Book Review (and a Giveaway!): The Duke’s Last Hunt by Rosanne E. Lortz

With her third London season drawing to a close, the shy Eliza Malcolm seems unlikely to find any husband, let alone a titled one. But when the hunting-crazed Duke of Brockenhurst invites the Malcolms to visit Harrowhaven, Eliza’s father jumps at the chance to gain a wealthy son-in-law. Surrounded by quarreling parents, tactless acquaintances, the aloof dowager, and the unsettling duke, Eliza looks for one person kind enough to help her navigate the murky waters of Harrowhaven’s secrets….

Estranged from his brother the duke, Henry Rowland only planned to visit Harrowhaven for the afternoon, but after meeting his brother’s intended, his designs are overthrown. As misfortune strikes Harrowhaven, Jacob Pevensey is called in to investigate. Henry learns that the only way to safeguard Eliza Malcolm’s happiness is to face the past he has been running from for ten long years.

GENRE: Regency Fiction, Mystery
PUBLISHER: Madison Street Publishing
RELEASE DATE: September 1, 2016
PAGES: 348

The Duke’s Last Hunt by Rosanne E. Lortz reminded me in many ways of a Georgette Heyer novel, with its subtle wit and its tone that is cozy and light but also serious when appropriate. As early as the first page, I was chuckling at lines such as:

“Lady Malcolm sniffed. Eliza recognized it as the sniff of longsuffering, somewhere in between the sniff of bearing one another’s burdens and the sniff of embracing one’s calling to living martyrdom.”

The characters in The Duke’s Last Hunt are well-developed and intriguing, and I spent most of the book trying to figure out exactly who was hiding what secrets and how it impacted everything else.  Henry and Eliza are an unlikely match, at least at first glance, and although their blossoming romance is mostly relegated to kisses on the hand and words spoken in low affectionate tones there is something infinitely swoonworthy about it all the same.

The added element of suspense elevates this novel above a typical Regency romance and keeps reader interest engaged. I enjoyed it at face value, the twists and turns well-plotted and well-timed. But when I got to the author’s note at the end of the novel and discovered that she’d in fact set out to take characters and events from the Middle Ages and transpose them into the British Regency era, I became even more intrigued and now want to go back and read The Duke’s Last Hunt all over again.

Bottom Line: With engaging characters, droll wit, and delightful suspense, The Duke’s Last Hunt is a perfect book selection for a cozy fall read.  The Regency era comes alive in atmosphere, dialogue, and decorum, and the romance is sweet and swoony.  If you enjoy Sarah Ladd or Julie Klassen or Georgette Heyer, I think you’ll enjoy this book as well!

(I received a copy of this book in exchange for only my honest review.)

My Rating: 4 stars / Loved it!

KissingBook Level: 2 / Warm rosy glow of sweetness

Rosanne E. Lortz (“Rose”) is a history lover, a book addict, a mom to four boys, and a native of Portland, Oregon. When she’s not writing, she teaches Latin and English composition and works as an editor at Madison Street Publishing.

Rosanne’s works include I Serve: A Novel of the Black Prince, Road from the West: Book I of the Chronicles of Tancred, The Life and Death of Saint Thomas Becket: Type of Paul, Type of Peter, Type of Christ, Castles, Customs, and Kings: True Tales by English Historical Fiction Authors (Vol 1 & 2), To Wed an Heiress, and the upcoming The Duke’s Last Hunt.

For more information please visit Rosanne E. Lortz’s website. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

Other Books by Rosanne E. Lortz

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The Duke's Last Hunt