The Good, the Bad, and the Duke
The Cavensham Heiresses
-
- $12.99
-
- $12.99
Publisher Description
Best Books of November - Bookriot
A lady with a noble mission. A duke looking for redemption. A forbidden love that cannot be denied, in The Good, The Bad, and The Duke by Janna MacGregor.
Lady Daphne Hallworth is ready to celebrate the holidays with her family. But when they accidentally leave her home alone, Daphne uses the time to work on her dream—opening a home for unwed mothers. But her quest isn’t problem-free: She’s in a battle to win the property for the home against her brother’s best friend-turned-enemy, Paul Barstowe, Duke of Southart. And that’s not all: someone has stolen her personal diary, which holds secrets that could devastate her family. Daphne has always harbored private feelings for the man her family scorns…though perhaps striking a bargain with the handsome Duke will solve both their problems?
Paul, long considered good for nothing, aims to open a hospital to honor his brother and restore his reputation. So when a conflict over the land brings him straight into Daphne’s life, they make a deal: He will help her find her diary if Daphne can change her family’s opinion of him. But before he can win her family’s affection, he has to win hers first. Maybe love was the answer to their family feud all along?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
MacGregor's fourth Cavensham Heiresses historical (after The Luck of the Bride) effervesces with lighthearted romance and holiday cheer. Lady Daphne, sister to a marquis, is accidentally left behind at Christmastime when her boisterous family decamps from London to their country estate. Choosing to make the best of the situation, she spends quality time with her journal, the keeper of her deepest secrets. When that journal is stolen, she ends up on the steps of a notorious gambling hell with only her brother's estranged best friend to save her from infamy. Paul, Duke of Southart, dedicated his life to scandal until the untimely death of his father and older brother. Now his goal is to repair his image. When he finds Daphne about to lead herself to ruin, he steps in to save her from herself and possibly repair his relationship with her brother. This romance is sweet and sultry in equal measures, and endearing characters bring the story to life.
Customer Reviews
A witty holiday themed romance.
The Good The Bad and The Duke is a cautionary tale to never let your >bleeep< journal out of your sight! 😂 Seriously though, between the covers I was delighted to find a story of lifelong friendships and redemption. This does have the prerequisite plot points you expect from the genre. Boy and girl are drawn together, turmoil ensues attempting to keep them apart, and then the stars align and they grab their happily ever after. More than that, I enjoyed our hero “Paul” swallowing his pride and dusting off his apology britches to set his life to rights finally. Finally! This is the storyline I have been waiting for in this series. I feel that the author did a fantastic job in creating his romantic counterpoint in Daphne. She is no wilting wallflower with more than enough of an independent streak as to be relatable. These two play off of one another beautifully.
This could be read as a standalone novel. However, I feel that the redemption of the male lead, in addition to the multiple supporting character ties, this would be best enjoyed when read in series order. Paul really did make some colossal poor choices he has to scrape himself back from. I loved every minute of reading time spent on this story.
I received a complimentary advance copy of this title at no cost to the author via Netgalley. All opinions are unsolicited and my own.
Really it is 10 stars!!!
I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley and I am voluntarily reviewing it.
This book was a hard one to put down. This was so full of intrigue and suspense. I just loved it. Ms. MacGregor really does a fantastic job in capturing the reader's attention. The plot of the book just flowed so smoothly that it felt like I was watching a movie in my head. The plot was such an original one that it really was a joy to read. It was not one that has done before (at least not that I have read a similar one). Some authors seem to write the same story over and over but with different character names and a slight change to the plot. Not here. I so enjoyed this.
The book was written in my favorite dual POV format. Being able to read the character's thoughts really helps me, the reader, to understand the character's actions so much better. This is especially important with reading historicals. The morals then are so much different than those of today's. Understanding some of Paul's actions would have been so hard to decipher without such insight.
Paul was a wonderful male protagonist. I just fell in love with him. He was so wonderful and protective of Daphne that I was completely smitten. Daphne was such a warm loving person that it is easily to be enchanted with her.
The only disappointment, it is over!!!! I can't wait for the next installment. I will probably re-read the entire series over again after it is over. I will say this, do you have to read the prior books to enjoy this one, no. The author does a fantastic job of writing that the reader is not confused. I so enjoyed reading more of the prior characters and getting a glimpse of their continued story.
I so highly recommend this historical romance.
What would you do?
What would you do if your family left for Christmas without you?
What would you do if you were a duke wanting to repair your worthless reputation?
What would you do when your dream is met with obstacles; especially in the form of the handsome as sin ex-best friend of your brother?
What would you do if your road to redemption is constantly blocked by your ex-best friend’s beautiful sister?
What would you do if your private diary (one that contains secrets that if exposed would devastate those you love) is stolen?
What would you do if your beautiful nemesis is constantly tempting danger in her search for a missing diary?
Lady Daphne Hallworth and Paul Barstowe, Duke of Southart will answer all those questions while Janna MacGregor takes them on a journey of towards a happily ever after.