This was a somewhat entertaining and suspenseful tale, and I liked the unusual heroine for her commitment to her chemistry career. She was not your typical bluestocking. Although this was a new-to-me author, and clearly the third book in the series, with the help of the family tree at the beginning of the book, I was easily able to keep track of the characters. The hero was too much of a rake for me and his redeemable qualities that would have made him more of a sympathetic figure just weren't believable. The romance and dialogue were not immersive or convincing. I just didn't feel invested in the protagonists or the outcome, and I'm only mildly curious about the resolution of the mystery. The steam level of this story was unexpected...definitely 4 out of 5 teakettles, with some fairly graphic description.

Intrigue, suspense, betrayal, murder, mystery and romance. This story runs at a quick pace and is a page turner. Every page, every scene, every dialogue was easy to follow and segued from one topic to another smoothly. I loved all the characters. They were well written, had intelligent conversations and ideas, their feelings and emotions were very realistic. The storyline of Thorn and Olivia falling in love was well executed. It was not rushed nor was it insta-love. It was a buildup of them getting to know each other, realize their compatibility and fighting against what they always believed about relationships and marriage. The subplot was investigating the deaths of the prior dukes of Thorn's family. Now that Olivia confirmed their suspicions were correct it was time to look for the murderer. I can't wait for the next book.

This was a delightfully quick read. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I very much enjoyed this story. This was my first novel read by Sabrina Jeffries, and I will certainly be reading more (especially within this series).

This novel, a murder-mystery meets historical romance, has a strong female lead, an emotionally unavailable leading man, and a very large family with an inordinate number of Dukes. I enjoyed the references to chemistry (I am less than knowledgeable here, so I can't attest to the accuracy) and the experiments performed to determine cause of death were very interesting, as were the conversations about attempting to publish scientific findings. While I found that I was missing some pertinent information, this novel is written in such a way that I could enjoy it without having read the previous novels in the series.

I will be going back and reading this series from the beginning, and I look forward to reading more of Jeffries' books in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for providing a copy of this eARC for review.

Absolutely do not pick up here if you haven’t read the first two books in the Duke Dynasty series, because the overarching plot about the deaths of Lydia’s three husbands is finally starting to get interesting, and if you haven’t read the previous two books, you’ll be quite lost.

If you HAVE read those two books, you’ll enjoy the way things are finally starting to come to a head, with the heroine of this book a chemist recruited to test the remains of one of the dead dukes to determine if his death was due to suspected arsenic poisoning. Sabrina Jeffries writes the best heroines, capable, confident women, and Olivia fits in perfectly here. A lady chemist, she is utterly disinterested in taking part in the marriage mart… even though she once turned down a proposal from none other than the Duke of Thornstock after being caught scandalizingly kissing him at a ball.

I loved Olivia, but Thorn… well, Thorn behaved absolutely horribly. From their first meeting where he made assumptions about Olivia despite the evidence being right in front of him that she was precisely what she claimed to be, to in the present day him making MORE assumptions about her basically so he could tell himself she was the one in the wrong, I thoroughly disliked him. Yes, he eventually did a grovel, but I couldn’t understand why, long before that, Olivia was even tolerating his presence, never mind allowing him to take all sorts of liberties with her.

There were parts about their relationship I liked; though Thorn doubted Olivia’s skills at first, once he recognised she really did know what she was doing, he respected what she said and didn’t question her. The scene where she ordered him out of her laboratory was one of my favourites, though it did mean we didn’t get a scene where he watched her work and admired her skills, something I always like to see when there’s a heroine with special skills in a story.

I was also slightly bemused with the sub-plot of Thorn being a playwright; I feel like this is something that’s going to prove important in the next book, but here it was just a distraction. There’s just a bit too much going on and we really needed the focus to be on less things; the romance between the two, Olivia’s chemistry skills, and the murder plots was plenty.

I really enjoyed the first two books in this series but I’m honestly a bit disappointed in this one. Several of the sex scenes felt shoehorned in at the expense of necessary plot and character development. I’ll keep reading because I’m invested in knowing the answers to the murder mystery, but I’ll hope for an improvement in the next one. This isn’t BAD - I don’t think Sabrina Jeffries knows how to write a bad book - but it’s not up to her usual amazing standard. I’ll give it four stars.

