How to Deceive a Duke by Samara Parish

Tracy’s rating: 3.5/4 of 5 stars

Series: Rebels with a Cause, #2

Release Date: January 25, 2022

Once upon a time Edward Stirling, Duke of Wildeforde, and Fiona McTavish were in love and HEA seemed like a sure thing, but then a tragedy in his family and a scandal caused by his father, makes Edward rethink a future with Fiona and he breaks things off.

Five years pass without contact, and Fiona has tried to move on with her life by pursuing her career, but when Fiona finds herself arrested and in serious trouble, Edward is who she turns to for help. In the years since their parting Edward has become rigidly proper, to protect his family’s reputation and he is still trying to smooth over the scandal his father made. So when Fiona asks for help, he should walk away, especially since Fiona is masquerading as a young man named Finley and will have to stay with Edward as a condition of his release. But despite his reservations, Edward can’t say no.

This was a well-written, nicely paced second chance at love romance. The book is not your typical HR, the heroine is a scientist and a commoner, while the hero is extremely proper and a duke, but in this case, opposites definitely attract. This book has it all, a brilliant, strong heroine, a protective hero, great secondary characters, a meddling mother, scandal, cross-dressing, mild love scenes, a bit too much miscommunication, and finally a HEA that didn’t seem possible. Overall, I enjoyed the book, but not as much as the first book. This is the second book in the series, but it could easily be read as a standalone title.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own.*