After Dark with the Duke: The Palace of Rogues: 4

There are so many positive reviews for this book - I don't know how much I can add. I loved this book - but I would be remiss if I didn't point out that the titular Duke is a thinly-veiled, heavily fictionalized version of the Duke of Wellington, the conquerer of the conquerer of the world. His consequence cannot be overstated (I know, I know, it's fiction, but COME ON!!!) It didn't really bother me, but it does tend to put the Duke of Well...(oops!) Valkirk, far beyond the reach of our little opera singer, setting up most of the conflict facing our lovers. Also, the heroin Marianna is 18 years younger than Well... (oops!) Valkirk, but as improbable as it may be, love finds a way. Once our couple face their feelings, there follows some of the most lusciously and satisfying scenes of lovemaking I've ever read. Of course there is lovely sex, hot but not too explicit (we all know what goes where and why, no need to belabor it), but more importantly, they talk! We are not privy to every word, but we get the sense they spoke of all the large and small things that make up a life. I just loved how they opened themselves to each other.In due course, there is a very sweet happy ending... butSPOILERI have to admit, I really wanted Marianna to go to Paris. Artists in Paris were always more celebrated and appreciated than they were in England. I wanted her to get her shot, even if the HEA got postponed.

(4.5 stars) I've been whining lately that HRs which appeal to me are as scarce as unicorns. Well, look at this new JAL novel. It's all sparkly, with rainbows and lollipops and flowers all around it. (And is that a horn I see sticking up somewhere?) Yep. This is a good one. Now I can feel okay about my decision to keep reading historical romance in spite of striking out nine times out of ten in my reads.And I really shouldn't like this all that much. It has two things against it. (1) The setting is still that Grand Palace boardinghouse on the Thames, for the fourth straight book. When I reviewed book #3 of this series I had complained (yeah, I complain a lot) about being bored with the boardinghouse and wanted JAL to move on to a new series and a new setting. And (2) there's an age gap here between our H and h that's above the limit I prefer. He's 43 and she is 25. That's all well and good for the here and now but I think about HEAs and forevers and see, down the road a few years, the H's need for (non-existent-at-the-time) Viagra, and, even further down the forever road, a relatively spry 72-year-old wife taking care of a much older 90-year-old husband. But then, this is book fantasy world so I need to ignore those nagging thoughts and enjoy that here-and-now romance.In spite of the 18-year age gap, the H and h seem to be well matched here. In the first place, the h, Mariana Wylde, is an opera singer and no virginal, innocent miss that an older hero might be tempted to call "Little One." (An endearment that I always hated in Georgette Heyer's THESE OLD SHADES.) No, Mariana Wylde has lived on her own in the world, has become a popular opera singer and has even taken lovers. The only problem in her life at the moment is that her ex-lover has recently fought a duel over her and she is the one left with the tarnished reputation and the epithet "Harlot of Haywood Street," with no job and no money and nowhere to live.In desperation, she heads to the Grand Palace on the Thames to hide herself away, and our two exceptional and beloved owners ("beloved" assuming you've read the first books of the series) agree to her staying there for free room and board in exchange for her giving a one-night concert in their new ballroom a month down the road.Meanwhile, we have 43-year-old General James Blackmore, Duke of Valkirk, also a boarder there. He's also hiding away, in a manner of speaking, trying to overcome his writer's block and get his memoirs written with no distractions. Valkirk is handsome and very well put together for his age (must have that, ya know, for our sexy times) but is also very honorable and strict and straitlaced. From the get-go he does not approve of Mariana, having preconceived ideas about her from all the gossip which surrounds her.And there you go. The plot is simple, the outcome assured, but it's the getting to the HEA that's so very lovely and satisfying. And the writing is superb. Julie Anne Long is, for me, one of the top Queens of Swoony Romance and always has been, since her first book in 2004. She develops her characters excellently, even the secondary ones, in so much more depth than most HR authors. She writes with humor. Her dialogue sparkles. She makes me believe in love, not groan at the sappiness of it. And when she writes intimate scenes, they fit in with the overall relationship and add to it, rather than feeling like tacked on pages of sex for titillation purposes.All in all, this may not be perfect but it's getting 5 stars from me because it's far and away better than anything else I've read lately. And now I'm looking forward to the next JAL release, whenever that may be. Thanks to Ms Long, I still believe in romance novels.

Easily one of the best romance books I’ve ever read.The Duke of Valkirk is truly one of a kind.5 stars

FINAL DECISION: Oh, I loved this one! Emotional with lots of longing and (not too dark) angst. This combined with the beautiful lyricism of Long's writing makes this an example of the reason I'm a big fan of Julie Anne Long's books.THE STORY: Fleeing to the Palace on the Thames, Mariana Wylde is considered a harlot as an opera singer who had a duel fought by two men for her favor. Almost penniless and desperate to hide from gossip and those who want her to pay for her part in the duel. The proprietresses of the Palace see an opportunity to promote the Palace and also to help Mariana's reputation. At the Palace is also General James Duncan Blackmore, the Duke of Valkirk, honorable and deeply respected. A self-made man who gained his own title, Valkirk initially scorns the scandalous opera singer but finds himself drawn to a woman he finds to be intelligent and deeply vulnerable.OPINION: In the story of Mariana and James, the series gets a fantastic emotional story. What is not to love about the self-made Duke who always does what is right and proper and the woman who has found herself on the seedy side of society's judgment. The slow entanglement of these two was deeply satisfying.The Duke is almost twenty years older than Mariana and is a widower with a son who is already an adult. He has structured his life as being proper and above reproach. Now he has reached a midlife crisis of a sort and is having trouble writing his memoirs. His meeting of Mariana changes his life. He finds a new purpose and a threat to his perfectly organized life. The gentle way in which Long demonstrates how James changes throughout the story is what makes her such a great writer.Mariana's past is something that she doesn't apologize for. She recognizes her mistakes but doesn't enter into society's condemnation of herself -- and neither do the owners of the Palace. Her story is one of self-acceptance and accepting her mistakes.One thing I really enjoy about this book is that the story is concentrated between these two characters. By centering both of these characters in the Palace, there is an ability for them to spend time together and grapple with their relationship. This is a great device that allows Long to avoid many of the expected interactions between a stuffy proper Duke and the opera singer. The domestic setting allows the book to avoid the setups for Mariana and James to meet and instead allows the story to focus intently on their relationship.I loved this book because of the emotional resonance of the characters and how deeply invested I became in their relationship.WORTH MENTIONING: One thing I love about this series is following the development of the Palace itself. I'm rooting for it to succeed as the Palace itself is a central character in this series.CONNECTED BOOKS: AFTER DARK WITH THE DUKE is the fourth book in the Palace of Rogues series. This book can be read as a standalone although there are characters that appear in other books.STAR RATING: I give this book 5 stars.

I purchased this book on the good reviews I read...unfortunately I felt at times I must have been reading the wrong book..it was dull boring and for me very hard going and not very believable....how it got those 4 and 5 stars is a mystery to me I normally do like Julie Anne Long ..