I enjoyed this very intriguing book. It involves a family mystery that unfortunately isn't resolved in this story. I especially enjoyed the awkwardness of Olivia as she is presented to high society. She's more interested in chemistry than finding a husband. Thorn is trying to avoid the power grabbing mama's who want him to be their daughters husband. He literally runs into the one woman who wants none of that. Unfortunately their caught in a compromising position. When Olivia makes a decision that is best for both of them, it changes both their lives forever. I loved the contempt that Thorn has for Olivia, because she has no clue why he feels this way, or why he's being such a pompous ass. The secret that Thorn is hiding makes for a very amusing story. Can't wait to read the next book!

I have enjoyed the Duke Dynasty series by Sabrina Jeffries but for some reason this one didn't grab my attention as the first two books. The characters were solid and the story itself was interesting but overall it just didn't keep me as interested.

With all of that said I thought the way all of the characters from the prior stories were tied into this one was great.
With Olivia and Thorn figuring out how to trust each other and the pressure to figure out what really killed Grey's father, things move along fairly quickly. I'll continue to look for stories by Jeffries as she typically has engaging story lines and interesting characters.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the review copy.

Miss Olivia Norley and Marlowe Drake, the Duke of Thornstock have a turbulent past. He kisses her and her mother tries forcing him to marry her, but she turns him down knowing he was forced to marry her and ruined both their names. Now a few years later she’s going to help his brother uncover I his father was married has to wonder what her ulterior motives are towards his family. The two are like fire and water, they have a instant attraction they cannot deny, but they’ve both been wounded before and it’ll take a lot to earn the others trust. A captivating story of a bluestocking chemist and a duke who doesn’t trust her to not see his family ruined for good. I have voluntarily read and reviewed the excellent book.

I requested an Advanced Reader Copy of this, because I enjoy Sabrina Jeffries' books in spite of myself.

Why in spite? Well, her dialogue is littered with modern Americanisms that are hard to ignore (example: "You've met my husband, right?"), her heroes talk to prospective wives and sisters about their mistresses (!) and the plots are ridiculous (in this case, the Duke of Greycourt hires a female chemist to test the exhumed remains of his late father to verify if he was poisoned via arsenic. The hero is Greycourt's brother).

I read an interview with Jeffries once where she said she's writing historic "fantasy," because she doesn't really write "rakes" anymore-- more of the misunderstood man who sleeps around because he's damaged.

Anyway, whichever way you slice it, I wanted to read this book because I like Jeffries' style. The plots move fairly quickly, the characters have interesting chemistry, the women aren't overly submissive or overly "feisty," (even if they do have the "I must have love if I marry" stupidity which is common in many of these books). If the point of romance is to read something escapist, a little bit trashy, but fun, then Jeffries wins. On the flip side, like most of her books, I didn't find this particularly memorable.

I'd say this is good enough to borrow, but for me, not enough to buy.

I am voluntarily posting an honest review after reading an advance reader copy of this story.

Who Wants To Marry A Duke, by Sabrina Jeffries, is available at booksellers on 8-25-2020. Who Wants is book 3 in Ms Jeffries Duke Dynasty series. We're working our way through an entire family but it still works as a standalone story. I missed the first two books and still enjoyed number 3. It actually made me want to get the other two.

An entire family of titled gentlemen, and one sister, is a great playground for a series. Our current hero, Thorn, has been raised by his mother and stepfather in Germany so England is a cold water in his face. He doesn't really like it but has to stay for his estates. He's a likeable fellow and who doesn't understand a fish out of water story. Olivia, our heroine, is another fish out of water. She's convinced a husband will put a stop to her career, and most would have. She and Thorn are thrown together by accident but they are absolutely perfect for each other. An enjoyable story with a happy ending.

