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18th out of 261 books
—
326 voters
The Taming of the Duke (Essex Sisters #3)
by
Eloisa James (Goodreads Author)
Imogen, Lady Maitland, has decided to dance on the wild side. After all, she's in the delicious position of being able to take a lover. A discreet male who knows just when to leave in the morning.
But Lady Maitland is still under the watchful eye of her former guardian, the wildly untamed Rafe, the Duke of Holbrook. He believes she is still in need of a "watchdog." She laug...more
But Lady Maitland is still under the watchful eye of her former guardian, the wildly untamed Rafe, the Duke of Holbrook. He believes she is still in need of a "watchdog." She laug...more
Paperback, 392 pages
Published
March 28th 2006
by Avon
(first published 2006)
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Oct 24, 2010
Melody
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Shelves:
historical-romance,
eloisa-james,
top-fav-heroes,
deception,
books-i-own,
masquerade,
widow,
guardian,
sell-back,
won-copy,
battle-of-wills,
headstrong-h-hr,
eccentric-quirky-heroine,
addiction,
disappointing,
heroes-w-hilarious-sense-of-humor,
mistaken-identity,
reviewed-by-me,
pink-themed-cover,
drama-queen,
bad-boy,
tortured-hero,
make-love-not-war,
beautiful-cover
I really really love the character of Rafe. Love and adore him. Eloisa James is one of my favorite authors so it kills me to say this because I was really looking forward to reading this. I was disappointed with this one and it's only because of the plot and set up of the story and how it was dragged out. Still a great read I'd recommend it but compared to the other in the series this was disappointing for me.
*SPOILER ALERT* I really liked the idea of Rafe's long lost brother Gabe coming into th...more
*SPOILER ALERT* I really liked the idea of Rafe's long lost brother Gabe coming into th...more
I can't explain my feelings about this series. I start hating the plot, characters, everything. The I love the last third of the books. I eventually like the main hero and heroine and am satisfied with the ending. However for this book, I kept hating Imogen. I thought I might grow to like her like I did Tessa and Annabel but no, I hated her. I felt no sympathy for her, Nothing. I feel that Rafe is too good for her. Actually, all the characters are better than Imogen. Not to mention that I didn't...more
This is book 3 of the Essex Sisters Quartet, and I really am so glad that I bought these on a whim from thriftbooks. Most romance novels seem silly or banal or just annoying. I've settled for other writers just because their writing wasn't as bad as others I'd picked up.
James is challenging. Sure, she sticks to the formula, but you know what? I want a happy ending. I want the couple to have to overcome some hardships and then, finally, find each other and live happily ever after.
I wasn't sure wh...more
James is challenging. Sure, she sticks to the formula, but you know what? I want a happy ending. I want the couple to have to overcome some hardships and then, finally, find each other and live happily ever after.
I wasn't sure wh...more
Imogene is the Essex sister that is the least likable to me Most of the time she has been relentlessly pursuing the duke, or being hateful to her sister Tess. Imogene widowed young and has been careless about her reputation which has affected her sisters. In this book 3 she agrees to return to her guardians home as she was only married 2 weeks before becoming a widow. Rafe has been a drunk for 6 years since his brother dies. He discovers another brother and a niece. While he comes to terms with...more
awkward awkward awkward awkward.
SCENE ONE!
A Duke (Raphael) meets up with long-lost-half-brother-doppleganger (Gabriel) who has unintentionally sired a child on an actress who doesn't want the baby at all but will only give it up if her career is catapulted by Gabe's brother's fortune
SCENE TWO!
The brothers invite a bevy of ladies to visit and act in the play -- Rafe's mother had a playhouse and it was very popular in the ton -- naturally. One of them (Imogen) was married briefly to a man she stol...more
SCENE ONE!
A Duke (Raphael) meets up with long-lost-half-brother-doppleganger (Gabriel) who has unintentionally sired a child on an actress who doesn't want the baby at all but will only give it up if her career is catapulted by Gabe's brother's fortune
SCENE TWO!
The brothers invite a bevy of ladies to visit and act in the play -- Rafe's mother had a playhouse and it was very popular in the ton -- naturally. One of them (Imogen) was married briefly to a man she stol...more
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I didn't even know that there were two other books about the main characters sisters, and you really don't have to know that to read this book.
Lady Imogen Maitland is a widow and in the position of taking a lover. A man who knows how to keep quiet.
But she is still under the wathcful eye of her former guardian, rafe, the duke of Holbrook. he believes that she still needs someone who watches her. But she laughs at the idea that a lazy drunk of a man can do anything. Why should he have anything to...more
Lady Imogen Maitland is a widow and in the position of taking a lover. A man who knows how to keep quiet.
