Release Date: March 25 2014
Three Weeks with Lady X
by Eloisa James
Book 7 of the Desperate Duchesses Series
4 stars
I have this habit of reading historical romances whenever I read a series of dark, intensely emotional stories. It is always refreshing because this genre is so straightforward most of the time, and I truly appreciate it for that. When you pick up a pocket book with a rosy cover like this one, you just know that you'll get a good old, toe-curling, sometimes sickeningly sweet (but you end up loving it anyway) romantic story.
THREE WEEKS WITH LADY X gave me all that, plus more. I am so glad that I had this up for review because it's been a long time since I've read something from Eloisa James. If you're a fan of historical romances as I am, you'll know that she is one of the most popular authors in the genre. You can be sure that if you pick p any of her books, you'll get a mostly sweet romance that you'll love to sink into on a weekend.
With this book, I think readers who are fans of contemporary romance will be able to relate more with the characters and the story. Eloisa wrote it in such a way that the setting, speech and manners are still in the early 1800s, but there are also many parallels to the modern, pop culture. For instance, Thorn and India send missives to each other, sending a messenger back and forth from London (where he is) to the country (where she is). It's like the period version of texting or sending emails. Their messages to each other were very funny! I love that they sound so formal but the idea behind them are just crazy funny!
The humor is actually one of the best things about this book, in my opinion. For two people who only just met, India and Thorn can bicker like an old married couple. I enjoyed their interactions so much because not only are they funny, but I as the reader also get to see more about their character. For instance, I was able to see that Thorn is a very considerate employer. India is kind of an OC and has luxurious tastes in her "interior designing" (which is another thing I love, the parallelism to a modern-day occupation), but she is also very thoughtful of the people she employs. She knows her worth and their worth, and she won't hesitate to charge for it.
These two characters are just so compatible that you'll really root for the two of them.
There's a problem though: Thorn is more or less in an informal agreement to marry another woman. India is basically hired to make his country home acceptable for welcoming a future bride.
It was fun to see Thorn gradually realize the depths of his feelings for India. He is an alpha male and I rather enjoyed seeing his jealous moments!
"You stopped looking at me," he said, frowning at her.
"I had no reason to look at your end of the table."
He braced one arm on the wall above her head, leaning closer. "You looked at me earlier." He sounded as if he were speaking through clenched teeth.
As for India, she is rather daring! She initiated some things that I never would have thought her doing at the beginning of the book. She is another example of what I said earlier about this book having modern concepts and parallelisms. She is also a very funny drunk!
"My husband will have to be good at kissing," she said, her eyes pure, slumberous devilment. "I've been told that I'm not very good at kissing, and I will need to marry an expert."
"India," Thorn warned. This game they were playing was very dangerous.
The secondary characters were enjoyable as well. Those who followed The Desperate Duchesses series would know that Thorn was actually first introduced as a boy mudlark in two earlier books. His father and step-mother, The Duke of Villiers and Eleanor, are actually the leads in A Duke of Her Own, book 6. I haven't read it, but it's still ok. This book stands on its own, and I was able to have a glimpse of how Villiers and Eleanor probably were in their own book. They are lovely people, and from what I learned in THREE WEEKS WITH LADY X, the Duke has a very interesting story to tell! His interactions with thorn showed how much the two of them are alike, especially when it comes to the women they love.
He is my son, after all. We're fools when it comes to women.
As for the other secondary characters, one special girl named Rose seems to be a heroine in the making! That might be just me hoping, but she is a cute little girl who behaves and speaks like an adult. It would be nice to see how she will be in the future!
All in all, THREE WEEKS WITH LADY X and Eloisa James gave me what I wanted when I decided to read a historical romance. I laughed a lot, went all "aww!" at some scenes, and just really enjoyed the whole story. I recommend this to anyone who loves historical romance and to anyone who wants to try out the genre!
This book releases tomorrow, so you can pre-order today or buy it tomorrow!
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Synopsis:
Having made a fortune, Thorn Dautry, the powerful bastard son of a duke, decides that he needs a wife. But to marry a lady, Thorn must acquire a gleaming, civilized façade, the specialty of Lady Xenobia India.
Exquisite, head-strong, and independent, India vows to make Thorn marriageable in just three weeks.
But neither Thorn nor India anticipate the forbidden passion that explodes between them.
Thorn will stop at nothing to make India his. Failure is not an option.
But there is only one thing that will make India his—the one thing Thorn can't afford to lose...
His fierce and lawless heart.
The hero of Three Weeks With Lady X is Tobias, the illegitimate son of the Duke of Villiers. Tobias appears in the last two books as a young boy.
A Print Copy of Desperate Duchesses #6, A DUKE OF HER OWN
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About the Author:
After graduating from Harvard University, Eloisa got an M.Phil. from Oxford University, a Ph.D. from Yale and eventually became a Shakespeare professor, publishing an academic book with Oxford University Press. Currently she is a distinguished professor and head of the Creative Writing program at Fordham University in New York City. Her "double life" is a source of fascination to the media and her readers. In her professorial guise, she's written a New York Times op-ed defending romance, as well as articles published everywhere from women's magazines such as Good Housekeeping and More to writers' journals such as the Romance Writers' Report.
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