Sabrina Jeffries' "Undercover Duke" from the Duke Dynasty series is a whimsical journey through Regency romance that had me thoroughly entertained. Sheridan Wolfe, the Duke of Armitage, takes center stage in this historical whodunit as he dives into the mysteries behind his mother's husbands' suspicious deaths. The plot thickens when he finds himself dangerously close to Vanessa Pryde, the captivating daughter of a possible suspect. The intriguing mystery and the tangled web of a pretend engagement add delightful layers to the story, making it an irresistibly charming read. Jeffries effortlessly blends intrigue, humor, and romance in this Regency escapade. While it didn't quite hit the 5-star mark for me, the combination of a captivating plot, the bonkers scheme, and the historical flair makes it a solid 4-star addition to the Duke Dynasty series.

I'm a fan of ridiculous plots in historical romances, but this one wasn't to my taste. The main character Sheridan was not someone I particularly liked and the mystery of who killed the dukes felt more like an after thought.

While this started nicely and reeled me in, soon, it started becoming much of the same and the plot of making the false love interest jealous started to lose steam, with no other conflict to pick up the slack. I was also staying for the mystery started in the other books, but even this one got convoluted and stale fast and didn't make me want to finish the book to find out. All in all, started well, but ran out of steam quickly and read mostly to give a conclusion to this mystery and series, overall

In Sabrina Jeffries’ UNDERCOVER DUKE, THE installment of the Duke Dynasty series, we follow the formidable Sheridan Wolfe, Duke of Armitage, as he embarks on a mission to solve the mystery of suspicious deaths in his family. Alongside his siblings, Sheridan delves into a complex investigation, seeking answers and justice.
One key witness in this enigmatic puzzle is Vanessa Pryde, an enchanting young woman who harbors a secret crush on the Duke. To get closer to her mother, the witness he needs to question, Vanessa pretends to be drawn to another man. Unexpectedly, this ruse sparks jealousy in Sheridan, and the two find themselves in a compromising situation.
UNDERCOVER DUKE offers a blend of romance, mystery, and family intrigue. The relationship between Vanessa and Sheridan evolves through a fake courtship, driven by Sheridan's dual objectives: to gain information from Vanessa's mother and to reveal the true nature of the man he believes she desires. Although the development of their relationship was enjoyable, the real allure of the story lies in the tantalizing intrigue surrounding the family's dark secrets.
Overall, UNDERCOVER DUKE serves as a satisfying conclusion to the Duke Dynasty series. Sabrina Jeffries weaves a tale filled with passion, suspense, and secrets that captivate readers until the very end. For fans of historical romance with a touch of mystery, this book is a delightful addition to their reading list.
Thanks to Kensington Books and Net Galley for the ARC.

Hello

Apologies for the late notice, but I have decided not to review this title. While I am certain it's obvious by now, I wanted to also clear this off NetGalley, so it's not showing as open for either of us.

I look forward to continuing to work with you in 2023 and beyond.

Laura

These books have become such a wonderful guilty pleasure of mine! Sabrina Jeffries writes such sexy and witty historical romance books that I can't help but seek hers out. Undercover Duke is particularly entertaining with twisted family drama and love.

Another great read by Sabrina Jeffries! I enjoyed Vanessa and Sheridan’s story. It has romance and mystery. Very fast paced. A great read!

Can Sabrina Jeffries do wrong? No.

I haven't read the preceding books in this dynasty (though the glimpses of those couples' HEAs makes me want to!). I don't know if the resolution to the "mystery" of the four dukes will appease longtime readers but it worked fine for me as a newbie! I do think coming in as a newbie to this book was a mistake on my part. The romance, while sweet definitely was missing backstory that, when I skimmed others' reviews, I think I may have found in the previous installments.

Loved this book so much. The author is one of my favourite in historical romance novels and this was no exception in what I was signing up for .
Interesting characters and interaction overall, sizzling chemistry and steamy scenes, a bit of suspense as usual and a great romance story overall

This was an amazing read! I have read several books from this author, and she never disappoints. She is an automatic one click read for me! Pick up this book asap!

I did not read the previous books in this series, this being number 4 in said series; however, I had no problem reading it as a standalone book. The book had a bit of a mystery to solve along with a wonderful blend of humor that had me laughing out loud. I plan on reading the other three books, because I really loved this book. I was engaged from the first page right up until the last. Highly recommended!

Part of me doesn't know how to review this properly because it's the 4th book in the Duke Dynasty series, and it's the first and only book I've read from Sabrina Jeffries.

But I enjoyed it and I think I understood most of what was going on. The love story completely stands on its own. Although I imagine there's some backstory I am missing out on by reading this one first. There is also definitely some major climactic confrontation and resolution happening that's been developing for several books. So the other plot of the book doesn't entirely stand on its own. I can't quite weigh in on whether or not it was successful or rewarding or cathartic ending to the series.


