Amelia Grey kicks off her Say I Do trilogy with Yours Truly, The Duke, a fun historical romance with a little too much poetry for me.

It’s a marriage of convenience. The Duke of Wyatthaven (Wyatt) needs a wife within seven days if his grandmother’s considerable inheritance is to be his. He doesn’t need the estate, but he doesn’t want it to go to The London Society of Poetry. His hatred of poetry goes back to his schoolboy years.

Fredericka Hale needs a husband. When her sister and brother-in-law died, she took in their three young children. Now, Fredericka’s cousin Jane, who desperately wants a child, has taken the case to the Chancery Court. She wants custody of the children. Fredericka is desperate. If she’s married, she might have a better chance of keeping her family together. She even has a list of prospective husbands. The Duke of Wyatthaven isn’t on it when he appears in her house, offering to marry her.

It’s definitely a business proposition. For now, he wants his inheritance, and, eventually, an heir. She wants her nieces and nephew. They’ll continue to lead their separate lives until he’s ready. But, there is just a spark between them the first time they meet. And, when the vicar says, “You may kiss the bride”? Another spark. But, of course, the path of indifference won’t run smooth.

Grey does an excellent job with characters who have childhood problems that are still influencing them years later. Fredericka lost her own parents at a young age, and always felt left out with her older sister and her cousin, Jane. Now, Jane wants the children taken from Fredericka. And, Wyatt still feels guilty for his inability as a young boy to protect other boys at school. He’s making up for it, but keeps that a secret from Fredericka. She doesn’t know why he hates the word “discipline”, and burned the poetry books in the family library.

Marriage of convenience. Misunderstandings. It’s all part of an enjoyable start to this Regency romance trilogy. As I said, though, just a little too much pretty Victorian poetry for my taste.

Amelia Grey’s website is https://www.ameliagrey.com/

Yours Truly, The Duke by Amelia Grey. St. Martin’s Press, 2023. ISBN 9781250850416 (paperback), 368p.

FTC Full Disclosure – I downloaded a galley from NetGalley, with no promise of a positive review.