Say No to the Duke by Eloisa James

Yeah, no. Say No to the Duke disappointed me. Actually, disappointment is putting it lightly. I was actually pretty excited going into this book. It had an interesting premise and I saw a few friends on GR rated it 4 or 5 stars. I’ve never read any of Eloisa James’ books before, so this was a first. Not exactly a great introduction to a new author, ya know? But wow this book fell flat.

At least The Duke and I by Julia Quinn was entertaining and I enjoyed the ride up until That Scene. But Say No to the Duke? Let’s go through the pros and cons, shall we?

Pros:

🌙 Betsy and Jeremy’s relationship dynamic was pretty interesting to some extent.  

🌙 Jeremy. That’s it. Just him. 

🌙 I suppose Betsy was interesting to an extent as well.

Cons: Everything else!

🌙 This book was so damn boring, my God. 

🌙 Interesting premise — too bad James did a poor job executing it. Basically? Nothing happened. I was so hyped to read about Betsy going on this adventure with a super reluctant Jeremy, but we got none of that. Instead, we got — what did we get again? Say No to the Duke is so forgettable that I could care less about trying to remember. 

🌙 Oh, I remember there’s lots of talking! Look, I usually don’t mind talking. Communication is so damn important in relationships. But the conversations these two had were so unsubstantial. They may as well have been talking about paint drying. I fell asleep reading this book. 

🌙 At a point, I got bored of Betsy’s mommy issues because it wasn’t being explored enough. Like, ok? So our darling heroine got bullied.  Where are the actual challenges to Betsy’s beliefs? 

🌙 For someone apparently SO CONCERNED about her reputation, Betsy was alone with Jeremy a lot. Um, excuse me? I thought this was the 18th century where women’s reputations were put on the chopping block for simply staring at men? Say No to the Duke? More like “Say no to Betsy!”

🌙 Oh, let’s not forget the fact that Besty suddenly did the 180 on her beliefs and slept with Jeremy before they got married. So you mean to tell me that without any actual challenges to her beliefs about sex, pleasure, and marriage — Betsy is suddenly ok with premarital sex? Yeah, sure.

Final Word? 

Say No to the Duke by Eloisa James deserves 2 stars and a D+. Personally? I don’t recommend this book.  It’s not worth your time or your money.

Title: Say No to the Duke
Author: Eloisa James
Publisher: Avon
Publication Date:
TW/CW: Sexual content
Synopsis: One little wager will determine their fate—a daring escape or falling into temptation with a rakish lord.

Lady Betsy Wilde’s first season was triumphant by any measure, and a duke has proposed—but before marriage, she longs for one last adventure.

No gentleman would agree to her scandalous plan—but Lord Jeremy Roden is no gentleman. He offers a wager. If she wins a billiards game, he’ll provide the breeches.

If he wins…she is his, for one wild night.

But what happens when Jeremy realizes that one night will never be enough? In the most important battle of his life, he’ll have to convince Betsy to say no to the duke.

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