Kiss of a Duke: A Regency Holiday Romance

Penelope Mitchell is a chemist living in Cressmouth who has taken England by storm with Duke, a perfume for men that has women swooning at their feet. To prove the same aphrodisiacal potency of her upcoming version for ladies Duchess, the new perfume must cause a rake to fall in love with her in ten days. Sexy pleasure-seeker Nicholas Pringle aka “Saint Nick” for his wicked ways, wants to end the absurd cologne that has every young buck believing himself a ladies’ man. This is the second book in the series but it can easily be read as a stand alone book. I’m loving this series which the blurb says is ‘ a laugh-out-loud historical romance series of heartwarming Regency romps’, this one ticks all the boxes & more. The characters are well fleshed & the pace is good in fact I sat down to read for an hour but continued until I’d finished it. Nick & Penelope are very likeable but they quickly become friends, their banter is amusing & are able to reveal their true selves to each other, of course they are attracted to each other but is that ‘Duchess’ working? A lovely heart warming romance that left me wanting the next in the series. My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

Kiss of a Duke is the second book in the 12 Dukes of Christmas Regency Romance series, featuring 12 romps in a picturesque holiday village. Lady chemist Penelope Mitchell discovers a perfume for men that makes them undeniably attractive to women. England is a blaze with people clamoring for more of Penelope’s Duke perfume. When she decides to make a similar perfume for women, she uses a very special male as her test subject. Nicholas Pringle has come to the village to stop production of Duke perfume. But when he meets the amazing woman inventor behind the product his world is turned upside down. I have loved all of Ridley’s books and this one is no exception. I love how she builds and layers her characters. Nicholas isn’t just an average vapid rake, but a man with deep vulnerabilities and a complex personality. Penelope wasn’t my favorite heroine. I found her spouting science to be at times tiresome. However, Nicholas makes up for any lack in Penelope. I can’t wait to read more.

Returning to Cressmouth, where Christmas is a year-long event, we once again meet up with Penelope Mitchell, the chemist who prefers to lose herself in her fire-proof laboratory than to socialise and attract the attention of visiting rakes. Although this book is fairly short, it is laugh-out-loud funny, and the plot is well written and intriguing. Neither Penelope nor Nick believe in love. Nick thinks it is for fools and Penelope is convinced that it is an animal attraction. They both set out to prove the other wrong, and but end up forming a friendship that leads to undeniable attraction. Needless to say, when Nick finds out that Penelope is using him as a scientific experiment any chances of furthering the relationship are put in jeopardy. This novella is part of a series and although the characters do overlap, it is nevertheless a standalone. I received a copy of this book through NetGalley and this is my honest and voluntary review.