Forever and a Duke by Olivia Drake
My Rating: 
Genre: Historical Romance
Release Date: December 31, 2019
Formats: eBook, Paperback
Natalie Fanshawe has traveled from America to England with a singular purpose: to safely deliver an orphaned boy, Leo, to his grandfather. Leo has a penchant for mischief, and while searching for Leo during a travel stop, Natalie crosses paths with Hadrian Ames, the Duke of Clayton. Hadrian is on his way to meet a potential future bride, and doesn’t need any Americans disrupting his day.
She’s been raised to dislike the English aristocracy. He needs the perfect English bride. They’re both about to get what they absolutely didn’t expect.
Hadrian is portrayed as haughty, yet from the moment you dive into his point of view, you see that he’s a caring individual hiding behind a shell that his glittering world expects to see. He’s reluctant to get involved in Natalie and Leo’s lives, but he does the right thing.
In time, Hadrian begins breaking down all the prejudices that Natalie has regarding the aristocracy. Her knowledge was tainted by her father’s less-than-stellar life experiences, but she discovers that regardless of rank, there are people worthy of her respect. And as for the rest—they don’t need to accept her, she needs to accept them. To Natalie, that’s the meaning of being free. Equal. American.
This is a story of two people from opposite worlds coming together. The romance itself grows naturally and we see both characters evolve to accept their differences, similarities, and ultimately each other.
I would have rated this at four stars had the subplot involving Richard and his money troubles not dragged the story down a notch. It was predictable and didn’t add anything to a story already rife with its own conflict. Another reason for the downgrade in rating is that Leo is so centric to the plot… but (MINOR SPOILER, HIGHLIGHT TO SEE:) we never find out the resolution to his story.
Forever and a Duke is a charming tale of strong leads finding a way to make their differences work for each other. As it releases on December 31, it would be an enjoyable read to welcome in the new year.
I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
The Concordium of Cyliena 