ARC Review: Unmasking the Duke (Pleasure Garden #4) by Mary Lancaster

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Unmasking the Duke
Series: Pleasure Garden #4
Author: Mary Lancaster
Published February 24th 2022 by Dragonblade Publishing, Inc.

Goodreads Synopsis
Love at first smile…

Charmingly wicked, Johnny Winter has spent his adulthood drifting from scandal to scandal. However, inheriting the dukedom of Dearham has him considering his responsibilities, one of which is to right the wrong done to a distant cousin twenty years ago. His search takes him to Maida Pleasure Gardens, where he is distracted by an unusual and intriguing beauty.

The first time Kitty saw the gentleman with the bone-melting smile, she lost her heart.

When, more than a year later, she finally dances with him, the moment is spoiled by having to tie him up at gunpoint. For Kitty is the niece of the infamous Bill Renwick, who owns Maida Gardens and lives too close to the edges of the law. And Johnny has seen too much.

So begins an impossible attraction – made all the more dangerous by the duke’s belief that she is his long-lost relation.

Torn between the only family she knows and her longing for the duke, Kitty’s quandary is taken out of her hands by an attempt on her life. Learning to be a lady in the duke’s household brings further complications, not least her increasing obsession with her unconventional host, the man behind the mask he shows the world.

The duke sees beyond the mystery of Kitty’s origins, but can she? And having finally found the love of his life, can he keep her safe and still find a way for them to be together?
Goodreads

Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.

Raised by her uncle, Kitty Renwick has spent most of her life in Maida Gardens. She longs to spend time at the masquerade balls, but has been told she needs to stay on the sidelines. But when she meets the handsome Johnny Winter, she drawn to him in a way she's never been before. Johnny has quite the reputation for being a rake, but unexpectedly becoming Duke of Dearham has made him realise he has responsibilities, and one is finding a long-lost relation. Kitty seems to fit the description of the missing child, and so Johnny bring her to his household, with the rest of the extended family, but changing Kitty into the perfect society lady is not an easy task. Especially as neither of them can stop thinking of the other.

This was another quick and enjoyable read, but again, not too memorable. We've seen Kitty in previous books, so it was nice to see her have her own story. I liked the way she and Johnny met, and the way their relationship developed into a friendship first, though it was clear by the chemistry that they were bound to get together in the end. There were some unanswered questions left over from the book, but still an enjoyable book nonetheless.

Dates Read:
February 20, 2022

Rating
3 Stars

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