear my head when I can't seem to focus on anything else and The Duchess Deal was the perfect book for me at this particular moment in time. It is getting all the stars because it amused me and made me happy and it also made me laugh a few times and most of us probably need to do a little more of that.

Ash is horribly disfigured from a war injury and was dumped by his feckless fiancee who couldn't handle his scars (and they do sound terrible - this isn't a little scratch on the face, this poor man is maimed and missing some chunks of himself but none of the important ones, haha) and one day decides he needs an heir, like right now. When a seamstress shows up at his door demanding he pay her in full for the ugly ass wedding dress she created for his former fiancee, he decides she'd be alright to marry and he proposes on the spot. How weird is this? She knows it's strange but, well, it's a decent deal for her and she's no dummy. Her only demand is that he allow her a cat - even though she doesn't even have one yet, lol.

Hey, call me crazy (you wouldn't be the first), but this setup was so ridiculous that I couldn't help but keep reading to see where else it would go. Sometimes you just need some ridiculousness in your life. If this is you, this is your book!

But even I can't live on ridiculousness alone. I need characters who have chemistry and joy and humor and lust and love and all of those good things and these two had it from their first insane exchange. They are SO funny together and I wasn't expecting that. Usually beauty and the beast type books feature a rough and grumbly hero with a super bad attitude. And this dude has one but he also tolerates the teasing and the silliest of pet names and he isn't a jerk. Soon enough he learns to love it. It is all so very lovely.

I want all books to be this charming even the cannibalistic serial killer ones! Just kidding. Sort of.

"Being imperfect is better than being distant."

5 out of 5