A past kiss with adorably bookish Miss Olivia Norley should be barely a memory for Marlowe Drake, the Duke of Thornstock. After all, there are countless debutantes for a handsome rakehell to charm beyond a young lady whose singular passion is chemistry—of the laboratory type. But Thorn has not forgotten—or forgiven—the shocking blackmail scheme sparked by that single kiss, or the damage caused to both their names. Now Thorn’s half-brother, Grey, has hired the brilliant Miss Norley for her scientific expertise in solving a troubling family mystery. And the once-burned Thorn, suspicious of her true motives, vows to follow her every move . . .

For Olivia, determining whether arsenic poisoning killed Grey’s father is the pioneering experiment that could make her career—and Thorn’s constant presence is merely a distraction. But someone has explosive plans to derail her search. Soon the most unexpected discovery is the caring nature of the reputed scoundrel beside her—and the electricity it ignites between them . . .

Title: Who Wants To Marry a Duke?
Author: Sabrina Jeffries
Series: Duke Dynasty
Pages: 352
Genre(s): Historical, Regency, England
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A hugely enjoyable story

5 stars


It’s been too long since I picked up a Sabrina Jeffries book - and after finishing this one, I seriously wonder why I haven’t been devouring every single thing she’s written. As such, this is actually the first book of the Duke Dynasty series that I have read, despite it being the 4th story in the series (after Project Duchess, A Perfect Match (in the Seduction on a Snowy Night anthology) and The Bachelor. While the romance element of this book stands alone, there is a larger mystery that appears to be running throughout the series that does not get resolved in this book. I didn’t have any trouble picking up and following that element - despite not having yet read the previous books in the series - but if you need all loose ends tied up between the covers of one book - this perhaps isn’t for you.

This book is about the romance between Olivia and Thorn. The prologue shows an interaction between our pair that happens nine years before the rest of the story - and explains why there might be a bit of animosity and distrust with our couple. Or at least on Thorn’s side, anyway. I admit to being a bit confused about why he was so angry with Olivia - but I’m sure that being a duke, with unmarried ladies flinging themselves at you every hour of the day, would make you a wee bit cynical and suspicious of people’s motives. That said, he does drop the animosity towards Olivia pretty darn quickly!

Despite his flip-flopping emotions, I loved Thorn. He’s basically just a growly, grumpy Duke, stomping all over the place and getting irritated because he can’t help but want the one girl who turned him down. But he’s protective, fierce and accepts and loves Olivia and all her quirks, too. Sometimes he has no idea what she’s talking about, but he loves the passion she has for her subject. That’s love right there.

Olivia is innocent in so many ways, but strong in many ways, too. She’s definitely not the stereotypical chemist that you might expect. She’s not much into society, and finds herself a wee bit awkward (same, girl!) but she’s perfectly capable - none of this ‘can’t even walk without making a fool of yourself’ type of nonsense that you sometimes see when a girl is described as awkward in society. She’s sweet and kind, and determined to prove herself worthy. I really enjoyed her and thought her the perfect partner for Thorn.

There was a little bit of danger and intrigue with regards to whether Thorn’s stepfather has been murdered - and if so, by whom. Someone’s out to stop the investigation before it even starts, which adds some fun to the romance even if it’s just ‘mild peril’. This is the storyline that won’t be resolved until future books, but honestly, it doesn’t feel like we’re left on a godforsaken cliffhanger, so all is good. With that in mind, there’s quite an intricate family tree with Thorn and his siblings, however we get a handy drawing at the front of the book to help us if we’re stuck. I thought that was a cute (and hella useful) idea.

As always with Ms Jeffries, the sex scenes are sizzling and there was enough chemistry (no pun intended) between the pair to keep things heated even when not in those scenes. Although I do wonder at Olivia not knowing what a penis looks like. As a chemist? Wouldn’t you have scene Michelangelo’s David? Maybe not - it just seemed odd to me.

This book reminded me how much I love Sabrina Jeffries and the stories she weaves. This is another 5 star read and I can’t wait to read the previous books in the series and those still to come. Recommended.

* I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. *

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AUTHOR BIO!

Sabrina Jeffries is the New York Times bestselling author of more than 50 novels and works of short fiction (some written under the pseudonyms Deborah Martin and Deborah Nicholas).

At home in front of a crowd, Jeffries is a sought-after speaker, as evidenced by her 2010 gig as emcee for the National Romance Writers of America’s 30th Anniversary Awards Ceremony.

Whatever time not spent speaking to organizations around the country or writing in a coffee-fueled haze is spent traveling with her husband and adult autistic son or indulging in one of her passions—jigsaw puzzles, chocolate, and music.

With over 9 million books in print in more than 20 languages, the North Carolina author never regrets tossing aside a budding career in academics (she has a Ph.D. in English literature) for the sheer joy of writing fun fiction, and hopes that one day a book of hers will end up saving the world.

She always dreams big.

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SERIES!

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Lady Anne is shocked when Captain Lord Hartley Corry - her former fiancé who left for India after her father forbade their marriage - returns to England and acts as if everything is all water under the bridge. He never fought for her hand or eloped with her as he promised and he thinks she'd still be willing to marry him? Not a chance.

Hartley is equally shocked to literally run into his past love upon arriving at his brother's house. Though he yearns to take advantage of this second chance to woo his beloved, he can hardly admit that he is secretly a spy - at least not until he can be sure he trusts her. But convincing Lady Anne to let him prove his sincerity by courting her respectably all over again might be his undoing. Because all he wants is to show her how much of a rogue he can be when the right woman is in his arms...

Title: The Risk of Rogues
Author: Sabrina Jeffries
Series: Sinful Suitors
Pages: 100-199
Genre(s): Historical, Regency, England
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As I count it, this is the eighth Sinful Suitors story - but since novellas are counted as ‘half books’ - this is actually book number 5.5.

