Publication Day Review: When A Duke Loves A Governess By Olivia Drake

WHEN A DUKE LOVES A GOVERNESS 

by Olivia Drake

(St. Martin’s Paperbacks, July 27, 2021, $7.99).

Tessa James has worked and planned tirelessly to open her own millinery shop. All she needs now is a loan from the lord who sired and abandoned her. The only problem is, she doesn’t even know his name. What’s a woman to do to find him but enter the aristocratic world by becoming a governess?

Guy Whitby, the new Duke of Carlin, has returned to London after years abroad to discover that his young daughter Sophy has become a wild-child known for scaring away every governess who's crossed his doorstep. When Tessa James applies for the job, he hires her in desperation despite his misgivings that she’s too bold and beautiful–and that she might be fibbing about her qualifications.

Their blooming attraction leads them on a completely unexpected path to love that neither wants to deny. But when an old enemy threatens Guy's family, their forbidden romance goes up in flames. Can they still learn to love and trust each other as forces try to tear them apart?

Amazon UK               Amazon US

When Tessa James overhears insightful gossip about the Duke of Carlin, she immediately sees it as a sign to improve her own situation. As a milliners assistant, her dream is to save up and one day open her own hat shop to showcase her own designs. However, the duke needs a governess for his four-year-old daughter and she's not a suitable candidate for the job. As a woman determined not to let such an obstacle get in her way, she applies for the job…

When Guy Whitby returned from his research trip, he's dismayed his late wife's parents didn't follow his advice to hire someone suitable to look after his young daughter. The resulting consequence is a troublesome child and no subsequent governess has stayed in his employment long enough to change her behaviour. When Tessa James talks her way into taking on the task of becoming his daughter's governess, he knows she is lying about her past, only, he is desperate and takes a chance anyway, with unexpected results.

Tessa is a heroine who knows her mind and goes after what she wants. She's feisty and determined yet displays compassion and understanding regardless of whether others are fortunate or less fortunate than herself. Luckily for the duke, she is a woman who can make his life better, if only he could disregard his determination of not marrying again.

Guy Whitby isn't instantly likeable, but as we get to know more about him, we learn why he behaved as he did. I adore flawed characters and he plays this part very well. Both he and Tessa are well suited, as they both get used to their new ways of life, far different from what either expected, so it's no surprise these two make quite an exceptional couple, in a positive way.

Ms Drake is a new to me author and reading this third instalment of The Unlikely Duchesses series was a delight. The murder-mystery side plot provided an enticing twist and added an extra layer of drama to the well-written and thought out narrative.

Overall, this is a wonderful novel with a feel-good ending that's both satisfying and happy.

***arc received courtesy of St Martin's Paperbacks via NetGalley***

Olivia Drake is a New York Times bestselling author who lives in Texas. Her novels have won critical acclaim and numerous industry awards, including the prestigious RITA. Olivia is the author of Scandal of the Year, Never Trust a Rogue, and If the Slipper Fits among others.

New Book Publication Spotlight & Author Guest Post: Sun, Sea and Summer Vibes by Zoe Allison

Tips for New Romance Writers

I consider myself new to this game. I only began writing around six years ago, in my late 30s (not trying to hide my age by being vague, I’m just so old that I can’t remember). My first book was published in 2020 and Sun, Sea and Summer Vibes is my third novel of 2021. I don’t consider myself an expert by any manner or means. I’m a doctor by trade and I have no qualifications in English or writing except for my trusty GCSEs in English Literature and English Language (yes, GCSEs. That’s how old I am). However, there are some things I’ve found helpful, which I can share.

1. Firstly, the post important thing is to write. Get your ideas down on paper. It doesn’t matter that it’s unpolished and rubbish to start with, practice makes perfect.

2. Read craft books. I had never written anything substantial before, so to start with I read a book about writing romance and another one about writing dialogue, because that was the area where I felt least confident. What’s a beat? What’s a tag? How do you separate different characters’ speech?

3. Don’t start off a book with description. It’s doesn’t capture the reader’s attention. Start with action or dialogue. Enter the story as it’s underway.

