Project Duchess

Sabrina Jefferies masterfully weaves an enchanting tale you can’t put down. Delightful characters enhance the intrigue and romance in this well-written, and wholly engaging romance.

Got my Sabrina fix and what a great story to start off her new series. I know I say this for every Sabrina Jeffries book I read, but her stories flow so well. Lots of dialog (which I happen to love) that makes time fly. The writing is witty and compelling. I really like that she went back to a mystery through the series (which I assume this will be) ala The Hellions of Halstead Hall. Who killed Maurice, who killed Armie? There is something about reading Sabrina’s stories that make me smile. Okay, who is with me? Grey is yummy. He and Beatrice make a very cute couple (I especially liked “Jenny’s Market”).

Next up, Joshua (brooding, yay!) and Gwyn. I can see the sparks flying.

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

This was an absolutely wonderful introduction to Sabrina Jeffries new series. There is an overall mystery to the series, I’ll not tell you what that is – but you’ll discover it in this book. We meet – and love – the five children of a duchess who has had three husbands – all dukes. She had one child, Fletcher (Grey), with her first husband; two children – twins – Marlowe (Thorn) and Gwyn with her second husband; two children, Sheridan and Heywood with her last husband. The series revolves around solving the mystery introduced in this book, the children learning more about their fathers, and each of them pursuing and finding their own HEA’s. I found each of them intriguing and can’t wait to get to know them better in their own stories. The next story (featuring Heywood) will be a novella, A PERFECT MATCH released in an anthology (Seduction on a Snowy Night) with authors Madeline Hunter and Mary Jo Putney. Then, in February of 2020, we get Gwyn’s story – The Bachelor.

Fletcher Pryde, the 5th Duke of Greycourt, had a lovely family life until he was ten years old. He lost his father when he was very young, so he didn’t remember him, nor does he really remember his first step-father. However, his second step-father created a happy, loving family for all of them. That idyllic family lasted until Grey was ten and the uncle his father had named as his guardian came to claim him. He even thought he might want to go with him. Then he saw his aunt and uncle’s true colors and his nightmare of a life began. He quickly walled off his heart and all emotions. He became cold and always, always in control. He also distanced himself from his family and had little interaction with them – even after his uncle died.

We first meet Grey as he’s receiving word that his step-father, Maurice, has died. He doesn’t want to, but he leaves for Armitage Hall. He’ll do his duty and then leave as soon as he can. However, he’s not prepared for what he finds when he gets there. He meets a sassy young woman standing in the hall and immediately starts making demands – as dukes do. She was having none of it and gave as good as she got. He had to wonder who that sharp-tongued woman was. Then, his brother arrived and introduced them. Uh-oh – he’d assumed she was a servant or merchant of some sort.

Beatrice Wolfe is the granddaughter of a duke, but she is penniless. She and her brother, Joshua, live in the dower house at Armitage Hall. Joshua was severely wounded in the Peninsular wars and he now acts as head gamekeeper for the estate. He is grouchy, uncommunicative, etc. – all those things we associate with PTSD today.

Beatrice has handled all of the arrangements for the funeral of her uncle, the Duke of Armitage, who has just died. She loves the family and wants to ease their way as much as possible. As she’s standing in the entryway arranging the funeral cookies, a man approaches and starts making demands and berating her. She knows he has to be the Duke of Greycourt just from what she’s heard of him. Well – he’s not going to speak to her that way.

Grey and Beatrice bicker right along with all of the other siblings in the house. It was so much fun to read because I’ve known big loving families who bickered just that way. Grey can’t believe he’s attracted to Beatrice – but he is – and he just won’t allow it. He’s in full control of himself and will absolutely not allow it. Right . . . We all know how that’s going to end.

With a mystery to solve, an acerbic brother to manage and a cruel aunt still reaching out to cause trouble, you begin to wonder if they can truly find their way to their HEA. Never fear, Grey is up to the task of assuaging Beatrice’s fears and concerns – it just takes him a while to get there.

This was an excellent read and I can’t wait for the next book in the series.

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

Having an idyllic childhood with his mother replaced by one with a manipulative aunt and uncle has left Fletcher Pryde, the Duke of Greycourt wealthy and shrewd, but with a hardened heart and a falsified reputation as a rogue. Grey has put his focus on expanding his holdings, not look to settle down. When his mother is widowed yet again and he meets and unconventional cousin of his half brother, Grey is instantly intrigued. Even still, he knows himself to be incapable of love, no matter how drawn to her he is.

