The Duke in Denial
by Alexandra Ainsworth
M/M Historical
Romance/Regency
4 Stars
Blurb:
Sebastian Lewis never
expected to become a duke. But with the sudden deaths of his cousin
and uncle, Sebastian’s position changes. He is determined to fulfil
his new responsibilities with grace, even if it means remarrying, and
even if the attractions of women, so often lauded by poets, fail to
interest him.
Captain William
Carlisle, newly returned from India, is elated when he meets
Sebastian. Nobody knows of his inclinations, but his harrowing
experiences in battle have prompted him to reach for the type of
companionship he longs for. He thinks Sebastian might feel an
attraction as well, but to his dismay, he discovers that Sebastian is
courting his sister Dorothea.
After a semi-arranged
engagement and a disconcerting romantic tangle with William,
Sebastian escapes London to look after his manor, only to face
mysterious thefts, a headless ghost, and the arrival of his fiancée,
her brother, and his family. Sebastian’s new estate sits on the
south coast, England’s most vulnerable location, and Napoleon has
set his sights on conquering the area. Amid this growing turmoil,
Sebastian must sort out his feelings for his fiancée’s brother and
keep his home safe . . . and determine if he has the courage to reach
for his own happiness in the process.
Review:
After the death of his
wife and child, Sebastian Lewis is quite content to mope about his
estate in Yorkshire. He certainly never expected to inherit a
dukedom, but with the death of his uncle and cousin close to each
other, that's exactly what he becomes.
Being a duke means a
lot more responsibilities and Sebastian decides he needs to remarry,
despite not really wanting to. He enlists the help of his aunt and
decides to court Dorothea, his cousin's past fiancée.
William Carlisle has
just returned from action in India, where he was heavily wounded. He
decides life is too short to wait around for what he wants and
desires, which is not marriage, but a real relationship with a man.
An errant top hat on the way to his sister's engagement ball
precipitates his first meeting with Sebastian and William thinks he
has finally found a man who he could happily spend the rest of his
life with.
But then he discovers
Sebastian is his sister's new fiancée.
This book was a
delight! Spies, smugglers, a villain you'll love to hare, along with
strange goings-on at Sebastian's new manor house in Sussex, is it
ghosts or something else? There is a lot of story and mystery going
on here, but the reader never loses sight that this is above all a
love story, and not between Sebastian and Dorothea.
Sebastian is a very
noble character, and he really only asks for Dorothea's hand because
there are scandalous rumours about that she and her dead fiancée
jumped ahead to the wedding night. Sebastian just wants to to help
her keep her station, he is not in love with her and Dorothea isn't
in love with him.
William falls very hard
for Sebastian, but he doesn't want to hurt his sister. Sebastian is
very much in denial about his inclinations, and we have a lot of
insight into his thoughts regarding the matter: that it is sinful,
illegal and unnatural. He is tormented by thoughts of William though
and doing some of those things.
There isn't a lot of
sex in the book but the sexual tension between Sebastian and William
every time they are in the same room just about sizzles off the page.
Because of the Regency era it is set, where everything must be very
prim proper, a touch on the arm or the press of thighs next to each
other in a carriage, or even just a longing glance across the room -
every moment is supercharged and erotic, despite both men being fully
clothed.
The main love scene
takes place around 70% on my Kindle and you are really hoping for it
as much as the characters are. It's like they spent the earlier part
of the book in some sort of mating dance or foreplay: they've had
interruptions, cold feet and just when you think they'll never get it
together, it happens and you can breathe a sigh of relief.
Sir Ambrose,
Sebastian's new neighbour in Sussex, comes across in part like a
pantomime villain. You could imagine him in a black cape, twirling
his moustache as he ties some unfortunate young lady to the railway
line. I don't think I remember any redeeming features about him at
all, but then I don't think we were meant to like him.
I did have a few
niggles with the American spellings, the book's setting is very
English, with most of it set in London and Sussex and the US
spellings seemed out of place with the rest.
An engaging, romantic
read with characters you want to get their happily ever after.
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