Bringing Down the Duke by Evie Dunmore -> Restarting June 3rd, 2023

[Alaina]

England, 1879. Annabelle Archer, the brilliant but destitute daughter of a country vicar, has earned herself a place among the first cohort of female students at the renowned University of Oxford. In return for her scholarship, she must support the rising women's suffrage movement. Her charge: recruit men of influence to champion their cause. Her target: Sebastian Devereux, the cold and calculating Duke of Montgomery who steers Britain's politics at the Queen's command. Her challenge: not to give in to the powerful attraction she can't deny for the man who opposes everything she stands for.

Sebastian is appalled to find a suffragist squad has infiltrated his ducal home, but the real threat is his impossible feelings for green-eyed beauty Annabelle. He is looking for a wife of equal standing to secure the legacy he has worked so hard to rebuild, not an outspoken commoner who could never be his duchess. But he wouldn't be the greatest strategist of the Kingdom if he couldn't claim this alluring bluestocking without the promise of a ring... or could he?

Locked in a battle with rising passion and a will matching her own, Annabelle will learn just what it takes to topple a duke....

A stunning debut for author Evie Dunmore and her Oxford suffragists in which a fiercely independent vicar's daughter takes on a powerful duke in a fiery love story that threatens to upend the British social order.

[Isabel]

Since i'll be reading this for a quarterly challenge, I allowed myself to read it already yesterday because I couldn't keep my mind off of it.

(view spoiler)[
Chapter 11: It's a classic that she has fallen ill! This is already definitely reminding me of Pride and Prejudice and I'm loving it. I hope that she will be, by some miracle, swayed to stay longer.

Chapter 17: I can't believe that Peregrin took off without any other word but Montgomery really did go hard on him concerning the Navy preposition. Brotherly love and affection is something that readers don't get too much, so I'm happy to see that Montgomery is wanting for his family's closeness (even if he also related that to the continuity of the estate and family name).

Chapter 26: His stance was quite clear from the beginning, so I don't understand why Annabelle still went to his room and gave into her longings, since it definitely complicates things further between them.

Chapter 33: I'm happy they found their way back to each other and that the author did not come up with some unrealistic plot-twist for them to be able to merrily marry with society's approval. (hide spoiler)]

[Alaina]

I gotta drive my brother to work soon so after I do that I will jump into this!

[Alaina]

Starting this now!

[Alaina]

Ch 1-10: (view spoiler)[So far I'm really enjoying this. The characters and the setting. I'm glad she's okay and he has been there to save her.. but I want more! (hide spoiler)]

[Alaina]

Ch 11-20: (view spoiler)[

Like come on people! Just say it! (hide spoiler)]

[Alaina]

Ch 21-30: (view spoiler)[The bantering, the jealousy, and the chemistry is so freaking easy to devour. I'm very excited to see how this will end. (hide spoiler)]

[Alaina]

Ch 31-Finish: (view spoiler)[Okay this was a lot of fun! I really enjoyed it and I definitely want to jump into the sequel. (hide spoiler)]

[Isabel]

Alaina wrote: "Ch 21-30: [spoilers removed]"

The chemistry was great... but i was a little disappointed that (view spoiler)[she was so head over heals over him that she disregarded literally everything. I would have definitely given it 5 stars if they're emotional connection would have flourished before their sex drives did lol. (hide spoiler)]

[Isabel]

Alaina wrote: "Ch 31-Finish: [spoilers removed]"

Do you want to buddy read that one too? I'd be really into it

[Aly]

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RESTARTING JUNE 3RD, 2023

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[Ashlyn]

Chapters 1-8 (view spoiler)[I'm really liking this book so far. I love that he thought she was there for his brother and how she just knows they will kiss. And the horseback ride was perfect. (hide spoiler)]

Chapters 9-16 (view spoiler)[I love how thoughtful he was with sending the books. The notes are cute too.

No! I wanted to know what he was going to say to her after the kiss. Of course the brother had to ruin it by disappearing. (hide spoiler)]

[Saige]

Chapters 1-7:

(view spoiler)[ I'm really liking the romantic dynamic so far. There has already been a misunderstanding, but it seemed a lot more grounded that the super contrived misunderstandings that I see in romance a lot. I love the Duke - hot and kinda domineering but not, at heart, an asshole. Excited to see how this works out! (hide spoiler)]

[Ashlyn]

Chapters 17-24 (view spoiler)[Kind of mad at him for asking her to be his mistress. I really like that she stood her ground with him at the theater. I'm glad Montgomery showed up to the prison for her. But UMMM.... why did she just give in to him and go to his rooms???? (hide spoiler)]

[Ashlyn]

Finished (view spoiler)[I wasn't expecting Jenkins to propose. I feel like the book lost it's momentum from the beginning unfortunately. Like he had to hit his head before he realized he wanted to marry her. (hide spoiler)]

[Saige]

Chapters 9-16:

(view spoiler)[I think it was really interesting to make a woman without strong opinions on voting rights the centre of a very political novel. But I think it works well with Montgomery's character, and I do buy the attraction between them. Not sure what's going on with Peregrin, but I hope he's run off with a cute girl and will get a happy ending. (hide spoiler)]

[Saige]

Chapters 17-26:

(view spoiler)[Absolutely obsessed with powerful, rich men begging for things. Immaculate, 10/10. And good on Annabelle for treating herself with respect and not just taking Montgomery's money. I'm sure he'll propose to her by the end, now I'm just excited to see how it'll happen. (hide spoiler)]

[Saige]

Finished:
(view spoiler)[I really liked the ending of this one! Instead of a radical change of heart, it felt like Montgomery finally expressed both the love and the political leanings that he had the whole time. I especially liked the heart to heart with his brother - it felt like the first step towards healing/forgiveness. And of course I'm happy that he and Annabelle finally got together - the scene on the boat at the end was a great little epilogue. (hide spoiler)]