Love Letters from a Duke
Love Letters from a Duke book cover

Love Letters from a Duke

Mass Market Paperback – August 28, 2007

by
Price
$8.99
Publisher
Avon
Publication Date
ISBN-13
978-0060784034
Dimensions
4.19 x 0.96 x 6.75 inches
Weight
6.5 ounces

Description

From Publishers Weekly A young society dame with a flair for matchmaking does whatever it takes to ensure her eclectic family's well-being in Boyle's latest Regency romance. After four years of corresponding with her nearly betrothed, the beautiful and resourceful Miss Felicity Langley is poised finally to meet Aubrey, the newly titled duke of Hollingsworth—and gain the wealth to take care of her family's financial woes. What Felicity doesn't know is that her pen pal all along has actually been Aubrey's scheming, ruthless grandfather; the real Aubrey, meanwhile, has been serving as an army captain under the name Thatcher, having denounced his inheritance a dozen years before. Returning to Sussex, Aubrey learns of the duke's arrangement with Felicity and decides to break all ties with her. But when he meets her, as Thatcher, setting off immediate sparks, both face a secret dilemma: Aubrey torn between taking a stand and giving in to love, and Felicity between overwhelming passion and the long-distance relationship she believes will save her family. A terrific crew of supporting characters keep afloat the mistaken-identity plot, making this a full, satisfying read with emotion and laughs throughout. (Sept.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Elizabeth Boyle has always loved romance and now lives it each and every day by writing adventurous and passionate stories that readers from all around the world have described as “page-turners.” Since her first book was published, she’s seen her romances become New York Times and USA Today bestsellers and has won the RWA RITA® and the Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice Awards. She resides in Seattle with her family, her garden, and her always-growing collection of yarn. Readers can visit her at www.elizabethboyle.com, or follow her own adventures on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.xa0 www.avonromance.com www.facebook.com/avonromance Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. Love Letters From a Duke By Elizabeth Boyle HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. Copyright © 2007 Elizabeth BoyleAll right reserved. ISBN: 9780060784034 Chapter One Aubrey Michael Thomas Sterling, Marquess of Standonb. 1780, third son of Lord Charles SterlingCurrent residence: believed to be Bythorne Castle Notes: Lord Standon poses a dilemma, for very little is known of him (though there are persistent and unsubstantiated rumors of youthful and rakish indiscretions). However, he must have reformed upon his elevation to the marquisate, for he is never mentioned in the society columns, the Gentleman's Magazine or any other reliable form of gossip. As such there is very little to recommend him other than the indisputable fact that he is the Duke of Hollindrake's heir. —An excerpt from the Bachelor Chronicles Mayfair, LondonJanuary 1814 "Oh, heavens, Tally, this is terrible news," Miss Felicity Langley announced to her sister Thalia, who was seated across the sitting room. "What is it?" her twin replied, looking up from her sketch pad. Felicity set down the copy of the Times she'd been reading and sighed. "Lord Garner died." "No!" Tally got up from her chair by the window, and as she rose, her little black dog, Brutus, rose as well, stretching out his legs and yawning before he followed his beloved mistress as she crossed the room to see the account for herself. "A riding accident! How dreadful." "Terrible luck," Felicity muttered as she dipped her quill into the ink pot and proceeded to strike Lord Garner's name from the open journal before her. "Heavens, that's the fifth bachelor this winter to expire," Tally said as she watched her sister draw a series of lines through her careful reckoning of the now deceased baron's life and holdings. "Actually the sixth." After giving her head a few woeful shakes, Tally asked, "This Lord Garner, he was rather old, wasn't he?" "Nearly forty." Her nose wrinkled. "Positively ancient. You should have crossed him out years ago." The twins had just turned one and twenty not a fortnight earlier, and Tally especially considered any man not in his twenties to be nothing short of a Methuselah. "Ancient or not, one cannot overlook twelve thousand a year." Her twin shrugged, then glanced back at the paper. "An heir worth noting?" "A lad of seven." A tsk, tsk was her sister's only reply, for she knew this meant that the new Lord Garner would have to wait another ten years before he could even be considered eligible for inclusion in Felicity's infamous Bachelor Chronicles . Not that any man in his right mind would want to find himself inside the pages of such a journal. The Bachelor Chronicles , as they'd been dubbed by her classmates at Miss Emery's school, was far from being the giggling, foolish musings of a title-mad young lady, but rather a meticulously researched encyclopedia of every eligible bachelor in the ton . A volume of Debrett's could give you lineage and a family motto. The Bachelor Chronicles could tell you if the man had a penchant for drink and late night rambles through the wilds of Seven Dials. Mr. Billingsworth's guidebooks and histories would give you an effusive and flowery travelogue of the man's holdings and properties, but Felicity's encyclopedia of dilettantes and Corinthians revealed the true condition of the roof and whether or not the walls were buttressed by mortgages or mortar. Dukes to barons, knighted gentlemen and even a few men of means were given her discerning perusal. Even second sons and distant heirs found their way into the Chronicles , because, as Felicity was wont to say, "One day a spare, the next an heir." To accomplish all this, she spent the first few hours of each day scouring the Times , the Globe , and of course the Morning Post , as well as the latest volumes of the Gentleman's Magazine , the Ladies Magazine , and The Ladies Fashionable Cabinet , looking for information that would necessitate addendums or corrections to her Chronicles . What she couldn't glean from the regular publications, she gathered by contacting Miss Emery's former students. A voluminous correspondence with these ladies, most of them having married into the loftiest families in society, gave her insights into her quarry that unfortunately never found their way into print. "Tally, I am rethinking Pippin's future again," she said after she'd carefully blotted the wet X running across Lord Garner's entry. "Oh, Duchess, not again," Tally protested, using her favorite nickname for her sister. Felicity waved off her sister's objection. "I'm more inclined to see our cousin with Lord Elmsley than the Earl of Darlton. I've just been informed by the viscount's mother's second cousin's wife that Elmsley carries a bit of the romantic tragic about him, which would fit quite nicely with Pippin's current state—" Tally groaned. Loudly. "Don't do this," she told her sister. "Leave Pippin be." "Whyever for?" "Because our poor cousin hasn't been the same since . . . well, you know." Felicity heaved a sigh. "Her father's death was untimely to say the least, and the shocking state of his finances even worse, but I daresay it is high time that she—" "Stop!" Her sister threw her hands up. "Sometimes I wonder if you even have a heart. I'm not talking about her father. I'm talking about him." Tally lowered her voice to a whisper. "Captain Dashwell." "That pirate?" Felicity exclaimed. "I won't hear that name mentioned again. Not in this house. Oh, how I wish the devil would take him to the bottom of the sea! Pippin was such a sensible creature before that wastrel kissed her." Four years earlier, during Felicity's first matchmaking endeavor, she, Tally, and Pippin had become entangled in more than assisting their teacher, Miss Porter, find her heart's desire with the rakish Jack Tremont—rather, they'd discovered themselves in the middle of an elaborate network of spies and espionage, and had stood in for Jack when their misadventures accidentally landed him in prison. And that one night had changed their lives forever—ending with Pippin being kissed by a young American sea captain, Thomas Dashwell, as they exchanged gold for . . . Continues... Excerpted from Love Letters From a Duke by Elizabeth Boyle Copyright © 2007 by Elizabeth Boyle. Excerpted by permission. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site. Read more

