Aunt Dimity and the Duke

Rating:
Summary: My least favorite of the Aunt Dimity books
Review: After the debut novel, I expected another such book, but this one did not grab me as much as the first book--but I am happy to report that none of the following books disappointed.

The action and the plot did not seem as crisp; the entanglements dangled. YMMV, of course, but I felt this one was not as well polished as the others.

However, it's better than many others I have read, in series where the action became formulaic, and the characters pasteboard icons.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful book in a wonderful series
Review: Although this is the second book of the Dimity series I would recommend reading this one first as it is sort-of an off shoot from the character in the first book Lori - if you read Atherton's first book Aunt Dimity's Death first you sort-of loose some of the excitement of this book but it is still fabulous and fun.

Read them all!

Rating:
Summary: Charming Feminine Gothic Is Delightful Addition to Series
Review: Although this is the second in the charming Aunt Dimity series, it is chronologically the first in the ongoing story of one enchanting English woman who changes lives for the better.

This time we meet homely American computer nerd Emma Porter. She has just been dumped by her longtime beau for a glamorous younger woman. Rather than cancel their planned trip to view the gardens of England, she decides to make the journey solo. An avid gardener herself, she feels this is just the balm her troubled ego needs. She gets far more than she bargained for when a pair of elderly sisters send her to view fabulous gardens owned by a Duke. Before hse has barely set foot on the soil, she finds herself designing the Duke's chapel gardens, preparing for a once-a-century fete, reconnecting a handsome handyman with his two young children, solving the murder of a rock star, and leading the Duke to wed the woman he has desired for years. Meanwhile, Aunt Dimity keeps her finger in the pie and all live happily ever after, or so we surmise.

If you like your mysteries light with a good-natured ghost and love in the air, you'll enjoy this one.

Rating:
Summary: One of the best Dimitys!
Review: Aunt Dimity and the Duke was a GREAT book! Allthough I still think that Aunt Dimity's Death is the best this is a definate second!

Rating:
Summary: A hint of romance and a dash of the paranormal.
Review: Heroine: plump

CompuTech executive Emma Porter, a dumped frump abandoned by her lover of 15 years for a blonde sylph 20 years her junior, is anxious to leave New England for Old England and a long, relaxing vacation among the finest gardens of the world.

Once there, a series of odd coincidences lands the amateur gardener at Cornwall's infamous Penford Hall, where his grace, Grayson Alexander, insists she is the one meant to restore his grandmother's favorite flowerbeds. While there she meets the duke's old friend Derek Harris, widowed earl's son and father of two precocious young children, who was hired by Grayson to renovate the manor and ferret out a missing antique lamp in the process. Derek expresses concern to Emma that his old friend's estate is in terribly fine shape considering that his grace had been left in penury by the late duke. In fact, the Hall and its nearby village appear to have undergone extensive expensive renovations in the very recent past.

But where did the money come from? Was it possible Grayson was dealing in illicit funds? And did it have anything to do with Lex Rex, the punk rocker who met a tragic ending on the duke's yacht, and who turned out to have been penniless himself at the time of his death?

Perhaps only Grayson's super-model cousin Susannah knows the answer, but she's not talking--at least not since an "accident" in the ruins of a nearby castle left her unconscious.

What worked for me:

An avid gardener myself, I'm always keen to read a story that involves flowers.

The mystery kept me turning the pages, as did the sweet romance blossoming between Derek and Emma.

I haven't tried it so can't vouch for it, but the strawberry tart recipe certainly sounds scrumptious.

         Size-wise Emma is full-figured, plump in her own eyes but deliciously curvy in her hero's. In fact, the men in the book seemed to prefer the charms of "hippy" women to that of the willowy super-model-in-residence.

What didn't work for me:

I thought the writing quality fell off a smidge in the middle of the book.

This is the second novel, albeit a prequel, in the Aunt Dimity series, yet she only appeared briefly in the story. In fact, "Aunt Dimity and the Duke" seemed more like "Emma Porter and the Duke's Friend".

Overall:

           A good read for fans of British cozies who like a gardening theme, a hint of romance, and a dash of the paranormal in their stories.

If you liked "Aunt Dimity and the Duke" you might also enjoy "Thornyhold" or "The Dancing Floor".

Rating:
Summary: A hint of romance and a dash of the paranormal.
Review: Heroine: plump

CompuTech executive Emma Porter, a dumped frump abandoned by her lover of 15 years for a blonde sylph 20 years her junior, is anxious to leave New England for Old England and a long, relaxing vacation among the finest gardens of the world.

Once there, a series of odd coincidences lands the amateur gardener at Cornwall's infamous Penford Hall, where his grace, Grayson Alexander, insists she is the one meant to restore his grandmother's favorite flowerbeds. While there she meets the duke's old friend Derek Harris, widowed earl's son and father of two precocious young children, who was hired by Grayson to renovate the manor and ferret out a missing antique lamp in the process. Derek expresses concern to Emma that his old friend's estate is in terribly fine shape considering that his grace had been left in penury by the late duke. In fact, the Hall and its nearby village appear to have undergone extensive expensive renovations in the very recent past.

