Book: Lily and the Duke
Author: Helen Hardt
Genre: Victorian Romance
Lily and the Duke
Sex and the Season One
Wiltshire, England 1845
Lady Lily Jameson is thrilled to attend a house party given by Daniel Farnsworth, the Duke of Lybrook, but not because he’s the most eligible bachelor in the peerage. Her only interest is his famous art collection, which reputedly includes a painting by her favorite artist, Jan Vermeer.
Daniel, duke only by virtue of the untimely deaths of his father and older brother, wants nothing to do with his new duties. He’d rather continue his rakish ways. When he finds the lovely Lily sneaking around the property in search of his art collection, sparks fly.
Despite her father’s wishes, Lily has no intention of marrying. She wants to travel the world to gain real life inspiration for her painting and writing. And what could be better worldly experience than a passionate affair with the notorious Duke of Lybrook?
But circumstances may change the game and the players…and danger lurks, as well.
Nicola's 4.5 Bare Naked Stars ***** Review
You know when you find an absolute gem of a read that stays with you,
days after you've finished it. This book
is that gem. I fell in love with 'Lily
and the Duke' from the offset and got so absorbed in to it, my world fell
away from me; everything ceased to exist apart from this book. I felt as though I was living in 1845, and
experiencing what Lady Lily and co were experiencing.
Lady Lily is a stunning, fire-cracker of a woman who would rather
paint or write than search for a husband, or as she likes to put it "shackle
myself to some peer and become his breeder."
That is the only reason she is excited to be attending the house
party. The grounds are astonishingly beautiful to paint and rumour has is the
new Duke, Daniel Farnsworth is in possession of a painting by her favourite
artist...Which she must see.
It is while Lady Lily is gallivanting around the property in search of
this painting, that she is taken aback by a stranger grabbing a hold of her,
pulling her in to a dark corner and kissing her senseless....literally.
That stranger being the Duke himself. Mistaking her for someone else,
but not regretting it at all. From that moment sparks begin to fly.
"Good
God, he didn't even know her, yet his reaction to her was one he had never
expected. He hadn't thought there was anything new to experience with women. He
had been wrong."
From that night, The Duke and Lily begin to become more acquainted
with each other. Their quick forming relationship will have you reaching for
the ice, and have you clutching your heart. Their ease with each other is
noticeable and they find themselves opening their hearts to one another without
even thinking.
But Lily still has reservations. She isn't interested in becoming a
wife. She wants to travel; to pursue her dream or painting and writing. Plus, she has the constant fear in the back
of her head that she's just one of many and that she will soon be forgotten
after the party ends.
"I
could be happy here. She lounged lazily on the bed. If I never left his chamber
again, I think I could be content. Such musings surprised her, given her
desires for art, writing, travel, so she banished them quickly from her mind.
She couldn't get attached to a man like Daniel. He had a renowned sexual appetite
and would never be satisfied with just one woman."
"He
barely recognized the person he thought he was. All he thought about was Lily.
She was consuming him like a blazing fire sweeping through a dry forest...her
caressed her smooth skin, relishing the intimacy with this extraordinary woman
who had somehow squirmed her way in to his ironclad heart. How was he going to
let her go?"
This book will make your heart melt, warm you all over and give you
the feels. I forgot how much I enjoy Historical Romances, until 'Lily and the Duke'. It rekindled my
love for the Poetic writing, the gracefulness and the overall setting.
Ms. Hardt has delivered a marvellous story, whether you are in to
Historical Romances or not, I can highly recommend you read this. You will fall
in love with all of the characters ...well except one conniving, god-digging bitch.
But, believe me, you will not be disappointed.
I am very much looking forward to reading Lady Rose and Cam's story
next and future books Ms. Hardt releases.
Helen Hardt is an attorney and stay-at-home mom turned award-winning author. She’s been writing stories since the first grade, when her aspiring writer father encouraged her and gave her a small metal file cabinet with “Helen’s Story Box” written on it in permanent marker. She began her first novel, a young adult romance, in the eighth grade. Although it will never see the light of day, she still has the manuscript that she typed on the old IBM Selectric.
She stopped writing to attend college and law school. She met her real-life hero in law school, and they live in Colorado with her two teenage sons. Helen writes contemporary, historical, paranormal, and erotic romance. Her non-writing interest include Harley rides with her husband, attending her sons’ sports and music performances, traveling, and Taekwondo (she’s a blackbelt.)
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Thank you, Nicola! I'm so glad you enjoyed Lily and the Duke. And thank you, Wendy and Claire, for a fantastic blog tour!
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