After her horrid uncle’s treatment of her, Beatrice Wolfe doesn’t put much stock in romance and only craves security. The arrogant duke isn’t exactly changing her outlook either, even if she’s desperately attracted to him. Beatrice has become the latest ‘project’ of Grey’s grief-stricken mother and soon he’s also helping to prepare her and his half sister Gwyn for a London debut. The more Beatrice gets to know Grey, the more difficult it is for her to keep her distance, but when he starts probing into the family’s skeletons she may be forced to choose between her loyalty to family and her newfound feelings.

This was a delightful story and very refreshing for me since my reads lately have been so short on heroines who are strong without being annoying or insipid. Beatrice was neither of those things, but rather her outspokenness and unconventionality, as well as her refusal to be cowed, made her lovable. Grey was adorably damaged but lovable as well, he just had to learn to see that as well. This story was emotional and an endearing tale of family, while also including some mystery to keep me intrigued for the next book as well.

This is a delightful start to a new series and I can’t wait for the next installment already.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I’m just back from Le Festival du Roman Feminin in Paris where I was lucky to meet a bunch of awesome authors, so I have a bit of struggle put back my feet on earth.
This is my second read by Mrs Sabrina Jeffries, I do remember my first one, I liked it but I had mixed feeling about the heroine.
But here, she outdid herself and crafted a great young woman, with no weak knees ( how I dislike women who become puddles of drool at the sight of a man! ). Beatrice is strong woman, she was shaped by her upbringing and the behavior of her uncle toward her. Instead of undermine her character, it strengthened it, she blossomed in a woman who speaks her mind and lets nobody thwart her projects. Sure, it renders her less prepped to face London society.
Fletcher Pryde has ressentes his family since he was estranged at ten to be raised by his uncle and guardian. Worst, his uncle abused him to have him comply to his wills. He changed him to a man who refuses any emotional involvement. Why his life is turned upside down when around Beatrice, he feels a compulsion to be close to her, to hold her, to kiss her when at the same time he suspects her to might been part of some wrongdoings.
I loved they were able to tell what they have in mind, that they do not shy away and ask instead of turning around. They are far from perfect as their faith in the other is put to test at each bend. Their trust is balanced between their certitudes and hearsay and rumors. They each time come to realize when they have made mistakes and then they try to fix them, as it often done by blurting out before thinking but words can cause great pains. Why the truce they made to be true when they are together is often challenged as they must compromise between sentiments and secrets.
As a first in a series, the storyline introduced a wide range of characters, will each of the sibling get its story?
I just wondered why Gwyn, Grey’s half sister, never had a debut, even when they were not living in England. If I figure out my sums, she is in her thirties, I do like my heroines not fresh out of the nursery which it is more a spinster’s age than a debutante’s, but she acted rather like a very young woman instead of an adult one.
In all, it was a good beginning in this Duke Dynasty series, there are plenty of great tales in the making.
I was provided an ARC thanks to Netgalley and the editor Kensington Books/Zebra but I had previously preordered my own copy, so here is my true and unbiased opinion.
5 stars

Fletcher Pryde, the Duke of Greycourt, is estranged from his family. He hasn’t forgotten that his mother let his cruel uncle raise him. Now she needs him. Her 3rd husband’s death has left her broken. Reluctantly he goes to her. Suddenly he finds himself facing a spirited beauty who speaks her mind and a murder investigation. What happens next is a romantic adventure. Can he help find the truth and get Beatrice to be his? Grey is a bitter man. His fears haunt him. I wanted him to find love. He deserves to be happy. Beatrice has suffered. What she endured angered me. It’s an all to familiar occurrence. I wanted her to realize that she’s a beautiful woman who deserves to be treated with respect. She and Grey have powerful chemistry. I hated that their circumstances make a relationship difficult. Their flirtation pulled me into their romance. The dialogue is sharp and sassy. Each of their encounters are interesting especially since he considers her brother a suspect. Grey’s interaction with his mother and siblings add more drama. The setting and the death of his stepfather kept me reading. I wanted resolution and a HEA, but I wasn’t sure I would get it. I enjoy the writing of Sabrina Jeffries. She never disappoints. I can’t wait to see what happens next in The Duke Dynasty series.
I received a copy of this book which I voluntarily read and reviewed. My comments are my honest opinion.

I have been a reader of Sabrina Jeffries for quite some time. I really love her books.

This one had a heaping dose of…it couldn’t happen…just in the main premise of the series.

See in Regency England…there are were only about 60 non royal dukes..so how a woman could have been married to as many as Mama Lydia did was a bit of a stretch…and then to produce all these young handsome rakish Dukes is an even bigger improbability.

But I’ll forget that because this is fiction and romance and not totally based on reality.

Getting into the story was not the easiest thing as there was a lot and I do mean a lot going on at the onset, but once you settle in, its a good read.

