One Night for Seduction

What a delightful introduction to the Wicked Dukes Club series! The Wicked Dukes Club is a pub in the Haymarket area of London and it is owned by two dukes who have been friends since Oxford where they were known as – you guessed it – the wicked dukes! The series is authored by Erica Ridley and Darcy Burke, so you can’t go wrong there!

This novella was very well written and the characters are delightful – I can’t wait to meet them in their own stories! The main characters are so fully fleshed out that you feel you know them and can identify with their struggles. Excellently done!

Caleb Sutton, fifth Duke of Colehaven (Cole) and Miss Diana Middleton are the stars of this story and they are a wonderful pairing. They both want the same things, they just have different ways of going about getting it. Cole can be open and aboveboard with his goals, but Diana thinks she has to use subterfuge because she is a woman and men won’t take her seriously.

Diana is the ward of her cousin, Thaddeus Middleton who took her in when her last parent died. Thaddeus is a lovely, lovely man and I can’t wait to see his story. Diana has no intention of marrying anyone – she cannot carry on with her mission if she’s married – but Thad wants her to be happy and he thinks that means marriage. When Thaddeus is talking about his incorrigible ward at the Wicked Dukes Club, he ends challenging Cole to find a husband for his cousin. Cole can never resist a challenge and the chase is on.

I can certainly recommend this novella and if it is an example of the rest of the books in the series, then I can recommend the series as well.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Loved it!
Erica Ridley is one of my go-to authors.

What I liked:
The writing style
The characters
Part of a series: Wicked Dukes Club
Standalone
HEA
Epilogue

I look forward to reading the next book in this series.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC from NetGalley.

I love those Wicked Dukes! Erica Ridley not only succeeded in writing a great story but the two main characters & the other cast members are ones you just fall in love with!

Cole, Duke of Colehaven, earned his title when a lot of bad luck happened to heirs & he was a distant cousin that went from being poor to being a duke overnight. He has always tried to be friends with peers, lower station people and pleasant to servants. Cole wants to make himself the best he can and work in Parliament to make a difference for the betterment of all people. He is also part owner of The Wicked Duke tavern – a club for all men peers, tradesmen, etc.

One of Cole’s good friends dares him to find a husband for his un-marriageable cousin, Diana Middleton and Cole accepts the challenge. She is a self proclaimed wallflower and she does not want to give up her freedom for marriage. The most important duty she feels is to seek justice for the small businessmen making sure they were getting a fair shake or that they weren’t being cheated.

The book had all the things I love in a good read – a lot of humor, great family ties, some spice & the best characters that make you start the book & they won’t let you put it down until you have finished. I highly recommend this book and cannot wait to read the next one in the series – One Night of Surrender, Darcy Burke.

What a great series!
At twenty-six, this is Felicity’s last chance to make the perfect match. Going through her ducal brother’s list, one peer meets her brother’s qualifications, but the coming race with her brother’s carriage and the man who will drive it keeps intruding in her thoughts. Giles Langford is the “Curricle King” who loves racing, especially with his curricle named “BABY.” He has the best smithy in town. Felicity is no stranger to a smithy. She’s worked on carriages, coaches, etc.for years. Working together to ensure her brother’s carriage is the best, brings them closer together, in fact it has to be love. Will Felicity give up being a Duchess, Marchioness or any other “ess”and marry the man who loves her as she really is? Such an easy read, you just can’t stop until The End.
Free copy from Netgalley for an honest review.

One Night For Seduction is the first book in the Wicked Dukes Club series. The Wicked Dukes in question being a tavern owned by two dukes who met at Oxford and a place where all are welcome no matter what their standing in life is. One of the owners is Caleb Sutton, the Duke Of Colehaven, (Cole) a man who never expected to inherit a dukedom and therefore feels he is being judged on his behaviour and so, in historical parlance, has to make a better fist of it than someone who was born to the role. The one thing he can’t resist though is a wager and when one of his friends dares him to find a husband for his cousin, what else is he supposed to do but accept the challenge. Diana Middleton, a twenty-five year old self-proclaimed spinster has no interest in marriage and is fixated on her quest to single-handedly bring order to the weights and measure system and the dishonest tradesmen who use the confused system to swindle the unsuspecting public.

While I liked the character of Cole I just couldn’t find anything about Diana that made me warm to her. She came across as quite a selfish and self-absorbed person who thought that no one but she could care about injustice. She was blind to how much her cousin cared for her and couldn’t see that he had her best interests at heart and only wanted to see her happy. At first I thought my dislike was because she was a ‘modern day’ character set in a historical setting but when I thought about it some more I realised wouldn’t have liked her any more if she had been a character in a contemporary novel. I did enjoy the character of Lady Felicity, Cole’s sister and I’m hoping that she might end up with her own story one day. I do enjoy Erica Ridley’s writing and my dislike of one character won’t prevent me from reading the rest of this series.

Caleb Sutton, the Duke of Colehaven never expected to be a duke, so he has to work hard to make himself worthy of his title. He wants to make his presence felt in the house of lords with things that will help the common people.
Miss Diana Middleton has a gift for mathematics but her brain is not something that a woman should use. At least that’s what the ton seems to think. So to protect her reputation she uses disguises when she goes out to organise things and make sure people get a fair measure.
A very amusing story with lovely characters. Our naughty heroine knows exactly what she wants and is not afraid to take it.
Really good fun.