As with all the Sinful Suitor books, you don’t have to have read any of the others to read and enjoy this one - although since many of the characters pop up in each others books (and not just as cameos), you probably will get the gist of things a bit easier - or more quickly - if you’ve read the previous books.

This is the tale of Captain Lord Hartley Corry and Lady Anne/Miss Anne Barkley. The pair were young sweethearts before a refusal for Anne’s hand, and youthful foolishness, drove Hart halfway across the world in the army. 11 years later, the pair bump into each other (literally) and the sparks are immediately evident again. Yet now that’s tempered with a healthy amount of distrust.

I remembered Anne from a previous novel of Ms Jeffries where she fleetingly appeared. Who could forget those hats and that hair? She describes herself as something of an oddity and certainly not the season’s greatest beauty. The fact that Hart sees her quirks and loves her for them - and also sees her as the prettiest thing he’s ever seen - well, it’s a triumph for all us weirdos out there!

Hart - well, he was a bit funnier in earlier novels although some of his humour did come through on occasion in this book. The peacock’s bum comment, for example, made me laugh out loud. I thought it was a bit rich of him to expect Anne to blindly trust him while he didn’t plan to do the same but some men don’t react well to falling in love so I’ll forgive him that one!

As usual, Sabrina Jeffries doesn’t actually write a book but rather invites you to join her in the story. You’re absorbed in the detail and the story of the couple so the pages just fly by.

This was a novella and took little under an hour to read all in. I would have liked to see a little more development from the characters in the first half of the story. It felt at times like we were being told that the only thing the couple had in common in the past had been lust. As much as I adore a second chance romance - I want the fairytale of their true loves having been lost and found. Not that they were randy teens and love only grows now they’re adults. The second half showed the pair had truly been in love but I wanted more from the first half. And some more sexy shenanigans wouldn’t have gone a miss either!

This is still an excellent book and one that kept me happy on a rainy afternoon. I wished it could have been longer - but I wish that of all Sabrina Jeffries’ books. She excels at storytelling, and at love, and I’m always happy to recommend any book of hers. 4 stars.

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The moment spymaster Baron Fulkham meets the stunning Princess Aurore of Chanay, he's positive her royal persona is a ruse and that she's actually Monique Servais, the mysterious actress he met three years before in Dieppe. But as he pursues his suspicions, he uncovers a plot of attempted assassination and betrayal that could very well destroy his career, expose his own secrets...and ruin the woman he's rapidly coming to love.

Title: The Secret of Flirting
Author: Sabrina Jeffries
Series: Sinful Suitors
Pages: 416
Genre(s): Historical, Regency, England
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I have to hold my hands up and say I am a massive fan of Sabrina Jeffries. This is a double edged sword as while I’m pre-disposed to like her novels, I also have very high expectations of what I want from her books. So I’m always a bit nervous when I start one of her novels - will I love it or will it be the first to disappoint me?

Luckily, this book didn’t cause me any problems whatsoever as it was a classic Sabrina Jeffries tale - full of sparkling banter, wit and sexual tension between two well-rounded and likeable characters you can’t help but fall in love with.

This is the 5th book in the Sinful Suitors series. You don’t have to have read any of the others to like and understand this one although the characters from the previous books do make a few appearances. I’ve read all the previous books and even I was quite confused by everyone popping back up - but it was nice to see that all our previous couples were still happy and in love.

This book had two of the things that I really love in a hero/heroine combination. First, Gregory is an arrogant, closed-off man who always thinks he knows what’s right and what should happen and when. Enter Monique. From the first the pair rub each other the wrong way - and rub sparks off each other in a big way. When they meet each other again, years after their initial encounter, Monique throws Gregory for a loop and really knocks him off balance and this causes the pair to constantly spar. That’s the second thing I love - lots of banter that barely disguises the sexual tension.

The sex scenes are hot but perhaps not as plentiful as in other books, including previous Sabrina Jeffries novels. Still deliciously satisfying, though.

This book is a romance but there is still a little bit of mystery as to who wants to cause disruption to the conference to choose the first ruler of Belgium. Even as a small part of the romantic storyline, I still didn’t know who the bad guy was or what his/her motives were. It was a nice little aside and helped to bring about a happy conclusion to the story as a whole.

The love story was sweet, believable and gave me little butterflies in my tummy. As I mentioned before, Gregory was an arrogant sort and it’s always more satisfying to see them fall into love. It was especially wonderful as Monique was such a different character than you would normally expect from a Regency. As a French actress, she was more free, unrestricted by the strict rules of the ton (despite her having to play that role) and she was an all-round likeable character. I was rooting for her.

And as for the whole ‘deception’ plot - I was very pleased that it didn’t go the traditional route where Gregory was unaware of her real identity when she was playing the role of Princess. Not only would that have been daft, it would have felt like we would have been just waiting until Gregory figured it out. This way, there was a different set of problems which made for a good read.

I was going to take exception to the use of Guy Fawkes Day rather than the more usual Guy Fawkes Night or Bonfire Night - but having looked it up, I have to admit that during the time this book was set (1830) it looks like ‘day’ was the preferred term since there was a lot of civil disobedience throughout the whole day rather than just the normal night time festivities. So that’s me telt! British people definitely don’t call each other pistols, though! (“He’s a real pistol!”)

All in all, this was an enjoyable, rich and witty tale - the best of historical romance. We’ve only got one book left in the Sinful Suitors - a novella out in July - The Risk of Rogues. I hope that will be as enjoyable as this which will make it a great end to what’s already been a very great series.

And you’ll be happy to know that we do find out what the secret of flirting is. Watch out men - I’m coming!

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* I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. *

The Sinful Suitors series:

       

  

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