This Duchess of Mine audiobook

Actually, I needed more time then it should to read this story. Beginning was little boring, so I left this book to stand at my "currently reading" shelf for too long.But, I must say that it was remarkably good idea, to decide to read this story after all. Because it was gooood!!! Romantic, sad, hot etc. And I loved Villiers :DI would like to see, who became his duchess ;)Recommendations for this book ;)

I have waited a long time to read this book. And I'm not just talking about the actual time between the reading of this and when I read the last one in the series. I'm talking about the fact that I've been waiting for Jemma's story from the VERY BEGINNING of the series when she stole the show in the first book. The wait is over and I'm here to tell you, it was worth the wait and it was everything I expected and more :)Even though Jemma and Elijah have been married for almost 10 years, they've lived apart for the majority of them due to an ugly scene during the first weeks of their marriage. I won't go into detail here, if you've read any of this series, you know exactly what happened and this book doesn't scrimp on the details ;) Anyway....in this book we got to see them fall in love. It was wonderful and romantic and put a silly smile on my face. It was just what I wanted for Jemma. But at the same time, I sobbed real live tears because just when Jemma and Elijah were falling in love and were happy, their time was limited due to Elijah's heart problems(which are not a secret if you've read any other books in the series LOL) Without saying too much and spoiling it for you, I'll just say that I ended the book with a smile :) Now, on to Villiers book without waiting what seems like 24185266 months between ;)

But there was one thing he had to know. He cupped her face in his hands, noting absently that his fingers were shaking. "Will you forgive me?"She blinked: "For what?""For not being able to stay with you forever. Because I would, Jemma. I promise I would.""I know," she whispered, brushing his lips with her own. "I know."This is a perfect book. Honestly, I could just leave my review at that one sentence and it would be complete. It is perfect. I read it in one sitting, not able to believe that Eloisa James, who writes charming, quirky trifles, books that make me smile and that I forget almost as soon as I finish, wrote a book like this - I spent chunks of this book ugly-sobbing, I spent the others positively giddy, and I felt so ridiculously deeply for Jemma and Elijah that it might have been a tad unhealthy.The story of the Duke of Beaumont and his Duchess - trying a cautious rapprochement in their broken marriage - has been woven through the previous 4 books in the series (some of which, I confess, I only read for their parts) but honestly, reading the other books is not even necessary to get the emotional heft of this one. Elijah and Jemma were married very young and it was an arranged marriage. Jemma was infatuated with her handsome young husband, but Elijah was more interested in his rising career in the House of Lords than his young wife. Discovering him with a mistress a few weeks into the marriage, Jemma left him and went to France, where she eventually had some affairs of her own. And now it's years later and the two of them have decided to try to give their marriage another chance for the sake of an heir, if nothing else. So, why do I love this book? In part, it's because Elijah and Jemma are both fiercely intelligent and Eloisa James writes them as such - there is nothing more annoying than a character who is supposed to be clever but who the author is incapable of writing that way. They seduce each other as much through their brains as through their passion. Then there is the fact that this book is a cornucopia of angst - Elijah has a heart ailment which is about to kill him (a major reason for the attempted reconciliation) and, as I said, I spent chunks of the book ugly crying. There is also the fact that Elijah is a type of hero romance novels do not do often enough - he is neither a rake nor a manchild nor a witty wastrel. He is someone who is driven (almost too much) by honor - whether in politics or in accepting his guilt for his marriage falling apart. One of the things I loved about the book is that he softens around the edges about being a workaholic trying to save the world but he never does give it up - and Jemma accepts it about him, just as he accepts her impulses, her fashions, and her temper. But ultimately, the reason I loved this book so much because it was such a complex portrayal of marriage. Elijah and Jemma have both been sinned against and sinning, and the reasons for their initial break, their subsequent conduct through separate years, and their rediscovery of each other and falling in love with the person the other has become are just such a joy to read and not something I've seen romance novels tackle much, and certainly not with such nuance and emotion. (view spoiler)[For example, the fact that after she left him, she kept hoping he'd chase after her, but he wouldn't until after she took a lover, because he thought he owed her that (and then got irrationally angry, while knowing how irrational it was) is not neat or clean but feels perversely real. As do his reasons for having a mistress he did not even like. Or her taking her two lovers, and them being the men they were. (hide spoiler)] And then the two of them meeting again with a slate balanced, and discovering the person the other became and being drawn together not due to anger or guilt or one-upsmanship but deep passion and compatibility.Everything just makes sense. This isn't a sugary happily ever after but one deeply earned. OK, I better stop raving..."I love you," he said huskily. "You've given me my life, Jemma...twice over."In the end she cried.He was too happy for tears.

