Early review: Eleven scandals to start to win a Duke's heart - Sarah MacLean

Series: Love by numbers 3
Genre: Historical romance
Pages: ebook, 384
Publication: April 26th 2011, Harper Collins

She lives for passion.
Bold, impulsive, and a magnet for trouble, Juliana Fiori is no simpering English miss. She refuses to play by society's rules: she speaks her mind, cares nothing for the approval of the ton, and can throw a punch with remarkable accuracy. Her scandalous nature makes her a favorite subject of London's most practiced gossips . . . and precisely the kind of woman The Duke of Leighton wants far far away from him.
He swears by reputation.
Scandal is the last thing Simon Pearson has room for in his well-ordered world. The Duke of Disdain is too focused on keeping his title untainted and his secrets unknown. But when he discovers Juliana hiding in his carriage late one evening—risking everything he holds dear—he swears to teach the reckless beauty a lesson in propriety. She has other plans, however; she wants two weeks to prove that even an unflappable duke is not above passion.

My thoughts:

I do confess to believing one thing when I read the blurb but the truth was something else. Juliana’s mother left her husband and twins and fled to Italy. Where she married a merchant and had Juliana, she later also left these two.  Juliana is tainted by relation and she does not want to cause scandal or have people think of her like that. But what she does do is involuntarily cause scandals. May it be falling into a bush or something else. She does it by mistake. She also thinks the English are stuffy and that they only care about their stupid reputations. She is not afraid to speak he mind and one has to like her.

The hero of the book is Simon, the Duke of Leighton. He is proper and does everything by the book. He is also looking for a perfect well-bred, gentle wife that will do what wives should do and nothing else. I did have my moments where I thought about him as Mr Darcy, because he was all pride and stood above everything else. This couple was totally different from each other, but there was this passion there, simmering beneath the surface. Juliana wants him, but she knows her reputation is too bad for him. Simon wants her also, but he knows that she is a common and too much of a scandal.

There were moments where I wanted to shout his name and tell him too loose control. Who cares about the ton! He is a duke; he could win them over again. He made some mistakes, and yes I might have wanted to smack him over the head, but I also learnt the truth about some things. Not to mention that he wanted to do the right things. Perhaps it was Juliana I should have shouted at, but then I understand her too. Love is about trust, and mutual love. That is something to want.

Conclusion:

The book was humorous in ways and all thanks to Juliana, that woman has a habit of landing into trouble. Her family was great, and if this book hadn’t made me want to read the previous two books then her brothers would have made me. Going by this fun book, then the two books about her brothers finding love must be just as good. And at the end I was hoping that perhaps Simon’s sister will get a book of her own, now that would be fun.

A fun book with a couple surrounded by scandals, romance to root for, and some great witty writing.

Rating:

Amusing

Cover:

Meh

Source: Netgalley