Say Yes to the Duke: The Wildes of Lindow Castle

Written by Eloisa James

Narrated by Susan Duerden

A shy wallflower meets her dream man--or does she?--in the next book in New York Times bestselling author Eloisa James' Wildes of Lindow series.

Miss Viola Astley is so painfully shy that she’s horrified by the mere idea of dancing with a stranger; her upcoming London debut feels like a nightmare.

So she’s overjoyed to meet handsome, quiet vicar with no interest in polite society — but just when she catches his attention, her reputation is compromised by a duke.

Devin Lucas Augustus Elstan, Duke of Wynter, will stop at nothing to marry Viola, including marrying a woman whom he believes to be in love with another man.

A vicar, no less.

Devin knows he’s no saint, but he’s used to conquest, and he’s determined to win Viola’s heart.

Viola has already said Yes to his proposal, but now he wants her unruly heart…and he won’t accept No for an answer.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperAudio
• Release date: May 19, 2020
• ISBN: 9780063017290

Eloisa James

Eloisa James is a USA Today and New York Times bestselling author and professor of English literature, who lives with her family in New York, but can sometimes be found in Paris or Italy. She is the mother of two and, in a particularly delicious irony for a romance writer, is married to a genuine Italian knight.

Reviews for Say Yes to the Duke

[NNEAMAKA PAYNE · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Yet another of the Lindow castle novel this young lady has earned her way through life. Gaining the most usual lesson in life as she was growing up. Apart from the other painful memory that her past left with her. She is indeed the best as it comes. The excellent ending she follows her heart and she will be loved for all time and desired by the right man.

Viola Astley, The Duke of Lindow’s stepdaughter has been raised as a Wilde but never felt that she fit in. Unlike her bold and outgoing siblings, Viola is shy and timid, so shy and timid, that she makes herself ill and has on numerous occasions cast up her accounts, like the time when she was 15 and interrupted an amorous couple in the servant's hall and caused the man to fly into a rage when he assumed his lover was trying to trap him, he bellowed at the woman and left – the woman who was indeed trying to trap him then screamed at Viola – who promptly lost her lunch on the woman’s hem. It was then that Viola realized she might never marry. Years pass and Viola’s fears only grow worse, she avoids social events as much as possible and has become a wallflower, she is sure she will be a spinster. But all that changes when Viola falls in love with the duke’s new vicar, Mr. Marlowe. Too bad he is already betrothed…

Devin Lucas Augustus Elstan, the Duke of Wynter is fighting with his cousin Otis, Otis has told Devin that he has changed his mind, he doesn’t want to be a vicar anymore, and that he is going to travel abroad and find an heiress to wed. Devin convinces him to stay until they find another vicar, he also mentions that he is playing on marrying – he has already chosen his bride, Lady Joan Wilde. Otis warns that he will have a lot of competition, but Devin isn’t worried, he wants Joan and he gets what he wants.

Viola hatches a plan, she needs to get over her shyness (a task that Joan is helping her with) and show Mr. Marlowe that she is the perfect wife for him. She arranges a meeting in the library on the night of her debut ball. But when she arrives in the library, it is already occupied – she hides and hears Devin and his uncle talking – Sir Reginald tells Devin that Viola would be the perfect bride for him – Devin disagrees, he says that she isn’t really a Wilde and that she is a timid mouse. His uncle tells him he is wrong and that if he wants to get technical – Lady Joan isn’t a Wilde either. Devin doesn’t care, he wants Joan At, end of the story. When his uncle leaves, Mr. Marlowe arrives and Viola comes out of hiding. She makes comments that let Devin know that she heard him talking about her. Devin sends Mr. Marlowe away and escorts Viola back to the ball, on the way she gives him a proper set down and Devin admits that she is not the mouse he thought she was, intrigued he askes to escort her to supper – NO and she fobs him off on another woman he criticized.

Devin realizes his uncle was right, Lady Joan is not right for him, but Viola is perfect. He sets out to win her away from the vicar by means fair or foul. Even if he has to take advice from his cousin Otis, even if he has to woo her, even if he has to hire Mr. Marlowe away from the duke. But winning her is only part of it, soon he realizes he wants it all, her body, her heart, and her love, a task made harder when he learns that he is the man that terrified her all those years ago…

I have enjoyed all the books in this series, but I LOVED this book, it is a well-written, delightful, uncomplicated, squeamish read with wonderful characters and plenty of witty banter. Devin is a wonderful hero with a troubled childhood and fears of being unstable like his father and Viola wrestles with feelings of unworthiness and feeling like she doesn’t belong. I just love how together they learn to move on and find happiness. If you are looking for a fun, lighthearted read, look no further, this is that book.

This is the fifth book in the series, but it can easily be read as a stand-alone title. I highly recommend this series and this title especially.

[jorgeousjotts · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This didn't absorb my attention and delight me as much as I'd like, but several times something would come up and I would assume that the secret would of course come out at the worst possible moment, or that the thing would be horribly misconstrued, etc. to fuel drama, and then it ended up resolving much more reasonably. So I appreciate that.

