Review: Sarah's Reluctant Duke (The Heir and the Spare #1) by Fiona Miers
Sarah’s one and only London Season must result in a match—her family’s future is at stake. But this vicar’s daughter faces possible ruin until she’s rescued by the kind and heart-poundingly handsome, Oliver Lyre. The newly minted Duke of Lincoln soon holds the key to her heart, and it appears her prayers have been answered. But his mother and sister-in-law, infamous dragons of the ton, are determined to tear the couple apart. And when Sarah discovers she’s pregnant, she’ll give up everything to protect her child.
When Oliver tragically lost his father and brother and inherited his title, he also lost his chance at marrying for love. He never wanted the crushing responsibilities the title entailed… and he damned well never wanted the attention of matchmaking mamas on the ‘marriage mart’. Rescuing Sarah, and being forced into marriage, is a surprising stroke of luck. His sweet and affectionate wife is a breath of fresh air, showing no interest in his money or station. The only person who expects nothing but his love. If only his family weren’t hell-bent on destroying his marriage. This reluctant Duke will have to choose between the burdens of his family and the woman he loves.
Can Sarah and Oliver’s love overcome the pressures of a world determined to keep them apart?
This was another case of a good (if overused) idea with a poorly done execution. First off all, I'm sorry, but if a man has absolutely no desire to marry, has a million and one reasons why the woman standing in front of him is supposedly unsuitable...why is it so difficult for him to keep his hands and lips to himself? I know a lot of readers love the "forced to marry because of a scandal" trope, but I'm starting to get rather sick of it. And in this particular case, the entire thing could have been avoided so easily. When Oliver first meets Sarah, it's in the gardens at a ball after she's been attacked by another man. The author could have simply had them discovered at that point and forced into marriage. Everything else could have remained exactly the same; the getting to know one another, the kiss at the opera, the growing attraction, and we could have skipped the entire part where Oliver essentially brings his own fate crashing down around him. But apparently that would have been too easy.
It was also nearly impossible for me to root for either of these characters because neither seemed capable of standing up for themselves when it actually mattered. Unless, of course, you count Oliver clenching his fists in anger whenever one of his friends says something he doesn't like. Or when the author trots Millington out to make some outrageous comment about Sarah and Oliver finally punches him. Apparently that's the extent of their ability to communicate their feelings.
Unfortunately, I found myself siding with Oliver's poisonous mother and his snake of a sister-in-law more often than I care to admit. Not because they were good people, they absolutely weren't, but because Oliver was so incredibly pathetic that I started to understand why they'd gotten away with treating him the way they did for so long. Look okay, I understand that Oliver has spent his entire life being made to feel worthless. I really do. But the man is still a Duke. He has authority, he has power, and what he says carries weight. So it was completely unfathomable to me that he allowed his mother and sister-in-law to not only intrude on his honeymoon, but to openly berate and belittle his new wife right in front of him and the guests they had invited over for dinner.
And when Sarah finally approaches him about how their behavior is making her feel, what does he do? Does he defend her? Does he acknowledge that maybe she's right? Nope. He brushes her off and accuses her of exaggerating. If I were Sarah, he would have had to grovel a whole lot more than he did if he ever wanted to get back into my good graces after that (especially after being gone for months). But no, Sarah's primary response to being hurt by her husband is to decide she wants him naked instead. Instead of having the conversations that so obviously needed to happen, working through the hurt, or actually addressing the problems in their marriage, Sarah is apparently too distracted by how much she wants her husband to think about anything else.
It takes until we're nearly at the end of the book, and after roughly three months apart, with Oliver accompanying his mother and sister-in-law back to London while Sarah retreats to his Scottish estate, for him to finally grow a spine and stand up to these people. And finally he puts his foot down. He tells his horrible sister-in-law that she's no longer welcome on any of his properties. Then he tells his equally awful mother that she has the London townhouse for her use and that she is not to come near him or his family again. Good for you, Oliver. It's about time. Unfortunately, by then it was too little, too late for me.
This is only the first book in the series, and I am admittedly a little curious about Lady Charlotte and the story that seems to be simmering between her and Oliver's friend Archie. There is definitely enough there to make me wonder what their story might look like. But at the moment? I'm not sure I care enough to continue.
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