In Bed with the Duke (Governess Brides, #9) By Christina Dodd
While I liked the idea of a simple and plain-looking ladies companion catching the eye of a dashing and very wealthy Duke, the story itself was anything but intriguing. The characters lack dept and even the story itself seemed kind of thrown together and rushed. Almost like no love or care was put into the book. Often times I found myself snickering at the character interactions and dialogue because sometimes it seemed...ridiculous. Before you think that I am bashing Dodd's story, I did keep in mind that it took the author 4 years before returning to historical romance with this book. Maybe I expect more from her? Not sure but I was disappointed.
The only thing that kept me going from beginning to end was Dodd's uncanny and unbelievably intriguing sex scenes. She really is an artist when it comes to this and if anything in the book was done with must thought, it was the sex. But then again, what do we read romantic novels for if not for the sex? Still, while I was disappointed int this book, it does not hinder my adoration for Christina Dodd's continuous contribution to my reading delight.
http://alicev.net/blog In Bed with the Duke (Governess Brides, #9) I enjoyed In Bed With The Duke, although there isn't really a Duke in the story. Michael Durant is the heir to the Duke of Nevitt and has been in Moricadia for two years, missing and presumed dead by his family in England. In reality, he has been imprisoned and tortured by the evil ruler and his henchmen. Miss Emma Chegwidden is in Moricadia as a paid companion to her loathsome employer, Lady Lettice, who belittles her and makes her rub her feet. After an unfortunate occurance involving a small goldfish that ended up down the front of her employer's dress, Lady Lettice gives Emma the sack. She leaves her stranded with no way home to England, or in fact, no way to the hotel they were staying at to collect her things. She becomes lost in the forest, almost attacked by a wolf, and runs into The Reaper, who is said to be the ghost of the last king of Moricadia before the present rulers beheaded him and took over the country. This is a story of evil rulers, horse riding phantoms, mistreated subjects, revenge and justice. Oh and a lovely romance between Emma two very different men - the fierce Reaper and the broken, tortured Michael Durant. In Bed with the Duke (Governess Brides, #9) Was reading and enjoying it until I learned that there's rape scene in this book--with the hero as the attacker. That's a deal-breaker for me. In Bed with the Duke (Governess Brides, #9) Latest installment in the Moracadian books. Liked it fine, but really when you have the despot in your hands, you kill him, period. And why pull in someone obviously related to the contemporary paranormal she's got going? It's unnecessarily disctracting & the pages could've been better used to develop the relationship between Michael & Emma. And where the hell did Micheal's family and Throckmorten come from? Shouldn't Michael have been a little surprised to see them? I know from previous books that his family knows where he is, but really a little too convenient in the timing, no? And why does Lady Francuor(I know I've got this name wrong) get Micheal out of the dundgeon? How does she even KNOW there's a dundgeon let alone who's in it? She is the one who thinks Sandre isn't such a bad guy, right? So many quibbles, so little time. Enjoyable, but nowhere near as good as previous books. In Bed with the Duke (Governess Brides, #9) I generally enjoy Christina Dodd, this title however was not as enjoyable. This was mainly due to a couple of scenes where the male protagonist has sex with the female protagonist by force - and it is okay because she wants it. The only reason this wasn't date rape was that it would have ruined the story. Bottom line, she said no, he overpowered her. I could never get past this aspect of force between these two characters to enjoy the story. Christina Dodd, I am disappointed in you. You are a better story teller than this. In Bed with the Duke (Governess Brides, #9)
Trigger Warning: Rape.
I love the author and when she mentioned this book in a post I was so excited to find it in my kindle library. And then I read it again and dear god, why does our supposed hero rape the heroine twice? The rest of the story was wonderful but I can’t get past this. Terrible. In Bed with the Duke (Governess Brides, #9) Did not finish -- the goldfish down the bad woman's magnificent cleavage. Unfair to goldfish. Unfair to cleavage. This is exactly the kind of cheap locker-room stuff that doesn't happen in the works of Lisa Kleypas! In Bed with the Duke (Governess Brides, #9) I’m not fanatical about historical accuracy, but when I run into the word “clone” on the first page of a book set in 1859, I can’t help feeling like nobody involved in creating it really gave a damn. Unfortunately, that surge of indignation was the strongest emotion I felt while reading most of this.
I would have given up on it just a few pages in, but skimming ahead intrigued me--mysterious masked man romance is fun. But since I never did find the overall story or any of the characters very interesting, once the silent anonymous sex scenes were over, the rest of the book was as boring as ever. In Bed with the Duke (Governess Brides, #9) Was definitely disappointing - and is no one else bothered by the rape scene between the hero and heroine?