[jennybeast · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Still loving the Wildes, and their wonderful, wacky adventures. This book centers on the quietest of the Wildes, a girl so shy that she throws up from nerves on social occasions. Such a good new family comes with the love interest, and I'm excited to see if more comes from that connection.

Advanced Reader's Copy provided by Edelweiss.

[stefaniegeeks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I absolutely adored this addition to James's Wildes of Lindow Castle series. Every additional title to this romantic regency series has been consistently better than the last. The whole Wilde family is delightful and their dynamics are as hilarious as their love stories are steamy. This is the perfect series to start for fans of Julie Quinn's Bridgerton family series.

[jamiem12 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I have not laughed so hard

[whiskeyinthejar-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

3.3 stars I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.In the fifth Wildes of Lindow Castle series, Viola, who is the duke's stepdaughter is making her debut into society. She's the extremely shy one, who pukes when she gets nervous, and just rather become a wallflower. Viola's nervousness comes from feeling like she isn't a true Wilde, because of her 'step' status. I'm new to the series and found I had no problem jumping in here, in fact, I wish there had been more scenes with Viola and the Wilde family. She spends a lot of time with her sister, Joan who is also debuting but I wish we could have seen her with her mother and especially stepfather to get some heartfelt scenes where he explains that he feels she is his daughter, no 'step' to it. He had found a treasure in the Lindow library, and he merely had to win it away from a vicar. How hard could that be?When Viola meets the new vicar, she can't believe how handsome he is and how she feels comfortable around him, so she decides that he is who she should marry, even though the vicar is already engaged. This issue was handled a bit unwieldy where the vicar's fiancee is uptight and has an offputting personality, so Viola feels vindicated in “saving” the vicar from the fiancee and the story kind of stays away from judging Viola for going after him. Our hero the Duke of Wynter, Devin, comes into the picture when Viola overhears him saying he wants her sister for a wife because Viola isn't a true Wilde. Devin doesn't make the best first impression, to Viola or readers, but from the first conversation he has with Viola, his character comes alive. Then he thought about the way her eyes sparkled when she scolded him. It was an outlandish thing to find attractive.I really enjoyed the first half, these two had good byplay and the way Devin kept trying to grasp Viola as she flittered away kept me locked in. These two had some sweet moments and I do think their journey to love, especially Viola, Devin falls first, came across in the pages but the second half slowed way down for me. There were long scenes of them just focused on the wanting to kiss and just when I was starting to really delight in them, sex scenes took over and I lost some of their good conversational play. “No one would have arranged a marriage between us, which I think is to our benefit. And I think you would be a marvelous duchess.” Her eyes were shocked, so Devin added firmly, “I am going to woo you.”I also thought the second half spent too much time focused on the vicar's romantic troubles; it really felt like the author ran out of steam for the main couple so moved onto the vicar. Even though Viola and Devin had pleasing chemistry, I still felt like Devin wasn't developed enough. He had an abusive father, lost his mother young, and then had an uncle and two cousins for his only family. It is also brought up that he likes, is good at math but so little was done with this, I'm not sure why it was even included. These were plot points to his character but he still only felt sketched out, like I said, he does come alive more in Viola's presence but when we lose them in the second half, he becomes even less memorable. He was in love with his wife, desperately, wildly in love with his wife, and she was telling him that he was the reason for the greatest anguish she’d ever experienced.The beginning half was sweet but when I was really starting to sink into the story and enjoy the couple together, the second half slowed down, had more sex scenes than the conversational byplay I was delighting in, and focused more on a side character's romance issues. I think some emotional moments were missed on not having scenes with Viola and her stepfather and even more with her step-siblings. I do think Viola will reach the heart of some who never feel they quite belong or feel dull in the presence of others who shine so effortlessly; it was lovely to see Viola, who feels that way, become the shining star in Devin's universe.

[madison_fairbanks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Say Yes to the Duke by Eloisa James5th book in The Wildes of Lindow Castle series. Historical romance. Can be read as a stand-alone. Lighthearted and often amusing. I did a lot of smiling while reading this book. The heroine went from timid to confident while their relationship went from confrontational to passionate. I fell in love with both the heroine for her heart and the hero for his protectiveness and patience. Plus the two together get a little randy in their courtship which is unexpected from their characters as first portrayed. I also love this author’s intellectual level of writing. I always have to look up several words in the dictionary. Sure, you can discern the meaning usually by the sentence but her writing is filled with amazingly Obsequious language. Don’t be put off by this. As I said, it’s understood by the sentence structure. This struck me as the perfect extract: “His uncle guffawed.” Not a word used often but it creates a vivid image. An auto buy author for me even though historical romance is not typically a favorite genre.

[n.w.moors-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Wildes of Lindow Castle is a fun series, revolving around a Duke who has roughly ten children (some are adopted). Viola is one of the daughters whose mother is the Duke's third wife (she was two years old when they married). She's never considered herself really a Wilde as she is shy, unlike most of the family. Devin, Duke of Wynter, is ready to marry and sets his sights on Joan, Viola's sister, until he meets Viola who is the opposite of everything he thought he wanted.It's a quick read with some good funny moments. The secondary romance where Viola decides that maybe the new vicar might be a suitable husband provides for an interesting side story. It's a Georgian romance in the style of Georgette Heyer and a nice contribution to a good series.

