Duke Most Wicked
Series: Wallflowers vs. Rogues #3
Author: Lenora Bell
Published September 27th 2022 by Piatkus

Goodreads Synopsis
USA Today bestselling author Lenora Bell returns to the Wallflowers vs. Rogues series with a brilliant new novel about a scandalous duke and a wallflower with a secret.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a wicked duke who has gambled away his fortune must be in want of an heiress.

Scarred by a dark secret, Brandan Delamar, Duke of Westbury, must concede his misdeeds have finally caught up with him. With five younger sisters to support, he must marry for money.

Sunny and steadfast, Viola Beaton is no heiress. As music instructor to the duke’s sisters, she’s developed a genuine affection for the bright young ladies. Unfortunately, she’s also developed a forbidden passion for her wildly attractive employer.

It must be the way he inspires her to compose sonatas about moonlight and kisses. Or how his gaze smolders and lingers on her skin. Or because he makes her heart whisper impossible things.

When Westbury decrees that he’ll choose not only a bride, but grooms for his sisters, Viola can’t allow him to curtail their freedom. She strikes a bargain: if he allows his sisters to attend the Season, Viola will chaperone them and keep them safe from scandal.

Only…what if Viola and the duke are the ones most likely to cause a scandal?
Goodreads

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

For Viola Beaton, falling in love with her employee was not what she planned, but it's happened nonetheless. As a music instructor for the Duke of Westbury's siblings, she's seen the real side of the Duke, which he keeps hidden from society. But even though Westbury seems to return Viola's feelings, when he announces he's starting to find matches for his sisters, and will marry a wealthy bride himself, it's clear that he's hiding something. And his actions in the past, squandering the duchy's funds, has come back to bite him in the behind. So, Viola strikes a bargain with the duke - allow his sisters some freedom of choice, and she'll chaperone them and keep them safe during the Season. But though she has always been a paragon of virtue and modesty, it's soon obvious that she and the duke may cause the biggest scandal of them all.

We've met both Viola and Wesbury in previous books in the series, and I was always interesting in learning more about them, and why they found themselves in the situation they were in. You start of disliking Westbury for his past actions, and his announcement that he's going to marry a rich American heiress, and pair up his five sisters (Blanche, Bernadette, Belinda, Betsy, Birdie) as soon as possible. Viola is so angry at it all, that even though she loves him, she quits and returns home, but her father's money worries, and the sleazy landlord who's hovering around mean that she's in a precarious situation. Colluding with Westbury to ensure that she and her father are safe, and her sister's are looked after and chaperoned properly during the season, Viola becomes even closer to him. The second half of the book was great, and I loved the way the romance ramped up. This was the perfect read for my holiday, and definitely a great ending to the series.

Dates Read:
August 4-5, 2022

Rating
4 Stars