LADY + DUKE = TRUE LOVE?Lady Daphne Forsyth is a brilliant mathematician with a burning passion for puzzles. When she learns that the library belonging to her benefactress houses the legendary Cameron Cipher–an encrypted message that, once solved, holds the key to great riches–Daphne is on the case. Unfortunately, her race to unlock the cipher’s code is continually thwarted by a deliciously … a deliciously handsome distraction she hadn’t counted on. . .and cannot resist.
Dalton Beauchamp, the Duke of Maitland, is curious as to why Daphne is spending so much time snooping around his aunt’s bookshelves. He’s even more intrigued by her bold yet calculating manner: She is unapologetic about her secret quest. . .and the fiery attraction that develops between them both. But how can they concentrate on solving a perplexing enigma once the prospect of true love enters the equation?
“Witty, sensual historical romance that will captivate readers.” —Romance Junkies
Duke with Benefits is the second in Manda Collins’ Studies in Scandal series set in Regency England.
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I loved this book! Daphne is a great leading lady! All the ladies in this book are wonderful and everyone is a complete character, so you can see yourself reading books about them as well (hope she writes about them too!!). Daphne has a mystery on her hands and finding the cipher is going to be an adventure and she shares it with the Duke of Maitland! He is there to help her and save her when troubling things start to happen. The plot moves right along and it is a great story!!
Read this one and don’t plan on putting it down until you are done!!
DUKE WITH BENEFITS is the second book in this series. I have not read the first book, though I fully intend to go back and do so. You can enjoy this book without having read the first one because this one catches you up with much of what went on.
The series features four bluestockings – each outstanding in her particular field – who jointly inherit the estate of Lady Celeste Beauchamp (also a bluestocking). Each heir is left a particular mystery to solve based on their specific skills. The mystery in the first book was to solve the murder of Lady Celeste and this one was the solving of a cypher that would lead to the discovery of a large cache of gold.
This book is witty and sensuous and will captivate you and suck you in right from the first.
Okay – picture Temperance Brennan from the TV series Bones – or Walter from the TV series Scorpion and you have Lady Daphne Forsyth who is our heroine in this book. She’s lovely to look at, has a brilliant mathematical mind, but has absolutely no social skills. She’s plain spoken to the point of rudeness. She doesn’t mean to hurt anyone, she’s just totally unaware of how her very plain words affect others. She just states facts and doesn’t dress them up prettily.
Dalton Beauchamp, the Duke of Maitland is one of the few people in the world who admires Daphne and appreciates her absolute honesty. He was attracted to her from the beginning (in the first book) and that attraction just grows as he gets to know her better. One of Dalton’s foremost skills is in dealing with people, so he and Daphne are wonderfully suited. Each complements the other’s weaknesses.
Someone else is out to find the treasure and Daphne and Dalton must find the cypher, solve it and then find the treasure first. There is a murder, an attempted murder and a kidnapping before it all comes to an end.
It is a fun entertaining read and I enjoyed getting to know Dalton and Daphne. I am looking forward to the other books in the series. I know that there will be at least two more books to tell the stories of the remaining two heiresses, but I’d also like to see one featuring Serena. She is Dalton’s sister and the chaperone of the four heiresses – and she definitely deserves a happily ever after of her own.
“I requested and received this book at no cost to me and volunteered to read it; my review is my honest opinion and given without any influence by the author or publisher.”
*I am voluntarily reviewing an ARC provided to me by NetGalley and the publisher*
Release Date: 6/27/17
I thought that Ready, Set, Rogue was my new favorite Manda Collins book and it was, until I read Duke with Benefits! Sorry, Ivy and Quill – Dalton and Daphne’s story has taken over as my favorite!
I loved the Duke of Maitland aka Dalton in the first book, he was charming, easy going and obviously head over heels for Daphne. Daphne was a bit off-putting in the first book, not unlikable – she kind of reminded me of Temperance Brennan aka Bones – brilliant, blunt and socially oblivious – not intentionally unkind but still somewhat obnoxious.
