The Duchess In His Bed by Lorraine Heath

The Duchess in His Bed (Sins for All Seasons, #4)Barbara’s rating: 4 of 5 stars

Series: Sins For All Seasons #4
Publication Date: 8/20/19
Number of Pages: 320

I thoroughly enjoyed this addition to the Sins for All Seasons series. Of the six Trewlove children, I was most interested in reading Aiden’s story and Beast’s story. Aiden has intrigued me from the beginning, so I was happy to see his story. Next up is Fancy’s and maybe finally I’ll get to read Beast’s story.

Aiden is everything I thought he’d be – hard on the outside and soft in the center. He protects what is his and assures that there is no way he ever produces a bastard like himself. He’d never cause any child to have that sort of fate. I had a harder time warming up to Selena ‘Lena’ Sheffield, Duchess of Lushing. The reason I’m giving a 4-star review rather than a 5-star review is because of my problems with the duchess. Yes, I understood her dilemma, but rather than telling her brother to man up and telling her sisters the true status of their finances, she chose to ask a man like Aiden to do the unthinkable. She wanted it even after she learned his story and his strong objections. She even intended to trick him, and just the fact that she fully intended to do that said a lot about her whether she carried through or not.

Selena’s father wasn’t a very good manager of his earldom nor of his funds. So, when both of her parents were killed and her brother Winslow inherited the earldom, their financial circumstances were dire. For the good of her brother and her three sisters, she married the Duke of Lushing. She loved him but wasn’t in love with him. Their marriage was a passionless one and his only reason for the marriage was to produce an heir since he was the last of his line anywhere and his titles and estates would forfeit to the crown when he died. After seven years and no children, the duke died. Without him, there would be no dowry for her sisters and no way to financially help her brother. So, Winslow came up with a solution – Selena would quickly get pregnant and pass the child off as the dukes. ** Just as an additional comment — I REALLY disliked Winslow. **

Aiden Trewlove is one of six bastard children raised by Hettie Trewlove. Hettie was a remarkable woman who raised six remarkable children – five of whom weren’t even hers. She taught them respect, love, caring for others and how to be successful. Aiden owns two very successful clubs – The Cerberus Club, a gaming hell for men and the Elysium Club, recently given to him by his brother Finn, which caters to women. I saw one reviewer refer to it as a brothel for women, but I didn’t get that. Yes, there were a few of the men who worked there who would provide that service if the women wanted it, but the focus of the club was more pampering and caring for the women, giving them a place where they can feel beautiful, respected, and cared about.

Aiden was immediately drawn to the woman who entered his Elysium club. He couldn’t even see her face, but he felt the invisible thread pulling him in. After showing her around the club, she told him she wanted to be bedded and he told here that the servers with the red dots on their uniforms would accommodate her. Then, she told him that she wanted him only.

All it required of him was a few nights of being lost in mad, passionate lovemaking – not a hardship at all – And then walking away, never, ever, to look back.

I absolutely LOVED that the villain got his just desserts! It was the absolute perfect punishment for him. I also loved the Countess of Elverton – although you see little of her until toward the end of the book. I think she might be one of my favorite people in the entire series just for her one small role.

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

The Reluctant Duchess by Jane Goodger

The Reluctant Duchess (The Brides of St. Ives #4)The Reluctant Duchess by Jane Goodger

Tracy’s rating: 2.5 of 5 stars

Series: The Brides of St. Ives #4

Release Date: July 9, 2019

Oliver Sterling, Duke of Kendal is a recluse, a unique condition has kept him a virtual prisoner in his home, so when he sees a painting of a beautiful woman, he sends his “guardian” Philip Winters to find her and marry her by proxy.

Rebecca Caine is summoned to her father’s study and informed that in order to save her family from financial ruin, she must marry the Duke of Kendal. Having no choice, she agrees, but takes an immediate dislike to Mr. Winters. When she arrives at the castle, she is surprised that the duke is not there to meet her, but later that night, he comes to her in the dark.

This was one of the most bizarre books I have ever read and I am still not sure if the author was trying to give the story a gothic twist or if it was supposed to be a twisted version of beauty and the beast or if it was a farce. I definitely didn’t love this book, but I can’t say that I hated it either, I am not exactly sure how I feel about it, which makes assigning a rating very hard – so, I am going to go middle of the road and give it 2.5 stars. The idea of the story is original, the characters are likeable and there is a very sweet HEA But, the twists and turns get out of hand and are at times completely over the top and there are several unbelievable scenarios as well as an “insta-love” feel to the story that was a bit off-putting. This is the fourth book in the series, but it can easily be read as a stand-alone title with no problems.

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