Always Be My Duchess

My Review:She calls him “Gargoyle” when they first meet. Because the mask he dons is one made of stone. He has a reputation of being immovable, implacable, callous and cold. Heartless in his pursuit to obtain whatever he wants. He’s a Duke with deep pockets - and that means the world falls flat on its face to woo him. Genevieve doesn’t know he’s a duke when he surprises her in the dark streets and she pulls her weapon on him. She doesn’t know he’s a duke when she saves his life, when they’re plastered against each other in an alley. Lysander Blackstone, the Duke of Montcroix never acts rashly. He has learned to be calculating, methodical and distanced. But Genevieve Valery makes him reckless. She makes him want to do things not because it is expected or necessary for his survival. He shouldn’t crave more of her sarcasm because she doesn’t show proper respect for his title or his esteemed countenance. Instead, she burrows into his every thought, destroying his concentration with the ghost of her laughter and the specter of her smile. With the promise of how she would feel falling apart in his arms. Genevieve accepts the Duke’s offer of a fake engagement because she is desperate. Their bargain is straightforward. To anyone looking in on the arrangement from the outside, she is a distant cousin from France and they have fallen unexpectedly in love. There is so much more happening behind the imposing doors of the ducal residence. Genevieve learns that Lysander is anything but cold. He rivals the golden splendor of Apollo when he plays the cello. His smile has the brightness of a solar eclipse after a storm. He is guarded, not callous. He is wary, not implacable. I loved every single thing about this wonderful new romance by Amalie Howard. Like one of his concertos, or one of her jetes, their love builds from the first humble notes into an inferno they are helpless to deny. Their music is the backdrop to their relationship, and you will need ice water on hand when it overwhelms them after his cello solo and her birthday performance. A huge thanks to the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.Some of my favorite quotes:She closed her eyes, hating and hoarding the memory of the sound of her name in that deep, gravelly voice, his French accent so perfect it reminded her of home. But she did not want to think of him and home in the same sentence…it led to many alarming thoughts that maybe, one day, he could be the safe harbor she craved. They stood there in a moment of complete accord, underlying emotion and unexpected connection heightening everything else. The press of their fingers. The wild beating of her heart. The need gathering like a hurricane in the pit of her stomach. The look in his eyes.Their eyes met and held for a suspended moment. Don’t leave, he wanted to shout. His bloody eyes pricked, even as his fingers keyed a frantic rhythm into his thigh. He could show her his heart with music, but there weren’t any instruments near, bar his own unskilled voice.“I want to be the man who deserves you. I want to earn every smile, every kiss, every touch you deign to give. I want the chance to prove I can be worthy of you. I’m not asking for forever, but if you could find it in your heart to give me another chance, I promise to earn that forever."

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