While the first two books in this series have actual dukes in them, The Wallflower Wager has it's own spin on the girl meets duke idea with the hero having the last name Duke. Penny is a Lady who tries to avoid the limelight and the London ton at all costs after an embarrassing incident at her coming out into society. She has a gentle, caring nature, going out of her way to take in a multitude of stray animals that further isolates her from the London elite. After the parrot she's caring for flies out of her window into the next door neighbour's house, she trespasses to rescue it and comes face to face (and gets an eyeful of him coming out of the bath to boot) with Gabriel Duke, aka the Duke of Ruin and blackguard of the London ton. Gabe is very rich and influential having dragged himself out of extreme poverty to become a serious player in the upper crust, crushing English Lords and taking their wealth in an almost obsessive fashion. As a result, he's both feared and tolerated but not truly accepted due to his humble beginnings and methods of business. Gabriel obtained the residence beside Penny's, knowing the new money folk will pay top dollar for his renovated house that is situated beside a Lady's. The only catch? Penny's brother is coming to London to take her back home to retire a spinster at their country estate, a fate she sees as almost worse than death due to a past dark event. She makes a wager with her aunty to enter back into society, be seen and get rid of her copious amounts of animals. Keen to have her stay in her house and keep its value as high as possible, Gabe is determined to help her to line his own pockets. The only problem? They're wildly attracted to each other.
Whilst I enjoyed the Wallflower Wager, I didn't find it had the spark its series predecessors had. Don't get me wrong, it was still a great read, but some of the sarcasm I love from this author was missing and some of the themes were done to death, particularly the 'I love her but I can't be with her because I'm not good enough and never will be' rubbish as well as Penny's sexual liberation. While I liked that she was confident in this area, it didn't quite mesh with her shy, gentle nature as all of sudden she was initiating contact with a man she'd just met as well as having sex in several public places. The latter I found really over the top, although it was pretty steamy.
There was still a good dash of humour throughout the book, especially a couple of sections with the parrot Penny adopted that had been, unbeknownst to her, from a cathouse. We get a few visits from characters from the former books, especially Ash and Chase. If you haven't read the former books, this one will do fine as a standalone but the characters do cross over. I did find a couple of bits featuring Emma and Alex somewhat hypocritical as they were lecturing Penny on her behaviour with Duke, obviously having sudden cases of amnesia and forgetting their own complicated histories with their partners. There was a lot of repetition on how large and masculine Gabe was as well as his tendency to get stubble soon after shaving that became a little repetitive but this was a minor issue. Also, it was never quite explained how he got his leg up in order to be able to start out and obtain all of his wealth since so much focus was placed on how poor and mistreated he was as a youth.
One thing I loved about this book was how the character of Duke called the aristocracy out for their shortcomings during this period. It was so refreshing to read a book that called it what it was rather than completely romanticising it - think along the lines of sheer snobbery based on a form of cast system when being born into wealth and titles is enough to define a person's worth.
The plot was predictable and be warned that there are mentions of child sexual assault. This is alluded to throughout the book so it comes as no surprise but I know some readers will want to know in advance. Also, without spoiling anything, I really disliked the story line that involved her brother in the later sections of the book. It stopped the story from being a complete feel good story like it's predecessors and the token relationship they had at the end made me cranky as her brother was a germ and I didn't like that there was an attempt to make his side of the story rosy.
It had a sweet, happily every after ending with a sweet epilogue after it. There's still one friend unmarried so even though the epilogue seemed a bit final, I'm hoping there's still one more book to come.
The Wallflower Wager: Girl Meets Duke
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A fun and flirty delight! I loved every second!
Reviewed in the United States on August 13, 2019
I absolutely adored everything about this. The Wallflower Wager was a fast-paced, flirty delight. A highly entertaining read full of wonderful moments, great friendships, and so much love. It filled my heart and left me with a huge smile on my face. I loved every second!There was such a priceless start and I was instantly in love. I can't begin to explain how much I loved Penny and Gabriel. She is such a joy with the biggest heart ever. Her compassion knows no bounds. She's so sweet and a bit naïve, but she's kind and strong and knows her own mind. I loved her quirkiness. Gabriel was all gruff and sexy, and very intriguing. I smiled my way through the dialogue and entertaining moments they shared. They had wonderful chemistry and I loved that simmering passion between them, the build was off the charts. Seriously, this sucker was on fire!I'm not sure how I was laughing one minute and teary-eyed the next but that’s what happened. It was incredibly entertaining but also filled with these heartfelt, emotional moments I adored. I felt that pain and heartache when they opened up. I loved how Penny really blossomed and gained this unwavering confidence. I loved Gabriel, how he faced things from his past and truly accepting what he was worthy of. I loved the Wallflower women together; how sweet they were and the family they formed. All the men were extremely funny. Chase and Ash with Gabriel were a riot. It was just a well-rounded, well thought out story. I loved the adorable animals and the side stories happening too. Hints of Nicola's story have me beyond excited, that was a heck of a teaser woven in. Can’t wait!This was brilliant, funny, sweet, and sexy. I love a story that pulls me in and hours fly by before I even realize it, I devoured this! It was filled with witty banter, entertaining scenes, a lot of emotion, and holy wow with the heat. An excellent read!
Reviewed in the United States on August 13, 2019
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