Features & Highlights

  • He's at her service . . .
  • Though she can't afford the coal to heat her drafty Mayfair mansion, Felicity Langley still clings to her dream of marrying a duke—one she's had since her very first curtsy. After all, she's been promised to the very lofty Duke of Hollindrake for the last four years. Now all she has to do is meet him. But what Felicity doesn't realize is that she
  • has
  • met her duke—he's the altogether too handsome man who Felicity has just mistaken . . .
  • for her new footman
  • !
  • By rights, Thatcher should immediately set this presumptuous chit straight and tell her he has no intention of honoring the arranged betrothal. But he's quickly smitten by Felicity's delightful determination, her irrepressible charm . . . and her breathtaking sensuality. Yes, she'd wed him in an instant were his true identity revealed—but Thatcher's vowed to marry only for love. So begins his deception and his conquest of this uncommon woman who doesn't believe in romance, but is about to find her heart and passion set aflame by the unlikely man she's sworn to resist.

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
60%
(224)
★★★★
25%
(93)
★★★
15%
(56)
★★
7%
(26)
★
-7%
(-26)

Most Helpful Reviews

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Unbelievable, and I don't mean in a good way!

This book was totally unbelievable. I read the reviews here, but chose to believe the good ones. I should learn--I picked the wrong reviews to listen to. A duke masquerading as a footman never is a good thing and I couldn't believe it went on--THE WHOLE BOOK. The female lead, Felicity, annoyed me. I didn't like her, was hoping she would improve, but she never did. She acted like a 14 year old with her assertions that she would marry the duke. Instead of finding her quirky and perky and resourceful, I found her irritating, annoying, and infuriating. I kept wishing Thatcher, our erstwhile footman, would just grab her by the shoulders, tell her to shut up, and reveal who he really was. Was he a man or what?
This whole sorry mess could have been cleared up with a little conversation between the characters. Mistaken identity works once in a while, but not for an entire book and not with a goofy female lead.
17 people found this helpful
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Fabulous Dialogs - Witty - Fun!