But she is still under the wathcful eye of her former guardian, rafe, the duke of Holbrook. he believes that she still needs someone who watches her. But she laughs at the idea that a lazy drunk of a man can do anything. Why should he have anything to...more
I'm going with 3 1/2 stars here. I love Eloisa James, and her writing is just as good in this book, but I just couldn't love this book.
As I said before, this book is written in little vignettes much like "Love Actually" the movie, but it isn't done quite as well. For example, when one of the heroes (yes, there are two of each) kisses his intended you have no warning. One minute they are talking and the next he kisses her then apologizes and runs off. Doesn't sound too bad, right? The problem is...more
As I said before, this book is written in little vignettes much like "Love Actually" the movie, but it isn't done quite as well. For example, when one of the heroes (yes, there are two of each) kisses his intended you have no warning. One minute they are talking and the next he kisses her then apologizes and runs off. Doesn't sound too bad, right? The problem is...more
Oct 25, 2011
Lori McD
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Shelves:
chick-lit,
easy-read,
female-bonding,
favorite-author,
fun-fluff,
guilty-pleasure,
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series,
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british-lit,
2011_read
3.5 stars
Imogen finally takes Center Stage -- not because she thrust herself into the spotlight, but because it was truly her turn. Imagine that!
Mixed review here... admittedly Imogen is not my favorite sister. She's simply behaved so badly in both of the previous books, it's difficult for me to like her or relate to her. But I knew that this was coming, and I knew that she was destined for the Duke from book 1. I suspect Ms. James knew it all along, too.
But there's a certain amount of ickiness...more
Imogen finally takes Center Stage -- not because she thrust herself into the spotlight, but because it was truly her turn. Imagine that!
Mixed review here... admittedly Imogen is not my favorite sister. She's simply behaved so badly in both of the previous books, it's difficult for me to like her or relate to her. But I knew that this was coming, and I knew that she was destined for the Duke from book 1. I suspect Ms. James knew it all along, too.
But there's a certain amount of ickiness...more
Love, love Eloisa's books.........The Taming of the Duke is a great Historical read........lot's of romance, sensual, funny, Imogen, Lady Maitland wants to dance on the wild side. Her husband died young, so now, she's ready to kick up her heals.........But her former guardian is still watching her movements as though she was under age.......he is the Duke of Holbrook, Rafe.
He feels that she is still in need of a protector/guardian.....Rafe, the Duke, has a drinking problem, but why does he drink...more
He feels that she is still in need of a protector/guardian.....Rafe, the Duke, has a drinking problem, but why does he drink...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Book three of the Essex sisters, and this one deals with Imogen - Lady Maitland, widowed after an ill-advised marriage that lasted all of ten days in Book One - and her former guardian, Rafe Jourdain, Duke of Holbrook.
Good characterization, especially of Rafe. It's hard to make a drunkard into a hero - especially a romantic hero - but he gives up the drink, stops feeling sorry for himself, and pursues Imogen, who, he realizes, he's always loved. The device that prompts his sobriety - an illegit...more
Good characterization, especially of Rafe. It's hard to make a drunkard into a hero - especially a romantic hero - but he gives up the drink, stops feeling sorry for himself, and pursues Imogen, who, he realizes, he's always loved. The device that prompts his sobriety - an illegit...more
these are all 5 star books...but I so loved the last of the series...so so so loved it, like dogeared copy loved it...that i have to give the other sisters 4 stars in order to officially show my devotion to Josie & Mayne.
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I've liked the other books in this series, but I think this one was by far the best because the of characters. They have been individually developing through the past two books so when their relationship begins to develop in this book there is so much more depth to it. They are also both characters that are a bit unlikeable, perhaps pathetic at times, but not ones that the reader can't feel sympathy for. They have redeeming qualities too, making them very relateable and believable. I'll try not...more
Eloisa writes romance thats easy to read and takes you on an enjoyable ride in the process. This book had some interesting factors particularly the fact that the hero (view spoiler)
The one thing that annoyed me about this is that (view spoiler)...more
The one thing that annoyed me about this is that (view spoiler)...more
Imogen dan Rafe?
Sudah ketahuan sejak menit kesekian pertemuan mereka di buku pertama!*lol
Penasaran saja mau dibawa kemana cerita bapak wali dan anak wali yang pembangkang ini, dan ternyata cukup menarik dan aku cukup suka.
Karakter menyebalkan Imogen yang labil, mau menang sendiri, dan berpindah-pindah pria menjadi agak tertutupi setelah di buku ketiga ini dia mulai menyadari butuh cinta yang sebenarnya
Konflik kemunculan GAbe, adik Rafe memang seudah seharusnya dimasukkan agar tidak boring hanya...more
Sudah ketahuan sejak menit kesekian pertemuan mereka di buku pertama!*lol
Penasaran saja mau dibawa kemana cerita bapak wali dan anak wali yang pembangkang ini, dan ternyata cukup menarik dan aku cukup suka.
