A reversal of roles paves the way for an intriguing opposites attract romance. The Duke of Seduction is my favorite Darcy Burke novel to date. In a world full of complications the answers can prove to be quite simple. He's a free spirit. William has a love them, then leave them reputation that hides a sensitive heart. He dreams of a forever love. A soulmate to own his heart and share his life. When his perfect woman turns out to be a cryptic puzzle. He's determined to learn more. Lavinia is a woman on a mission. She knows what she wants and will buck the odds to get it. Will her passion for science blind her to the acceptance she's always craved? The Duke of Seduction enchants because it's not just a romance. Lavinia and William are seeking their own place in a world of stereotypes. With charm and emotion, Burke uses humor and heart to deliver a powerful message about the benefits of being true to self, no matter what. Reality meets fiction. ( )

Rcvd an ARC at no cost to author..(netgalley) Am seriously enjoying these historical romance fictions books. Second historical fiction book this week that I enjoyed. We meet Lavinia who is interested in science but unfortunately is also in the marriage mart but she has no problem being a wallflower. Her parents have given her an ultimatum to get married this season. She ends up meeting the notorius rake Beck, Marquis of Northam end knocks him on his butt since she isn't the type to be interested in his flirtation. Beck tends to write poems of wallflowers so that they can get noticed by the ton, thinking he is assisting them, he unfortunately writes about Lavinia and she is not happy, she is set to find out who is doing that and that they stop because she is getting unwanted attention..Enjoy! ( )

Maybe my favorite of the series (so far)!

From the first few chapters, this one felt a bit different from the others--we've moved on from the initial core of characters (though they're still showing up occasionally; Nora and Titus from book one-- The Forbidden Duke --play a crucial role here), and each chapter begins with a snippet of poetry written by Beck, the hero. Lady Lavinia, the heroine, has a brand new set of friends who will undoubtedly feature in future books (woot!) as will at least one of Beck's friends. Right from the beginning, the novel was a comforting combination of series old and new.

And then you really got into the story of this one...and...wow.

I liked Lavinia a whole lot from the start--she's a strong heroine who knows what she wants out of life and has a really good heart. She's quick to stand up for herself and her friends, but doesn't act overly impulsively (with perhaps a few tiny exceptions, when she finds herself in a closed/isolated spot with Becky, of course... ;)) As a scientist, though, she also has a strong grip on reality, and when love looks like it might not be a reality for her she moves on to prioritizing what she needs out of a future relationship against what would be nice to have as she looks over her perspective spouses--which was heartbreaking to see, even as I had to respect her practicality.

Of course it wasn't necessary in the end, because--Beck!

Beck (you people have no idea how hard it is to stop typing before adding a "y" to his name, LOL) is a wonderful hero. I enjoyed him from the beginning--his heart is in the right place as the Duke of Seduction, and he truly gets upset when he finds out that some of the women he's written about neither wanted nor appreciated his "help" and tries to figure out what he can do to fix things. When we really get drawn into his story, though? OMG, I can't even. His backstory and motivation really add so much to this story. Watching him struggle with depression (he refers to it as his "darkness") and the grief he felt over the loss of his family was heartbreaking, and seeing Lavinia recognize, accept it, and help him work through it is wonderful.

I'm not going to lie. There were tears in my eyes for much of the last 10% of the book. So good!

As with the other series books, The Duke of Seduction would work well as a standalone. Some other series characters do pop up in the book, but if you don't know (or don't remember) their stories, no worries--any details you need to know are given here.

Can't wait for the next book in the series :)

Rating: 4 1/2 stars / A

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book. ( )

I received an ARC of this book to read from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review. The Duke of Seduction by Darcy Burke is the tenth book in her The Untouchables series. You could read this book as a stand-alone but many of the supporting characters appeared in the previous books and it’s a good series so I recommend reading them all. William Beckett, (Beck) The Marquess of Northam has a secret ... he writes and publishes poetry under the name The Duke of Seduction. His poetry has the purpose of drawing attention to young ladies he feels are for no good reason overlooked on the marriage mart. He has been having some success and most of the young ladies he has drawn attention to have made matches which pleases him even though he himself has vowed never to wed. Beck meets Lady Lavinia Gillingham in a library when he mistakes her for his current paramour. He finds her charming and decides to write a poem about her. Lavinia is perfectly happy being ignored and is quite infuriated when the poem is published and she has to put up with a raft of boorish suitors as she plans to marry only for love. A mystery to solve, a little blackmail and some thoroughly nasty characters make for an enjoyable read. Fairly Steamy. Publishing Date August 21, 2018. #TheDukeOfSeduction #NetGalley ( )

The Duke of Presumption!!

I really liked both lead characters in this addition to the Untouchables. But then I adore those women who are somewhat different to the empty headed Marriage Mart parade. Lady Lavinia Gillingham is a foreword thinking, intelligent woman who apart from being enamoured by the geological, wants to govern her own life. So far she has been able to eschew the Marriage Mart.
William Beckett (Beck), Marquess of Northam, rake at large, hides the pain of a sister scorned by society, by taking up the cause of such wallflowers and derided young woman. He anonymously writes poems about them, catapulting them into the eyes of society. And the fickle ton, being the rapacious and untrustworthy construct it is, rushes towards the light shining on these young woman. They instantly become marriageable. Grr!
So when this attention is turned on Lavinia she is NOT HAPPY!
As she espouses to a rather shocked and chagrined Beck,
"He writes poems about ladies he seems to think require assistance on the Marriage Mart. It’s incredibly presumptuous. And pompous. And many other words that end in ‘ous,’ I’m sure.” "
She becomes determined to expose the culprit just as she is reacquainted with Beck, long a friend of her brother's. Beck of course has not even considered that some young woman mightn't want to be forced into an eligible marriage. That they might want something more, or even different.
The premise that Duke would write poems to aid a woman's marriageability was to my mind slim but worked for this story, given what I've already said about the 'ton'. And of course the tension rises as Beck and Lavinia become attracted to each other whilst the chasm of Beck's alter ego yawns between them.

A NetGalley ARC ( )