When Miss Olivia Norley first meets Marlowe Drake, the Duke of Thornstock, their kiss turns into a forced marriage proposal. Yet fearing that he is only marrying her due to her stepmother, Olivia states that she does not wish to marry. It is only after 9 years apart, that they meet again when Thorn’s half-brother, Grey, hires Olivia, to uncover whether his father was poisoned.
Olivia is hoping that her work will finally be realised yet Thorn’s presence, confuses her. However, she soon finds herself in danger, with someone trying to sabotage her work, ensuring that Thorn will not leave her side.
I enjoyed this story, with both Olivia and Thorn being two very interesting characters. Whilst I found the nine years separated from each other as something that would be quite difficult given their family connections, the romance was engaging as was the plot. This is a standalone book but with so many family members intertwined in this story, reading the previous books does help to explain the plot.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Thorn is such an unassuming duke. His personality completely surprised me and only in a good way. I love his down to earth personality and how accepting he is of Olivia's profession as a chemist. Olivia is smart and ambitious and I loved that about her character. Their love story is sweet and is overlaid on this intriguing murder mystery that is running through the entire series. I would highly recommend this book. This is book three in the "Duke Dynasty" series and although it could be read as a stand alone, I would recommend reading it as part of the series.

* I received this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review*

A hugely enjoyable story
5 stars

It’s been too long since I picked up a Sabrina Jeffries book - and after finishing this one, I seriously wonder why I haven’t been devouring every single thing she’s written. As such, this is actually the first book of the Duke Dynasty series that I have read, despite it being the 4th story in the series (after Project Duchess, A Perfect Match (in the Seduction on a Snowy Night anthology) and The Bachelor. While the romance element of this book stands alone, there is a larger mystery that appears to be running throughout the series that does not get resolved in this book. I didn’t have any trouble picking up and following that element - despite not having yet read the previous books in the series - but if you need all loose ends tied up between the covers of one book - this perhaps isn’t for you.

This book is about the romance between Olivia and Thorn. The prologue shows an interaction between our pair that happens nine years before the rest of the story - and explains why there might be a bit of animosity and distrust with our couple. Or at least on Thorn’s side, anyway. I admit to being a bit confused about why he was so angry with Olivia - but I’m sure that being a duke, with unmarried ladies flinging themselves at you every hour of the day, would make you a wee bit cynical and suspicious of people’s motives. That said, he does drop the animosity towards Olivia pretty darn quickly!

Despite his flip-flopping emotions, I loved Thorn. He’s basically just a growly, grumpy Duke, stomping all over the place and getting irritated because he can’t help but want the one girl who turned him down. But he’s protective, fierce and accepts and loves Olivia and all her quirks, too. Sometimes he has no idea what she’s talking about, but he loves the passion she has for her subject. That’s love right there.

Olivia is innocent in so many ways, but strong in many ways, too. She’s definitely not the stereotypical chemist that you might expect. She’s not much into society, and finds herself a wee bit awkward (same, girl!) but she’s perfectly capable - none of this ‘can’t even walk without making a fool of yourself’ type of nonsense that you sometimes see when a girl is described as awkward in society. She’s sweet and kind, and determined to prove herself worthy. I really enjoyed her and thought her the perfect partner for Thorn.

There was a little bit of danger and intrigue with regards to whether Thorn’s stepfather has been murdered - and if so, by whom. Someone’s out to stop the investigation before it even starts, which adds some fun to the romance even if it’s just ‘mild peril’. This is the storyline that won’t be resolved until future books, but honestly, it doesn’t feel like we’re left on a godforsaken cliffhanger, so all is good. With that in mind, there’s quite an intricate family tree with Thorn and his siblings, however we get a handy drawing at the front of the book to help us if we’re stuck. I thought that was a cute (and hella useful) idea.

As always with Ms Jeffries, the sex scenes are sizzling and there was enough chemistry (no pun intended) between the pair to keep things heated even when not in those scenes. Although I do wonder at Olivia not knowing what a penis looks like. As a chemist? Wouldn’t you have scene Michelangelo’s David? Maybe not - it just seemed odd to me.

This book reminded me how much I love Sabrina Jeffries and the stories she weaves. This is another 5 star read and I can’t wait to read the previous books in the series and those still to come. Recommended.

