Bringing Down the Duke: swoony, feminist and romantic, perfect for fans of Bridgerton (A League of Extraordinary Women)

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The sex scenes were incredibly frustrating because they insisted on constantly reminding us that the Duke was a Macho Manly Man and Annabelle was a Fragile Feminine "Female" (WHY are the women in this book referred to as "females" as though they're farm animals? And I loved seeing how these obstacles would affect a pairing that society deemed inappropriate and then the couple more or less saying, ‘Well, you know what? The specifics of the setting, that this takes place during the opening of the first women's college, and focuses mostly on women's rights, feminism, and the injustice of the sexes, I mean. The developing romance is involving, the by-now obligatory bedroom scenes are enlivened by the dialogue, and the insights into the suffragist movement and the situation of women in universities during the late nineteenth century are enlightening. I am always disappointed when there’s no Epilogue but the final chapter provided a charming end to the story.

I slipped into the world (it helps that this is set in Victorian London, one of my fall-time favorite time periods), and it felt cozy and familiar. The attraction was now firmly back in place, yes, she was beyond denying it: she was hopelessly preoccupied with the grim-faced aristocrat across the footwell. The attraction between them is undeniable, as is the differences in their social strata, and both understand from the beginning that, as a duke, the best Sebastian can offer Annabelle is a place as his mistress. She cares more about her education throughout the book and I feel like that would have been a more authentic and successful focus for the author to have taken. I never read romance books because I assumed they were too cheesy and poorly written to be considered worthy of my time.I love it when a character comes across as cold and aloof, but secretly they have the biggest heart hidden away! I was tense at times because of the time period and politics and was aggravated on Annabelle and pretty much women's kinds behalf on several occasions.

Additionally, his hands are full with a troublesome brother, Peregrin, a meddling Queen, and organising a political campaign to ensure the Tories win the next election. Marriage to Annabelle, a country girl of no consequence would cause a scandal of earth shattering proportions that Montgomery cannot afford. It was the most annoying kind of “fake woke” book that had relevant enough taglines to draw modern readers in.

I have no time for elitist leaders who totally ignore the suffering and injustices happening right under their entitled noses! This just may be targeted towards a different romance reader, and I maybe expected something different because of all the glowing reviews. Both have been burned in love before, and this influences how they approach each other, both equally cognizant of the attraction between them yet also wary of once again making the wrong decision in romance. Thanks to this compelling and passionate woman questioning him every step of the way, who challenges and infuriates him.

I know very little about the tropes of the genre, but I can guess that nothing in this book would be considered terribly egregious to the average romance reader (please correct me if I'm wrong), but personally, I struggled. I'm going to be clamouring for more A League of Extraordinary Women books and likely seriously regretting my decision to read this early because now the wait will feel even longer than just a year. The protagonist also became very emotionally dependent on him, and I wish she had stood her ground more firmly in her decisions and what she believed in, especially since this book is supposed to be about suffragists. I felt for the heroine and loved how she stands up for herself, and Sebastian had me almost from the start, and by the end I definitely swooned over his words and actions! I deliberately did not watch any of the movies or series about Queen Victoria (or any of the monarchy for that matter) because she was viciously and vehemently opposed to the advancement of women in any way, including admission to higher education.She refused to be the duke's mistress because she had a sense of self worth and knew that even though Sebastian would treat her well, society wouldn't. She convinces her dolt of a cousin, whom is in charge of her, to let her study at Oxford and thinks that she will live a fulfilled life as a studious spinster. If Annabelle is portrayed as convincingly relatable, in her strengths and fragilities, smart and dignified in her beliefs and fights, I found that this book was mainly Sebastian’s journey and watching him finally come to terms with his inner "sentimental" self was sheer joy, as far as romances go.

While Evie Dunmore's writing style is more modern in parts which makes this story extremely readable, I'm not complaining, mind you, because this author's words wrapped themselves around my heart. A steamy, intelligent and feel good historical romance, set in Victorian England at the time of the Suffragette movement! She shows the reality of how the women who fought for their freedom were viewed and treated by the many and it certainly doesn’t paint a pretty picture in parts. He clearly gets off on this, and spends time when he's not with her fantasising about forcing her into marriage and clapping himself on the back for having the self-control not to rape her.Annabelle is stupid and makes rash decisions constantly, not behaving as a woman in that time (even a “feminist”) would.