The Duchess Deal (Girl Meets Duke, #1)

by Tessa Dare

[EBookObsessed]

Absolutely delightful! Another twist on the Beauty and the Beast tales which is a favorite of mine. I was surprised to see that it is 389 pages because I sped right through it.

I found this on sale several months ago (and it is still currently only $1.99 at most retailers so don't delay) and I was intrigued enough to check it out. I saw several glowing reviews so I invested my $1.99 and finally took the time to read it. It is everything everyone declared and more than worth the price.

Emma Gladstone was spunky and undeterred and the Duke of Ashbury is dark-witted and self-deprecating. He also fits into my favorite hero group of wounded heroes, in this case an actual war hero disfigured and scarred resulting from a rocket explosion.

Emma is a seamstress and arrives on the door of the Duke of Ashbury looking to be paid.  She arrives wearing the wedding dress that she worked so hard on for his betrothed who backed out of the wedding since she was so disgusted by his scarring which covers the left side of his face and going down the left-side of his body. Emma asks for only the 2 pounds 3 shillings she is due for her work since she needs to pay her rent. Ashford needs a heir so his family estate doesn't go to some dumbass cousin. He decides that he kind of likes the pretty, spitfire and if he needs a marriage of convenience, the poor seamstress will do quite well so he makes the fiery Emma an offer to become a Duchess. Emma was tossed out of her house at 16 because she fell for B.S. of a Squire's son who used her and wouldn't marry her, so Emma gives him the "not falling for that again," takes her money and leaves.

But Ash has made up his mind and he wants Emma so he chases her down to the dress shop to convince Emma that his plan is sound. She only has to have sex with him until she becomes pregnant and then she can go live a life of comfort in his country estate and raise his son and heir. She won't have to deal with Ash again. While she feels for Ash, what sways her is a young girl, much like herself who is used by a man, but this poor girl gets pregnant. If Emma can take her to the country with her, the girl can give birth quietly, give the baby to a couple to raise and return to her family with no one the wiser.   So Emma agrees to marry Ash and give him a child and stick to his rules.

Emma quickly gets over Ash's scars to see the man behind them, the one who fears rejection more than anything. His bride to be and all his friends have all abandoned the scarred monster who returned from the war. But that really isn't the only reason Emma agrees, as a seamstress Emma knows bodies and even the mostly inexperienced Emma knows that Ash is a gorgeous man, and having him in her bed isn't going to be the hardship he thinks it is.

They outlined the rules at the beginning of the marriage, which Ash defined so that Emma would at least have sex with him long enough to produce an heir, and so that he didn't get too attached to her because, of course, he could never mean anything to her. Everything goes wrong with that as great sex and mutual respect turns into love. There are of course misunderstandings since both are feeling more than they are supposed to in this marriage of convenience but they are quickly worked through and don't drag down the story.

Emma and Ash are wonderful characters and play well off each other's humor. He is frustrated when he can't get Emma to fear his wrath and leave him be the sulking monster that he is convinced she sees.  Part of this, which made it hard to write a review since he didn't have a name, is that when asked what Emma should call her new husband, he said "Duke" or "Ashbury," which she refuses and his given name of George is also her father's name so she refuses that as well. So to Ash's consternation, she spends the story trying out different pet names for him from daring to pumpkin to lambkins to dumpling.  He tries to get her to call him my stallion, but Emma turns to her friends for suggestions of names for her "new cat" when she runs out of names to try.

Emma fears acceptance of a former seamstress by the ton but gets invited to tea by the Lady across the way and finds friendship with three other young women who don't fit the norm of London Society.  The next book in the series, The Governess Game, just came out featuring one of the friends and the others will be featured in future stories. I didn't debate long and I have picked up and started the second book.

This was very entertaining and a quick, light story if you are looking for something fun.