Her Time Traveling Duke

One of my most anticipated romances this year was Her Time Traveling Duke by Bryn Donovan. It’s actually a sequel to Her Knight at the Museum, which I haven’t yet read, but it still works on its own, too.

Rose is just a regular woman who works at a Chicago art museum and dabbles in light witchcraft on the side. So imagine her surprise when her love spell asking for an old-fashioned gentleman results in a Regency era duke standing in her apartment living room! Henry was immortalized in an 1818 painting, but now that he’s standing here in 2025, the painting mysteriously shows a gray outline where he once was. Of course, Henry is shocked to be in the future, and Rose promises to find a way to send him back home. Despite that love spell, neither quite expects to actually fall in love! But coming from two different centuries, they can never have a lasting romance… can they?

What I Liked:

Time travel and possibly reincarnation. I’ve always been drawn to stories about time slips, parallel universes, and the like. Her Time Traveling Duke offers up the kinds of themes I enjoy, and it sends our characters in a different direction than I usually see. Most books seem to have characters going back in time, so it was fun to see Henry suddenly transported two hundred years into the future. This Regency era duke is so not ready for the 21st century.
The occult vs. science. Astrology, crystals, tarot, an astrolabe… plus astrophysics and quantum physics and theories of the universe… I love it all! I have an interest in all of the above, so it was delightful to see how these seemingly contradictory approaches collide here. These various elements play a role in Henry’s unexpected time travel to the future, as well as Rose’s attempts to get him back to 1818.
Total fish out of water. Henry is so shocked at many things, from the “violently” minty flavor of toothpaste and the way Rose swears to *eating* pineapples and dealing with modern humor. Then of course there are bigger things, like elevators and cars and planes. I love how it’s all so new and different for him. He’s often incredulous, alarmed, or simply offended at the many differences between 1818 and 2025.
Opposites attract. Henry is so haughty and grumpy! Rose is so chill and upbeat! Henry’s ducal personality is stronger than ever in the 21st century, so his arrogance and indignation can be surprising for those around him. Likewise, he’s shocked at how Rose is so free-spirited and brazen. Scandalous!
Family matters. Rose fiercely defends her brother Ryan, who is highly intelligent and a recovering addict. Henry is grieving his wife, who died two years prior (that is, in 1816). I liked seeing how important family and friends are to both Rose and Henry, even if that may pose as a barrier to their budding romantic relationship.
Jason and his secret society…. and doing crime to travel back in time! Henry’s arrival to the 2020s doesn’t go unnoticed. Or rather, his sudden disappearance from the painting at the museum Rose works at is very much noticed. We’re talking international news stories and an art crime investigation. And in order to return him to 1818, Henry and Rose will, with the help of their apparently devious friends, need to do some sneaking and thieving. Uh oh!
Getting to see Emily and Griffin from the previous book. I haven’t read that one yet, but now I want to. They’re such fun characters here! Griffin seems to be the exact opposite of Henry, despite also hailing from a bygone era. I need more of him.

Final Thoughts

Her Time Traveling Duke absolutely charmed me! This was fun and often funny, and filled with magic, science, and heart. I need more paranormal romances like this one. And I must read the previous book, Her Knight at the Museum, as soon as possible. I’m excited for that and more from Bryn Donovan!

Special thanks to the publicists at Penguin Random House, Berkley, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book!

Get the Book

You can buy Her Time Traveling Duke here – it’s available as a paperback, ebook, and audiobook.

Her Time Traveling Duke by Bryn Donovan
Series	(#2)
Audience	Adult
Genre	Paranormal Romance
Setting	Chicago; England
Number of Pages	352
Format I Read	Ebook (NetGalley ARC)
Original Publication Date	December 9, 2025
Publisher	Berkley

Official Summary

Magic meets science and sunshine meets grumpy when a love spell whisks a Regency-era duke to modern times.

Rose Novak, a free-spirited museum employee who dabbles in magic, has had her share of disappointments. So when she tries a little spell for a romance with an “old-fashioned gentleman,” she doesn’t really expect it to work…especially literally. And yet, the duke from a painting she admired at the museum is now standing in her apartment, demanding to know who abducted him.

A man of science and truth, Henry Leighton-Lyons, the Duke of Beresford, has searched tirelessly for a way to turn back time and be with his late wife again. Instead, just as he’s about to pose for his portrait, he’s ripped centuries forward by a feckless, scantily dressed—and utterly bewitching—woman who believes in nonsense like magical crystals and astrology.

Unable to immediately reverse her spell, Rose vows to help Henry return to his own century, even though disguises and high jinks are required to get their hands on an enchanted astrolabe and master the art of time travel. But it’s hard not to fall for the irritable yet honorable duke.

Little does she know that he’s starting to wonder: did a reckless love spell get it right, after all?

About the Author

Bryn Donovan is the author of several romance novels, including Sunrise Cabin, a Publishers Weekly bestseller. She’s also written nonfiction books and the story treatments for two Hallmark Channel movies. Her work has appeared in McSweeney’s, Writer’s Digest, and many literary journals. A former executive editor in publishing, she earned her MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Arizona. She’s a voracious reader, a rescue dog lover, and a hopeless romantic who lives in the Chicago area and blogs about writing and positivity.