Some of my all-time favorite historical romance books have been written by Christina Dodd - One Kiss From You, Rules of Surrender, Lost in Your Arms, and The Runaway Princess. IN BED WITH THE DUKE started off pretty well and I always love books where the heroine is overlooked, shy, etc. - I thought the fact that Emma had a horrible sense of direction and always got lost was going to add some great humor to the story. The first interaction between Emma and Michael was enjoyable, the setting/plot promised to be very adventurous and action-packed, and the physical scenes between the Reaper and Emma were hot. However, this book was ended up being utterly disappointing and in some parts downright offensive.
GENERAL CRITICISMS:
-- Emma and Michael have far too little interaction in the first 2/3 of the book.
-- We don't get to know Michael very well and he remains throughout the whole of the book a somewhat elusive hero
-- Emma falls in love with the Reaper after about a week and then makes love with him ... even though they've never had a conversation (literally, he's never spoken to her), they don't know one another, and their interactions basically amount to a full week of physically intimate evenings.
-- While she's falling in love with the Reaper, she doesn't really like Michael ... so yeah, how does that work out exactly, since he's supposed to be the real hero?
-- The subplot of Prince Sandre falling in love with Emma seemed extremely forced; there appeared to be absolutely no real reason that he would single her out and become so transfixed and obsessed.
-- This book ended so abruptly I thought that maybe there were some pages missing at the end (and certain previously-unmet family members seemed to pop up out of thin air).
RAPE SCENE:
I volunteer with a rape crisis hotline and so found the love - a.k.a rape - scene, utterly disgusting. According to the American legal system, the scene between them in the barn qualifies as rape. You have the heroine saying no and struggling; the hero saying, yes you want it, your body is reacting; her saying no again; them having sex. Worst part is that during it all, Emma is saying no but apparently thinking yes ... does she said no, but really meant yes or she wanted it, just didn't want to admit it sound familiar? Because those are both justifications rapists use. I like alpha-male heroes as much as the next romance reader, but Michael saying I own you! and I have this right. I take this right! when talking about having sex with her should turn everyone off.
Christina Dodd has done this in two other books of hers that I read and it was basically the exact same thing and just as disgusting. Her normal non-rapist alpha-male heroes are great and she should stick with them. (The other two books were A Well Pleasured Lady and A Well Favored Gentleman).
BOTTOM LINE:
So did I like the book? No. Should you read it? No. Instead, skip this book and read the four books I listed at the beginning of this review, since those show off Christina Dodd's talent and are actually enjoyable and inoffensive.
GOOD NEWS:
This book is apparently part of the Great Read Guaranteed! because the Penguin Group is so confident you will love this book that we are offering a 100% money-back guarantee! All you have to do is mail them the book, the receipt, and your explanation of why you didn't like the book. So I will be doing that instead of posting it on PaperbackSwap, since I want them to know exactly what it is I object to. In Bed with the Duke (Governess Brides, #9) In Bed with the Duke is the story of Emma and Michael.
In this tale filled with mystery, murder and romance, meet our couple Emma and Michael who go through numerous hurdles to end up together.
The hero is a prisoner under house arrest; the heroine is an impoverished lady's companion with a poor sense of direction. There is a masked reaper who's killing the traitors and giving our heroine some sweet, sweet lovemaking, along with there being a super evil OM, some secondary characters with bad fates, loads of action, sensual lovemaking, kidnappings, torture and a HEA.
The series does not have to be read in order, but the mystery of Michael being alive in the last book kicks this one off. The hero and heroine are both likable. It was weird to see how semi-con some of the lovemaking scenes were, but this book is still not a bodice ripper IMO. I felt uncomfortable with all the killings and misdeeds in this book, but the biggest surprise was the 180 change in the heroine's character in the first few chapters.
The ending retribution was SO evil and good.
Safe
4/5 In Bed with the Duke (Governess Brides, #9)
Demure lady's companion Emma Chegwidden avoids defying society's rules. Until the night she runs right into the arms of the seductive Reaper--a man who rides the night-shadowed countryside and conceals his identity behind a mask. His goal is justice... or is it vengeance? Only one thing is certain: Nothing will stop him from his dark purpose.
Michael Durant, long-lost heir to the duke of Nevitt, has a score to settle. Cynical, dangerous and ruthless, Michael is the last man on earth that sensible Emma should defy. But some challenges are too tempting to resist ... and some passions too fierce to ignore. Soon Michael discovers in Emma the woman he has always longed for: a woman whose beauty and courage reach through to his tortured soul. And he will defy anything, even fate itself, to claim her...