With her regal bearing, Felicity Langley has been called `Duchess' since she was a child. Barely making it on her monthly allotment of pin-money, Felicity would do whatever she could to ensure her unconventional family and servant's well-being by providing a season for her sister and cousin and by marrying a wealthy duke. Carrying on a lengthy correspondence with the Duke of Hollingsworth, she is on the brink of finally meeting him and sealing their betrothal. What Felicity didn't know was that the man she'd been corresponding with was not Aubrey, the newly titled duke of Hollingsworth, but his match-making and controlling grandfather.

Aubrey had thought to escape the controlling tendencies of his grandfather years ago by changing his name and joining the army under the name of Thatcher. As a second son, he never dreamed he would have to assume the title. Returning home and learning of his grandfather's mechanisms to again control his life, Thatcher immediately set out to break the promised betrothal. Alas, when he arrived at the Mayfair mansion, Felicity - set back momentarily by the handsome but scruffy looking fellow at the door - assumed he'd come from the agency sending over a footman. Sparks flew between the two and in a case of mistaken identity, both would be torn. Felicity to give into passion for a mere footman, rather than marrying a wealthy peer to protect and provide for her family; and Aubrey into letting his grandfather control his destiny, or giving into his all consuming passion for Felicity.

*** For me, I found this story positively enchanting! Not only does Ms. Boyle write a delectable and fun love story, but populates it with the most engaging set of unforgettable secondary characters that will have you sighing in contentment and laughing out loud at some of their more outrageous predicaments. The author keeps the action level high in this fast-paced and charming romp of Regency England.

The author fashioned Felicity as both an engaging and soft-hearted beauty with just a smidgen of larceny in her heart - willing to do whatever needed to be done to protect and provide for her sister and cousin. Taking on the responsibility of providing for her family after her madcap father had either been killed or disappeared (this point was never fully disclosed) Felicity and her sister were left to the mercy of their penny-pinching solicitor. Neither would gain their inheritance until they turned of age (twenty-five). I loved that Boyle managed to insert humor as Felicity provided HER reasoning as to why a male gained his inheritance at twenty-one and the female at twenty-five - and no, I'm not going to tell you and ruin her very logical and humorous explanation. This you'll just have to read for yourself! As for Felicity's reaction and attraction to a mere footman, and a scruffy looking one at that, well let us just say that Boyle is a master at creating believable chemistry between her leads.

Aubrey/Thatcher who arrived at Felicity's door with the express wish to end his betrothal never got a chance to get a word in edgewise as Felicity barreled right ahead into her assumption of him being a candidate as footman. Not only was Thatcher captivated by her beauty, but observed that all was not as it should be in the Mayfair residence, and as he was not offered an opportunity to explain he fell into the mistaken identity role. Boyle created numerous episodes where Thatcher, in spite of his intentions to tell the truth, felt compelled to save Felicity from herself and those she loved from scandal's that could ruin them all. In so doing Thatcher worked behind the scenes in maneuvering events and trying to sway the Felicity into following her heart and giving into the passion he knew matched his own.

Boyle kept not only the romance between Felicity and Thatcher at the forefront but set up what could possibly be another book of the Bachelor Chronicles featuring the romance between her cousin Pippin and the American privateer Captain Dashwell. Filled with memorable new characters and old friends from SOMETHING ABOUT EMMALINE and THIS RAKE OF MINE Ms. Boyle has kept this fan fully satisfied with her sensual and humorous historical romances that are just the thing to curl up with on a cold winter's day.

Marilyn Rondeau, for [...]
10 people found this helpful
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Fast, Fun Read

This was the first book I read by Elizabeth Boyle. I must say, it was a really fun book to read. Very funny and delightful. It is about Felicity finding love with a footman who is actually her bethrothed Duke in disguise. The Duke came to tell her that he was going to break their bethrothal but Felicity mistook him for the footman that an agency sent her. She didn't give him time or opportunity to explain himself. He went along with it to see the real Felicity, not the Felicty that society deemed unworthy of a Duke. It was fun to read her grappling with her feelings for a footman when she could be married to a duke. She is a wonderful character who is complex. Thatcher, her footman/duke, is the perfect partner for her. He tries to test her love to see if she will marry him as a footman and give up her dreams of marrying a duke. He also falls in love with Felicity because she is truly a good and kind person.
This is a wondeful book for someone who is looking for a quick and fun read. To find out the significance of the title, you must read the book!
6 people found this helpful
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Made me laugh!

What a fun book! It had me laughing out loud, and that's always a good thing. Felicity is a young woman in dire financial straits who wants to marry a duke. She's believes herself to be "almost betrothed" to a duke's heir she's never met in person, on the basis of four years of correspondence. As the book opens, she can't understand why he hasn't written for three months - since his grandfather died and he inherited the title. It's because the person she's been corresponding with was actually the (now dead) old duke. The young, handsome new duke, Thatcher, doesn't know anything about her!