Book five in a series and the one I've been looking forward to through all of the previous books. The hero (Elijah) and heroine (Jemma) have been married for nine years but they got off on the wrong foot and have been living apart for all but the past year (during which the first four books occur). Now Elijah's heart is failing and they need an heir, plus they have both learned and grown so both now want to reconcile. Of course there are still significant issues to resolve, or else we wouldn't have a book: Jemma is frustrated that Elijah loves his work in parliament and his noble ideals more than he loves her (or himself). She also sometimes feels unworthy and frivolous compared to his important work, even though she's a chess master and otherwise quite sure of herself. Elijah has lingering issues from his father's premature death and a savior complex in addition to his inherited heart problem.I don't know whether I would have enjoyed this book quite so much if I'd read it at a different point in my life. I've now been married almost as long as the duke and duchess and I think that may be part of the reason I connected so strongly with this book and finished it in less than a day. They have a shared history but not the same perspective (definitely opposites attract), and their struggle to find a way out of repeating their old mistakes rang true. My husband is a surgeon so I felt a lot of empathy for Jemma as she struggled with how hard to push Elijah to make time for her and to rest, even though his work IS important to other people's lives. This book gave me a fresh appreciation for my own husband and a renewed desire to find ways to make our marriage even better, which is a pretty powerful impact for "fluffy" fiction to have. YMMV

I had been waiting for Jemma's story since I read the first book in this series. After a rocky start, this one really delivered!Georgian England with its debauchery and raunchy lords and ladies provides a fine backdrop for this tale of an estranged married couple who find their way back to each other. I love it when HRs do second chance romances well, and this one was really good. This book may not be for every one, however. There's cheating and mistresses galore, the couple's best friend (I cant wait to read Villiers's story) has SIX illegitimate children (Ewww) who he is planning to look after and house in his own home (Awww ). I loved how Eloisa James makes these kinds of characters likable. The trick for me is to read these stories in their correct setting - a time of men wearing rouge, wigs and high heels, and people with relaxed sexual morals - and not the Regency time with its prim heroines and proper men.

I never thought to say / write this but this story contains a very VERY interesting chess game ( I am soooo not interested in chess )

This is a kind of odd review. And I’m kind of short on time so here goes! I’m not rating this particular novel, I’m going to rate this particular LOVE TRIANGLE. The genius of this love triangle. Oh damn I was floored. Elijah, Jemma, and Villiers.If I chose to write how much I loved these three, it would honestly be a 15 paged essay.I mean this from the bottom of my heart when I say this, God bless Eloisa for writing about Jemma, Elijah, and Villiers!I know I’m pretty much a disturbingly obsessed freak when it comes to these characters out of all of the dozens of HRs I’ve ploughed through. I think it strikes on a personal level for me. Ever since I read it at the age of 15 (six years ago), I’ve actually been going back to the entire series periodically for re-reads, and just re-reading EVERY SINGLE interaction and thought which had anything to do with the three of them. My soul comes alive.. haha!Yes, I’m crazy enough to go through FOUR whole books just for about two dozen interactions between three people, with no sexy times at that. Don’t worry, I’ve bookmarked the relevant pages and skip everything else now!What a tribute Dangerous Liasons this was!! (Did I mention how much I LOVE that? Oh lord. I fell flat just for it. I would love to read any HR which is inspired by controversial classics such as Dangerous Liasons. It’s always Jane Austen, Romeo and Juliet, or fairytales which act as inspiration for so many novels on the market these days On a serious note. Aside from that, I really feel like EJ is a genius for being able to capture the 18th century the way she did. Her Georgian novels never feel like regency characters who happen to be dressed up in panniers and wigs. They SHOW that they are Georgian characters through their thoughts, mentality, actions, etc. and not just by their Georgian era physical surroundings. (THANK YOU ELOISA! Why can’t more romances be like this??)I couldn’t really care less for the “main couple” in each of these books, but I was more than glad to patiently wait for those precious Jemma/Elijah/villiers interactions. I forgive Eloisa completely for whatever shortcomings her main characters’ love stories had, but they also weren’t that bad either honestly. I really liked Duchess by Night. I was cracking up at some scenes. And Fletch’s confession of love to Poppy in an Affair before Christmas was heart wrenchingly adorable.You know there are certain books that when you’re done with them and put them down, you feel like a piece of your soul is missing?Lol yes I know Eloisa has rendered me a man woman.Disclaimer:For all that I just wrote about this amazing love triangle, after book 4 “When the Duke returns”, I feel like the love triangle came to a graceful resolution, but Eloisa brought back the dead with book 5 “This Duchess of Mine” about Jemma and Villiers. It was unnecessarily dragged out, but I’m still utterly grateful for this series and the beautiful interactions between Elijah, Jemma, and Villier in the first four books. So no way in hell am I complaining! In my mind, they get their HEA in book four, the book before their own, and I usually just stop reading there.All in all,When I think of historical romance, I think of Elijah, Jemma, and Villiers.Thanks Eloisa!!Is there any sort of discussion where I can open my heart about the 101 way I will always adore Jemma/Villiers/Elijah’s story? PLEASE FORGIVE ME FOR THE TERRIBLE REVIEW, but I spoke from the heart! Maybe I can comeback later and go through in detail why I loved this trio. Anyone ready for that 15 paged essay? Take care all!