[joana_v_v · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Review originally published at Romancing Romances.I received an eARC at no cost from the publisher, and I am leaving a voluntary and honest review. Thank you.I have a feeling my opinion is going to be very different than most people’s, regarding this book.I really like Eloisa James’ books, but this one suffers from the same problem of a book I’ve also read very, very recently. The plot is almost inexistent. Hey, if that’s your thing, great! It’s a light, fun, sexy book. But I warn you, the secondary characters have a more detailed story than the main ones.Some people described this story as enemies to lovers. I don’t actually agree with that, as I don’t consider Viola and Devin to have been enemies at any point. She might have disliked him slightly in the beginning, but that changed so quickly that I can’t consider this an enemies to lovers trope. In fact, I’m having a hard time defining a trope for it at all.I liked Devin and Viola just fine – they were fun, Devin comes down from his high horse (hello Duke!), and Viola becomes more sure of herself throughout the book. And they have very romantic, loving, sexy, I would even say hot times, but… that’s it. I reached 90% of the book and just thought: “well, there’s nothing else of value happening now”, and I was right.So… this isn’t a bad book, or anything similar. Eloisa’s great writing skills definitely show through the book, but the plot was somewhat lacking. If you’re looking for a light, fun, simply entertaining book, that this is a great choice. Just don’t expect anything else.

[eyes92c · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Viola comes into her own!Where to start! This had it all!There's the explosive beginning--in more ways than one. At fifteen Viola Astley, the stepdaughter of Hugo Wilde, Duke of Lindow, attends her first ball. A disaster! Unable to contain her nervous nausea Viola (the overlooked Wilde) seeks a quick exit only to catch a couple in flagrante delicto, and "empties her stomach" all over the paramour. (Of course there's more going on in this scene on many levels). That awful experience colors Viola's outlook.From then on public functions have been the bane of her life, leaving her exhausted and cowered, slipping around the edges of gatherings, invisible and lost to all. Viola, is the much overlooked painfully shy heroine--except when she isn't! And then she's so much more! Some very amusing scenes featuring animals tell a different tale.Viola feels she just can't compare to her extroverted siblings, they're bold and outrageous--she's quiet, they're tall and dark, she's small and timid. "She was the complete opposite of a Wilde." In fact "her earliest memories were defined by feeling 'not Wilde.'" And here Viola becomes stuck in her 'not Wilde' mantra, a defining of herself that makes her self image so much less.Three years later Viola has to suffer her come out, a daunting prospect that leaves her sick with fear. However all that changes when she falls in love. Viola has fixed her affections on the new vicar Mr. Marlowe, never mind that he's engaged to the opinionated Miss Pettigrew. Here's a little conundrum that deters Viola not in the least!Devin Lucas Augustus Elstan, Duke of Wynter, who's generally thought to be cold and arrogant needs to take a wife. He pins his sights on Joan Wilde but it's Viola (the not a Wilde) who challenges him. An unexpected meeting in the library between Devin and Viola during the ball opens the way for a divergence of thought for the reclusive Duke. Unknowingly Viola has interested Devin, whose defence before the world is an eyebrow lift and a quelling demeanour. Viola, who's used to such dukely ways is not impressed and gives back as much as she gets.As this engaging story evolves, Viola comes into her own, Mr. Marlowe turns up trumps and the Duke, well he becomes less dukely. A fab Regency Romp' witty, humorous and fun.As I've stated many times, I just love the Wildes!!!A HarperCollins ARC via NetGalley

[bintarab-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I received a copy of this book through the Goodreads giveaway program.The story was easy to read and mostly diverting. The title is awful and brings up the image of the "reality show" Say Yes to the Dress, a jarring anachronism. The female lead is a bit different from most of these romances in that she is not (usually) a confident, headstrong, self-possessed 19-year-old girl (until she needs to be to move the story along). Also unusual for these historical romances is the time period (1770s England). The descriptions of sexual arousal were unique and titillating, except for one ludicrous scene that take place in a china closet full of china (!), with the female lead straddling her new husband as he crouches on the floor, the two of them having hearty sex while they eavesdrop on a conversation taking place in the sitting room on the other side of the closet door which they left slightly ajar. This scene was too ridiculous to be exciting. The conversation was stilted and had so much 21st century character that it disrupted the 'fictive dream.' It read a bit like a play written by high school kids. As I mentioned, it's easy to read, probably workable as a beach read (you could even lose or ruin the book and it would be no great loss), and the reader can supply much of the pathos needed to make this book interesting. I wouldn't buy this book, it's really not good enough to justify spending money on.~bintP.S. This story includes explicit descriptions of sex.

[readinggeek451 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Well-written, well-characterized, sexy, and fun. In other words, a typical Eloisa James novel.