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A review by justinkhchen
The Taming of the Duke by Eloisa James
3.0
3.5 stars
(Review after commentary)
A Guy Reading Historical Romance | Ep01
➵ A Commentary Track
This is an experiment. Inspired Mystery Science Theater 3000, I'll be keeping track of my random reactions and tangential thoughts as I venture into this unfamiliar genre. There WILL be spoilers, so proceed with caution. Will be consisted of older titles published prior to 2010. Sponsored by my local thrift stores.
❈✢❈
00 Cover: Does the man-boby need help (un)dressing? The disembodied hands emerging from the shadow are a bit creepy; will there be horror element in this story? This looks like a rough sketch for a final illustration; did someone forget their deadline?
01 CH2: Introducing the male characters' physique through a house of mirror sequence is quite brilliant (and vain!)
02 So you're telling me, we have 2 brothers from different mothers, born only days apart, with identical features that can pass as twin... their father must've been busy spreading his (very strong) genes
03 CH5: A nightgown that is 'so pale that it resembles the inside of a baby's ear.' That sounds gross (see what I did there?)
04 Talk about an eyeful for first impression! (boob sighting #1)
05 CH9: A character is asking for a very dry toast, without butter, for breakfast. It's actually making me thirsty (taking a sip from my mug)
06 ...And now she's buttering it 3 pages later... what's the point of this detail?! Kept me hydrated though
07 CH10: Our heroine has a thigh fetish (+ dick sighting #1)
08 CH12: 'In the crook of his arm was a red-haired urchin with a toothless grin.' Did this just turn into a monster sci-fi novel? Had to quickly Google to make sure I absolutely know what an urchin is (and no, I still can't relate it to a cute, red-haired baby) *Edit: so, according to Merriam-Webster, 'urchin' DOES have the following definition: mischievous and often poor and raggedly clothed youngster
09 CH15: Currently we have a crisscross situation, where our 4 main characters (2M/2F) are secretly infatuated with one another, AND now they are now assigning roles to the play they are putting together. Never would I anticipate the need to take notes reading historical romance
10 One of the character has a foaling mare—so I ended up watching YouTube videos of horses giving birth... Mother Nature is incredible
11 The reformed alcoholic finally recovers... his sex drive
12 CH18: In all honesty though, I'm actually really enjoying this story
12 CH19: What's on the menu for our characters: stuffed calf's heart, fried liver, pigeon pie, mutton leg, green peas. I can tolerate all except the heart dish... but a quick Google search reveals it actually doesn't look that offensive
13 CH25: 'The theater is packed now, every seat filled with someone's bottom.' Do we really need that second part about butts?
14 CH27: Not only is our reformed alcoholic male lead sexually active again, he also manages to lose his gut and becomes fit and 'lean' in a few weeks. People must have great metabolism back then
15 CH29: I get it, he has a big dick, stop reminding me
❈✢❈
Unbalanced silly fun that wears its Shakespearean reference on its sleeves.
The Taming of the Duke is essentially a farce about false identity, and despise-to-love relationship. While it is never boring, the last quarter of the book feels rushed, jam-packed with major plot developments written away in few paragraphs; one would've wished Eloisa James had found a way to distribute the momentum more evenly. Even though the book is about the blossoming relationships between 4 people, it is evident one pairing gets the short end of the stick; their story is fragmented and barely featured in the spotlight, leaving the happily-after outcome hollow and unearned.
The book features a main character as an alcoholic on his path to sobriety, but don't mistake The Taming of the Duke for anything realistic or enlightening; it is just a decent dose of casual reading with witty prose and tenderly rendered character moments, and I'm content with what's provided here.
(Review after commentary)
A Guy Reading Historical Romance | Ep01
➵ A Commentary Track
This is an experiment. Inspired Mystery Science Theater 3000, I'll be keeping track of my random reactions and tangential thoughts as I venture into this unfamiliar genre. There WILL be spoilers, so proceed with caution. Will be consisted of older titles published prior to 2010. Sponsored by my local thrift stores.
❈✢❈
00 Cover: Does the man-boby need help (un)dressing? The disembodied hands emerging from the shadow are a bit creepy; will there be horror element in this story? This looks like a rough sketch for a final illustration; did someone forget their deadline?
01 CH2: Introducing the male characters' physique through a house of mirror sequence is quite brilliant (and vain!)
02 So you're telling me, we have 2 brothers from different mothers, born only days apart, with identical features that can pass as twin... their father must've been busy spreading his (very strong) genes
03 CH5: A nightgown that is 'so pale that it resembles the inside of a baby's ear.' That sounds gross (see what I did there?)
04 Talk about an eyeful for first impression! (boob sighting #1)
05 CH9: A character is asking for a very dry toast, without butter, for breakfast. It's actually making me thirsty (taking a sip from my mug)
06 ...And now she's buttering it 3 pages later... what's the point of this detail?! Kept me hydrated though
07 CH10: Our heroine has a thigh fetish (+ dick sighting #1)
08 CH12: 'In the crook of his arm was a red-haired urchin with a toothless grin.' Did this just turn into a monster sci-fi novel? Had to quickly Google to make sure I absolutely know what an urchin is (and no, I still can't relate it to a cute, red-haired baby) *Edit: so, according to Merriam-Webster, 'urchin' DOES have the following definition: mischievous and often poor and raggedly clothed youngster
09 CH15: Currently we have a crisscross situation, where our 4 main characters (2M/2F) are secretly infatuated with one another, AND now they are now assigning roles to the play they are putting together. Never would I anticipate the need to take notes reading historical romance
10 One of the character has a foaling mare—so I ended up watching YouTube videos of horses giving birth... Mother Nature is incredible
11 The reformed alcoholic finally recovers... his sex drive
12 CH18: In all honesty though, I'm actually really enjoying this story
12 CH19: What's on the menu for our characters: stuffed calf's heart, fried liver, pigeon pie, mutton leg, green peas. I can tolerate all except the heart dish... but a quick Google search reveals it actually doesn't look that offensive
13 CH25: 'The theater is packed now, every seat filled with someone's bottom.' Do we really need that second part about butts?
14 CH27: Not only is our reformed alcoholic male lead sexually active again, he also manages to lose his gut and becomes fit and 'lean' in a few weeks. People must have great metabolism back then
15 CH29: I get it, he has a big dick, stop reminding me
❈✢❈
Unbalanced silly fun that wears its Shakespearean reference on its sleeves.
The Taming of the Duke is essentially a farce about false identity, and despise-to-love relationship. While it is never boring, the last quarter of the book feels rushed, jam-packed with major plot developments written away in few paragraphs; one would've wished Eloisa James had found a way to distribute the momentum more evenly. Even though the book is about the blossoming relationships between 4 people, it is evident one pairing gets the short end of the stick; their story is fragmented and barely featured in the spotlight, leaving the happily-after outcome hollow and unearned.
The book features a main character as an alcoholic on his path to sobriety, but don't mistake The Taming of the Duke for anything realistic or enlightening; it is just a decent dose of casual reading with witty prose and tenderly rendered character moments, and I'm content with what's provided here.