This is my favorite book of the series, without a doubt. This book was about Jemma and Elijah, the Beaumonts who have appeared in each of the previous four books in this series. To me, their building story was often just as interesting (if not more so) than the main story in those books.Jemma and Elijah had an arranged marriage over eight years ago, but when Jemma walked in on her husband and his mistress, she took off for France, where she lived scandalously and extravagantly for the next eight years. What her husband doesn't know is that most of the rumors surrounding her life are untrue. What her husband doesn't know is that she was in love with him when she fled, her heart broken by his infidelity.What Jemma doesn't know is that her husband was infatuated with her when they married. What Jemma doesn't know is that her husband has remained faithful to her ever since she walked in on him. Years of separation and lack of communication have led to misunderstandings between the couple. But now Jemma is back because her husband needs an heir. He is dying from a heart condition and needs his wife to produce an heir for him.Jemma has her conditions though. She refuses to go to bed with her husband until he has fallen in love with her.I loved this book because the desperation of unrequited love rang true to me. The tricks and games that Jemma plays with her husband are things that I've seen real people do. They were just as unsuccessful as Jemma was.I had already grown to care for the characters because they had been in the previous books. I was anxious to see how their story played out. I was not disappointed. I think being this far into the series gave her stronger characters than in the first book. We've been getting to know Jemma and Elijah over four books and it definitely showed in the depth the characters had in this book.I was also impressed with how James has grown as a writer. The annoying side character was still there, but not as much as he had been in previous books, and now his story was interesting. His book is next and I'm anxious to see how his plays out as well.

What do you do when your husband who has cheated wants to reunite after being apart to have an heir.This was the delema facing the dutchess. She returns only to find that she still has strong feelings for her husband, but something seems off. The book was very good, and a race against time. No spoilers.....I likes the interaction of the characters, and it was the first book I have read from this author. I loved the ending....It was a pleasant romance novel..a nice change....

4.5 starsThis story has been set up since book one. Half the reason I decided to binge read and devour this series was in order to get to this book (and book 6). I was afraid it wouldn't live up to my own hype, but oh it did. It was intense and angsty and emotional. For many readers, it may push the boundaries of comfort zones (the entire story, from the beginning makes it clear it will), but I loved it. I appreciate that this book was told over multiple books, because I think it needed that much room to grow and would have felt too quick in one book. This was perfect.Now I cannot wait for Villiers book. Hoping it lives up just as much!

This Duchess of Mine is one of the earliest romances I read (over a year ago) and I decided to read it again after being utterly disgusted by a spate of crappy contemporary romances. When I read it a year ago, I loved both Elijah and Jemma (the Duke and Duchess of Beaumont) and being totally new to romance, I found every twist and turn in their story more intensely than I would have today.So a year later, the glory of this book still holds up. It's utterly wonderful. Elijah is a workaholic parliamentarian/idealist/statesman. He's trying to win back his estranged wife. Little does he realize that Jemma, although still smarting from her past experiences with Elijah, has forgiven him and desperately wants him. I enjoyed this book for a bunch of reasons including:1. The characters are already married and the complications in the plot are compelling: too many married couple books are terrible because they can't find a good source of conflict (which most books need to be moving). This book has some good ones.2. Elijah is a sexy statesman: Yep, my catnip. I love men who're committed to their work, are driven to do the right thing (and look good while doing it). Elijah is also definitely a non-rake, while still being very take-charge in the bedroom. 3. Jemma's smart and deeply caring. Props to James for making her smart, interesting and a woman of her time. Yes, she is limited in what she can do because she's an 18th century Duchess. On the flip side, she's a badass chess player. And she saves Elijah's life. 4. James does a nice job of showing the gradual progression of how they reconcile, and their chemistry builds gradually as they learn more about each other (and about themselves in the process).One year on, this book holds up-- a true romance.

I finished this a few days ago, so this won't be the best review, but this was another good one! What I find really interesting is that, to a large extent, the relationship was resolved in the past books. They had more or less decided to be together. So this book is a lot of figuring out what that means (and some spoiler-y stuff). Which I liked!(view spoiler)[It also did a pretty good job of making me worried about Elijah! Not always . . . but the beginning especially shut off that part of my brain that goes, "Well, obviously he's going to be okay! (hide spoiler)]

I absolutely loved Jemma and Elijah’s story! Such an amazing romance that had butterflies in my stomach 24/7. I enjoyed reading about them in Isadore and Simeon’s story and I’m so glad they got their own!