4. Don’t include stuff about the non-central characters unless it’s driving the main characters’ stories forward. Otherwise it can make the story drag and the reader gets bored.

5. Show don’t tell. Don’t explain things to the reader as the narrator, show them how someone feels or what their backstory is through action and dialogue.

6. Read your work out loud. When it comes to self-editing, you catch so many more repeated words, missing words or errors of flow if you read out loud. An editor recommended this to me and I’ve found it invaluable.

7. Whatever path you want to take for your romance book, I’d recommend trying to get a place on the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s New Writers’ Scheme. The RNA website tells you more, but at the start of each year you can apply for a place on the scheme which has many benefits and a mahoosive one is the opportunity to submit a manuscript once per year to be read and critiqued by a professional writer. This is a big deal in order to improve your writing in general and also to a publishable standard (no matter what sort of publishing path you want to go for).

8. Get a copy of The Writers’ and Artists’ yearbook. This is a helpful resource for writers, and contains information on how to go about getting an agent and getting published. An up to date one comes out every year.

9. Get on social media. Join the writing community on Twitter. There’s a lot of mutual support out there and getting to know other writers virtually helps you along the way. I’m mainly active on Twitter and now also TikTok, which is video based. I’m also on Instagram and Facebook but don’t find those quite as much fun, however there are many choices and you can delve in to see which suits you best.

10. Make a website. This s a good idea no matter what stage you’re at, you have control over the content and you can use it to display your brand and pop a link on your social media to direct people to it.

11. There is no one path! If you ask one hundred different writers you will not find two stories which are the same. Everybody’s journey is different and there isn’t one more valid than the other.

Now get writing!

Sun, Sea and Summer Vibes

Sometimes first impressions are far from the truth...

Nina Darwish is a scientist who likes to proceed with caution and careful deliberation. When she arrives at the party destination of Ibiza to play PA for her best friend and international pop sensation Isla Starr, she has trouble adapting to the carefree and easy-going vibe on the island. The situation isn’t aided by Isla’s seemingly surly yet irritatingly attractive music producer, the world-renowned dance DJ Logan Wild, known by his real name—Cameron—to his friends. Plus, Nina’s run-ins with, and repeated rebuttal of, an extremely entitled and very annoying male singer named Zac don’t help to aid her mood.

Unbeknownst to Nina, Cameron remembers her from the past, when he was a geeky student who admired her from afar. Unfortunately, it’s clear that Nina considers him ill-natured, no doubt due to his natural awkwardness, which he masks using a stage persona. However, even if that weren’t the situation, he’s involved in a dead-end relationship with his celebrity girlfriend Ash. Plus, Nina’s eye appears to have been drawn onto Ash’s no good ex-boyfriend, Zac, therefore there’s no point in believing anything could ever happen between them.

But despite all of that being the case, for some reason, he just cannot stop thinking about her.

First for Romance (Totally Bound’s bookstore): https://www.firstforromance.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=71339

Amazon UK: http://mybook.to/sunseaandsummervibes

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Sun-Sea-Summer-Vibes-Allison-ebook/dp/B094JXJSWP

Growing up, Zoe Allison loved stories about falling in love. But rather than being rescued by a knight in shining armour, she imagined herself fighting dragons alongside him, battling supervillains as heroic allies, or teaming up to dive into perilous waters in order to save a loved one from drowning. Once Zoe did grow up, she became a doctor. But as time went on, she craved a creative outlet to counter the soul sapping burnout that her career inflicted upon her, and also to achieve those happy endings that were so often lacking in the real world. She wanted heroes who truly love and value women, who find their true love inspiring, are fascinated by her, want to connect with her as a soulmate and fully open themselves to her on an emotional level. And so, Zoe began to write her romances.

A Zoe Allison novel promises a heroine who is not only her hero’s equal in ability and intellect, but whose hero equals her in emotional intelligence. Her characters overcome conflict infused with spine tingling sexual tension to forge a deep connection as soul mates as well as lovers, and ultimately, they both rescue each other emotionally. Even if they might begin their journey as enemies…

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