All I Want for Christmas Is a Duke: Four Heartwarming Regency Romances of Wallflowers and Holiday Love

Season's Original #0.5

by Valerie Bowman, Vivienne Lorret, Tiffany Clare

The holidays are a time for dining, dancing, and of course—dukes! Celebrate the Christmas season with this enchanting collection of historical romances featuring the most eligible bachelors of the ton…

A childish prank may have reunited the Duke of Hollingsworth with his estranged wife, but only the magic of Christmas will show this couple ’tis the season of second chances…

Sophie Kinsley planned to remain a wallflower at the Duke of Hollyshire’s ball. Yet when a dance with him leads to a stolen kiss, will the duke be willing to let her go? Or will Sophie’s Christmas wish be granted at last?

To the Duke of Vale, science solves everything—even marriage. When the impulsive Ivy Sutherland makes him question all of his data, he realizes that he’s overlooked a vital component in his search for the perfect match: love.

Patience Markham never forgot the fateful dance she had with the future Duke of Kingsbury. But when a twist of fate brings them together for Christmas Eve, will the stars finally align in their favor?

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Historical, Christmas, Anthologies, Holiday, Historical Fiction

449 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 1, 2015

About the author

Valerie Bowman is an award-winning author who writes historical and contemporary romance.

Valerie’s debut novel was published in 2012. Since then, her books have received starred reviews from Publisher’s Weekly, Booklist, and Kirkus. She’s been an RT Reviewers’ Choice nominee for Best First Historical Romance and Best Historical Romance Love and Laughter. Two of her books have been nominated for the Kirkus Prize for fiction.

Valerie grew up in Illinois with six sisters (she’s number seven) and a huge supply of romance novels. After a cold and snowy stint earning a degree in English Language and Literature with a minor in history at Smith College, she moved to Florida the first chance she got. Valerie now lives in Jacksonville with her family including her rascally dogs. When she’s not writing, she keeps busy reading, traveling, or vacillating between watching crazy reality TV and PBS.

Visit Valerie on the web at www.ValerieBowmanBooks.com and sign-up for her newsletter at: https://valeriebowmanbooks.com/newsle...
Be sure to follow Valerie Bookbub for the latest on sales https://www.bookbub.com/authors/valer...

Reviews

[Lady Gabriella of Awesomeness (SLOW) · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Duke&Duchess Trap - Valerie Bowman. -3 Stars
Basically a historical version of the movie 'Parent Trap'

Sophie and the Duke - Tiffany Clare -3 Stars
'Cinderella' redone historically. Reunion-romance between childhood friends.

The Duke's Christmas Wish - Vivienne Lorret 4.75 stars
The Best one so far ! A re-write of Princess and the Frog with an adorable blue stocking couple. Loved them x

One Magic Season-Ashlyn Macnamara 2.5 stars
Lacks content comparatively.Nothing very memorable.

[Milica's Bookshelf · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Duke&Duchess Trap - Valerie Bowman. -3 Stars
Sophie and the Duke - Tiffany Clare -4 Stars
The Duke's Christmas Wish - Vivienne Lorret 4.5 stars
One Magic Season-Ashlyn Macnamara 2.5 stars

[Aly · Rating 4 out of 5]

What these novellas all have in common are Dukes and Christmastime.


The Duke and the Duchess Trap
Valerie Bowman
3.5

The title give a clue to the plot of this story. It's a "Parent Trap" retelling. Two estranged spouses and their matchmaking twins who meet for the first time at school will have a second chance at being a family. Loved the idea but a little difficult to believe in the fast reconciliation.


Sophie and the Duke
Tiffany Clare
4

This one had Cendrillon elements (like the mean stepmother and stepsister) but it's the story of the Duke of Helmsworth who's looking for a bride, at a masked ball. It's not his idea to make things difficult for himself, like meeting the women without being able to recognize who they are. It's in his father's will. I enjoyed this friends (who didn't see each other for nearly fifteen years because of education) to lovers story.


