Short and sweet.
I wasn't expecting much from this book, but it ended up taking me by surprise. The characters are good, and I could understand their motivations. The relationship developed at an okay pace, I can excuse the speed as they had history.
Also refreshing to read one of these stories where it doesn't end with a kidnapping. Would have been nice if it were a bit longer, but all in all an enjoyable little read. ( )

Summary
Georgina Whitcomb survived a horrible marriage, been widowed and now runs a successful school that educates young women how to manage a marriage. But when she runs into Dexter Munro at a house party, all the feelings from her youth coming flooding back. Dex is back to find a wife as his father is dying and he will become Duke soon. Georgina refuses to marry again and lose her independence but Dex is determined to make her change her mind because he has always loved her as well. After spending several passionate days together, she is still determined to carry on…alone. Dex tells her to meet him at the museum in a few days if being apart makes her realize how much she loves him.

Tropes: Regency Era, House party, Titled hero, Widow, Experienced heroine, Damaged heroine, Unrequited love, Second Chance, fling to love,

The Plot : So much pining, angst, love and passion tossed into a short novella, but it was perfection! Their unspoken feelings for each other still smoldering after years apart and watching them realize the others feelings was too good! And his compassion for what she went through in her first marriage and his pursuit of her had me so in love with Dex. Some heroines who just deny, deny, deny bother me, but Georgie didn’t; I genuinely understood her hesitation with giving her heart away.

The Heroine : Georgina Whitcomb, Countess Winterbourne was in love with Dex, but left her behind to pursue his geology career, and with the death of her brother, she was married off to an old man, who treated her poorly. She morphed from a fun loving adventurous girl to the closed-off Ice Countess she is now. I truly felt for her and understood her heartbreak.

The Hero : Dexter Munro, soon-to-be Duke of Markham, left home years ago after a fight with his father, leaving Georgina behind. He traveled everywhere pursuing his interest in geology, but with his dad dying, he came home to pick up his place as the future Duke. It bothered me that he could leave her to her fate all while harboring feelings for her, but he redeemed himself by revealing his feelings for her and pursuing her even when she closed herself off to his pursuits.

The Steam : although a slow burn, when the spark finally does ignite it is hot since they’ve been pining after each other for over a decade!

Stand Out Moment : oh my gosh, my heart ripped out of chest when she did t show up to their meeting spot!

Who Would Like This : Anyone looking for a quick, steamy read that sets the stage for the rest of the series.

Final Thoughts : I adored watching this romance unfold and am eager to start the next book in the series! ( )

I found the writing style quite engaging. The descriptions were easy to visualize, I was interested in what would happen next, and I chuckled at points. The story developed quickly and there was a good pace through most of it and a nice balance of steam and non-steam scenes. (I would say this is on the mid-to-high end of steam for its length). And overall I feel it was well developed for its short length. (I think second chance romances lend themselves especially well to novellas, because the relationship doesn't have to go from 0-100 in so few pages). I hadn't read anything by this author previously, and I will look for more.

What I didn't like about it however, ended up having a big enough impact that it considerably lessened my enjoyment of the story as a whole. (Though it might not be an issue at all for others.) I didn't buy the heroine's reasoning for resisting the hero. And the plot kind of hinges on it. I get the whole notion of 'once burned, twice shy', and also that independence was rare for women, and often hard earned, and that you wouldn't want to toss it away lightly. But this isn't just any prospect! There's kind of a catch 22 regarding the heroine's previous marriage that I can't really explain without spoilers, but I think it would have been challenging to pull off entirely. The previous husband has to have been bad enough to turn her off of marriage entirely, and generally make her frosty and distant toward men ever since, but also shouldn't be so drastically different from the hero to make any comparison ridiculous. As it is, the first husband was a devil and now she's refusing to marry an angel because, ... because...? There's no sane reason. She's known and cared about this man since she was a child, she knows he's not of the same stripe as her first husband! Briefly she imagines that she's been ruined from enjoying intimacy, but she quickly learns that she wasn't, so that's no longer a viable excuse. The other man was chosen for her, mostly a stranger to her, old, and mean. So nothing whatsoever like this other prospect. And yet she still fights her own shot at love and happiness for nearly the entire book! (The best way I can see to get around this would have been to make the first husband not so entirely different to begin with. Let him have been someone she'd known for years who had seemed kind and trustworthy, and then changed/revealed himself as a monster after they wed. That would better justify her doubt that marriage might change a likable person into an intolerable one that she's stuck with until one of them dies). Every time she took a step back though, I felt like shaking her and saying 'don't be a cowardly fool!'. lol. So I only kinda enjoyed her as a character. There were some smaller things that were *awfully* convenient and not entirely fleshed out, mostly used to push the story (the wager, her school for ladies, the father's dying wish), but I'm probably most tolerant of those things in holiday novellas out of all novels. =D