I quite like this story. Miss Olivia Norley is a brilliant scientific hired by the Duke of Greycourt to find out if his father was killed with arsenic.
Marlowe Drake, the Duke of Thornstock, is Grey’s half-brother and he has not forgotten—or forgiven—the shocking blackmail scheme sparked by a single kiss with Olivia, or the damage caused to both their names. So he feels he can´t trust Olivia not to hurt his family, and decided to follow her and Grey to the country to check on this pioneering experiment.
But neither of them can´t fight the explosive chemistry between them—nor the laboratory type either!
The dialogs between Olivia and Thorn are really fun. I love that she is so sure of herself, and fights for everything she wants, included Thorn. He keeps telling himself he is not the marrying type, but after spending time with Olivia he might change his mind. Is love in the cards for him?
I give this one 4 stars because I love Gwyn and Joshua´s story a bit more. But it´s an enjoyable reading and I highly recommended it!

I love love love love love this book. Sabrina Jeffries does so well with this series, although the background story leaves the reader hanging until the next book which isn't coming out for another year!

In this book, we get to know Gwyn's twin, Thorn. He is a duke and while he was raised in Prussia, he has a weird reentry into English society. At one of his first balls, he runs into Miss Olivia Norley, who helps him get punch out of his waistcoat with her knowledge of chemistry (hey there, stain fighter!), They share a kiss, but are caught by her stepmother, who tries to threaten Thorn into offering for her hand. When he does, Olivia refuses him. He carries that embarrassment for nine years, until he runs into Miss Norley again. She is the chemist that his older brother Grey hired to test his father's remains to see if he was poisoned or if he died naturally. The attraction between Thorn and Olivia is still there, even though he was a bitter little man toward her through the first half of the book. The reader finds out that Thorn also pens plays in secret and they are promoted under his friend's name, as dukes cannot have professions, even if it is author. His plays all involve two comic roles, Lady Grasping and Lady Slyboots, which are based on Olivia and her stepmom, because he considers them to have planned to catch him with Olivia way back when. He falls for Olivia, but has a hard time keeping this secret from her. I also wondered if Olivia was autistic, which seemed to be played around a bit but, considering it was the 19th century, I understand why Ms. Jeffries did not come out and say this. All in all, I really enjoyed this book! Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for this review.

A better showing than the previous book in the series where the overarching theme that ties to the series together was an after-thought tucked away in the final chapter. The conspiracy of who has been killing the previous Dukes takes center stage and made it much more interesting read.. Olivia is a scientist, rational and intelligent, with a love of plays and the theater. A well rounded character and my favorite heroin in this series. Thorn came off as stiff and boring, very one dimensional, in the previous books, but was better developed in this book. Was on the fence about continuing this series after the 2nd book, but will continue to give it a chance after this one.

Love Sabrina Jeffries' books. Really loved Olivia! Going to go back and finally read the first few in this series now because this was super good.

4.5 stars.

Marlowe Drake, the Duke of Thornstock, might’ve been able to forget a passionate kiss nine years ago with Miss Olivia Norley, but he can’t forget or forgive her stepmother’s attempt to blackmail him into marriage and the resulting damage to both of their reputations. He has had no contact with Miss Norley in the succeeding nine years, but that’s about to change since Thorn’s half-brother, Grey, has hired her to employ her expertise in chemistry to help them investigate a family mystery. Suspicious of her motives and protective of his family, Thorn is determined to shadow Olivia while she’s on Grey’s estate.

Olivia is keen to help Grey and his family and also highly aware of the fact that determining whether Grey’s father was poisoned with arsenic can establish her as a respected chemist. But when she gets close to a result, it becomes clear that someone is keen to stop her research. Perhaps even more surprising is the lingering connection between Olivia and Thorn and the caring nature hidden beneath his layers of rakish artifice.

I really enjoyed this book, though not quite as much as its predecessors. Thorn was very jaded and rather arrogant and only really became likable for me closer to the end of the book, though very rapidly so at that point. It took me a little bit to warm up to Olivia as well, mostly because of how exagerratedly awkward she was at times, and yet at the same time this was oddly charming and relatable. Olivia didn’t cut Thorn any slack, but that was exactly what he needed to get his head on straight. I wound up loving these two as a very charmingly unconventional couple and the thread of mystery still running through this series is a delightful touch. I’ve always enjoyed a bit of suspense in my romance and now I can’t wait for Sheridan’s story and the culmination of the likely conspiracy against Lydia’s family.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Good romance with an undercurrent of mystery. Lady Lydia has been married multiple times. Three of her husbands were dukes; their titles passed down to the oldest sons born of those marriages, forming a dynasty of dukes. Recently several of the children began to suspect that their fathers' deaths may not have been accidents. The oldest son, the Duke of Greycourt, believes his father may have been poisoned, and asks Olivia Norley to use her chemist skills to discover the truth.