The Duke's Christmas Wish
Vivienne Lorret
4

I discovered this author recently but I'm already a big fan of her books so I purchased this anthology for this story. Ivy is not interested in marriage. But she want to help her friend find her perfect match and accompany her at Castle Vale, where the Duke is hosting a ball. A modern-thinking man, a scientist, naturalist and a mathematician, the Duke of Vale is a singuliar character who doesn't believe in love. Loved the hero's invention and wished his universe would have been developed in a full book.


One Magic Season
Ashlyn MacNamara
3

A snowstorm and a stucked carrriage is the perfect opportunity for Lady Patience and the Duke of Kingsbury for a second chance romance, after letting family interfered in their relationship a decade ago.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

If I was just rating The Duke’s Christmas Wish by Vivienne Lorret, I’d give it 4-stars easily as it was my kind of catnip. The story revolved around a starchy, science-minded hero who invents a mathematical matchmaking system for the ton and whose experiment quickly goes awry when the brilliant, yet wholly unsuitable according to his theory, heroine appears on the scene and steals his heart. Chaos in the form of broken elevators, clandestine hand touches, kisses against bookshelves and an errant frog or two soon ensue and it all makes for a truly delightful holiday read.

Sadly, the other stories of this anthology were fairly average by comparison and my final rating reflects that.

[Valerie Bowman]

The Duke and Duchess Trap!

[Lisa Filipe · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful, lighthearted read! Will leave you smiling!

I have to say, if you are a reader of my blog, you know that I don't read a lot of historical's (usually limited to Lisa Kleypas and now Vivienne Lorret), but I saw this one was four novellas, and those are usually quick reads, so I gave this one a shot...and I am so so glad I did!!

I have to say, I truly enjoyed all of the four titles, they were creative, festive, and just the perfect mix of sexy and romantic! I did thoroughly enjoy Valerie Bowman's take on The Parent Trap. I love the original movie with Hayley Mills and Valerie's take was so much fun to read!

Vivienne, Tiffany and Ashlyn all followed up with three novellas that have you feeling the romance of the season! The one thing I loved about ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS A DUKE, was that I was able to escape real life, and dash off to a England for a while, attend some balls and find a true love! Don't miss out on this fun anthology!

[Phoenix77 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Averaged out to 3.5 stars

Some of the stories were much stronger than others but my overwhelming problem was that they were all too short! By the time the action has put the main characters together and the story picks up some momentum (and we get a quickly sex scene) all the problems are resolved within a few pages and we get “The End.”

There are two really great stories in this group that are crying out to be expanded into a full length story, or at least a longer novella.

[Karishma · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars Overall

The Duke and Duchess Trap - Valerie Bowman - 2.5 stars
An HR take on The Parent Trap.

Sophie and the Duke by Tiffany Clare - 2.5 stars
The first story I have read by the author. Enjoyable, and I may pick up more from her.

The Duke's Christmas Wish - Vivienne Lorret - 5 Stars
This is the best part of this collection - it is also included in A Christmas to Remember which is a better buy IMO
Loved it so much.
This is what a novella should be like - complete, not rushed!
The characters and side characters were great, and a well-written plot and ending.

One Magic Season-Ashlyn Macnamara - 4 Stars
A warm-hearted Christmas story without a lot of plot but which will definitely leave you smiling and happy.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Valerie Bowman, "The Duke and Duchess Trap": It's a Regency version of the Parent Trap. The hero and heroine got married, had twins, and then irreconcilably split. They separated the twins and raised them as if they were not siblings--and one of them was not even told that she had a sister.

It's a terrible story, with a great deal of lying and selfishness and awful behavior because the parents were too ridiculously immature to be parents. It's completely disgusting and cannot be recommended.

Tiffany Clare, "Sophie and the Duke": Childhood friends reunite at a ball where a duke is supposed to find a bride. He rather inexplicably falls head over heels for his childhood playmate, and then tracks her down and marries her. Virtually no tension, but a nice enough little story.

Vivienne Lorret, "The Duke's Christmas Wish": I selected this book because I like Vivienne Lorret's writing, but this was completely unreadable. The first chapter is devoted to the heroine drinking too much tea and needing to urinate. The second chapter focuses on the hero acting like a cross between an autistic savant and an aristocratic ass. I read two pages into the third chapter and gave up. This is unreadably bad. Not recommended.

