The Illegitimate Duke
Diamonds in the Rough
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4.3 • 136 Ratings
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- $7.99
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
United in a common cause…
Lady Juliette Matthews longs to be much more than just another pretty ornament in society. But using her recently acquired fortune to do some good is more complicated than she anticipated. Young ladies are not expected to risk their safety in helping the less fortunate. And the one gentleman who could help in her mission is stubborn, infernally handsome—and far too honorable to act on their mutual attraction.
And in a desire impossible to deny…
Florian Lowell has suddenly been made heir to the Duke of Redding—a far cry from his status as a dedicated physician. Yet even with his new role as the country’s most eligible bachelor, the beautiful, fearless Juliette is utterly beyond his reach. The scandalous circumstances of his birth would destroy both their reputations if they became known. But when a more urgent danger threatens Juliette’s life, Florian must gamble everything…including the heart only one woman can tame.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Barnes's third Diamonds in the Rough Regency (after The Duke of Her Desire) revels in the power of unconditional love. Florian Lowell, a well-respected London physician and recent heir to a dukedom, bemoans his status as a very eligible bachelor. Juliette Matthews, sister of the Duke of Huntley, has admired Florian for his skills as a physician, and is somewhat surprised by her attraction to him at a London ball. Juliette soon becomes a committee member at St. Agatha's Hospital, where Florian works, and donates a sizable sum to stop the spread of typhus. But Florian tries to resist his attraction to the beautiful Juliette, believing that he has been tainted by his notorious father's crimes. When Juliette contracts typhus while nursing a friend, Florian takes her into his home to care for her and realizes that he can no longer ignore his love for her. Barnes's fast-paced novel is complete with ever-present sizzling sexual tension between Florian and Juliette, whose romance is counterbalanced by the realism of medical advances of the times.
