ARC Review: Never a Duke (Rogues to Riches #7) by Grace Burrowes
10:00
Series: Rogues to Riches #7
Author: Grace Burrowes
Published April 26th 2022 by Forever/Piatkus
Goodreads Synopsis
Despite having humble origins and a criminal past, Ned Wentworth has learned to dress, waltz, and express himself as elegantly as any lordling. When Lady Rosalind Kinwood’s maid goes missing, her ladyship turns to Ned, precisely because he still has friends in low places and skills no titled dandy would ever acquire, much less admit he possesses.
Rosalind is too opinionated and too intelligent, and has frequently suffered judgment at polite society’s hands. In the quietly observant Ned Wentworth, she finds a man who actually listens to her and who respects her for her outspokenness. As the search for the missing maids grow more perilous, Rosalind and Ned will have to risk everything—including their hearts—if they are to share the happily ever after that Mayfair’s matchmakers have begrudged them both.
Goodreads
Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.
As a child, Ned Wentworth was lucky enough to find himself pseudo-adopted by the newly titled Duke of Walden, released from Newgate, and with a family. Years later, he's a successful banker at Walden's bank, treated as a member of the family, but the ton will not let him forget his urchin roots. Because of this, he doesn't expect any society lady to want to have anything to do with him, so Lady Rosalind Kinwood, daughter of an earl, turning up on his doorstep, asking for help, is a shock to say the least. Her maid has gone missing, and she knows Ned has the connections to help find her, but neither of them expect to uncover the hidden plot, deep within society, which might even have ties closer to home.
I have loved each and every book in this series, which I picked up on a whim from my local library, and wanted to see if Ned had a happy ending. We met him in book 1, My One and Only Duke, and each meeting since, he has come on leaps and bounds, but always been someone not quite a member of the Wentworth family. I don't think I had ever expected how separate he felt until we saw his own thoughts on the page in Never a Duke. Lady Rosalind was a joy. She was bullied by her family and treated as less simply because of her birth, and with Ned, it was like the first time someone saw the real Rosalind, and didn't dismiss her thoughts or feelings. Meeting the larger Wentworth family helped her gain confidence too, and she really grew over the course of the book. Both of the couple are so self depreciating, and neither felt they were good enough for each other, but I'm glad they realised their self worth, and that they had the love of the Wentworth's, if not Rosalind's own family. I'm not sure if this is the end of the series, but if it is, it was the perfect ending!
Dates Read:
January 16-17, 2022
Rating
4 Stars
0 comments