Captain Jack Hardy of the Royal Navy was focused on fighting the French. The bastard son of the Duke of Oxford, he never expected to be accepted into his father’s world. Let alone be recognized and raised to the peerage. Forced to give up the sea, and accept the responsibilities of a British Lord, he must now navigate a new maelstrom of political intrigue and unknown enemies determined to see him … him dead. To make it even worse, he has agreed to his dying father’s wish that he marry. A fate worse than facing a French brig’s broadside.
Lady Abigail Dupont has always been an outsider in her own world. Permanently injured at a young age, she has never been accepted in the vicious marriage market of the ton. disabled, unable to provide an heir, and poor, Three unforgivable marks against her. It is because of this ineligibility that she is asked to help the new Duke of Oxford find a wife. A woman who could be a Duchess without driving him mad.
Two outsiders working together for a common goal. All while trying to discover who is repeatedly trying to kill the new Duke. Two people with nothing in common. From two different worlds. Yet two people who are drawn to each other for reasons they could never express but cannot deny.
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His Lady refuses to be the sidelined.
As the bastard son of a duke, Captain Jack Hardy found his place at sea. Even fighting the French and his harrowing war memories is better than being locked on land. Sadly a captain does not outrank a Duke, and Jack’s life is about to dramatically change forever.
With a limp and the need for a cane, Lady Abigail Dupont resigned herself long ago to the realities of never having what other ladies take for granted. She will never marry or have a family, or dance at the balls she insists on attending. Surprisingly, this daughter of an impoverished Earl is stronger than the ton knows, but one man is about to discover her metal and her secrets.
I loved this sweet Regency romance with all of its contrasts and unspoken emotions. The Duke’s Duty by G.L. Snodgrass has an entertaining plot, a great balance of dialogue to thoughts and actions, as well as engaging characters. Jack Hardy and Lady Abigail are both likable and believable. Their chemistry is slow to combust, but when it explodes, it is hot. The malicious force that lurks in the shadows keeps them both on edge, but no evil is strong enough to keep them apart. The last chapter and the epilogue are especially priceless and very satisfying.
Content 411: This book contains a light to moderate amount of simple swearing, along with one moderately described sexually intimate scene.
A bastard of a Duke become a real Duke when his father dies. with the help of the Prince Regent. When the Duke to be was in school he made friends with 3 other Dukes and they were willing to help him. A young lady , who was crippled, tries to help him find a bride. knowing it could never be her. A nasty Lord tried to kill the new Duke but fails at every turn. True loves prevails in the action packed story. Well written and very gripping.
Good story and no yukky sex!
I recommend this book for its excellent plot and wonderful characters, especially the heroine. I deducted one star because of numerous grammatical errors.
I enjoyed this book.
This Regency romance has it all: An oh-so-deserving heroine with a disability, a sea captain suddenly turned Duke, the overcoming of his own disability being illegitimate, a mystery in that the new Duke has attempts on his life from an unknown assailant, the final realization from the heroine that her disability means nothing from the Duke. This reader has always loved romances featuring a hero or heroine with a disability and that everyone, regardless of their special needs, deserves to be romantically loved.
A beautiful romance by an accomplished writer.
This is a nice character study, a tale of overcoming adversity by a strong and likeable H/h. It is the writing style of Ms. Snodgrass that kills a good rating. Examples of fragments and misuse of words follow:
Chapter 13
“That would be so typical, she thought. Her falling flat on her face in front of these strange men. Big workmen, with gnarled fingers and keen eyes, dressed in thick sweaters and wool caps. Each of them looked at her strangely. As if she were a catch brought up from the deep sea. Some new creature they had never seen before. . . . They . . . returned to THERE (sic) work.”
Chapter 25 (inside the mind of our heroine)
“No. she couldn’t tell him. No, she must disappear. No, she would keep her secret. [spoiler alert] No, she hoped she had this child. No, she wanted this child.” (Heaven help us; no, I don’t want to read any more. But I did!)
Chapter 27
– “Shammed, unwilling to fight.” soon followed with “to through it away” and then a baby’s “wale”
There will be more; I have now read two books about the Duke’s Club. It’s a great concept for multiple stories. If only the author would read The Elements of Style and rewrite them with the judicious use of punctuation, plus an editor.
Regency romance is my favorite genre, and this book really hit the mark. G.L. Snodgrass has a great way of story telling that really pulls you in and keeps you engaged and interested. Abigail and Jack are two people with completely different backgrounds, nothing in common, but are so completely drawn to each other. You could definitely feel the chemistry between these two. I fell in love with the characters from the very beginning. They were so endearing and well developed with great personalities and depth. I enjoyed this story very much and am looking forward to the next one!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review