Book Tour & Review: Redemption of the Duke by Gayle Calle

NOTE: I received a complimentary copy of How to Lose a Duke in Ten Days in return for my honest review. This does not in any way reflect upon my review. All thoughts/opinions of this novel are 100% my own.

USA Today bestselling author Gayle Callen concludes her new series with a tale of generosity, passion, and the true kindness of the heart.

A duke who needs to be tamed…a lady who refuses to be rescued.

Adam Chamberlin was the third son of a duke, known for gambling binges and drunken nights. No one expected anything of him …until tragedy strikes. Now Adam is the new Duke of Rothford, determined to right the wrongs he’s done. Except a secret in his past means helping the one woman who doesn’t want his help at all…

It’s not every day that a duke introduces himself to a woman sitting by herself in Hyde Park. Faith Cooper is even more surprised when Adam offers her a position as a lady’s companion to his elderly aunt. Faith refuses to be beholden to a man again-certainly not this man, who both infuriates and attracts her. But with the simmering passion between them, will Faith surrender to forbidden desire?

******************** Book Excerpt: (Setup: The duke wishes to employ Faith Cooper to help her, since he feels guilty about the death of her brother, a fellow soldier. But she’s refused.)

He was coming for her—and Faith felt like an utter fool. What had possessed her to go out of her way to walk past Rothford Court?

But there was also a dangerous excitement making her breath come quickly, her heart pound, as she glanced over her shoulder and saw him threading his way through the light crowd, making people stop and gape at him. He wasn’t chasing her, she told herself. He was chasing the terrible mistakes of his past. She was a means to an end.

If she rationally understood this, why did she feel this way?

Because he was a man, and he was showing interest. She was disappointed in herself. The duke’s focus on her was bringing back excitement, the dark world of desire.

She was carrying a set of handkerchiefs wrapped in paper and string, finished with her errand for Adelia. Where else could she go? The duke was gaining on her slowly, as if he was enjoying himself, drat him.

The only safe place was the Warburton town house. When she reached the front door, she turned to give him a triumphant smile. It faded away when she saw him opening the gate. With a gasp, she fled inside, then managed to walk sedately past the butler and up the stairs toward Adelia’s room, even as she heard a knock at the front door.

She swallowed hard, but could not believe he’d ask for her. That would cause too much talk, even for a duke.

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My Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

My Review:  There were parts of this book that I really enjoyed, and parts that I found hard to get into. To start with, the characters while developed seemed to each be lacking in something. The Duke came off as arrogant and selfish, even when he was trying to do what he felt was the "right thing", the ways  he went about them were just completely wrong. Faith has some deep rooted, scandelous secrets, and I found it almost inconceivable that the person making the threats against her could have found that information when The Duke was unable to. 

The story seemed to drag on in parts, and I found myself constantly putting this book down to do something else, and then coming back to it later. It wasn't something that sucked me in and held me there the way some of the others have. 

On the flip side of that, I enjoyed the element of "anonymous letters". They weren't exactly blackmail, but I enjoyed seeing how the web was unraveled to ultimately reveal who was behind it, and it wasn't the person I thought it would be which was nice. There were some romantic moments in the novel, and I enjoyed watching Faith and Adam find themselves and find love regardless of the obstacles thrown at them (even if I didn't always agree with the methods).

I also enjoyed the characters such as they were, even though I wish we had seen more of them and their particular stories and oddities. I have to admit that I would love to read Sophia and Emmeline's stories from their own perspectives, to see how they each won their men in the end.

On the whole, I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys the genre.

You can Purchase your very own copy of Redemption of the Duke from: Amazon, Barnes & Noble & ITunes

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GIVEAWAY! 

Avon is hosting a TOUR WIDE Rafflecopter Commenter Giveaway of Three Prize Packs including a piece of Custom Jewelry and Print Copies of Romances from each author.

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You can follow the tour HERE.

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