How to Tame Your Duke

Starred review from April 29, 2013
Gray (A Duke Never Yields) opens a Regency series with a novel that crackles with chemistry and romantic tension. Seeking refuge from assassins, Princess Emilie of Holstein-Schweinwald-Huhnhof agrees to her uncle’s plan to disguise her as a male tutor to Freddie, the teenage son of the Duke of Ashland. The duke may be scarred and missing a hand, but he’s an enchantingly honorable, brooding figure who pays a prostitute for physical contact but not consummation, lest he betray his vows to the wife who abandoned him. When Emilie, lacking her male disguise, is mistaken for Ashland’s monthly visitor, she decides to play along, and the two begin a heated affair. Ashland has no inkling of any of Emilie’s identities, even as he arranges for a divorce and offers marriage to her. When Freddie uncovers his tutor’s true identity, even Ashland’s cold anger cannot cool the flames between him and Emilie, especially when the princess is still in danger. Emotionally electric scenes between strong characters make this one a winner.

May 1, 2013
When her father is assassinated, Princess Emilie flees to England, then goes undercover as Mr. Grimsby, a male tutor to the teenage son of the scarred, war-wounded Duke of Ashland. When their German principality comes under attack, three princesses escape to England and the protection of their uncle, the Duke of Olympia, who arranges to send them each undercover into different households across the land. Emilie, the most studious and intellectual of the three, winds up as the tutor to the son of the reclusive Duke of Ashland, who was wounded in India and shuns society in his remote Yorkshire estate. Immediately drawn to the damaged yet compelling duke, Emilie finds herself enticed into a platonic but highly sensual relationship with the man at a nearby hotel, while still maintaining her disguise in his household. And if that situation isn't confusing and fraught enough on its own, things become even more problematic when enemies of her kingdom attack her in Yorkshire. Gray begins a new trilogy on the heels of her highly successful Affairs in Moonlight (A Duke Never Yields, 2013, etc.), following a trio of sisters who flee their besieged principality in late 1889. Fun, engaging, sensual and touching, the first installment reads like a slightly outlandish fairy tale, but Gray's lyrical writing, intense emotion and spirited characters carry the sophisticated plot to satisfying fruition and keep readers invested every step of the way. Gray's fans will recognize the ever-plotting Duke of Olympia and some other minor characters from her previous trilogy. A delightful romance treat.

COPYRIGHT(2013) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from May 15, 2013
After her father and brother-in-law are assassinated, Princess Emilie of Holstein-Schweinwald-Huhnhof and her two sisters flee to England. Upon arriving, their uncle, the Duke of Olympia, convinces the young women that their future safety rests on disguising themselves as young gentlemen. All of which explains exactly why Emilie finds herself dressed up in suit and whiskers, playing the role of Tobias Grimsby, the newest tutor to Lord Frederick Silverton. Ever since returning home from an ill-fated adventure in India that left him disfigured and disillusioned, Freddie's father, the Duke of Ashland, refuses to receive visitors, attend social functions, or set foot outside his estate in Yorkshire. Once Freddie finishes his studies and sets off for Oxford, the duke is determined to live out the rest of his days in solitude. At least, that was the planuntil the duke meets Freddie's latest tutor. After delighting romance readers with her spectacular Affairs by Moonlight trilogy, Gray is right on target to do it again. Gray's witty writing, flawless characterization, and fanciful plotting make this Victorian-set historical romance an absolute treasure.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)