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. These are all my genuine opinions. ( )

If you are looking for an intelligent, excellently-written Regency novella, The Ice Duchess is one for you. It is a prequel to her upcoming series and if it is any example, I’m putting them all on insta-buy. I have not read genuine, incredibly well-written longing and unresolved sexual tension for some time. (It eventually is resolved, but the anticipation is just as good.)

The story involves the reunion of Georgiana Collins Whitcomb, Countess of Winterbourne and her childhood crush Dexter Reed Munro, Marquess of Westfield, heir to the Duke of Markham. Dexter was Georgie’s brother’s best friend and grew up with them, running about in the rugged hills of Derbyshire. He had a falling out with his father, the Duke because of his ambitions to become a professional Geologist, which he has done to great success. He has returned home for Christmas because his father is dying and he will have to become Duke.

While he went off to find himself, and a bunch of rocks, Georgie was married off to a much older man, who treated her very badly. With his death, she’s vowed never to remarry as she has income now and doesn’t need to put up with another abuser. She has begun training other noble young women to drive hard bargains for themselves before they consent to being married. She takes it as her duty to warn them what they’re getting into in a realistic and somewhat cynical way, as no one warned her. This has earned her the nickname “The Ice Countess” and the informal academy she’s created “The Duchess Society.”

Georgie was madly in love with Dex before he left. And he had kissed her once. But as she clearly had meant less to him than rocks, she has no wish to entangle herself with him now. But she finds that old habits die hard and she becomes entangled first by simply enjoying his familiar company and then by entering into a wager where she’ll provide him with a Duchess from her stable of proteges. The fabulously awkward dinner party that happens because of this is just more masterful writing.

Dex has always been in love with her and seeing her again knows that no one else will do for his duchess but Georgie, herself. He just has to find a way to persuade her that he won’t be the abusive tyrant her first husband was. He has to get her to choose to give up her independence, which she values very highly.

While we’ve seen very many of these tropes before, this book is all about the ride. Dexter is really committed to his profession and is really good at it and has a successful company to show for it. Georgie had a terrible marriage and is genuinely reluctant to marry again. But it’s all in the pleasure in the writing in this book. And the writing is so, so good.

Things are beautifully described. Emotions ring true. Nobody seems shallow or silly. Everyone is a realistic grown up. Conflict arises naturally from real-life causes. It doesn’t seem contrived.
It’s a romance, you know there will be a happily ever after, but you really can just enjoy every minute of the journey to get there. ( )

The Ice Duchess by Tracy Sumner
Prequel to the Duchess Society Series

Swept into the past, I fell in love with Georgiana and Dexter. These two were definitely soul mates, if such exist! They may have had a rough patch for a while but thankfully things came right for them in the end!

What I liked:
* Georgiana: duchess, widow, educator of women on the marriage market, guarded, loves her freedom, reputation of being icy, potentially wooable if the right man comes along and woos well.
* Dexter: Marquess soon to be duke, geologist, traveler, son, friend, responsible, aware of what he may have lost, determined to win the woman he truly wants for his duchess – the perfect book boyfriend!
* The way the past was covered.
* The setting
* The honesty between the couple – and their communication
* How well suited the two were for each other
* The romance, gifts, steamy bits, and that I knew they truly cared for one another
* That I was drawn in and came to care deeply about both characters
* The depth of feeling Georgiana and dexter had for one another
* The feeling that the two were well matched and equally yoked
* All of it really except…

What I didn’t like:
* Being reminded that marriage in this era was a business transaction and women were treated as a commodity up for sale.
* The reason Georgiana was married the first time.

Did I like this book? YES!
Would I read more in this series? Definitely!!!

Thank you to the author for the ARC – This is my honest review.

5 Stars ( )