Ashlyn Macnamara, "One Magic Season": Woman traveling in winter gives assistance to a man whose carriage has crashed. It turns out to be the man who spurned her years ago. They hook up, and then he tracks her down and marries her. Again: virtually no tension, but a nice enough little story.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly, this was a 3 star anthology. I just wanted to see if the overall rating would change if I gave it 4 stars lol

Edit: It did

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, so I only read this for Vivienne Lorret's novella because I read the first book in her The Season's Original series before this, and it left me with the feeling that I was missing some things. Overall:

The Duke and Duchess Trap by Valerie Bowman: 2 stars
Basically a regency Parent Trap version, down to some lines directly from the second Disney adaptation with Lindsay Lohan. Meh. The only thing I liked was that the parents figured out pretty quickly they had the wrong twin, and decided to have some fun with that, trying to trick them into betraying themselves

Sophie and the Duke by Tiffany Clare: 2 stars
Childhood friends reunite in a Cinderella inspired story where Cinderella secretly attends a ball hosted by the Duke in order to find a wife. They meet, sparks fly, and they elope, thereby eliminating the whole "but my stepmother wants me to stay on as a servant and never marry" thing.

The Duke's Christmas Wish by Vivienne Lorret: 4 stars
The Duke throws a ball to convince the doubters of the validity of his "marriage formula" that matches up the rich and powerful nicely and easily without the hassle of courting and unnecessary emotions. At the ball, he meets Ivy Sutherland, a woman without any hope of ever ending up in one of his ledgers to be matched up. He is captivated by her frank manners and her ability to spot flaws in his inventions and come up with a practical solution. This was actually quite heartbreaking and bittersweet, and would have deserved to be a full-length novel in my opinion. The characters were well drafted, and I would've loved to spend more time with them.

One Magic Season by Ashlyn Macnamara: 3 stars
Two former sweethearts are reunited, after several years apart during which both had to marry someone else (he because his family disapproved of his first love, and she because she had no other choice), when they find themselves caught in a snowstorm. This also would have worked well as a longer novel, because as it is, I thought their reunion was a tiny little bit rushed. But I still enjoyed it

[Andree · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was underwhelmed.

The Valerie Bowman is a Parent Trap retelling. It's fun and fluffy, but it's also slight, and I'm not sure it adds anything to the original story.

The Tiffany Clare is... baffling. I'm going to proceed to spoil the plot as I explain why, so if you don't want to be spoiled, skip the rest of this paragraph. Essentially, an impoverished gentlewoman is at her wicked stepmother's mercy (it's unclear how this is the case). Stepmother is trying to catch the Duke for token wicked stepmother. Heroine attends Duke's masquerade ball with a cousin/old friend/I can't remember for one last hurrah, intending just to see the place. She and the Duke are apparently childhood friends. She dances with the Duke. There are all the feelings. She leaves the ball. Now, I assumed that it was at this point that the stepmother/stepsister drama would surface as they scheme to prevent the marriage. Spoiler: this does not happen. Instead, the Duke basically follows her home and proposes marriage. She objects, because her stepmother will object. My mental reaction: Um, Dude's a DUKE. I'm no expert on this, but if he says he wants to marry you, and you agree (heroine is referenced as being older, so she's certainly got to be mid-twenties), what exactly is your stepmother going to be able to do at this point (and as per my earlier point, why does your stepmother have any say?)? Short story shorter, the Duke agrees with me and runs to get a special license. Post-marriage, stepmother and stepsister express their displeasure to the happy couple. My mental reaction: Um, even if you're upset, surely you'd at least pretend to be happy to suck up to your stepdaughter/sister who has just MARRIED A DUKE. For self-interest reasons if nothing else. Instead the Duke and Duchess are the ones smoothing things over. For no good reason that I can see. This is one of those rare instances where I think a book needed a more dramatic plot. Or maybe the dramatic plot just needed to make a bit more sense. As it is, it reads as two old friends meeting, dancing, realizing they want to be together, and getting married. It's lovely, but not exactly amazing storytelling.

