"When You Wish Upon a Duke" By: Isabella Bradford Review

"When You Wish Upon a Duke"

By: Isabella Bradford

Synopsis from Goodreads:

     Raised in the Dorset countryside, Lady Charlotte Wylder doesn’t care one bit about well-bred decorum. The dark-haired, blue-eyed beauty would rather ride a horse than attend a stuffy ball. So when Charlotte learns that she is to leave immediately for London to wed the Duke of Marchbourne, a perfect model of aristocratic propriety, she is less than enchanted with her arranged marriage.  

     But to her delight, their first encounters are brazenly flirtatious, and their wedding night burns with passion. March’s broad shoulders and dark countenance make Charlotte want to rip every button off his waist coast. She may even be falling in love with her new husband. Yet whenever their desire boils over, March reluctantly pushes Charlotte away. Will past secrets and present misunderstandings mire their marriage in scandal, or serve to strengthen a bond that is destined to last a lifetime?

My Thoughts:
     Charlotte Wylder is surprised to learn from a midnight visitor that she has been betrothed to the future Duke of Marchbourne since she was an infant. So starts one of the most delightful regency romances of the year. Charlotte is quickly swept up into the world of Regency London and falls in love, lucky for us, with the very Duke she has been engaged to.

     There sat his bride, perched like some silk-clad nymph on a wide branch, with one arm loosely around the trunk for balance. At least she’d looped and tied her skirts to one side of her legs for decency’s sake, but as he gazed up from the back of his horse, March still had a provocative view of frothy lace around bright green stockings on delicate, perfectly shaped ankles. The gauzy linen kerchief around her shoulders had slipped t one side, and the plump curves of her breasts rose above the neckline of her gown, all the more obvious above the boned bodice. Her skin was creamy and fair, her cheeks prettily flushed, her dark hair tousled beneath a small lace cap.

His first coherant thought was that Carter had been absolutely right: Lady Charlotte was a beauty, the kind of beauty destined to turn heads in every ballroom in London.

His second was pure amazement that such a lady was intended for him.

But his third and most urgent thought was why in blazes the soon-to-be third Duchess of Marchbourne - his duchess - was stranded in the lofty branches of a tree.

      Without a doubt, the characters in this novel make it the entertaining romance it is. Charlotte is fairly uncomfortable being a duchess and doesn’t know necessarily how to behave as one. March is just as uncomfortable being a husband and there is an uncomfortable adjusting period. As they get to know one another in almost impossible circumstances, the reader cheers for the couple.
    The romance is utterly romantic. One of my favorite scenes occurs as March and Charlotte are still unsure of one another. You can feel the emotion in the words and actions, which just gives me chills.

She darted over to Marchbourne. “Trust me in this, too, I beg of you,” she said softly. “Don’t fear that I’ll forget you, Marchbourne. I never could, and I never will.” She touched her fingers to his lips and then to his as a pledge. He seized her wrist and kissed her open palm, his gaze not leaving hers.

     “When You Wish Upon a Duke” is a tale of two people, thrust together by convention and family heritage, that truly come to love one another. The road isn’t easy or simple, but it's a worthwhile trip. Charlotte’s family will provide the basis for the next two books in this series and I’m looking forward to reading their tales as well.

Product Details

Publisher: Ballantine Books

# of Pages: 320

Date of Publication: July 31, 2012

ISBN: 978-0345527291


I received this book from Edelweiss free of charge in exchange for an honest review.