ARC Review: Duke of Honor (Dukes of Distinction #5) by Alexa Aston
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Series: Dukes of Distinction #5
Author: Alexa Aston
Published June 10th 2021 by Dragonblade Publishing
Goodreads Synopsis
A woman who falls in love with a man she’s never seen...
A duke harboring a secret he can never reveal...
Sebastian Cooper, Marquess of Marbury, chooses to leave England and fight in the Napoleonic Wars for a decade. He comes home to find his father has died and assumes his role as the new Duke of Hardwick.
When Lady Hadley Hampton’s parents die, she is made a ward to the Duke of Hardwick, a man estranged from his only son. She reads Sebastian’s letters aloud to her guardian and over the years falls in love with the dashing war hero.
When Sebastian arrives home, he is astounded that Hadley has been managing his father’s affairs and is angry this beautiful stranger knows so much about him when he didn’t even know she existed. Sebastian fights his growing attraction to Hadley, believing she deserves much more than the broken, scarred man he has become.
Will Hadley be able to tear down the walls surrounding Sebastian’s heart and help the Duke of Honor finally heal?
Goodreads
Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.
Life with his father, the Duke of Hardwick, was hard for Sebastian Cooper, and when he turned 18, he enlisted, and left for war, vowing never to see his cruel father again. In the meantime, the old duke mellowed as he became guardian for Lady Hadley Hampton, the orphaned daughter of his friend, who turned Hardwick, and the estate upside down, and improved it for the better. Though Sebastian had promised never to speak with his father again, he did send letters from the front regularly, and as Hadley grew into a woman, she felt a kinship with Sebastian, and started to fall for him. But now that Sebastian has returned, and is the new duke, he's angry and shocked that Hadley managed to change his father so much, and knows so much about his estate. And it doesn't help that he's so attracted to Hadley, and still feels the pain of war. Hadley knows that she's fallen for Sebastian, but he is harsh and pushes her away at every point, but when he inadvertently reveals something about himself, will her feelings be enough to overcome it all?
After reading the other books in the series, and hearing a lot about Sebastian, who we haven't seen in person yet, I was looking forward to his book. He has such a backstory, with flashes being provided in the book about his childhood, and what he faced at war, to be honoured in dispatches, and lauded as a hero on his return. I liked his character, though found the fact he fell for Hadley so quickly a little strange. It was far more understandable that Hadley 'loved' Sebastian, after reading his letters throughout her adolescence, and hearing all the stories about him, before meeting him in person - more the idea of him, than the actual person. I did love Hadley's character though. She was strong, and had taken control of the Hardwick estate when her guardian became unwell, and the steward retired. She was loved by the staff, and the tenants, and when she met the other Dukes, and their wives, found friendship and kinship extremely quickly. She was just a lovable character, and seeing the friendships between all of the characters in the series was a joy. The romance was nice, but like I said, a little forced from Sebastian's side, at least at first. I did appreciate the way the angst aspect of the book was introduced, and also how it was dealt with. Perhaps, there may have been more of an epilogue, but all in all, a good conclusion to the series.
Dates Read:
June 10, 2021
Rating
3 Stars
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