The Vivienne Lorret has it's moments and is probably my favourite. There's a Regency equivalent of couple-gets-stuck-in-an-elevator, and when the couple actually get to speak to each other, their banter is charming. The problem with this is that it's one of those romance novels where the couple in question are hyper-aware of each other every damn time they're in the same room together, even before they meet. To the extent that either they 1) can barely pay attention to a basic conversation/speak at all, 2) say the first ridiculous thing that pops into their head, 3) cannot stop staring at the other person, and/or 4) are basically overcome by the slightest touch. I'm all for a bit of physical attraction getting things moving, but I find it tedious when it's taken to the extreme where the characters can barely function on a basic cognitive level in each other's presence. When the author allows them basic cognitive functioning, this is fun. I also like the heroine's cousin. The heroine is a bit of an original, and comes up with crazy schemes and is a bit outspoken (parenthetically, this is an example of this trope being done reasonably well in that the heroine is only slightly outspoken so she feels like a real person, which is refreshing in a trope that is so rarely executed in moderation - it's a shame the author didn't use slightly more moderation in the other major trope). The cousin is much shier, but will support/go along with her cousin out of loyalty. There's a particular moment in the last chapter that is amazing. It's a nice female friendship of opposing personalities is all I'm saying.

The Ashlyn Macnamara is perfectly fine. But I know I will not remember any of it. It made very little impression on me in any way.

[Michelle Rupe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute, fun, and low angst anthology all set during the Christmas season. Just what I needed. Valerie Bowman's was my favorite. It was a historical version of the parent trap.

Three of these are second chance romance (so if you don't like that trope this anthology may not be for you).

[Mina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one was so funny! I loved both characters!

[The Book Junkie Reads . . . · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Duke and Duchess Trap by Valerie Bowman

I am sure this has been said more than one time but let be just say it again. This read is a blatant reminder of the movie 'The Parent Trap'. Right down to the twin daughters. The separation. The lingering love. The why you did not come after me. It was all there but in Regency style romance. This was a delightful read.


Sophie and the Duke by Tiffany Clare

I felt a few different things here. The early childhood bond between Sophie and shall I say it 'HER' Duke. Gave me the feel of a lost friendship renewed but there were those pesky step sisters and the step mother. Her father should have been thrashed. But this here was just a different, yet subtle spin on an age old tale 'Cinderella'. The read was nice and the pace kept going.


The Duke’s Christmas Wish by Vivienne Lorret
Think it odd that a Duke would want to dabble in the art of matchmaking. Thinks it not odd he did not find it beneath him. This Duke got more than he bargained for this time around when he is hit with something more than money, titles, and the right lineage. Ivy comes in a make it all a different kind of match. This Duke learned that love has something big to do with a very successful and filling match. This read will remind you of many a romances that started out with her not having enough of something to make it possible, but love has its own way of showing you that it can be all you need.


One Magic Season by Ashlyn Macnamara

Second chances are what is need and what better time of the year to provide one but the Christmas season. Patience has her second chance with her Duke this season. It was the combination of the season and the fact this was a second chance for then that made this one the best one for me in this anthology.


For a magical holiday read, I do recommend you grab your favorite blanket, corner, mug of a hot drink, and don't forget you book/e-reader and dive right in for a holiday spirit filled read.

[SmartBitches · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full review at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books

Normally I’m pretty cynical about Christmas. I’m not a practicing Christian, and I’ve worked in either retail or logistics long enough that the commercialism and chaos that precedes the holiday season exhausts me (I once worked till 2 a.m. so a shipment of children’s bedsheets that were on sale would hit the store in time for Black Friday–then slept for four hours and went back into work).

This year, though, I’m clinging to anything happy and festive, desperate to feel good about something. I put my tree up before Thanksgiving (I didn’t put one up at all last year). I’ve been Googling recipes for eggnog and Glugg, and I’ve been reading Christmas romance like whoa.

All I Want for Christmas is a Duke is a collection of four Regency novellas by Valerie Bowman, Tiffany Clare, Vivienne Lorret, and Ashlyn MacNamara. I was especially intrigued because the characters in the Lorret novella were referenced in When a Marquess Loves a Woman and the hero is a scientist.