Karakter menyebalkan Imogen yang labil, mau menang sendiri, dan berpindah-pindah pria menjadi agak tertutupi setelah di buku ketiga ini dia mulai menyadari butuh cinta yang sebenarnya
Konflik kemunculan GAbe, adik Rafe memang seudah seharusnya dimasukkan agar tidak boring hanya...more
After reading the first two novels in this series, I'd had enough of Imogen's destructive nonsense! However, I was so charmed by Ms. James' Rafe that I was compelled to struggle through it! I'm so pleased that I did! Rafe's struggle with alcoholism was beautifully portrayed as well as the deep low self esteem of Imogen! The return of a few secondary characters and a few new was a delicious secondary storyline. I really enjoyed this series! I started with the last of the series, they each stand o...more
This just got lazy in the end. No indication prior to literally the last chapter that Imogen had any idea about Rafe's charade and then suddenly she KNEW! ALL! ALONG! (maybe??).
I was really looking forward to these two because they had such an interesting relationship in the previous two books, but this was hella disappointing. It only gets two stars because the scenes where they were just being Rafe and Imogen (meadow, when she bathes him, etc.) were FANTASTIC. Otherwise, bleh. The entire mista...more
I was really looking forward to these two because they had such an interesting relationship in the previous two books, but this was hella disappointing. It only gets two stars because the scenes where they were just being Rafe and Imogen (meadow, when she bathes him, etc.) were FANTASTIC. Otherwise, bleh. The entire mista...more
I didn't like this as much as the other Essex sisters books so far. On the one hand, Rafe is a good, interesting character. On the other, I don't much like Imogen, and the ending was super rushed.
I did really enjoy the epilogue, though, and all of the theater bits throughout, and I continue to enjoy the way Eloisa James tends to have several romances going on at the same time as the main romance in the story, as well as how she often builds up a romance over several books before you get the payo...more
I did really enjoy the epilogue, though, and all of the theater bits throughout, and I continue to enjoy the way Eloisa James tends to have several romances going on at the same time as the main romance in the story, as well as how she often builds up a romance over several books before you get the payo...more
I'm not sure how I feel about this story. One the one hand, did like the main characters, Rafe and Imogen. On the other hand, there were way too many characters and subplots that kept jumping around a lot. Perhaps its because I didn't read the series in order and probably won't be able to since I'm at the mercy of the public library's ebook system.
After you get past the set up, the story did flow a lot better though there were still a bit of jumping around still that for some reason felt abrupt....more
After you get past the set up, the story did flow a lot better though there were still a bit of jumping around still that for some reason felt abrupt....more
This is about the third Essex daughter, Imogen. She had eloped and married before, but was a widow now. Can she find love under he former guardian's eye, Rafe?
Maybe not under his eye, but maybe in his eyes.
Imogen desperately wants a man that is in love with her. She thought that she loved Draven enough for both of them, but in this year she has come to realize that it wasn't enough.
Will this new fling give her what she needs the most? To be deeply loved is what she needs this time.
Read to find o...more
Maybe not under his eye, but maybe in his eyes.
Imogen desperately wants a man that is in love with her. She thought that she loved Draven enough for both of them, but in this year she has come to realize that it wasn't enough.
Will this new fling give her what she needs the most? To be deeply loved is what she needs this time.
Read to find o...more
My introduction to Eloisa James' work was with When Beauty Tamed the Beast so I was a bit dissapointed at first since Taming the Duke was not what I was expecting. However, what Taming the Duke lacked in laugh out loud hilarity it more than made up for with a thick plot that stewed around juicy, if a bit lean for my taste, characters. I am a greedy reader and would have liked to see more development in the characters as well as their relationships. All in all I found it hard to put this book dow...more
I can't decide if this book deserves 2 stars or 4 stars.
On one hand, I very much enjoyed Rafe. I liked that he doesn't come on stage initially looking like the classic romantic hero. He also made me laugh. That's the 4 star part of the book.
The two star part of the book (view spoiler)...more
On one hand, I very much enjoyed Rafe. I liked that he doesn't come on stage initially looking like the classic romantic hero. He also made me laugh. That's the 4 star part of the book.
The two star part of the book (view spoiler)...more
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Ok, so I am seven chapters in and haven't come up with anything to really discuss about this book. It is not grabbing me at all yet. The storyline of Rafe trying to stop drinking and why he is doing it is probably the aspect of the book I like the most so far. I guess I can be happy about the fact that this seems to be all Imogen's story as her other sisters aren't honing in on her time so far. The author does seem to be bringing back the character Gillian ( Draven Maitland's fiancée before Imog...more
I loved, loved, loved this book. I loved the way it was written, the hero and heroine, the secondary characters, the plot, the epilogue, everything!