Chandler Sutton, the Duke of Colehaven “Cole” loves a good wager and is currently boasting a 10-year winning streak, so when he joins his friends at the tavern he co-owns and is offered a wager to get Thaddeus Middleton’s “unmarriageable” ward married off – he happily accepts. Thad has some rules – Diana must be married before the end of the season, Cole can’t marry her himself or show any interest in her to provoke others to marry her and she must approve and want to marry the man.

Diana Middleton has no desire to marry, when her parents died, she needed a purpose and began “working” as a weights and measures inspector – not officially, she disguises herself and pretends to be in the employ of a barrister – she is passionate about this cause and wants the government to do more – but without resources, she settles for going to local businesses and checking their scales and reports her findings to a clerk who really does work for a barrister. She has no desire to marry, she is sure that she would have to give up her freedom and that is unacceptable. She doesn’t refuse to attend ton events, but she has perfected being a wallflower because she doesn’t want anyone to notice or recognize her and jeopardize her “work”. So when the handsome Duke of Colehaven comes to her home and makes it clear that he plans to help her find a husband – Diana holds her ground and makes it clear that she will never marry.

Cole will not concede defeat, and when he sees her at a ball, he enlists his sister to help him. Felicity tells Diana of Cole’s plan and Diana is livid – the man must be stopped. She doesn’t care about her own reputation, but she will not let him expose her and possibly ruin Thad!

Val, Duke of Eastleigh is at the ball and mentions to Cole that two committee chairs in Parliament will be up for vote as the Earl currently holding the seats has been injured. Cole wants to chair a committee – desperately – he doesn’t feel worthy of the title and works ten times as hard as other peers to prove he deserves his title – he feels like being in charge of a committee would do that. Later he meets Diana in the Library and they have words – she then learns that he was responsible for the 1815 Weights and Measures act – she still doesn’t want to marry – but maybe Cole could help her stop the corruption!

These two go back and forth – neither willing to back down or give up. They are each attracted to the other, but it can never be – she doesn’t want to give up her “freedom” and he wants to prove himself worthy. Can they compromise? Will love win? Will Cole’s 10-year streak come to an end?

This was a cute story with extremely likable leads, a lot of emotion, funny moments and great secondary characters. It is well written and flows nicely, the love scenes are mild and the ending is very sweet.

**I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that was provided to me by NetGalley and the publisher.**

A new series from the delightful Erica Ridley, about unusual members of the ton in Regency England. Quirky characters and amusing plot written with Ms Ridley’s witty banter make this an engaging read.

Caleb Sutton, the fifth Duke of Colehaven, and his younger sister, Felicity, were the poor relations, suddenly thrung into the world of the nobility when all the relatives between him and the Duke had died. He was sent off to Oxford where he made friends with Valentine Fairfax, sixth Duke of Eastleigh and Thaddeus Middleton. Cole and Eastleigh soon became known as the “wicked dukes”. Someone dared them to open a tavern called the Wicked Duke Tavern, whihc they did, but opened it up to all- upper and lower class alike. Caleb built the reputation as a genuinely nice person, who befriends everyone he meets, openly nice to the lower class and accepts silly bets, opening the tavern was one of the earlier ones. Now he has a 10 year wining streak of wagers. The latest is to find a husband for Thaddeus’ cousin and ward, Diana, who has no interest in a husband. He has until the end of the Season to see her married, but it can’t be to himself. As they get to know each other, they find that not only do they have many things in common but to their core, above all else, they both want to be useful. Will Caleb be willing to lose the bet and would Diana even accept the notion of losing her freedom to a husband?

Many of the heroines in Ms Ridley’s stories, seem to have been picked up from the modern era, and plucked down into Regency England. Diana’s character is the least appealing of them so far, but still she seems to be a perfect match for Caleb. I received a free advanced copy of this book from the author. This is my unbiased and voluntary review.

I’m beginning to be a great fan of Mrs Erica Ridley, I have preordered, since I discovered her work last year, any new released book.
And this first in a series is an other big surprise, she crafted a wonderful story about two awesome characters around true historical facts.
As a French, I had to do some researches too and this is not an easy task, I can’t even understand half of the different wording.
Even if the story began with a wager, soon it was relegated in the background, something of few importance. The Duke Of Colehaven or Cole accepted a dare thinking it was impossible for a woman to remain unmarried or to do not want to marry.
Until he saw past her act of dissimulation, disguising herself to blend with her environment in and outside a ballroom. Then she intrigued him so much, she entranced him.
Diana Middleton is like the goddess she was named after, a fighter, she knows what she wants and she is aiming to win. Even if it means denying what every normal woman would expect, marriage. But she does not see, with right, how could she pursue her work by becoming someone property. So her encounter with Cole put her off balance, around him she feels things she had herself renounced to.
Their tale is not about the wager, it was just a means to an end to make them meet. Two persons with similar dreams and a difficult past. Cole is the unexpected poor fellow who inherited a dukedom and by the way try to improve the life of others thanks to his status. Diana has a mind for mathematics and she wants to help the less fortunates to not be cheated of their harshly earned coins.
I do loved to see them banter, bicker and hit each other’s strong opinions because they were so very similar in their differences. It was to them to find a way to bridge their discrepancies to make them a force.
A big fat 5 stars for this wondrous story.

Once again the author comes up with a romping witty tale to tease the senses. The time and place could almost be the present with the lead female fighting for rights and privileges only afforded men. The story is sensual, sexy and steamy. Great atmosphere, loveable characters and an inspirational theme to hold the attention.