I would give the first two novellas in this anthology C’s–they were just sort of meh. I was swept away by the last two so I would give them A’s, meaning the anthology as a whole averages out to a B.

- Elyse

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very enjoyable Christmas anthology.

Valerie Bowman's story was a take on the movie "The Parent Trap". Since I grew up watching Hayley Mills' movies I loved it!

Tiffany Clare's story was a Cinderella tale. I liked it a lot but wondered, since the heroine was a Lady, why her father had never set aside a dowry for her when he remarried.

Vivian Lorrett's Duke was an inventor and sure he had a formula for making matches with no emotions. That worked until he fell in love. This was fun.

Ashlyn MacNamara A couple who fell in love years ago gets a second chance at happiness and lets no one stand in their way. Nice story.

I really enjoy holiday stories and can easily recommend this book.

[Jujubee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything I wanted! 4.5 stars for this anthology. A welcome addition to any lover of Christmas-themed period romances library's. And very re-readable!
My ratings individually:
The Duke and Duchess Trap, Valerie Bowman 4 delightful stars
Sophie and The Duke, Tiffany Clare 4.5 reconnection stars. Loved Sophie!
The Duke's Christmas Wish, Vivienne Lorret 5 perfect romance chemistry stars. So much that I one-clicked the three novels in the series Season's Originals!
One Magic Season, Ashlyn Macnamara 4 second-chance stars. Would have been higher if smexy, His Grace, Nathaniel, would not have waited so long to get his Lady Patience!

[Kristi · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first novella is “The Duke and Duchess Trap” by Valerie Bowman — 2.0

I was disgusted and disappointed with the hero. 

(Slight spoiler alert and rant)

I hate when the hero professes to have always loved a women, most especially one his married to, but has “meaningless” affairs during their separation even though the heroine has not (not that I would like that either). If I am to believe that the love means something, then the affairs — sex with another person — is NOT meaningless to me.  If the author goes that route, then there should be a convincing set of scenes to show real regret and shame and for him to really grovel.  The author has to make me believe he means it and to somehow redeem the jerk.

This does not even come close to happening in this story. I get that this was to be a riff on “The Parent Trap,” but the story lacked a believable reunion and the affairs he had while they were separated were almost shrugged off and certainly not regretted by him. Boo.


The second, “Sophie and the Duke” by Tiffany Clare— 3.0

This one was okay. I didn’t feel the intimate scene was believable and the tension of the awful step-relatives was odd as I kept expecting a confrontation that didn’t happen. And then even when it did, it was ended quickly by a distraction.


The third, “The Duke’s Christmas Wish” by Vivienne Lorret, is a repeat for me as it also appears in the anthology “A Christmas to Remember” by Lisa Klepas & co. — 3.0

What I like about this one, oddly enough, is that it’s the first one I’ve read where the the story begins with the heroine, after one too many cops of tea, finds herself in dire need of a chamber pot. It’s a simple thing, but it’s one topic rarely touched on in stories — not that I’m lamenting that fact, but it IS a rare thing.


The fourth and last, “One Magic Season” by Ashlyn MacNamara — 4.0

This was my favorite of the bunch. Its theme of regrets and second chances fits perfectly with the Season. I was happy with my HEA.

[Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Duke and Duchess Trap by Valerie Bowman -Parent Trap Remake. Like exactly. 3 stars

Sophie and the Duke by Tiffany Clare- Cinderella retelling. 4 stars
An open invitation goes out to all of London for a Christmas ball, announcing that the duke is looking for a bride. Sophie and the duke were childhood friends, but hadn’t seen each other in 15 years after he went off to school. His dad passed away a year ago and left directions that he has a week to find a wife or he won’t get the rest of the money until his 30th b-day. This included directions that the ball was to be masked. The duke was not supposed to know the identity of the girl until he was overcome with affection.

[Kelsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a collection, this was overall a 3.

First two novellas were two stars. Third was 4 stars, because it made me want to reread. The last was very unsatisfying and had no plot.

So it averages out to about 3 stars. Overall a good read.

