Eloisa James - The Ugly Duchess

Author: Eloisa James

Title: The Ugly Duchess (Fairy Tales #4)

Language: English

Format: ebook

Rating: 3 stars

Reading challenge: A book from a list 101 or 1001 books to read before you die

No of pages: 343

Date read: 28.10.2017

Goodreads

BLURB:

Theodora Saxby is the last woman anyone expects the gorgeous James Ryburn, heir to the Duchy of Ashbrook, to marry. But after a romantic proposal before the prince himself, even practical Theo finds herself convinced of her soon-to-be duke's passion. Still, the tabloids give the marriage six months. Theo would have given it a lifetime . . . until she discovers that James desires not her heart, and certainly not her countenance, but her dowry.
Society was shocked by their wedding, but it's scandalized by their separation. James heads to sea where he becomes a notorious pirate, and Theo builds their estate into a flourishing concern. Back from the seas, a scandalous tattoo of a poppy under one eye, James now faces the battle of his lifetime: convincing Theo that he loved the duckling who blossomed into the swan. Theo will quickly find that for a man with the soul of a pirate, all's fair in love - or war.

I actually made a slight .. correction of sorts to the challenge's name as I felt like reading a romance and found THIS list where this particular book is featured. It looked like an OK read and I quite liked the sample as well. Unfortunately, though, it would seem that I liked the beginning more than the ending.

I liked how the hero and the heroine were genuine friends and how there was this genuine, yet somewhat unexpected, attraction between them in the first part ... sure, it was supposed to disappear since they spent YEARS apart, but due to the fact that they were apart for years in the middle of the book, I couldn't really get into their relationship once they met again. 

There was some animosity and it looked like they got back together mostly due to their physical attraction, not due to the fact that they particularly cared for one another. I wanted to see more talking and communicating, because they way Eloisa James left things was something like this*:  

James: "Grr, I'm a mean pirate. I want and love you."
Theo: "Oh no! You will not have me."
James: "I spent years apart pilfering and pirating and shit, but when one of those men almost cut my throat I remembered that I have a wife whom I love."
Theo: "You don't love me. We spent years apart. I don't even know you!"
James: "Let me prove it to you by walking around naked and bathing you."
Theo: "I love you. Let's stay together forever."

Give me a break and give me some emotional connection instead! Thank you very much.

* not real quotes from the book