Veena’s review of How the Scoundrel Seduces (Duke’s Men, Book 3) by Sabrina Jeffries
Historical Romance published by Pocket Books 19 Aug 14
This series, prior to this book, had failed to capture my imagination and I was ready to throw in the towel but couldn’t resist reading this last one, because Tristan, with his passionate bad-boy attitude, has appealed to me from the first book. I am glad that I stuck with it because I definitely enjoyed Tristan and Zoe’s unconventional love story.
Sparks flew in the last book when Tristan and Zoe first met, and clearly they are going to continue to sputter and burst into a full conflagration given time and proximity. Lady Zoe has a marker from the Duke’s men for her help in their last case, so pretty soon she’s calling on them to cash it in. Who better to work with her than her nemesis Tristan, especially since his personal interests nicely dovetail with her needs.
Zoe is a modern woman born in regency times and she’s not about to let Tristan go off and investigate on his own, and so pretty soon their chemistry is flaring into a full-blown fire that moves into her bedroom. In the meantime, her aunt is trying to matchmake in order to ensure that scandal doesn’t touch Zoe.
The cast of supporting characters in this one is terrific. Clearly the siblings and their spouses are all present, but the ones that steal the limelight are Zoe’s so-called American cousin and her father. I hope to see more of them in forthcoming books and perhaps his siblings, who also sound interesting. Or who knows, maybe the author will cross the Atlantic and continue this tale in the colonies.
Tristan has carried a chip for so long, thanks to his own circumstances. So it is quite interesting to see Zoe’s father putting the shoe on the other foot and forcing him to acknowledge that prejudice can go both ways. The other character who gets much more time is Dom, who’s emerging out of the shadows and is scheduled to get his own book next.
Things are definitely looking up in the series and I am looking forward to the next book.
Grade: B
Summary:
The third deliciously sexy novel in the New York Times bestselling Duke’s Men historical romance series, featuring an investigator who sets out to find gypsies—and unexpectedly finds love.
Investigator Tristan Bonnaud has one aim in life—to make sure that his half-brother George can’t ever ruin his life again. So when the pesky Lady Zoe Keane, the daughter of the Earl of Olivier, shows up demanding that the Duke’s Men find a mysterious gypsy woman, he seizes the opportunity to also hunt for a gypsy friend who knows secrets about George. Tristan doesn’t expect to uncover Lady Zoe’s family secrets, as well…or end up falling for the woman who will risk all to discover the truth.
Read an excerpt.
Other books in this series:
