Unfortunately this wasn't for me. I struggled to get into it and therefore didn't finish it because I wasn't enjoying it

i loved this book, and it has immediately become one of my favorite historical romances! there are a lot of emotions, and it's safe to say i shed a fair amount of tears while reading, but it was never too heavy, with kindness and humor throughout, as always.

The phrase “trans Regency romance” didn’t even seem possible outside of Archive of Our Own to me until I learned about this book, and I am so delighted that I got to read it. I feel that it is rare still (although getting less so!) to find a queer adult novel in which queerness is a source of joy and the harsher realities of queer existence are allowed to take a back seat to romance, fantasy, and happiness. It is especially rare to find this for trans characters. Alexis Hall, however, achieves this with finesse in the lovely, charming, and occasionally heart-wrenching A LADY FOR A DUKE.

This is by far my favorite of Hall’s work that I’ve read. Fans of historical romance and regency romance will find themselves in familiar territory with the standards of the ton providing the central shaping force of respectability, along with the genre-standard slight hand-waving of those standards in the face of true love, but will also see the way Hall works the genre anew. Viola, a trans woman who gave up a dukedom and faked her own death on the fields of Waterloo in order to live as her authentic self, encounters her former best friend while working as her sister-in-law’s lady’s maid. She quickly realises how thoroughly he still grieves her ‘death’ and is forced to decide if she will grow closer to him as a stranger or reveal their history together. Although this premise could certainly set the stage for significant transphobia, Hall deftly manoeuvres between the potential difficulties posed by being trans in this era without focusing too heavily on transphobic elements.

I found the romantic and intimate scenes in particular to be very respectful and encouraging. The cast of characters are amusing and captivating throughout, and the central romance feels at once realistic and like the stuff of dreams. I will say the conflict in the final quarter of the book felt a bit sudden, both arising and resolving in a rather rushed fashion, but it was more of a background element of the plot to begin with.

I highly recommend A LADY FOR A DUKE, even to those readers who have not connected with the romance or historical romance genre before. It’s a fun-yet-thoughtful Regency romp, with much more meditation on the meaning of love and intimacy than the genre traditionally allows for. It also feels like exciting new trans representation and I’m hopeful and excited to see readers engage with it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a digital proof in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Headlines:
Best friends then and now
Identity beautifully written
Angsty ride

A Lady For A Duke is something of a special historical romance because it features a trans main character. I have read another book of a similar era with this representation but nevertheless, this is such a welcome offering. All that said, Viola's identity was often background and the dynamic between the couple was in the foreground.

There was such a complex friendship in this story, none of which I'm going to describe because it was impactful and emotional reading. Gracewood was a shell of a man when Viola found herself back in his life and secrets were everything. Suffice it to say, Hall wrote this whole story with care but in particular, Viola and Gracewood navigating the changes to their dynamic was pretty beautiful.

I really appeciated how the power between these two MCs was pitched. Viola was a strong woman in many ways and Gracewood was diminished physically but he was protective and an advocate for everything that Viola was.

I loved the first half of this book, I felt the emotions so strongly in that section, simultaneously feeling mush for these two whilst feeling heartbroken in part. The second half was more plot driven than character driven which made for a full story. Overall, this was a memorable and valued story.

Thank you to Piatkus Books for the early review copy.

I enjoy Alex Hall very much as a rule; the reader knows they are in good hands and will get what they signed up for. I was excited for this historical romance that included a transgender heroine. Viola returned from war as her true self, but sacrificed her relationship with the Duke of Gracewood, who a few years later, is a broken man. Entering his life again, she turns it upside down as they work through to a way to move forward for them both.

Parts I enjoyed, but it missed the lightness of Something Fabulous and was worlds apart from the humour and heart of Boyfriend Material. I have re-read Boyfriend Material for the sheer pleasure of it, but sadly A Lady for a Duke isn't the same standard. I think a lot of people will enjoy it, and it had good parts, but it wasn't for me.

A great closed door regency romance with great representation of a trans character. One negative of the story was I felt it was long for a romance book.

A Lady For a Duke has all of Hall's usual sharp, acerbic wit and snappy humour intermingled with a raw, heartfelt storyline that hit a little too hard in places (which is not at all a bad thing).

This is excellently written, well-paced and honestly delightful. Viola is an excellent narrator, her perspective is frank and honest and whilst the beginning of the story (and the backstory) is heartbreaking, it's also a book that is packed full of joy and humour and is a little slice of wonder in regency fiction. Is this realistic? No, but that's not the point. It's sweet and charming and gives us a story that is so important and needed, even if it's a little far-fetched, and anyways, isn't that part of the point of stories?

I did feel like it was a little long and there were some aspects that I feel could have been trimmed and weren't necessary to the overall story. There were some sideplots that felt as though they were just 'there'. Also the last 30% or so was a lot faster paced and felt tonally different than the first 70% of the book and it was a little jarring. The epilogue was sweet but again felt a little out of place with the rest of the novel.

Overall, this was another Hall hit for me. I really liked it and whilst it took me a while to get through, I was invested throughout.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in return for an honest review.

I have enjoyed Alexis hall's writing in previous books and was interested in reading this story with its historical setting, PTSD damaged hero and trans heroine.

It is beautifully written, thought-provoking, and emotionally satisfying, so I really enjoyed it. But unfortunately, I found I could not suspend disbelief enough to buy into the tale totally. I struggled at first to set aside my knowledge of what could have been the historical reality, - with the lovely, heart-warming story that Alexis ultimately created. Thankfully, Bridgerton has shown how re-imagining history can be successful and rewarding, and so I set aside my usually pedantic approach to historical authenticity and simply enjoyed it.

I do not know how authentic AH's rendition of a trans woman's experience and emotions would be but it did indeed feel totally credible to me.

It was a good read and although so many questions were left unanswered at the end - I am hoping there's going to be an Amberglass sequel. My only criticism is that I thought it over long and a bit repetitive.

Great romance that's both funny and heartfelt - the romance between the two leads was lovely, and I liked that the main sources of friction between them were down to Gracewood's struggles around trying not to become his father, and Viola's insecurities around class, over anything really to do with Viola being trans. The side characters are great too - I liked the fact there was more queer rep to be found in them. My only real issue with this book is pacing - I felt it ran a little long and the end was a lot faster and more action-packed than the first 80%. It also includes an epilogue and while I understand why that was done, personally I am not a fan of epilogues at all. But overall a recommended read.

I misread the ‘blurb’ about this book when I requested it from NetGalley and quickly found that interesting though the storyline was, it was not really for me. I would rate the book as a two star personally but that was due to my carelessness in requesting it and I do realise that it would be a five star for many readers.