Another Sophie Jordan win! I loved The Duke Effect! A smart, daddy FMC is definitely my jam and Jordan delivers!

The Duke Effect definitely has an effect on readers like me. The heroine is intelligent and more beautiful than the hero thought originally. He definitely wants the girl. But it's up to the girl to decide if she wants him. Sexy, hilarious, and scandalous-this historical romance flies by fast and heats up with every page.

I really enjoy Sophie Jordan's historical romances as they are easy to follow and I find I have a good time with both the plot and the characters. The Duke Effect - part of the Rogue Files series - is about Nora Langley. Nora is a young woman who loves botany. She also loves medicine. For years, she has been corresponding as her father. Unfortunately, this comes to bite her in the behind when when Constantine Sinclair shows up on her doorstep in need of medical help for the Duchess who raised him. The jig is up. He threatens to reveal Nora's deception, however, she makes him a deal to help the Duchess. As she goes with Constantine, it turns out she may convince him to lose control and fall for her.

The Duke Effect is narrated by Carolyn Morris and is only 7 hours and 9 minutes. It is a really fast historical romance audiobook. That is one thing that appealed to me, I like fast books as life is short - I want to get through as many as possible. Morris does a great job with the material -- which admittedly is also fun. I enjoyed how the romance played out and how the book kind of takes a feminist bent, in that it shows inequity between men and women at the time and what a waste of talent that inequity was. This book was, of course, another great edition to Sophie Jordan's collected works.

Absolutely loved this book. Sophie Jordan always delievers an incredible sneak peek back in time. Nora was such an interesting character and I absolutely loved watching her romance with Constantine. Such a unique story that gripped me from the beginning.

Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot/Storyline: 📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔
Sexual Tension: ⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋💋
Sex Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑
Steam Scale (Number of Sex Scenes): 🔥🔥
Humor: Just a touch

Should I read in order?
I’ve read books 1-3, and 6-7 of this series. It almost feels like two series together in one, as I couldn’t figure out how the Langley sisters tied into the prior books. Anyway, I think to get the best appreciation for the story you could read the sisters trilogy, which starts with The Duke’s Stolen Bride (book 5). You’ll get some exposure to Nora and their life. This book is okay as a stand alone though – there’s minor references to other characters. Just know that Nora has made aphrodisiac potion in the past and it was a plot point for a prior book.

Basic plot:
Nora has been fascinated with botany and creating tinctures to heal the ailments of those around her. She trained under her father, and when her father passes, she keeps the medical correspondence under his name. One man she writes to is Constantine Sinclair, who at the time was an army colonel overseas. When he returns to find the Doctor Langley, but instead finds Nora, our story begins.

Give this a try if you want:
- Victorian time period – This story takes place in 1866
- A mix of country estate and London setting
- Soldier hero that is inheriting a dukedom and botany loving heroine that aspires to be a doctor
- Medium steam – but SLOW BURN – there are 2 scenes but they are both past 70% and you don’t get any kisses before that either
- A bit of an enemies to lovers feel but it doesn’t last too long


My thoughts:
Constantine is a cousin 4 times removed from the family tree. The son a solicitor, no one ever thought he’d come close to inheriting the dukedom. That is exactly what happens though after the current duke and duchess lose all 3 of their sons to different tragic circumstances.

Never knowing he was going to be in the aristocracy, Constantine entered the army and worked his way up to colonel by the time he was pulled home. Upon returning the somber household of the Duke of Birchwood, he finds the duchess suffering from a mysterious malady. He knows just who could assist him – the Doctor Langley he’s been corresponding with for a number of years. He is shocked to find out the good doctor has been dead for 5 years and he’s actually been communicating with Nora.

I really struggled with this book. There was a lot of negativity here that trailed throughout the book. I enjoyed the characters separately a lot. I thought they had good backgrounds and could work well together but it was never really pulled off for me. Their interactions didn’t sell me on their romance sadly and I just didn’t see how they came to fall in love.

I liked that there wasn’t a lot outside plot craziness going on here, but because the main characters weren’t really interacting too much together, really with each other, I ended up getting bored. They were together in rooms, but a lot of it was conversation flowing around them and I just wanted more connection between the two of them.

The Duke Effect by Sophie Jordan was a delight to read. I love how independent the heroine is and how the hero of the story accepts her for who she is. I would recommend this book to all readers and lovers of the historical romance genre.

