A Duke by Scot has one of my fav tropes - the female lead disguising as a man to work with the male lead. Unfortunately this book was not one of my favorites.

Here, Julia disguises as a man to work as Martin's steward and of course :), love blooms. The issues I had with this book started from the instant love Julia had to Martin, how long the deception dragged for (honestly it was very unbelievable), but most importantly my disconnect came because I thought Julia acted too silly for words in many places. Sadly that didn't leave me truly rooting for her or her HEA.

Huge thanks to the Publisher, the author, and NetGalley for the ARC. ( )

THE REVIEW
Lady Julie St Vincent has to do something to pay her fathers gambling debts and repair their crumbling estate, so she decides to pose as man and go to Scotland to work for the Duke of Dunscaby as a steward.

Martin, Duke of Dunscaby has recently inherited the Dukedom and suddenly, so he is trying to adjust from a bachelor life to his new overwhelming duties. He has three sisters, four brothers and his mother to look after!

Everything was going relatively smooth until they run into each other at a masquerade ball and Martin becomes infatuated with Lady Julia. The closer they become, the harder it is for Julia to walk away, which is what would be safest, so when, inevitably, Martin finds out about her deception, they are both devastated! But, thank the destined happily-ever-after, they are so smitten that they work their way back to each other.

This was a slow starter and it took me a while to get into the book. I’d be reading and something exciting would happen (like Martin falling into a frozen lake) and I’d think ‘yes, this is where it gets interesting’ but then it would be resolved and I’d be left waiting for the next event hoping that would reveal Julia’s identity and they can start the romance!


TROPES
Historical Romance, Regency Era, Country Life, Gamma Hero, Pugilist/Fighter Hero, Titled Hero, Bluestocking Heroine, Dresses as Male Heroine, Virgin Heroine, Slow Burn, Hidden Identity, Secrets & Lies, Cinderella Trope ( )

I received an ARC of this book to read through NetGalley. All opinions are my own. A Duke By Scot is the first book in Amy Jarecki's new series The MacGalloways. Lady Julia St. Vincent, daughter of the Earl of Brixham, is in a desperate state, her father has become indebted to a scurrilous money lender and in order to pay off the debt, she takes a job as the steward to the Duke of Dunstan, pretending to be a man under the name of Jules Smallwood. The name is appropriate as both a pun and in relation to Julia's stature. She is tiny, barely five tall, and I struggled with my willing suspension of disbelief that anyone would fall for her ruse. Martin MacGalloway, the duke, inherited a dukedom that is in a bit of a mess and spends quite a bit of time with his tiny steward and does his best to make a man out the wee thing, taking him hunting and boxing and the like. At a masquerade ball thrown by Julia's best friend, she meets the duke as herself and juggles being both the steward and the lady, with the help of the duke's sister Charity. The book was a pleasant read, but I found it to be a typical highland lord romance, nothing special, and just a bit bland. Steam Level: Medium. Publishing Date: October 19, 2021. #ADukeByScot #AmyJarecki #HistoricalRomance #HistoricalRomanceSeries #OliverHeberBooks #HistoricalRomanceReader #RomanceReader #bookstagram #bookstagrammer ( )

Fast footwork needed!

I really enjoyed Jarecki’s portrayal of a desperate and daring young woman, Lady Julia St. Vincent, being employed as Jules Smallwood, male secretary to Martin MacGalloway the Duke of Dunscaby. Of course this a situation rife with all sorts of comic possibilities. Hilarity follows quite naturally when Jules’ employer the Duke decides his rather effete young secretary needs toughening up. He’d noticed when they first met,
“The man wasn’t only the size of a jockey, he had to be the bonniest fellow Martin had ever seen. Even his hands seemed inordinately small, well-manicured, and feminine.”
Don’t even get me started on the boxing lesson! All efforts add deliciously to the tension. I was exhausted by Julia’s deft footwork needed as she swept from one charged situation to another. Couple that with the need to occasionally revert to female! Well!
When the Duke walks in on Jules / Julia in the bath we can literally see the Duke befuddlement, wondering where his wits had gone, post that moment when he rather delighted in his male secretary’s back. Yoiks! No wonder the Duke thought it was time for he pursued some form of female dalliance!
Laughable as these comedic aspects of the are, there’s Julia’s conundrum over the demands of the sinister Silas Skinner, an unscrupulous moneylender her holds what’s left of her family property in his vice like grip. Her overriding fear is that this scoundrel blackmailer will destroy all she’s working for before she can repay the loan.
The image of Julia and the family butler working together to save the house is wonderful. The idea of Willaby cutting Julia’s hair to ensure her masquerade, demonstrates the sheer weight of the gambling depts incurred by Julia’s father, the Earl of Brixham. It also tell us us something about these old retainers with what’s left of the Household working as one (Upstairs and Downstairs like) to salvage the situation.
My one complaint is that the latter part became just a tad predictable after its brilliant opening first half.
Not enough however to lessen my enjoyment. A witty, ever changing tapestry of delight.

An Xpresso Books ARC via NetGalley
Please note: Quotes taken from an advanced reading copy maybe subject to change
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.) ( )

A Duke by Scot by Amy Jarecki
The MacGalloways #2

Dire straits require ingenious actions so with the help of the family butler Julia becomes Julian and manages to acquire a job as an estate manager for a Scottish duke. Mr. Julian Smallwood is tiny even as a woman, but s/he is profoundly intelligent and capable as she settles into the job. This book begins a new series that could have eight books in it as there are eight MacGalloway siblings that will eventually need to settle down. It should be a fun series to follow and I am glad I came in on book one.

What I liked:
* Julia/Julian: resourceful, savvy, up to date, aware of economics of the land and within a household, educated, petite as a man and a woman, caring, strong, loves her father, and very interested in her boss who likes her as a tiny man and is intrigued by her when she is a woman.
* Martin MacGalloway, Duke of Duscaby: oldest of 8 children, educated, suddenly thrust into taking on the dukedom, wants the best for his family and estates, kind, a bit unaware at times, a good man and able to listen when it is important
* Getting to meet some of the MacGalloway siblings – some are easier and more fun than the others. Perhaps they will grow and become who they are meant to be as the series continues
* The setting – Scotland is always fun…and the time in England was interesting, too.
* Learning why the bad guy had it in for Julia’s father
* That Martin thought of providing for the future of his siblings
* Watching Julia try to be Julian
* Coming into a new series on book one.
* Knowing there are more books to look forward to.

What I didn’t like:
* Julia’s father being so weak and dissolute
* Skinner…odious man indeed

Did I enjoy this book? Yes
Would I read more in the series? Yes

Thank you to NetGalley, Oliver-Heber Books, and the author for the ARC – This is my honest review.

4-5 Stars ( )