Review: The Heiress Gets a Duke by Harper St. George

Even a fortune forged in railroads and steel can't buy entrance into the upper echelons of Victorian high society—for that you need a marriage of convenience.

THE HEIRESS GETS A DUKE by HARPER ST. GEORGE

Series: The Gilded Heiresses #1

Publication date: January 26, 2021

Published by: Berkley

Genre: historical romance

 

SYNOPSIS

American heiress August Crenshaw has aspirations. But unlike her peers, it isn't some stuffy British Lord she wants wrapped around her finger—it's Crenshaw Iron Works, the family business. When it's clear that August's outrageously progressive ways render her unsuitible for a respectable match, her parents offer up her younger sister to the highest entitled bidder instead. This simply will not do. August refuses to leave her sister to the mercy of a loveless marriage.

Evan Sterling, the Duke of Rothschild, has no intention of walking away from the marriage. He's recently inherited the title only to find his coffers empty, and with countless lives depending on him, he can't walk away from the fortune a Crenshaw heiress would bring him. But after meeting her fiery sister, he realizes Violet isn't the heiress he wants. He wants August, and he always gets what he wants.

But August won't go peacefully to her fate. She decides to show Rothschild that she's no typical London wallflower. Little does she realize that every stunt she pulls to make him call off the wedding only makes him like her even more.

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Praise for The Heiress Gets a Duke:

“A delightfully entertaining read, rich with romance, glamour, and lush Victorian detail. Harper St. George truly captures the spirt of the era.”—Mimi Matthews, USA Today bestselling author


“The Heiress Gets a Duke is a charming, compulsively readable delight and I can’t wait for the next book from Harper St George’s magical pen!”—Evie Dunmore, USA Today bestselling author


“A sexy, emotional, romantic tale…Harper St. George is a must-buy for me!”—Terri Brisbin, USA Today bestselling author


“Wit, seduction and passion blend seamlessly to create this deeply emotional romance. St. George weaves an intriguing plot with complex characters to provide the perfect sensual escape. There’s nothing I didn’t love about The Heiress Gets a Duke, especially its lush, captivating glimpse into history.”—Anabelle Bryant, USA Today bestselling author


“A fun, fresh historical romance that gives both formidable characters their due.”—Publishers Weekly


“Rich with period detail, The Heiress Gets a Duke brings to life the Gilded Age’s dollar princesses in this smart, sexy, and oh so satisfying story.”—Laurie Benson, award-winning author of The Sommersby Brides series


“You’ll sigh, you’ll cry, and you’ll grin yourself silly as this independent and cynical heiress finally gets her duke.”—Virginia Heath, author of Beguiled at the Wedding


“Fans of Courtney Milan and Scarlett Peckham will enjoy this ‘The Gilded Age Heiresses’ series opener.”—Library Journal

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Harper St. George was raised in rural Alabama and along the tranquil coast of northwest Florida. It was a setting filled with stories of the old days that instilled in her a love of history, romance, and adventure. By high school, she had discovered the historical romance novel which combined all of those elements into one perfect package. She has been hooked ever since.

She lives in the Atlanta area with her husband and two children. When not writing, she can be found devouring her husband's amazing cooking and reading. She would love to hear from you.

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REVIEW

The Heiress Gets a Duke by Harper St. George
My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Ladies and gentlemen, I officially found a five star read. *throws confetti* It has been a dry spell to end all dry spells. Three months...not that I was counting. Don't get me wrong, I have had very good reads, but none that I felt enthusiastic enough to give a full five star rating. This book was everything I love about the genre with a romance that made my heart go pitter patter. I appreciated the combination of a wealthy American heroine paired with an impoverished English Duke. The clash in culture, the contrast of their social status and the differences in gender expectations gave this couple a lot of interesting moments.

August was a uniquely independent and intellectual heroine who was given the freedom to work at her father's company back home, but once her parents saw a potential title for the family dangled in front of them, (like the proverbial carrot) they rushed to sell her off faster than you can blink. The Crenshaws are swimming in money thanks to their company Crenshaw Iron Works. Unfortunately new money can't buy access into the world of the highest echelon of society-you have to be born into it.

    As new money, there were many families 

that did not include their name on the guest list. 

August had always known that this was a sore spot 

for her mother, but she had never allowed herself 

to believe that it would come to this.

Evan Sterling, the Duke of Rothschild is currently on the market for a wife just as the Crenshaws visit friends in England. After losing his father and older brother, the Duke inherits the crumbling estate, massive debt, and heavy responsibilities to his family and tenants. Coming to the realization that they are in dire straits, he makes the difficult decision to marry a Crenshaw heiress to save the family from complete ruin. He sacrifices himself not out of greed or laziness, but because he feels it's his only option after all of his other efforts have failed. I liked Evan right off the bat, and that never changed throughout the rest of the story. Even though he held all of the power pretty much from the beginning, he always took August's thoughts and feelings into consideration. He could have forced her to accept everything on his terms, but he chose to learn more about her and what would make her happy.

Originally the "arrangement" had been decided that Evan would marry August's younger sister Violet. Though after meeting August, he's instantly intrigued and attracted. He decides that an arranged marriage won't be so bad if August is going to along for the ride, but she has other ideas. The two of them have a magnificent clash of wills as she tries to wiggle out of the wedding that would bring an end to her happy life as she knows it. She has a good head for math and evaluating potential investments, and this has been not only fulfilling, but given her her own financial freedom. Why in the world would she want to hand over everything she's earned to her husband, her American citizenship, and stop the work that she loves in order to solely take care of her husband's estates? She gets nothing out of the bargain while he gains everything. It's not that she's totally against the concept of marriage, but she wanted it to be later and to a man of her choosing.

In the beginning of the book it seemed that her parents were progressive and loving in the way that they let her have the freedoms she did during that time. We discover later on that they are worse than despicable in their attitude towards both of their daughters. Money and status is placed at a higher priority than their children's happiness. And they never quite grasp the betrayal that they've inflicted on August. I do wish that they would have seen the error of their ways later, but unfortunately that never came to be.

Evan's character was really fleshed out once August and her family visited him at his home. We finally get to dissect his insecurities and heartache which not only made me empathize with him, but it made me love him all the more. Evan had always lived in his brother's shadow as "the spare." He never felt intelligent enough, or worthy enough in his father's eyes. He never resented his brother, in fact, they were very close until his sudden passing. He spent every moment afterwards trying to reverse the damage his father had done to their finances without even allowing himself time to grieve. There was a really sweet moment between August and Evan when he opened himself up to her and left himself very vulnerable. It was a glimpse into the tenderness they could share if she allowed her life to take a new and unexpected direction into marriage.

    There were sun-kissed highlights in her hair, 

and the hazel of her eyes was swirled with grass green. 

Her creamy skin had a glow that showed 

a defiance of parasols. 

From now on when he thought of summer, 

he would think of her.

This was a refreshing historical romance by a new to me author! The plot was tight without any holes or inconsistencies that nagged at me. If I had one constructive criticism it would be that August's brother was sort of two dimensional, but as a brief side character it wasn't all that important. The main component of the story is of course the romance between August and Evan which was in turns enchanting and emotional in all the ways that it should be. The characters were far from perfect but always relatable in a way that makes you care what happens to them, and to me, that's a trademark of a well written book. I'll be so excited to read Violet's story in The Devil and the Heiress next July.

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