The Unexpected Duchess

Playful Brides, Book 1

By: Valerie Bowman

Narrated by: Alison Larkin

Lady Lucy Upton's tongue may be too sharp to attract suitors, but her heart is good, and when her painfully shy friend Cassandra needs help, she devises a brilliant scheme to help her discourage an unwanted suitor, the Duke of Claringdon. Lucy will hide behind the hedgerow and tell Cass just what to say to discourage the Duke of Claringdon...but it turns out that he's made of sterner stuff than either of them anticipated. And Lucy is shocked to discover that tangling with the tenacious man is the most fun she's had in ages. Lord Derek Hunt made a promise to his dying friend to marry the demure Cassandra, and for a man who wants nothing more than peace and quiet after the horrors of war, she'll make the perfect bride. If only the impudent Miss Upton will let him court the girl! Doing battle is the last thing on his mind, but bantering with Lucy behind the bushes is too tempting to resist. And the spoils of this war just may be true love.

©2014 Valerie Bowman (P)2014 Tantor

Didn't enjoy the narrator

I'm a huge fan of Valerie Bowman and have read or listened to all of her books. This is a great story but for me personally it was ruined by the narrator. While she is charming and well spoken her cadence was to fast and her voice made the characters sound very young and child like. I couldn't get into the story and had to stop half way through and get the book to read. I enjoyed the plot and story very much, just didn't enjoy the narrator.

Light regency romance

This is a light regency romance with amusing dialogue. If you are looking for something light then this is a good choice

Helps to know the series are all nods to plays hence “PLAYful brides”

I THINK the play it’s an adaptation of is Cyrano de Bergerac - possibly others. In any case it helps you survive the urge to yell at the heroine through this book and the next two to bear in mind that wildly ridiculous ploys and schemes are part and parcel of old plays.

I really did end up liking Lucy by the end of the book despite myself, and enjoyed the ending payoff quite a bit... then disliked her character during book two, and have waffled a bit from there on. The hero is deliciously smart though, and a good match for her.

Fun and touching

Such fun touching read. I’m not a fan of comedic romance but I am a fan of funny witty repartee. This couple was infectious. Perfect. Great audio listen too.

Great group of friends and sweet romances

Lucy and Derrick provide fun, sharp, witty banter. Cass and Jane are wonderful friends. Garrett was a great cousin and friend.

Alison does the job of British and period diction with both males and females.

Loved this book!

I've listened to all three books in this series, and I like this one the most. I enjoyed the bantering between the hero and the heroine. Their banters were so much fun to listen to that I couldn't help but smile several times. Both characters are strong-willed, clever, witty, and loyal. They are perfect for each other! The love scenes were pretty hot and steamy.

I felt that some parts toward the end of the book kind of dragged a little.

I really liked the narrator. I wish she had narrated the final book (Book 3) in this series. However, I didn't like that she made Lucy (the heroine in this book) sound a little older in Book 2. It would be a good idea to read/listen to the books in order, because Lucy and her friends appear in each book and a few references are made from each preceding book.

cute and sexy story!

i love the chemistry and fire between these two and i cant wait to read the next

Wonderfully adorable story that leaves a smile on your face

I loved the romance that took place between Derek and Lucy. It was adorable! Their conversations and activities were a delight to read about. I highly recommend this light hearted romance.

Just Awful

Spoilers Ahead

The story opens with the heroine hiding in a bush and coaching her fried as to what to say to the hero who is trying to woo the girlfriend. She doesn't think that the hero will be able to hear her. He does, of course, and the story goes down hill from there. If ever there was a TSTL heroine, it's the one in this book. Not only that the witty banter we were led to expect she and the hero would engage in is just plain rude snarkiness that left me wondering why on earth the hero even wanted to pursue her instead of her dim-witted friend. Perhaps the rudness was so evident in the audible edition because I actually heard it rather than being able to skim over it as I could have had I been reading the book.

The audible edition had another thing working against it -- the narrator. Her voice sounded like fingernails on a blackboard and so prissy. Between the rudness of the heroine and the narrator's voice I quit at around 30%. I just couldn't subject myself to further torture. I don't think I will ever listen to her again.

Could not deal with the reader

I made it through about 20 minutes of the book before giving up. The narrator reminded me too much of Moaning Myrtle from Harry Potter.