Duke of Desire is the ninth book in the 1797 Club series by Jess Michaels. I have read most, but not all of the books in this series, and not in order. Each can be read as a stand alone, but character and relationship building is more complex and layered for those that have followed along.
Robert Smithton, Duke of Roseford is known for his lusty appetites and his cold, cold heart. Still thanks to his title and his fortune, everyone wants him and he’s bored of it all. He wants something, but he cannot place what exactly that is. Until he meets Katherine, the Countess of Gainsworth. Married to an old man who died when they were making love, Katherine is just returning to Society. Although scandal follows her, so does interest, as the men of Society wonder about her prowess if it could kill a man. When Robert begins to pursue her, she is horrified. After all, she blames him for the circumstances that sent her into her loveless marriage in the first place. When Katherine ignores him, Robert only pushes harder and ultimately she begins to wonder if revenge is a dish best served through desire. What she finds when she touches him at last is pleasure unlike any she’s ever known, and a connection she does not wish to feel. Now she must decide if she wants revenge or happiness and Robert must determine if love is worth fighting for.
Duke of Desire is a historical romance with plenty of emotion and well written characters. Robert is in denial about so much, trying to stay unattached emotionally and still dealing with his childhood tragedy. Katherine has been through so much, and just wants to live a quite life without being beholden to the whims or demands of others. I enjoyed seeing the two find their own way, and their way to each other. The friends and secondary characters that help them along in many ways are the familiar faces from the series, and even newcomers to the series will enjoy the honesty and bonds of this group. Everyone should have a group of friends like this. I found myself holding my breath at times, and alternately hurting for the pair, or wanting to kick them, as they struggled with their own demons enough to find their way toward a happy ending. I love that there is no magic moment where all issues just disappear, but rather the characters need to deal with them and talk to each other in order to find a resolution. They actually talk about their issues, about what stands between them, and deal with it rather than the book just ending with a declaration of love and forgetting the emotional issues from both of their pasts. I think a romance that does this just feels more real, the characters more alive, than those that just pretend all that disappears once love is acknowledged.
Duke of Desire is exactly what fans of Michaels have come to expect, an engaging and entertain read with plenty of heart and heat.
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