[AnnMarie · Rating 5 out of 5]

To begin with I thought this anthology, as well as having a Christmas theme, had a theme of taking a classic movie/story and giving it a regency twist. The first two stories I believe are based on The Parent Trap, and Cinderella. Neither fully follow the plots of those stories, so still manage to be original and a pleasure to read.
The latter 2 stories though don't follow that regency twist theme, so that put pay to my original idea. Either way, the anthology is a real delight to read.

The Duke and the Duchess by Valerie Bowman is the one that is like the Parent Trap. As with that film, there are some lovely lighthearted moments, but some tear jerking ones as well. I especially loved the interfering Grandmother to the children (the Duke's mother), she is a fabulous character who come hell or high water wants grandsons, not just granddaughters.

Sophie and the Duke by Tiffany Clare has a Cinderella feel. The Duke of Hollyshire finds himself having to throw a ball to which he has invited all the eligible women in order to choose a wife and marry her before Christmas is over. He has had no interest in marriage and this ball is only taking place because if he doesn't find a wife in this fashion the money his father has entailed to him won't be released. Money which he needs in order to do a lot of much needed work on the family estate.
So he throws the ball, and that's where he meets Sophie Kinsley (our Cinderella). She lives with her horrid step mother and step sister, and as in Cinderella, she is treated unfairly. In fact Sophie couldn't have attended the ball if it wasn't a masquerade one. One where she hoped her mask would hide her from her Step family.
The Duke and Sophie dance, and they are both drawn to each other. The story then goes on to tell if and how they manage to be together.

The Duke's Christmas wish by Vivian Lorret doesn't follow any story I know of. The Duke has to hold a ball and house party,which everybody believes is where he will be looking for a bride. In actual fact he is using his guests in an experiment in which he is sure to prove his latest invention. That of the perfect formula for a perfect marriage. Enter Miss Ivy Sutherland, a woman who believes herself fully on the shelf. She is only attending the ball because she wants to help her friend find a husband.
The Duke of course finds himself interested in Ivy but he fights the attraction tooth and nail because if he were to fall for her then it would prove his marriage formula a failure. Ivy is attracted to the Duke too, but she fights her feelings because, one, she is supposed to be matching him up with her friend, and two, she believes she isn't good enough for him.

The story that follows is about the relationship that forms between them despite the reasons it shouldn't.

I really enjoyed this story, apart from the romance and the obligatory tear jerking scenes, there were some very funny light hearted moments which had me laughing out loud.

The last story in the anthology I think has to be my very favourite of them all. One Magic Season by Ashlyn Macnamara is a wonderful tale of having a second chance at love.

Patience Markham fell in love with the Duke of Kingsbury, Nathaniel Westlake many years ago. He too fell in love with her. His parents didn't approve of her and set about splitting them up, which they successfully achieved.

10 years later, Patience is now Lady Worthington, a young widow after her husband's early demise. Nathaniel is a widower with twin children, his wife having died not long after giving birth. Neither marriage was a love match.

Fate plays a part in having Patience and Nathaniel meet again. They are both travelling in the same direction in a snow storm, and Nathaniel's carriage gets bogged down in the snow and is blocking the road that Patience's carriage is on. When her carriage stops and she realises that the weather is too bad to wait for the one ahead to be moved for her to continue on her journey, she decides to return home. She offers the man in the carriage ahead a lift to somewhere warmer via her 'Tiger' and he accepts. Well, it turns out that the man in the carriage is none other than Nathaniel.

All the feelings from the past flood both of them but as they were both convinced that life had moved on , they tried to hide any feelings they have. He ends up staying at Patience's residence, and they have plenty of time to talk about the past and rekindle old flames. The problem still remains that Patience will never be good enough for the Duke and that his family will still want to stop any relationship between them. Will they have the courage to fight for what they want this time, or will family and society's opinion still get in the way?

This story has some beautiful, romantic, funny and passionate scenes. The main characters are so loveable and I would love to have read a much longer story about them.

I was given a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

[Lexie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall a joyful collection filled with a surprising variety of circumstances. I did find it funny when in "One Magic Season" the heroine, Patience, reflects on just how many Dukes there were. As any romance reader knows there's an infinite number of young, virile, attractive Dukes out there just WAITING to be swept off their feet.

