A Lady for a Duke” is a story that understands that when it comes to queer folk, just… being is plenty brave enough.

The side characters are an absolute delight, and the ending is everything I could have wished for Viola and Gracewood as a couple.It’s incredibly moving to witness the depth of Justin’s care for Viola, processing his own reactions to Viola’s body, and the sensations of what they can do together. The middle can feel drawn out, but the emotional power of several scenes made it so I did not care a bit and I would gladly read every single page. Hall doesn’t just blatantly have Viola say how hard living her new life has been, but instead shows the reader through Viola’s actions and interactions with both friends from her old life as well as her new. After embracing her womanhood, there are certain things she is afraid to do again because she is worried about embracing her "masculine" traits. With a mix of queer and playful characters, Hall really creates a wholesome cast of supporting characters for the novel.

In his altogether masterful historical romance, Alexis Hall draws together a complex past between his main leads, with an evocative center of loss, memory, and intimacy driving the story forward. And I really liked that the story was not in first person so we were able to see what Gracewood was thinking as he was processing his feelings on this. But the cost is heavy: her childhood friend, with whom she was as close as family, thinks she is lost. His interactions with his aunt add so much depth to her character, it was beautiful to witness those intimate moments. But Viola's new ability to explore life as her true womanly self has opened up yet another wrinkle when it comes to Gracewood: she can no longer ignore the fact that her feelings for him are considerably more than friendly.

There is a quote from the book where Viola is expressing her anger—and fear—at Gracewood for not understanding the risks of simply living as she is, and the risks she would be taking on by becoming more visible being a Duchess.