However, my experience reading it was a good one! I enjoyed both of the main characters, and I was invested in their love story. I liked their banter, and I liked the mystery element to this book. It made me want to check out more of Sabrina Jeffries' work!

A wonderful conclusion!

This series has been amazing and I have enjoyed seeing the mystery unfold throughout each story. This one was especially good because things are sorted.

Vanessa and Sheridan are an interesting couple. I liked their interactions and their banter. The secrets and subterfuge each of them had going kept me turning pages. Watching Sheridan come to his Ah-ha moment was well done. He had some serious baggage to set aside. It was also great to see his admiration of Vanessa's skill in handling troublesome people, mostly her mother, grow as the story progressed.

The supporting cast, Sheridan's rather large extended and boisterous family are a delight. Their sibling bickering and teasing added a layer of fun and good humor to the story. Their determination to find a killer was a brilliant way to tie everything together. I became especially enamored with Vanessa's uncle, he was always in her corner and able to help keep her cranky mother a bit more in check.

The conclusion was expertly crafted so you aren't sure until the very end. Well done Ms Jeffries!

Disclaimer: I received this as both an Advanced Reader Copy and a Giveaway win through Goodreads. This has not affected my review in any way.

Reviewed for Buried Under Romance by Lisa.

Undercover Duke is an excellent addition to author Sabrina Jeffries's Duke Dynasty series. Vanessa and Sheridan's story had me hooked from the beginning. I loved the slow burn between these two. Nice to have some closure with Sheridan's mother's situation too.

I enjoyed reading the Duke Dynasty series. I liked how all of the characters were interspersed through out all four books. However, I found Sheridan to be my least favorite Duke. I found him to be boring. I was glad that the mystery of who killed the previous dukes was solved but the outcome was quite lackluster.

This is the final installation of this series, Sheridan Wolfe, the Duke of Armitage and Vanessa Pryde get wrapped up in the mystery of Sheridan's father's death as well as in each other. A very fun, light read with enough mystery and steam to keep the reader hooked. I enjoyed it and would recommend!

This entire series has built up to the point where we finally learn who murdered the four dukes. But when it all came down to it, the conclusion felt more like an afterthought than anything else. It didn't really play a part of this book until the very end and then it just seemed...not important?
I didn't really connect with Vanessa and Sheridan's relationship. I kind of wanted more development in order to really get into their relationship. I know we've seen them together in previous books, but it just didn't work for me. It just didn't feel like enough.
And...Sheridan. I didn't dislike him. I disliked the way he thinks and makes decisions. I found his reasoning for pushing away Vanessa to just be really annoying. ugh.

**Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-arc in exchange for an honest review**

hmmm while i did have a perfectly fine time reading this, i have to say that this was my least favorite entry in the duke dynasty series. for some reason it just felt so low stakes even though theoretically this was the book where they finally discover who the murderer of all their fathers was. I like Vanessa a lot but I felt like the Vanessa in the first half of the book was way more confident and self-possessed than the Vanessa in the second half, where her virginity and innocence seem played up to an unrealistic degree. Sheridan was also just kind of boring?? Like he has this past love who haunts him, but we don't find out the story of that love until the 70% mark which made all the hints up to there felt soooo drawn out.

I don't know!! just generally underwhelmed, the least interesting romance of the four.

Loved this one a lot ! As much as the other books in the series. Highly recommend for all lover of Historical Romance.

Trigger Warnings
This book contains:
• Attempted kidnapping.
Characters
Sheridan is the final child of Lydia not yet happily married. He’s inherited a dukedom that appears to be failing and he’s struggling to figure out how to make more money while continuing to help his family solve their mystery. He’s adamant that he can do things his way and achieve everything he needs to without the help of anyone else.
Vanessa has featured in a few of the earlier novels as the younger cousin of Grey. All this time she’s been known to have her eye on a “poet”. Now she’s centre stage and we get to learn more about her, such as her creativity, intelligence and tenacity.
Storyline
Sheridan is tasked with having to question Vanessa’s mum by his brother Grey, who suggests Sheridan pretends to court Vanessa to give him the opportunity to question her mum. Of course, like any good romance, Vanessa finds a way to encourage him to court her while she’s working towards her own goal.
Overall Thoughts
With Sheridan being the last child of Lydia to get married, we know we have to figure out who’s been murdering all her husbands. While there were lots of unexpected twists and turns along the way. The culmination of all the books to this point was DRAMATIC!
It’s really hard sometimes to end a series like this, where each book can be read as a stand-alone book and follows a different couple each time, without ruining the final love match. In this case, Sabrina has found a really good balance, although at times, I think she left it JUST A TOUCH too long before bringing the investigation back into the focus.