[Andrea Guy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have always been a sucker for Christmas Historical compilations. This book is absolutely fabulous. Usually there's a week story in the bunch, but not here.

Of the four novellas included in this book I loved The Duke and Duchess Trap. You can guess by the title that it is a twist on The Parent Trap. It is done so beautifully well. The children were perfect. I just love Gena and Evie and their pranks.

Like The Parent Trap each parent has custody of one twin and the children don't know about each other until they meet at school.

The reason Nathan and Elizabeth lived apart isn't really a good one in my eyes, but that made it so easy for them to fall back into love and they were so perfect together.

Sophie and the Duke was my next favorite of the bunch. It was a bit of a take on Cinderella, at least in my eyes. The Duke, Adrian, is having a ball to find a wife, when he encounters Sophie. She is a childhood friend, and even though they haven't seen each other in years, they seem to easily slip back into their friendship.

Sophie comes complete with a nasty stepmother and a stepsister.

Then there's The Duke's Christmas Wish. This is another fun one. The Duke is a bit of a science geek, think of him as a character from Big Bang Theory, only good looking. Ivy is really the perfect match for him, but she's trying to find a match for her good friend.

The Duke has a Marriage Formula that supposedly will help the aristocracy find mates without having to go through the motions of a season. The problem is Ivy falls into his unmarriageable ledger. His formula doesn't take into account what happens when feelings are involved.

I loved North, I only wish he would have been socially awkward to go along with his intelligence.

The last story, One Magic Season was the one I liked the least. In comparison to the other stories, that had something unique to recommend them, this one was more formulated. Patience and Nathaniel have found each other after years apart and different marriages.

A snow storm finds them trapped together and they rekindle their romance. Their original romance was thwarted by his family. That's actually what put me off of this story. I wanted her to really stand up to his family, especially his sister Diana who was really wretched.

If you love holiday stories, you mustn't miss this compilation, it is really the best one from this year.

[Jenny Koch · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Duke and Duchess Trap:
At the start when I realized this was basically The Parent Trap, Regency version, I was SO FREAKING EXCITED. In the end, I didn't quite care enough about the couple to really fall into the story though.


Sophie & the Duke:
A Cinderella type story. It's not holding my attention. I think I'm done with the entire anthology.

DNF

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this anthology. The first story is a clever historical romance take on "The Parent Trap". The second is a pseudo "Cinderella". The third is a "Frog Prince" story. The fourth is a lovely lesson in "Second Chances".

I liked the characters in all of the stories and most were very fast paced. It was a very lovely Christmas read.

[Gawelleb · Rating 3 out of 5]

1ére histoire : 4/5 , c'était mimi comme tout, très fleur bleue, très Noël
2éme histoire : 2/5 trop Cendrillon pour moi ...
3éme histoire : 4/5, des débuts difficiles mais une histoire qu'au final, j'ai beaucoup aimé avec de l'émotion!
4éme histoire : 3/5

[Sandra Aaron · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an OK set of novellas, but they were all too short to have as much character development as I like. For that reason, I usually prefer full-length novels. My rating for the set is 3 stars.

The Duke and Duchess Trap, by Valerie Bowman -- 3 stars. This was a cute story of twin sisters who conspired to get their estranged parents back together. It really did seem like a historical version of the movie "The Parent Trap", so I didn't think the idea was very original.

Sophie and the Duke, by Tiffany Clare -- 3 stars. This was a cute story of childhood friends who found each other again after a long separation, only to realize that they belonged together. I liked that they were friends as children, and that they met again at a costume ball, where he did not recognize her at first. It was a little like Cinderella, with the evil stepmother and stepsister.

The Duke's Christmas Wish, by Vivienne Lorret -- 2.5 stars. This was my least favorite of the set. I just didn't like the duke very much. He was determined to prove that his marriage formula worked, so that he would be fully accepted by those who thought his mother should have been of noble birth. Because of that, he almost lost the love of his life, since his formula indicated their relationship would never work. He did finally realize his mistake, but I still found it hard to like him.

