The Duke And I by Julia Quinn

Has the devastating Duke finally found a bride?

All the society papers say so. But only the Duke of Hastings and his "intended" bride know the truth. For the irresistible Simon Basset has hatched a plan to keep himself free from all those marriage-minded society mothers by pretending an attachment to the lovely Daphne Bridgerton. After all, it isn't as if the brooding rogue has any real plans to marry--though there is something about the alluring miss that sets Simon's heart beating a bit faster, And as for Daphne, surely the clever debutante will attract some very worthy suitors now that it seems a duke has declared her desirable...

But as Daphne waltzes across ballroom after ballroom with Simon, she soon forgets that their courtship is a complete sham. Maybe it's the mesmerizing look in his intense blue eyes, or the way she feels in his strong arms, but somehow Daphne is falling for the dashing duke...for real! And now she has to do the impossible and keep herself from losing her heart and soul completely to the handsome hellraiser who has sworn off marriage forever!


Another personal winner from JQ. And I'm not just saying that because I've been in a historicals drought. That's why I decided to delay the review for a few days and then reread the whole thing to see if I'd still love it the second time around. Predictably enough, I still did.

Because Simon Basset is a hot, hot duke! I really couldn't blame him for not wanting children. His plight of having to endure his father's rejection when he was a kid was a good enough reason. But even if he had made it into a personal quest that he also wasn't going to get married, I love it that he just couldn't say no to Daphne. Yeah, well, maybe at the very beginning--maybe even die in stead of that ever happening. But when his defenses just melted at the onslaught of Daphne's persuasive charms, that scene has gotta be one of my most fave in the entire book.

As for our heroine Daphne Bridgerton, there couldn't have been a better character for Simon than her. (I guess that's why JQ created her. Duh!) She managed to say the right things all at the right time but the best thing about her was knowing what she wanted and fighting for it--him. Atta girl. Gotta love her for not shying away from doing things that would help him come out from his past, even if those things would incur his anger.

But the best thing about the story was that even if Simon hadn't accepted the thought of having children, he still cared enough and went back to Daphne at the possibility of one--even after he thought that she could make him into a stammering young boy again. So it goes without saying that Simon is hot one and absurdly the perfect one for moi--I don't have plans of ever having children of my own either. Although having this kind of a guy for a husband just might change my mind.

Final verdict: 8.5/10. An awesome read and a must-have.