Review by Booklist Review
Lady Boadicea Betsy Wilde might have a secret penchant for bad boys, but she draws the line when it comes to Jeremy Roden. Unfortunately, Jeremy is the only man willing to entertain Betsy's outrageous idea. Before she marries Thaddeus Erskine Shaw, the next Duke of Eversley, and settles down into the much-coveted but politely boring life as the next Duchess of Eversley, Betsy wants to have one last adventure: she wants to experience one day in London as a man. In a countermeasure to her plan, Jeremy proposes his own wager of sorts, involving a game of billiards. If Betsy wins, Jeremy will help her with her masculine charade. However, if Jeremy is the victor of their little game, Betsy in all her feminine glory is his for one night. Buoyed by an abundance of tart wit, lively dialogue, and smoldering sensuality, and perfectly grounded with a brilliantly delineated and perfectly matched hero and heroine, Say No to the Duke, the latest in the Wildes of Lindow Castle series, is another literary knockout for RITA-award-winning and best-selling James.--John Charles Copyright 2019 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
James's fourth visit to the Wildes of Lindow Castle (after Born to be Wilde) struggles to incorporate mental illness, social stigma, and trauma into a fluffy Regency romance. Lady Boadicea "Betsy" Wilde's reputation is tainted through no fault of her own: she's believed to have inherited her mother's debauched and licentious nature. To compensate, Betsy transforms herself into a model of propriety. An engagement to the future Duke of Eversley should be the culmination of her efforts-until her brother's best friend, Lord Jeremy Roden, interrupts her conquest. Jeremy, devastated by his wartime service, endured a stint in Bedlam that only made things worse. Little alleviates his depression until Betsy proposes a bet over a game of billiards: if she wins, Jeremy will escort her on a daring, disguised journey around London; if he wins, he gets one night in bed with her. Even after their tryst turns into love, the demons of the past make a happy future seem impossible. James creates blistering chemistry between her protagonists, but her light tone betrays the deeper, complex issues of trauma and shame that her characters are forced to face. By not integrating the romantic plot line and the journey of psychological recovery, this story falls short of its ambitions. Agent: Kim Witherspoon, Inkwell Management. (July) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
Elegant, self-contained, and every inch a lady, Lady Boadicea "Betsy" Wilde has rejected more suitors than she can count. From the time she was 14 and a spiteful classmate sneered that her mother's disgraceful behavior (she had run off with a Prussian) would keep her from getting proposals, Betsy has fiercely guarded her reputation with flawless propriety, never letting on that she is far more adventuresome than the polite world knows. Lord Jeremy Roden, however, knows. Although the two get off to a rocky start, when a rash billiards wager results in his escorting Betsy to a public auction disguised as a boy, the playing field shifts. Realistic, appealing protagonists with troublesome pasts to sort out finally choose love in this laughter-laced tale immeasurably enhanced by a charming but scandal-averse heir to a dukedom and two elderly ladies with devilish senses of adventure. VERDICT With wicked repartee, sharp attention to detail, and a wonderful spirit of fun, James offers a beautifully written Georgian romp that builds another chapter on to this outstanding series. James (Born To Be Wilde) lives in New York.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
The fourth installment of a Georgian-set but very modern romance series that explores the theme of reputation versus reality.Lady Boadicea "Betsy" Wilde is the eldest daughter of the Duke of Lindow. Her mother, the duke's second duchess, ran away with a Prussian count when Betsy was a baby. To ward off even a hint of her mother's debauchery, Betsy tamps down her wilder impulses and presents a demure and perfectly polished image during her first season. She attracts dozens of suitors, proving the naysayers wrong when Lord Thaddeus Greywick, a future duke with a sterling reputation, proposes. The trouble is that Thaddeus doesn't set her heart racing like a certain "evil-tongued aristocrat with a dark soul and a penchant for drink." Lord Jeremy Roden has been hanging out at Lindow Castle for months, recovering from a disastrous military campaign in America and coping with PTSD. He lounges about guiltily in the billiard room, drinking too much whisky, making wisecracks, and generally proving himself unfit for polite society after a terrifying flashback episode in Vauxhall Gardens causes him to black out for an entire week. The bickering twosome cannot resist each other, their banter thrumming with wit, passion, and heart. Jeremy's frank admissions of lust ratchet up the tension for Betsy. The characters, including the snobbish duke to whom the title refers, his spirited mother, and Betsy's wise Aunt Knowe, are endearing and memorable. But James' (Born To Be Wilde, 2018) depiction of recovery from PTSD falls flat, as does the one-dimensional villain whose machinations throw an unnecessary barrier in the way of lovers whose journey to self-revelation and acceptance stands on its own.A lusty journey back to Lindow Castle with a few dead ends on the way to a deeply felt romance. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