I even learned something. What you ask? There is such a thing as Funeral biscuits. (AKA Cookies) Seriously, they are a thing. Google it and be creeped out too! And while I’m at it, I didn’t know that many women didn’t attend the funerals of their loved ones because of their delicate sensibilities. Wowzas!

The story itself is part romance and part mystery, as there is a question in his half brother’s mind that the current Duke that had died might have been murdered and the prime suspect would be Bea’s brother.

I loved Grey and Bea. They were strong and likable characters that made this a fun read as a roundabout investigation brings the two of them together and apart.

The story also touches on abuse on a few levels that happened in the pasts of both main characters, which made for some interesting reading.

I like how the mystery is what is going to tie all the stories in this series together. I look forward to seeing how all the things play out.

A great start to other series for Sabrina Jeffries. I have read almost all of her books, and series and this first book was great. Fletcher “Grey” Pryde, Duke of Greycourt finds out after a visit from his cousin.
That his mother is a widow again. She has been married three times and has five children. Three of her son’s are Duke’s, one is in the military, and her only daughter is single.
Vanessa Pryde is ten years his junior and more like a sister then a cousin. Her mother has been trying for years to set them up for marriage. Both want the opposite to marry someone else anyone else.
There is a lot going on in story, lot’s of character’s both good and bad. The mystery of why his mother’s husbands have all died in accidents. The last two close together.
Grey and Beatrice get off to a rough start and tempers fly. Grey thinks she is a servant working on the funeral and starts giving her orders. Then finds out she is cousin to his half-brother.
As Beatrice and Grey get to know each other, find themselves falling for each other. Grey is also helping his brother try to find out who killed his father. Sheridan thinks it is Bea brother Joshua. He has come home for the war after he was injured. He is a loner and keeps to himself.
This is a great story and as I don’t want to give anything away, I will just end by saying this has
everything you want in a romance, both Beatrice and Grey are likeable, a mystery, steamy love scenes and a really hard won great ending…. I can’t wait for the next book

Project Duchess by Sabrina Jeffries, Narrated by Beverley A Crick
Grey, the duke of Greycourt avoids his aunt’s machinations to marry his cousin with the death of his stepfather. His oft widowed mother has summoned him and while reluctant to be around family, it is preferable than to be once again at the mercy of his aunt.
Grey doesn’t trust society, but he has no solace with his family. Estranged for years, he holds everyone at bay with his arrogance. Confronted with a woman who has suffered a similar past, is outspoken and spirited he finds himself attracted despite suspecting her of being involved in his stepfather’s murder.
Beatrice Wolfe embraces Grey’s family as her own. An orphan at the mercy of her lascivious uncle, she finds refuge with Grey’s mother and stepsiblings.
When his brother asks him to help discover who killed his father, Grey agrees to investigate Beatrice under the guise of helping his mother prepare her to make her society debut.
Neither believes themselves capable of receiving love and are reluctant to allow themselves to fall, but they fall hard for each other. Can they overcome the difficulties facing them as others threaten to steal their chance at happiness?
Sabrina Jeffries is one of my favorite authors, even as she deals with some difficult subjects, she brings her readers into the light with hope. This series appears to have an ongoing mystery with each of the duchess’ children finding love while trying to discover what may have happened with their fathers. I look forward to reading or listening to each book. If you like strong characters, especially strong female characters then you will fall in love with Ms Jeffries’ books. This one was one of her bests.

Project Duchess by Sabrina Jeffries was simply a joy to read from start to finish, a great beginning to a series about the children of a woman who married not one, but three dukes and gave birth to three sons — so she’s thrice a dowager duchess and the mother of three dukes. The Duke of Greycourt is first up, the oldest son who was raised by an uncle and resents bitterly that he had to leave his mother. Still, he goes to her when her most recent husband dies (suspiciously, a great thread in the story that is still unsolved) and meets Beatrice Wolfe. She is a connection of the family who did not expect to marry because, why else, she is poor and with only a grumpy brother in her corner. Grey’s mother is determined to bring Beatrice out with his half-sister, thus the project in the title — although Grey doesn’t realize his mother’s intent as to Beatrice’s potential as a duchess until well near the end of the story. This is a love story that builds beautifully over the course of the book, complete with obstacles (a cousin whose mother will stop at nothing to ensure Grey and Vanessa marry) and a hint of danger as Grey and his brother and fellow duke search for the killer. A third brother and duke is mostly MIA in this story and we look forward to learning more about him. Jeffries creates a believable, fascinating world, with flesh-and-blood characters whose fates we care about. Wonderful start, and can’t wait for the next book. (I received an ARC on NetGalley. Opinions mine.)