ARC Review: Heiress In Red Silk (A Duke's Heiress #2) by Madeline Hunter
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Series: A Duke's Heiress #2
Author: Madeline Hunter
Published April 27th 2021 by Zebra
Goodreads Synopsis
In this sparkling series from New York Times bestselling author Madeline Hunter, a mysterious bequest brings a whole new life—and brand-new love—to three unsuspecting women...
In one life-changing windfall, Rosamund Jameson goes from struggling shopkeeper to heiress—and co-owner of a new business. Not only will her sudden fortune allow her to move her millinery shop to fashionable London, but Rosamund will be able to provide her younger sister with a proper entry into society. The only hitch for resourceful Rosamund is her arrogant, infuriatingly handsome business partner...
Kevin Radnor is shocked that his late uncle, the Duke of Hollinburgh, bequeathed half his company to a total stranger—worse, a beguiling beauty who can only hinder his enterprise. But Rosamund insists on an active, equal partnership, so Kevin embarks on a plan: a seduction that will lead to a marriage of convenience, giving Rosamund the social status she needs, and guaranteeing him the silent partner he desires. Yet as this charismatic gentleman sets his flirtation in motion, he begins to wonder who is seducing whom—and if he can learn to share himself body and mind, without losing his heart...
Goodreads
Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.
Heiress in Red Silk sees milliner Rosamund Jameson discover the late Duke of Hollinburgh has helped her more than the purse of guineas that allowed her to open her store. Rather, he left her half shares in an engineering invention, and money beyond her wildest dreams. When her partner in the invention, and the inventor himself, Kevin Radnor, finds her, he is shocked by her business prowess, and her appearance, and he can't help but be worried about the venture. The rest of the Radnor family are hateful, and rude to Rosamund, and can't fathom that the money they were expecting to inherit, and hoping would come their way soon - if Rosamund hadn't been found - has gone instead to the daughter of a Oxfordshire tenant farmer, who won't return it to them. And when Kevin announces that he hopes to marry - firstly for the reputation it'll give Rosamund, and the control of the engine it'll give him, and secondly to seduce her into his bed, it seems like both of them might just fall a little too much.
To say I couldn't wait to read this book would be an understatement. After finishing Heiress in Red Silk, and seeing the peek about this book, I knew I would devour it as soon as I got my hands on a copy. Rosamund was a character I just loved - she had suffered in life, and used her know how to create a position in life that was perfect for her. Joining service when she was only 17, she left Oxford for London, and became a housemaid in the home of a well to do family, and was seduced by the son, who told her he loved her, and wanted to marry. Well, as you can imagine, that never happened, and she was thrown onto the streets, with no reference and nothing to her name, and was lucky enough to find another position, in a brothel, but as a maid again. Here, she came across the Duke of Hollinburgh, and helped him care for his favourite girl, and got to talking. When he gave her some money, she used it to rent a shop in Richmond, and started her business as a milliner, which was quickly becoming fruitful. She never even expected that, and hearing about her inheritance was too much. I loved her growth, and how she thought about helping her sister first when it came to the money, getting her in a perfect school, before opening a London store - just off Oxford Street - and renting a town house and finding tutors for herself. She also didn't let any of the Radnors, let alone Kevin, intimidate her. She knew her worth, and wanted equal share in the running of the venture, that she was an equal partner in.
Kevin we saw in the first book, and he had been accused of killing the late Duke, which is brought up again in this one. I liked seeing him with Rosamund, as in Heiress for Hire he was a bit bland. Yes, he did set out to seduce Rosamund to get his hands on her shares, but it was quickly obvious that while he'd never been enthralled by a women in the past, he was head over heels for Rosamund, and wanted to marry her for her, and not just for what she brought to the union. Their chemistry, and love story, was epic, and the way Kevin came to appreciate Rosamund as more than simply a beautiful woman, was amazing! I still hate the majority of the Radnors - especially Philip - but it was perfect seeing more of Minerva and Chase and how they were doing, now married, following the events of their own love story. We still have the mystery surrounding the late duke's death, and we see more of the current duke, Nicholas, who will be the hero of the next story, The Heiress Bride, and I'm so looking forward to that book. Again, Madeline has proved herself to be an author I can't wait to read.
Dates Read:
Rating
4 Stars
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