When Thatcher gets home from years of war in Spain, he finds out that the grandfather he hated has "almost engaged" him to an unknown woman, and he's not happy at all. Dressed in his scruffy army clothes, he goes to Felicity's house to set her straight and is mistaken for the new footman. Thatcher's intrigued enough by Felicity to go along with the misconception for a while...until he finds himself very jealous of her fierce devotion and loyalty to...well, to himself, actually. The duke. Or, more accurately, the man she thinks the duke is, who doesn't actually exist at all.

Really fun. If you like light and humorous Regencies, I highly recommend it!
5 people found this helpful
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Eh I've read better

This book was good, but not great. There were some parts where you just sigh and say "aww!" but a majority of the book was lacking. The heroine treated her "footman" as dirt, which I suppose was common in those days, but in the next instance she's spilling her guts about her future husband and kissing him. I found that a bit unbelieveable. The heroine is smart, wily, a good shot and self sufficient, but then on the next page she's 'devoted to this man she hasn't met' and all that. Then some characters make their appearance but don't ever become anything. Like "nanny jamilla" appears, and then kind of sits in the background for the rest of the book. Their father, supposedly dead, might be alive, but nothing comes of that storyline either. Somewhat disappointing with a bunch of threads left hanging.
5 people found this helpful
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An enjoyable regency read.

This is my first book by Elizabeth Boyle and despite the negative reviews, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Love Letters from a Duke is a wonderful story and the case of mistaken identity and the power of love. It is a fast-paced tale of a woman that will not just allow life to happen, without her quirky input. But sometimes love needs a little help.
From the opening pages of when Felicity meets the grubby duke in his travelling clothes, and she in her woolen socks, and thinks he's her new footman, makes for extremely fun reading. The bk keeps you captivated till the end.
Loved the chemistry between H/H and enjoyed the secondary characters of her crazy household too. Some scenes had me grinning, especially the early ones, when Brutus meets the new duke.

The plot may not be very strong, but hey, if you like light-hearted regency read, then this ones worth a try.
4 people found this helpful
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Fluff

preposterious, really wanted to like this book, but romance was flat, could have been so much better. Light fluff, unimaginative and uninspiring
4 people found this helpful
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Love Letters From a Duke

Felicity Langley can't afford much on her pin money, but she won't let that stand in the way of the dream she has had since she was a baby; to marry a Duke. For the last four years that Duke has been the Duke of Hollindrake, she has become practically engaged to him through the years of correspondence they have conducted.

Thatcher, Duke of Hollindrake, didn't take the time to change out of his grubby travel clothing. His intention was to make it known that he has no intention of letting his grandfather choose his wife for him. He is going to set her straight and take care of his duties. Being mistaken for the new footman was not part of his plans, but getting the situation straightened out as quickly as possible is not the priority it once was. One look at Felicity's grace, charm and beauty does not make her who he wants to marry, but it does interest him enough to continue playing along with the charade.

Neither will settle for less than love in their future marriages. Will it be to each other?

Love Letters from a Duke is a page turning ride of mistaken identity, the power of belief and the joy of life and love. It is a fast-paced, quirky tale of a woman that will not just allow life to happen sometimes it needs a little help. From the moment I opened Love Letters from a Duke I was smiling and pulling for Felicity to succeed at her dream of marrying her Duke. All the characters in the book are drawn with care and attention to detail so I felt I knew them, and what they were capable of being. The details of the mistaken identity kept me hanging on to find out when it will be cleared up. This is a tale that once started, the reader will not put down. A most pleasurable read.

Annmarie
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed
4 people found this helpful
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frequent reviewer

I was all set to like this story, but it lost me after a few chapters. I couldn't believe the two should be together. Don't pay full price if you really want to get this title.
3 people found this helpful
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romance games

Elizabeth Boyle's romances always deliver a fun read! The surprise in this book is the twists and turns of intrigues by other characters, that trip up the hero and heroine, as well as, save the day.

The events and characters stretch the bounds of miscommunication gone a-muck; for chuckles. The hero and heroine remain determined to let the other stew in their own mistakes, while the reader is in on the joke. The cast of characters, filling out the story, come to life with their own personalities and issues.

This is part of a series, since Felicity is the pivot point and author of "The Bachelor Chronicles", so there are references to other stories in the series, but only lightly peppered through the pages.

Regency romance readers who want high drama and detailed perfection from that time of "the ton" might want to skip this story. This is a- tripping the light fantastic of historical romance- fun. I personally find that stories that use the regency period, for dramatic impact, as dreadfully trite. Ms. Boyle uses the regency setting of scandals and ruin mainly for hairstyle and dress.

"Letters from a Duke" shows Ms. Boyle loves storytelling, loves her characters and loves entertaining her readers. She writes with a style I adore.
1 people found this helpful

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