I received this book for free from Netgalley in order to prepare an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

FINAL DECISION: A hard book for me to get started reading because of the violence in the first chapter, I started and stopped the book several times. But I’m so glad that I continued the book. Is there darkness? Yes, but utimately, this is a book of strength and prevailing over the darkness for both the hero and the heroine.

THE STORY:  Lady Alexandra Lane has built a life for herself. When one of her best friends asks for her help, Alexandra rushes to her. She meets her friend’s intended fiance, Piers Gedrick Atherton, the Duke of Redmayne. In a twist, Alexandra ends up proposing a deal with Piers, they will marry and Alexandra’s family will be saved and he will have heirs as his revenge against his cousin and the woman Piers loved but who betrayed him. But their respective pasts cause problems between them.

OPINION: I really loved the relationship between Alexandra and Piers. These two people are almost undone by their pasts. But each are intelligent and compassionate people and find a way to close the distance between them. At times dark, the relationship between the two is surprisingly sweet.

Alexandra is a woman trying to deal with her violation in a time when there was little support and much condemnation for women. She has managed to build a life for herself. Brilliant, she has gotten a doctorate in archaeology. She has traveled the world and made a career when such things were frowned upon. What she hasn’t been able to do is have any romantic entanglements. Until she meets Piers…

Piers is struggling with trust issues especially related to unfaithful women, so he does not react well to Alexandra’s secrets. And yet, he ends up being a wonderful guy, thoughtful and caring and, most importantly, he appreciates Alexandra. I especially loved how he recognizes his own selfishness and turns on a dime to support Alexandra.

Stories built upon misunderstandings, when one character keeps a secret that could be resolved by just telling the truth are not my favorite, but it works here because I understand why Alexandra keeps her secrets.

I thought that with difficult subject matter, this book did extremely well in representing both Alexandra and Piers’ viewpoints. It was nuanced and blunt and depicted the pain and lasting damage done by sexual assault.

WORTH MENTIONING: This book depicts and has as a central part of the story, the rape of the heroine (not by the hero).

CONNECTED BOOKS: HOW TO LOVE A DUKE IN TEN DAYS is the first book in the Devil You Know series.

STAR RATING: I give this book 5 stars.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley. I was not required to write a review or to write a positive review. All opinions contained herein are my own.