Not many romance tropes rope me in faster than the socially awkward, insecure misfit meeting their fated mate, because even the most maladroit are deserving of love and understanding. Especially because they’re always the ones who have to wait the longest to find that person who somehow absolutely gets them. Pair this setup with a warm and cozy helping of holiday cheer? I’ve started singing “My Favorite Things” and treated myself to a peppermint latte, because Felicity Niven’s thringly seasonal novella, Duke the Halls, was a delight from start to finish.

This story features the neurodivergent, earnest introvert, Kit, who also happens to be the filthy rich and single Duke of Kittredge. Kit’s problem is that he inevitably says the wrong thing in company, and never quite gets around to figuring out what the right thing should have been. Good fortune is shining down on Kit this Christmas season, however, when he is thrown in the path of Franny Cranhill, who is as equally uncouth in aristocratic circles as he is. Sparks fly quickly when Franny offers to help Kit with his "young women" problem by teaching him how to be a giver rather than a taker through the practice of “amorous congress.”

There are so many wonderful little touches that make this novella sparkle. I love Kit’s best friends Bevel and Dagenham; Franny’s neologisms; every time Kit says the name of the town of Little Fitten-Green differently; Kit’s spectacles (yes please!); and that Kit and Franny’s favorite place to be is the library. This novella is also part of Felicity’s Bed Me series, so there’s lots of spice that, you know, always makes everything nice.

This is one of my favorite holiday reads of the year, and makes the perfect sweet and sexy historical romance choice for the season.

Thank you to Felicity Niven for the opportunity to read and review this story!