Review: Dusk with A Dangerous Duke by Alexandra Hawkins

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Review: Dusk with A Dangerous Duke by Alexandra Hawkins
Dusk with a Dangerous Duke
Book Info

Released: February 26, 2013
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Lords of Vice #6
Pages: 320
 

 

 If the heroine doesn’t want the hero, how can a reader desire him as well? ~ Under the Covers

As my very first book by Alexandra Hawkins, I have very excited to dive into this book and be swept away by the Lords of Vice. Unfortunately, the premise of this book didn’t work for me. Promised to each other at a very early age, the Duke of Huntsley and Lady Grace Kearly are set to be married. For most of their lives, they have ignoring each other but if Hunter hopes to keep his inheritance, he needs to man up and catch his bride. What makes matters worse is that Lady Grace decides that she doesn’t want to be married to a man who hasn’t come for her after nineteen years. Little does she know that Hunter has been looking for her, intending to marry her but can’t seem to catch her.

I read this book very quickly. Hawkins’s writing is effortless, free-flowing and very eloquent. It made for a very easy read. The dialogue is enjoyable and I really loved the idea of the Lords of Vice – seven men who are as naughty as the name seems. However, the big problem for me was the believability. I couldn’t grasp the fact that everyone else knew that the Duke of Huntsley and Lady Grace were betrothed, but that neither the hero nor the heroine knew each other. Wouldn’t they have crossed paths before and wouldn’t others direct them to each other?

The first time the hero and heroine meet, they have incredibly chemistry but I don’t think I could invest myself in the storyline because they were still virtually strangers. For much of the book, Lady Grace evades Hunter and I think that hindered the romance a lot. Half of the book passed and yet the romance was just simmering and hadn’t reached a speed that would be enjoyable to readers. If the heroine doesn’t want the hero, how can a reader desire him as well? Because of that, I felt that the romance lacked a bit and the resolution seemed too swift and easy in the end. I simply couldn’t invest in it.

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About Alexandra Hawkins

I've been a self-employed working novelist for the past twenty years. Of all the books I've written I've had just one foreign sale, and that was THE IRISH BRIDE, which was translated into Norwegian, where I understand it was a big hit.

I also make jewelry and I'm a fine needlework artist, specializing in embroidery, thread crochet, and sewing. I love to cook, read, entertain friends, decorate, and pursue various crafts.

I live in the Pacific Northwest near the Columbia River, still within 10 miles of my old high school. I have a Great Pyrenees dog, one cat, a finch, and three chickens who all seem to want to be in my small office while I'm trying to work (except the chickens, although they'd be thrilled to get into the house if I let them). Getting up to step around them is like maneuvering an obstacle course, but they are my children and so dear to me. My hours are kind of goofy--I'm just not a morning person and tend to be up late when the rest of the world is sleeping--and QUIET. No phones, faxes, distractions. Just the kids and me, candles burning, and the elevator music coming out of my CD player.

Before I made the leap to full-time writer, I spent about 12 years working for consulting civil engineers. Riprap, anyone? How about a nice detention pond?

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