Grey's younger brother, "Thorn," the Duke of Thornstock, is not happy with Olivia's involvement. Nine years earlier, they had an encounter that damaged both their reputations. Thorn still believes Olivia was guilty of setting him up and is determined to keep an eye on her.

Olivia has no interest in the society to which she belongs. Her passion is reserved for all things scientific. Grey's request will advance her plans to make a name for herself in the field. Having Thorn always underfoot is a distraction she doesn't need.

I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Olivia and Thorn. I loved their first meeting. Olivia is young and only interested in cleaning up the mess she caused. Thorn is a little older but still young and a bit full of himself. Sparks fly between them, and a quick kiss rapidly intensifies. When caught by Olivia's stepmother, she attempts to force Thorn to "do the right thing." This doesn't go the way anyone expects. Thorn is left with conflicting feelings of relief and anger, as well as betrayal.

Nine years later, neither has forgotten that encounter. Olivia concentrated on her desire to be a chemist and avoided society as much as possible. Thorn has lived up to his reputation as a rake, but still carries a grudge against Olivia and her mother. He deals with that grudge in an unusual way, but he is still extremely suspicious of Olivia and her motives. He even goes so far as to insist on helping set up her laboratory at Grey's estate, sure that he will discover that she is a fraud. I had to laugh at how hard she made him work until he had to admit that he was wrong. This also opened the door to them clearing the air over the events of nine years earlier, enabling them to work together in harmony.

But underneath their fledgling friendship, there bubbles an intense attraction. Thorn is well aware of his effect on Olivia and takes advantage of it whenever he can. He is determined to get her into his bed, though marriage is the last thing on his mind. The feelings Thorn stirs in her are new to Olivia, and her scientific curiosity demands that she investigate them thoroughly. She hasn't shown any interest in marriage either, to her stepmother's dismay, as she doesn't want to give up her career goals to a husband. The more time they spend together, the more their thinking begins to change. Thorn's feelings turn protective when an explosion in Olivia's lab makes it clear that someone doesn't want her to find the truth.

I loved seeing Thorn's protectiveness and the care he takes to protect her reputation, too. I had to laugh at the teasing he endured from his siblings because of it. As close as Olivia has started to feel to Thorn, she also senses that there is something that he is holding back. I ached for Thorn and the lengths he went to in order to protect his secret. As he and Olivia grow closer, he fears that revealing that secret would hurt her and drive her away from him. I hurt for both of them when she discovered the truth. Each of them had some serious self-examination to do before they realized that they belonged together. I loved their big moment at the end and seeing what happens when they talk about expectations.

The overarching mystery regarding the deaths of the various dukes makes some significant progress thanks to Olivia's talents. Though they are closer to the truth, their best lead ended up dead. I liked the epilogue as the siblings meet to discuss what they know, what they suspect, and where they should go next. I have my suspicions as to the culprit behind the deaths and can't wait to see if I am right. It will be hard to wait until next summer for the next book.

This was such a good story. I just loved the character of Miss Olivia Norley, she was very interested in science, chemistry in particular. She hoped to publish more papers on her discoveries. Olivia did meet Thorn, Duke of Thorncourt several years before and had avoided him ever since. However, they meet again due to her working with his half brother, Grey, Duke of Greycourt. They are attracted to each other but Olivia wants to marry for love and Thorn doesn’t believe in love. There are mysteries to solve, dangerous events and romance. Not all the mysteries are resolved in this book. I’m looking forward to reading the next in the series. I received a copy and have voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I am new to this series, and come in reading the third book. I was worried that I would be lost. I was happily surprised that I was quickly carried along in this fast moving and sexy book. The mystery is for sure a big part of the story, but it is a vehicle that allows the h/h to be in proximity of each other. The relationship of Olivia and Thorn is smoldering and sexy and grabs you from the beginning of the book. I loved their banter, and their push pull relationship. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend even if you have not read the series. You can bet I will be grabbing the previous books as I could not put this down.