The Wicked Duke by Madeleine Hunter (Netgalley)

 
My goodness, it's certainly easy to tell that women in earlier centuries, survived horrible troubles. Thought of as the weaker sex Marianne and Nora's future hangs in the balance. It is up to the men in the family to keep them and to choose when and whom they may marry. Whether they inherit is placed under a clause called entailment. Poor Marianne, worries about her sister, Nora. If their Uncle Horace chooses to marry her off too soon and to the wrong Mr. Right, her future will change for the worse. Nora is already unhappy after having suffered a fever and/or fall.

While reading about these two women in Madeleine Hunter's The Wicked Duke, I had a chance to look closely at the lives of the women. So much drama! I was shocked to read about a serious attempt at suicide by one of the women. Also, reading about the weak turn of  one's mind was interesting. Really, really good is the life Marianne leads. To save money for her sister, she writes letters for the newspaper using the name, Elijah Tewkberry. Loved it. "Do you know this Elijah Tewkberry who is serving as the paper's correspondent in this county?"

Also fascinating to read about is the murder case. How to take this case off the books and free the supposed poisoner is the challenge.At the same time, romance glides along the slippery path of matchmaking. The setting is fun too. I enjoyed a trip to the dressmaker's. I thought about living life with eighty-seven servants and about a duke who would rather have the name of "wicked" rather than "bad."

I did have a hard time keeping up with the character names. The Duke has brothers, Gareth, Ives and the murdered brother. The family relationships were difficult to keep up with too. Is this one a uncle or a father or a dead brother? Finally, I have Sir Horace straight in my head. It's worth my time because there is nothing like Historical romance with a wicked duke.madelinehunter

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