But where did the money come from? Was it possible Grayson was dealing in illicit funds? And did it have anything to do with Lex Rex, the punk rocker who met a tragic ending on the duke's yacht, and who turned out to have been penniless himself at the time of his death?

Perhaps only Grayson's super-model cousin Susannah knows the answer, but she's not talking--at least not since an "accident" in the ruins of a nearby castle left her unconscious.

What worked for me:

An avid gardener myself, I'm always keen to read a story that involves flowers.

The mystery kept me turning the pages, as did the sweet romance blossoming between Derek and Emma.

I haven't tried it so can't vouch for it, but the strawberry tart recipe certainly sounds scrumptious.

         Size-wise Emma is full-figured, plump in her own eyes but deliciously curvy in her hero's. In fact, the men in the book seemed to prefer the charms of "hippy" women to that of the willowy super-model-in-residence.

What didn't work for me:

I thought the writing quality fell off a smidge in the middle of the book.

This is the second novel, albeit a prequel, in the Aunt Dimity series, yet she only appeared briefly in the story. In fact, "Aunt Dimity and the Duke" seemed more like "Emma Porter and the Duke's Friend".

Overall:

           A good read for fans of British cozies who like a gardening theme, a hint of romance, and a dash of the paranormal in their stories.

If you liked "Aunt Dimity and the Duke" you might also enjoy "Thornyhold" or "The Dancing Floor".

Rating:
Summary: A hint of romance and a dash of the paranormal.
Review: Heroine: plump

CompuTech executive Emma Porter, a dumped frump abandoned by her lover of 15 years for a blonde sylph 20 years her junior, is anxious to leave New England for Old England and a long, relaxing vacation among the finest gardens of the world.

Once there, a series of odd coincidences lands the amateur gardener at Cornwall's infamous Penford Hall, where his grace, Grayson Alexander, insists she is the one meant to restore his grandmother's favorite flowerbeds. While there she meets the duke's old friend Derek Harris, widowed earl's son and father of two precocious young children, who was hired by Grayson to renovate the manor and ferret out a missing antique lamp in the process. Derek expresses concern to Emma that his old friend's estate is in terribly fine shape considering that his grace had been left in penury by the late duke. In fact, the Hall and its nearby village appear to have undergone extensive expensive renovations in the very recent past.

But where did the money come from? Was it possible Grayson was dealing in illicit funds? And did it have anything to do with Lex Rex, the punk rocker who met a tragic ending on the duke's yacht, and who turned out to have been penniless himself at the time of his death?

Perhaps only Grayson's super-model cousin Susannah knows the answer, but she's not talking--at least not since an "accident" in the ruins of a nearby castle left her unconscious.

What worked for me:

An avid gardener myself, I'm always keen to read a story that involves flowers.

The mystery kept me turning the pages, as did the sweet romance blossoming between Derek and Emma.

I haven't tried it so can't vouch for it, but the strawberry tart recipe certainly sounds scrumptious.

         Size-wise Emma is full-figured, plump in her own eyes but deliciously curvy in her hero's. In fact, the men in the book seemed to prefer the charms of "hippy" women to that of the willowy super-model-in-residence.

What didn't work for me:

I thought the writing quality fell off a smidge in the middle of the book.

This is the second novel, albeit a prequel, in the Aunt Dimity series, yet she only appeared briefly in the story. In fact, "Aunt Dimity and the Duke" seemed more like "Emma Porter and the Duke's Friend".

Overall:

           A good read for fans of British cozies who like a gardening theme, a hint of romance, and a dash of the paranormal in their stories.

If you liked "Aunt Dimity and the Duke" you might also enjoy "Thornyhold" or "The Dancing Floor".

Rating:
Summary: Aunt Dimity and the Duke
Review: I read all the Aunt Dimity books. This one was a little slower in the beginning, but once your in, it's a good read. I liked that the main character wasn't Lori Shepard, but rather focuses on her best friend. It helped bring her character to life in the other books. I reccommend reading the whole series.

Rating:
Summary: Aunt Dimity and the Duke
Review: I read all the Aunt Dimity books. This one was a little slower in the beginning, but once your in, it's a good read. I liked that the main character wasn't Lori Shepard, but rather focuses on her best friend. It helped bring her character to life in the other books. I reccommend reading the whole series.

Rating:
Summary: True love, mystery and magic
Review: I read this book when it first came out and thoroughly enjoyed it. I just re-read it again and this gem definitely stood the test of time. I am married now and can see more clearly the deep love that grows between the characters, and I felt totally happy when I finished. I made sure to go find my husband to give him a hug. I also loved one of the action scenes where one of the heroes leaps out into the storm to save the heroine, he trips, and the heroine picks him up to go on. This is no wilted flower that needs to be rescued, just a real woman with the kind of vulnerabilities that we all share. Anyone who likes gardening, a real rip-snorter of a mystery, witty repartee and miracles will love this book