Nora is an herbalist who has been writing letters to Constantine, signing her fathers name. He was a doctor who died five years ago. Due to unforeseen circumstances, Constantine is now the heir to a Duke. The Duke and Duchess raised him and when the Duchess falls ill he travels to find the doctor he has been corresponding with but finds Nora instead. He is irate, but Nora is determined to show him she can help the Duchess. Nora has a wonderful tirade at dinner defending what is appropriate for women when the subject of women doctors comes up. Wounds, bedpans, and childbirth are mentioned! Nora's sisters are touched on but I didn't feel like I was missing anything not having read all the previous books in the series. It was a little dull. Con was extremely angry at her lie, but emotionless otherwise. He flipped a switch near the end and became a kind and loving feminist. <spoiler>The reason for the Duchess's illness was completely dropped which I found odd. Wasn't that why there was a story in the first place?</spoiler>

Thank you for the review copy. I really love Sophie Jordan and this series was the perfect escape. I have feature Sophie's book on the podcast and will continue to do so.

I had a lot of fun with this one. We have a great heroine and a lovable hero, and it's a solid Sophie Jordan addition. I will say that it takes a while to get into, and it's not a particularly stand out book, but if you need a quick historical romance, this one scratches the itch.

This is a super fun read. I really enjoyed this one!

Many thanks to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

Cute, sexy, full of romance, but I feel like it could' ve sparked more. I did enjoy the read and do want to read more.

I read this book months ago but was very disappointed, that I didn't know how I was going to do a review for this book. After thinking about I finally decided that I needed to just do it and give my opinion even if it is not a good one.
I have not read all of the Rogue Files so when I read this book I wouldn't say that I lost but I felt that I didn't know the characters and the book really didn't give much detail. I felt it was a little short and missing a lot of the story line. The romance between the characters was not there. They we just pretty much thrown together without much build of getting to know each other. While I am not a prude but I read historical romance for the courting.
I also will not post a link to my social media as this is not the type of book my viewers are interested in and I like to publish books that my views would like to read.

I love this series! This one is probably my favorite so far. After reading about Nora in the last book, I couldn't wait to read her story. I want more of their story.

I am a fan of Sophie Jordan and having just recently read The Virgin and the Rogue, I was looking forward to reading Nora’s story. Her sisters having found happily ever after I was curious to see where it would lead her.

I had a really hard time finishing this book. I was surprised as I have had good luck with Sophie Jordan’s stories. It just felt force. Our smart heroine Nora didn’t win me over. I did admire that she had taken her fathers practice and continued her passion for medicine. Even if it was by using his name, I admired her courage.

It think it was our hero, Constantine, that really dragged it for me. I just couldn’t connect with him. He was just too proper and dull. I didn’t get the connection between this couple. It felt really force.

When I finally was able to finish their story I felt that I had just finished a story that was very different to the previous stories from this author.
It was a bit disappointing.

3.5

This was fun. Overall just continued to be a fun time like all of Sophie's books. It did feel a bit rushed to me though. The story was quick moving but then the ending was like so fast it was over too soon. I needed a bit more grovel.

The Duke Effect by Sophie Jordan is book 7 in The Rogue Files Series. This is the story of Eleanora 'Nora' Langley and Constantine 'Con' Sinclair. I have read the previous books which did add to my enjoyment of this one but I did feel you could make it a standalone book if you wish to do so. Con has been summed home to his Aunt and Uncle who have raised him when his parents past. In their present day his Uncle is the Duke of Brichwood and Con finds that he is the now present heir do to his cousins passing. In addition his Aunt is having 'spells' that Con wants to help her with. Nora has no wish to marry and instead has become a expert herbalist. Nora has pretended to be her father to further her love for the craft in the man dominated world. This is how Con shows up on her door step looking for help but finds Nora. I have enjoyed this series and this book just added to that enjoyment.

Truth be told, this book felt more like a novella than a full-length book. The plot and characters weren't as developed, and it felt rather rushed. It wasn't bad, but the book had a lot of potential it didn't quite reach. My one other big reaction is that for being a last book, it didn't feel like it rounded out the series. Oftentimes we'll see characters from earlier books again or see special interactions with characters after time has passed. While we saw Nora's sisters, none of the characters from the first four books made an appearance. While some of that can be explained away with setting, I would have loved for Marion to introduce her family to Lady Clara (since she worked as her companion) and her extended family. Though maybe we could still get that someday. The book was still enjoyable, but I just felt it could've been more.

This was a great read. It had some very hot scenes and I enjoyed the lead having her own mind.
I felt like I was there in that time. It always amazes me when an author can teleport you to a new place. These types of authors are the best.

I just started reading Sophie Jordan and I devoured almost her entire backlist in about 2 weeks. I was just really in the mood for historicals at that point apparently! I was really looking forward to reading a new release by her but overall this was…fine. The characters were fine. The conflict was fine. The ending felt rushed. I didn’t feel any real connection between Nora and Constantine. The best thing about this book was definitely the cover.

I do love a good enemies to lovers romance! I was surprised to see the love potion make a comeback too.