One Magic Season, by Ashlyn Macnamara -- 3.5 stars. This was my favorite of the set. It was a second chance romance with a couple that had been separated by lies his family told her. When they met again, and they were both widowed, he was determined not to let her get away again. And it was sweet how he convinced her that he didn't care what his family thought. They were perfect for each other.

My rating system is below.
1 star -- Hated it, or did not finish. I usually only give this rating if some of the content is truly objectionable to me, like if one of the main characters does something really awful, and gets away with it.
2 stars -- Didn't like it. This rating usually means that I thought the writing wasn't very good, the editing was terrible, I didn't like the characters, or it had other major flaws.
3 stars -- I liked it, but had some minor issues with it. This rating means that there were minor editing issues, the story needed more character development, it was just too unrealistic, or had some other fairly minor issue. The majority of books I read get this rating – I do not consider it a bad rating.
4 stars -- I liked it a lot. This is a high rating for me, and I rarely give a higher one.
5 stars -- I loved it, and will probably read it again. Very few books are good enough to get this rating from me. The ones that do are usually classics.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

These four charming and entertaining Christmas timed stories kept me smiling. The first story The Duke and Duchess Trap by Valerie Bowman is in essence a retelling in historical terms of the Parent Trap complete with a set of twins separated and one living with the Duke and the other with the Duchess. School brings them together where they plot if not to get their parents together to at least know their other parent. It was a charming and fun take on the story. The second story Sophie and the Duke by Tiffany Clare is a variation of the Cinderella story but in this case with two, Sophie and Adrian, who were childhood friends that have not seen each other for years. Adrian, a Duke, is under a time constraint imposed by his deceased father if he wants to have access to the rest of the money needed to run his estate. Directions have been left to have a masked ball. Sophie, an on the shelf spinster at 28, has received an invitation, along with pretty much any unwed woman in the area, and with the help of a borrowed dress from her cousin Isabelle captures Adrian’s attention. Past and present merge and the result is entertaining and a great if very quick romance. The third story, The Duke’s Christmas Wish, by Vivienne Lorett was my favourite of the tales and would rate 5 stars. A scientist, the Duke of Vale, Northcliff, has devised what he believes is a fool proof way to arrange successful marriages for the ton and is hosting a house party to prove his theory and provide a stepping stone to obtaining a fellowship. Ivy is a spinster who is accompanying her friend Lilah to the event to try to find Lilah a titled husband to fulfill the requirements of her father’s will. This story grabbed my imagination and had wonderful elements of humour including a frog. The banter between Northcliff and Ivy was refreshing and I loved the ending of the tale. I found when doing some research on the characters that this story serves as a prequel to Vivienne Lorett’s series The Season’s Originals that starts with Lilah’s happily ever after story. I am looking forward to checking it out. The last novella, One Magic Season by Ashlyn MacNamara, was an engaging second chance story between a young widow and a Duke. They had first met 10 years before and a chance encounter in a Christmas snow storm brought a new introduction. I loved this tale but wished that some of the details were more fleshed out on Patience’s marriage. This story definitely left me smiling. For anyone who wants to let their imagination roam and sit back and enjoy some heartfelt stories this is a great anthology.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four holiday novellas

The Duke and Duchess Trap - based off "The Parent Trap"; Nathaniel and Elizabeth have been separated for 12 years and each raises 1 of a set of twin daughters. Major problems here. They haven'e seen each other in 12 years? He has cheated, but thinks she had better not have. 12 years? Just no.
3 stars

Sophie and the Duke - The duke of Helmsworth is having a masquerade ball to find a wife at the bequest of his father's will. Sophie is his childhood best friend, but they haven't seen each other in 15 years. Stolen kiss in the garden. 4 stars

The Duke's Christmas Wish - North, a duke and a scientist/inventor, is having a house party to test a "scientific" theory about couple compatibility. Ivy, who is smart but has no connections, upends his theories. A bit silly, but not bad. 4 stars

One Magic Season - Second chance romance; They loved each other when she had her come out. Her family didn't approve of the class difference. They married other people and both spouses have died. She finds him stranded in his coach in a snowstorm. 4 stars