Who Wants to Marry a Duke: A Delightful Historical Regency Romance Book

I am enjoying this series so much! Two dukes and the daughter and second son of a duke (all sharing the same mother) who choose their spouses, not because of rank, but because they genuinely love each other (not something ordinarily done during the Regency era). Marlowe Drake, the Duke of Thornstock, and Olivia Norley first met 9 years ago at a party where they ended up in the library kissing (quite innocently, of course) but Miss Norley's stepmother walks in on them and blackmails Thorn into proposing marriage to Olivia, unbeknownst to Olivia. Olivia unwittingly foils her stepmother's plan by refusing to accept his proposal. Now, 9 years later, they meet again when his stepbrother, the Duke of Greycourt, hires her for her chemistry skills. She has decided she will be a spinster because no man would allow her to continue practicing her chemistry and she enjoys it far and above anything else. Once they renew their acquaintance, they come to realize that they are well suited and he, again, proposes to her. This time she accepts; but Thorn has a secret that Olivia will discover on her own and, feeling betrayed by the one person she thought knew and loved her for herself, she runs home to lick her wounds. I believe this book could be read as a stand alone, but there is a second story line that runs through the series, so it would be much more enjoyable if you have read Project Duchess and The Bachelor before you read this book. I received an advanced reader copy of this book from the publisher and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Miss Olivia Norley loves chemistry and would be perfectly content to spend her life in a lab instead of attending all of these balls to please her stepmother. When Olivia runs into Marlowe "Thorn" Drake, the Duke of Thornstock the chemistry really heats up and these two get caught in a compromising position. Thorn does the proper thing and makes an offer of marriage for Olivia. To his surprise she turns him down! Nine years later Thorn's half-brother, Grey hires Olivia to conduct some experiments to determine if Grey's father was poisoned with arsenic. Thorn doesn't trust Olivia so he decides to tag along. Of course the more time Thorn and Olivia spend together, the more their feelings continue to grow. When it becomes obvious that someone does not want Olivia to conduct her experiments, Thorn is determined to protect the woman he has grown to love. Now he just needs to let her in on a little secret he has been keeping which may just change they way she feels about him. Just when it looks like a happy ending for Thorn and Olivia.....everything blows up in their faces. It will take a lot of soul searching for these two to find their hearts but in the end it was all worth it. I just adored Olivia. Anytime there is a sassy, intelligent female in a Regency historical romance she usually ends up running the show! Olivia knows that she doesn't need a man in her life, but she certainly didn't mind having Thorn around! ;) I really enjoyed Thorn too. He was a typical alpha male but was still fun and witty. I really enjoyed their story and can't wait to find out the conclusion of the mystery as to who killed all of the dukes

Holy hotness!!! This was absolutely one of the most sizzling historical romances I’ve read in forever! I adore nerdy heroines and while Olivia wasn’t your typical nerd, she was definitely a heroine who had her nose stuck in chemical elements and experiments. She was more than capable of holding her own in society, but that was not where her interests laid. Her reaction to Thorn took her by surprise as she has not experienced the things he makes her feel upon first meeting him. Thorn was initially a well rounded duke but after having his beliefs dashed and his character minangled, he quickly learns to embrace his rakehell title. I loved watching him fall for Olivia even as he didn’t realize that was what he was doing. He was a fun hero as he grumbled and groused his way into Olivia’s life. With a lot of protectiveness and a bit of jealousy, it didn’t take much to make him a new favorite for me. Together, this couple had me smiling, laughing, cursing, and cheering as they struggle to find their happy ever after. As the drama and action rolled across the pages, revealing new thoughts and ideas regarding this family and their past, I found myself growing more and more excited to learn who the ultimate villain is. This has a great pace to it that kept me turning the pages as it never bogged down or repeated itself. The chemistry between Thorn and Olivia was absolutely delicious in all its wickedness, and I am once more reminded that this author has kept up with the times when it comes to giving the romance reader exactly what they’re looking for.