Where to start?
The heroine is a passionate, but soured widow, guilty for luring her deceased, arrogant husband into marriage, and embarrassed for the lack of passion in their short marriage. That's a lot of emotion for one person to walk around with, and she retreats into a bitter, bitchy exterior to hide her pain. She's also smart and sassy.
The hero...more
Where to start?
The heroine is a passionate, but soured widow, guilty for luring her deceased, arrogant husband into marriage, and embarrassed for the lack of passion in their short marriage. That's a lot of emotion for one person to walk around with, and she retreats into a bitter, bitchy exterior to hide her pain. She's also smart and sassy.
The hero...more
4 likes
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Aug 18, 2011
Netha
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
historical-romance,
gpu
hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh mo baca buku ini males duluan secara diantara ke 4 kakak beradik essex aq paling ga suka dengan imogen.
tp berhubung udah baca buku 1 & 2 mau ga mau harus terus baca apalagi ada cerita ttg Miss Pythian-Adams, mantan tunangan draven maitland yg ditinggalkan karna maitland kawin lari dengan imogen.
aq malah lebih suka miss phytian-adams yg smart dibandingkan imogen yg egois.
imogen, lady maitland, menjanda setelah menikah dgn pujaan hatinya hanya selama 2 minggu.
pernikahan yg ka...more
tp berhubung udah baca buku 1 & 2 mau ga mau harus terus baca apalagi ada cerita ttg Miss Pythian-Adams, mantan tunangan draven maitland yg ditinggalkan karna maitland kawin lari dengan imogen.
aq malah lebih suka miss phytian-adams yg smart dibandingkan imogen yg egois.
imogen, lady maitland, menjanda setelah menikah dgn pujaan hatinya hanya selama 2 minggu.
pernikahan yg ka...more
What I love most about Eloisa James is her ability to take unlikely heroes and heroines and turn them into extraordinarily likable protagonists. In this novel, our unlikely hero is Rafe--the alcoholic, careless Duke of Holbrook. And our heroine is the newly widowed--and recently spiteful--Lady Imogen Maitland.
It can't have been an easy task to create a hero out of an alcoholic. But James managed to do it with finesse. While I initially disliked Rafe earlier in the series, I learned more about hi...more
It can't have been an easy task to create a hero out of an alcoholic. But James managed to do it with finesse. While I initially disliked Rafe earlier in the series, I learned more about hi...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
After running headlong in the first two books, Imogen is finally disposed of here to her very own HEA. I wasn't thrilled with the third book in the Essex sisters series. A lot of this has to do with the author's using too much of a modern style, and the story is more soap opera than anything that has to with the Regency period.
For a more complete review, please go here:
http://www.epinions.com/review/Book_T...
For a more complete review, please go here:
http://www.epinions.com/review/Book_T...
I was wary of starting this books because I didn't like Imogen very much and the description left something to be desired. I should have known that Eloisa James would not let me down. As always her flair for creating relatable and lifelike characters makes this books a joy to read. Rafe and Imogen are so sweet together and I loved how their shared experience of grief brought them closer. I also liked how Rafe's addiction to alcohol was handled.
I fell in love with the duke as well. I would gladly lie in the fields and stare up at the clouds with him. I love books that have strong women in them, and Imogen is about the best I've read in quite a while. The songs sung in the Inn, while the lady was dressed as a trollop had me rolling with laughter! Eloisa James knows how to spin a good yarn, and keep you interested and laughing and crying the entire time.
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New York Times bestselling author Eloisa James writes historical romances for HarperCollins Publishers. Her novels have been published to great acclaim. A reviewer from USA Today wrote of Eloisa's very first book that she "found herself devouring the book like a dieter with a Hershey bar"; later People Magazine raved that "romance writing does not get much better than this." Her novels have repeat...more
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“She gave a sigh and turned to meet Rafe's sardonic glance.
"He's not for you," Rafe said, leaning close to her.
"I can't think what you mean," Imogen said loftily, accepting a glass of lemonade from Brinkley.
"You know precisely what I mean, you little witch," Rafe said, and there wasn't even a gleam of amusement in his eyes. "You mean to have him, don't you? I've seen that look in your eyes before. That look has had you in trouble before.”
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"He's not for you," Rafe said, leaning close to her.
"I can't think what you mean," Imogen said loftily, accepting a glass of lemonade from Brinkley.
"You know precisely what I mean, you little witch," Rafe said, and there wasn't even a gleam of amusement in his eyes. "You mean to have him, don't you? I've seen that look in your eyes before. That look has had you in trouble before.”
