a most unlikely duke diamonds in the rough

The bare-knuckle boxer has spent the last fifteen years eking out an existence for himself and his two sisters. Raphe Matthews hasn’t stepped foot in polite circles since a tragedy left his once-noble family impoverished and in debt. I thought of this as a sort of “reverse Pride and Prejudice Lydia” moment.He never thought he'd become a duke, or that the secrets of his past would cost him his greatest love. One of my favorite moments was when Raphe helps Victoria get her annulment and gives her a place to live with his old friend, Mr. And I love how Sophie gives these characters a sense of self-awareness at the hypocrisy of upper-class society: you can be as indiscreet as you like, as long as you don’t get caught in a scandal. It is so common for a poor or otherwise unattractive girl to get swept off her feet by the powerful lordling, but here, we have a man who had a less-than-ideal upbringing in poverty who has been raised unexpectedly to the aristocracy, and has to learn all that that entails, and a woman who chafes at the expectations she has been raised with her entire life. One of the things I love about the historical romance is looking at class and wealth, and all the complications of that.

Now, on to the actual review on the content…

On the cover, perhaps, he could have been dressed up, and have them in a similar pose to the one you see, but inside there’s them together and him shirtless. I was doubly dismayed by the fact the cover and some of the other poses they did in the cover shoot didn’t give us a real good look at the dress.īut upon reviewing the synopsis of the book again, and getting into the story, I changed my mind on the cover, as it does represent the story, although I do think this one would have benefited from a stepback. I adored Sophie’s Thorcliff Manor series, but as I am one of those people who is dismayed with the oversaturation of beefcake on romance covers, I was almost turned off by this. So, despite the fact that this is a bit late (reviews for ARCs were due for Sophie’s Ambassadors on the 26th), I am leaving an honest review.

In my ignorance of how Edelweiss works, I requested an ARC of this there, not realizing the site only offered digital copies. I would like to preface this review with an apology.

A Most Unlikely Duke. New York: Avon Books, 2017.

A most unlikely duke diamonds in the rough