The Duke of Shadows by Meredith Duran Review

In a debut romance as passionate and sweeping as the British Empire, Meredith Duran paints a powerful picture of an aristocrat torn between two worlds, an heiress who dares to risk everything…and the love born in fire and darkness that nearly destroys them.

From exotic sandstone palaces…

Sick of tragedy, done with rebellion, Emmaline Martin vows to settle quietly into British Indian society. But when the pillars of privilege topple, her fiancé’s betrayal leaves Emma no choice. She must turn for help to the one man whom sheuld not trust, but cannot resist: Julian Sinclair, the dangerous and dazzling heir to the Duke of Auburn.

To the marble halls of London…

In London, they toast Sinclair with champagne. In India, they call him a traitor. Cynical and impatient with both worlds, Julian has never imagined that the place he might belong is in the embrace of a woman with a reluctant laugh and haunted eyes. But in a time of terrible darkness, he and Emma will discover that love itself can be perilous — and that a single decision can alter one’s life forever.

Destiny follows wherever you run.

A lifetime of grief later, in a cold London spring, Emma and Julian must finally confront the truth: no matter how hard one tries to deny it, some pasts cannot be disowned…and some passions never die. (less)

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So this what a book hangover feels like?! I have finished this book days ago and I still can’t let go of it. I had to google how to get rid of a book hangover but nothing worked, I mourned with Ashlee who seems to be just as lost as me, tried other books to abandon after a few chapters.

One word for this book, GEM.

This novel is uplifting and heart-wrenching at the same time. The writing is faultless, the imagery incredible and the connection between our lovers scorching.

As I read, it was easy to imagine being part of the epic story that our author created, to experience our protagonists’ every emotion.

Our hero was perfect in every way, well to me he was. I know readers relate to books differently and what works for me may not touch other readers as deeply, but Julian was perfection!

Julian’s passion, sense of honor, cynicism at times and love are portrayed wonderfully. Ok I’ m going to fangirl a bit more and declare that he is one of ‘BEST HEROES’ I have read about.

Our heroine is as interesting and likeable, Emma’s character was a joy to read as well as her journey throughout the book. As a reader, I wanted to ease her pain which I felt alongside with her.

They had so many obstacles to overcome, so many things working against that made my heart hurt; I understood what motivated them even though I didn’t agree with a few of their actions.

Now let’s talk about the sex scenes, lately I skim those thinking ‘same old same old’ but not with Julian and Emma; reading them gave more glimpses into their characters, besides the fact that I thought they were HOT.

I would have loved an epilogue, but that’s because I’m greedy and didn’t want to let Julian and Emma go.

I am intrigued by Lockwood’s character and his wife, I googled to see if there is a book written about him yet but found nothing- I would really love to read more about him. I will be trying other books by Ms Duran DEFINITELY.

I usually add quotes, but there are so many that I highlighted and you NEED to read this book to experience every word.