The prologue of this book starts shortly before the end of RSR, with Daphne propositioning Dalton and him refusing her. Chapter One starts about 3 months later. Daphne has been searching for the Cameron Cipher, which leads to the stash of gold that the Cameron clan hid after the uprising. The letter that Lady Celeste left for her made it clear that she wanted Daphne to find and solve the cipher. She didn’t tell any of the others about her search and reasons that Ivy didn’t tell her about her quest and she assumes that Sophia and Gemma have their secrets too. So when, Nigel Sommersby, someone from Daphne’s past shows up and mentions the cipher, Daphne must reveal her secret. The others are all willing to help her, but she wants to do it on her own. That is until Sommersby turns up dead and someone takes a shot at Daphne.
Dalton goes into hyper protective mode and is determined to keep Daphne safe. Dalton is the only person that Daphne truly feels comfortable with and even though his rejection still hurts her, she enjoys his company and trusts him. She accepts his offer of protection and begins to open up about her past. The more Dalton hears, the more he wants to keep her safe. So when her father shows up and demands that she leave the estate with him, Dalton claims they are betrothed.
Daphne is stunned by this announcement, but plays along knowing that her father would never turn away a duke! And Dalton convinces her that being betrothed will enable them to spend more time together searching for the cipher without damaging her reputation. What she doesn’t know is that Dalton has every intention of making their pretend engagement real.
While following up on a clue, they are caught in a storm and take shelter at an inn. Once inside they are spotted together by an old acquaintance of Dalton’s who is a notorious gossip. When “Pinky” makes a rude insinuation about Daphne, Dalton claims that they are married. He later tells Daphne that they must marry and she agrees, if he will be her lover. She wants to make sure that her past will not interfere with their future and makes him promise to let her go if she can’t be a true wife to him.
From here the story really takes off, there are more clues, more victims, more betrayal, more steamy love scenes, an abduction, treasure and finally a very sweet HEA.
Daphne really grew as a person in this book and that was due in large part to Dalton. She isn’t perfect and is still a bit socially awkward, but it comes across as more endearing than annoying. The relationship between Daphne and Dalton was perfectly paced and believable, I felt the connection between them and it was much more than lust.
I would highly recommend this book and would strongly suggest reading Ready, Set, Rogue before starting this story. It is not 100% necessary, but it will give you a better understanding of the characters and why they are all at the estate. Not to mention it is a really awesome book!
Daphne is a treat!
2 helms
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Damn…..I really thought I would enjoy Daphne’s story 🙁 Quite disappointed I couldn’t get into it and I did try to give the book another chance by having a break and coming back to it but nope…still didn’t work for me. So I skim read from 40% onwards…
Lady Daphne Forsyth is our ingenious mathematician from our group of Lady Celeste’s bluestockings who live together at Beauchamp house. Daphne learns that the legendary Cameron Cipher (an encrypted message) is rumoured to be in their very library at Beauchamp house and once solved, holds the key to a treasure. Lady Celeste has entrusted Daphne to solve the mystery of this cipher with the help of her nephew, Dalton Beauchamp – the Duke of Maitland. Daphne’s forthright nature and their mutual attraction was of great intrigue in the first book, and we get to see Daphne and Dalton explore their attraction further with a murder mystery and legendary treasure to help their romance along!
Daphne intrigued me immediately from the first book (Ready, Set, Rogue by Manda Collins) as I loved Daphne’s forthright nature and public crudeness and it made her a very unforgettable character…but sadly my intrigue didn’t last 🙁 Admittedly, I was worried this was going to happen as unusual secondary characters really stand out to me, but once a whole book is dedicated to them, the follow through story sometimes doesn’t meet my expectations and I end up disappointed. Another reason the novel didn’t excite me was because this book was not that much different to the first…..Another murder mystery with a very clever, deceased match making aunt just didn’t seem as plausible this time around….Felt a little unoriginal so I got bored quite early and I couldn’t get out of my slump….If you are looking for a lighter romance with a mystery thrown in, then this might work for you as I’m definitely in the minority of liking “Ready Set Rogue” more than this one!
*Thank-you Manda Collins, Netgalley & St. Martin’s Press for the ARC.
A mathematical genius, an honorable duke and a treasure hunt are all part of the delicious Duke with Benefits, with Daphne (the genius) and Dalton (the duke) trying to solve a puzzle — the Cameron Cipher — ward off villains and deal with their growing feelings for each other. This continuation of the Studies in Scandal novel is a fun read, with compelling characters and a fascinating puzzle. (I received an ARC from NetGalley. This is an honest review of a book I truly enjoyed.)