3 stars

As the first book in a new series focusing on three sisters who start their own event business after a family scandal, A Duke for Diana has a fantastic concept for readers who love a modern historical romance. We have a working woman, a commoner unexpectedly elevated to the dukedom, some humorous siblings, and a surprisingly contemporary event planning storyline at the center.

Sabrina Jeffries in the past has been a bit hit or miss for me and unfortunately, this ended up being more in the miss category. Despite the really interesting setup, I didn't really find the romance to be particularly compelling or even really romantic. It developed in a way where I kept rereading sections to see if I had missed something between the way that the relationship was progressing. Both the hero and heroine had some fun moments, but I felt like their characterizations tended toward the bland. The side characters are far more interesting and I am honestly more excited for their books than I was for this installment.

A Duke for Diana is definitely an easy enough read if you just want to grab some historical romance, but I frankly was not blown away.

Thank you to NetGalley and Zebra for an ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review!

Lady Diana Harper and her sisters have suffered the consequences of their parents' scandalous actions and are now considered all but ruined by society. Yet the women are still fully capable of conducting themselves in society, and very aware of its rules--so they turn themselves into businesswomen, starting Elegant Occasions. They're able to organize any debutante's debut and give her the best possible chance at a good marriage...

Which brings them to Geoffrey, the new Duke of Greenwood. A businessman who never concerned himself with society's rules and never thought he would be at its zenith, Geoffrey just wants to ensure that his little sister finds herself a good husband. Diana would counter that the gruff, uncouth duke is the main obstacle to this goal. She's determined to make Geoffrey not only acceptable but ideal to ensure his sister's future--despite their bickering disguising a growing attraction.

Yeah, man, I don't know about this one. There were things I liked about it... And there were things that bothered me. The attraction between Geoffrey and Diana is immediately apparent, and quite cute (he can't stand to watch her lick the tip of her pencil, for obvious reasons) but I don't... quite get why they don't get along. Yes, he's brusque, but it's nothing over the top. And he clearly loves his sister, which is quite sweet. He's obviously not a bad guy, but Diana is set against him. Why?

And there are going to be people who love this. If you're a fan of Sabrina Jeffries (this was my first book of hers, and I do want to try others) or perhaps Eloisa James, I imagine it's right up your alley. For me, it seemed kind of flimsy. Additionally, I might add that this is a very... Old school historical in some ways. Not in every way! Obviously we have people who work, a heroine making her own living, etcetera--though they're all aristocrats, technically. But the descriptions and thought process felt very old-fashioned. A lot of "oh my"s whenever something vaguely scandalous happened. That was just a bit... done ... for me.

It's cute, don't get me wrong! But I can't say that it's much more than cute. And ideally, I'd like that something more.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with this book in exchange for an honest review.

"A Duke for Diana" by Sabrina Jeffries
Love Conquers, with a bit of compromising
The bumps in the road in other's lives sure makes for fun and interesting reading. This was, for me, a fun read; although I will admit that I did skim over the spicier scenes. You might ask why I read stories with spicy scenes that I skip over. The answer of course is because the rest of the story is too good to miss. And who knows, maybe the need to skip some scenes lends itself to making the rest of the story even better. But no matter how you slice it. I did love this story. Happy Reading ! !
NOTE: I received an ARC of this story from the publisher via NetGalley.
This review expresses my honest opinion.

I hate to give such a low score to an author I usually love. I could not get into this story. It actually took me a couple of weeks to read the whole book. I did not connect with either MC and didn't get any real feeling for them or what they were going through. I found the whole thing kind of boring.

Hello! I really like a Duke for Diana and had been super excited to read this book. The story, plot, setting,. dialogue and characters do not disappoint in the least. I actually prefer slow-burns and more romantic development, so I guess my only (small) issue is that of the quick (very quick) almost instant attraction. I feel like this happened within the first few chapters, but it could have been later than that. The instant attraction was heavily weighted toward Geoffrey, the new Duke, and it took a bit longer for Lady Diana to realize her feelings toward Geoffrey. However, Diana was an excellent heroine for the hero, Geoffrey. They were both fabulous sparring partners...in word and in deed. The romance was sweet, and heat between the two was off-the-charts sizzling. Dialogue was super clever. I enjoyed that Diana and her sisters had formed their own Elegant Occasions business. Brilliantly-done! The time period and setting are wonderfully-described. I feel as though I was transported to one of the most beautiful of settings and scenes. I definitely recommend a Duke for Diana. I appreciate having been granted an ARC from NetGalley, and these are my own comments. Thank you! :)

This story is just delightful. Diana and Geoffrey rub each other wrong at first meeting but of course there is something about the other that just won't let go. Diana is not intimidated in the least by the new duke. He isn't used to any female contradicting him. To his credit, all he wants is for his sister Rosy to have a wonderful debut in society. After he hires Diana and her two sisters to oversee it he finds himself totally flummoxed by all the females around him: the sisters, his mother, and his sister. The back and forth between Geoffrey and Diana is hilarious at times as she tries to "gentrify" him and explain the ways of the ton. He may be a lump of coal that she's trying to turn into a diamond, but what a lump!

I enjoyed Diana's, as well as her sisters Eliza's and Verity's, strong spirit and willingness to stand up for what they believed in, in spite of the consequences. They forged their way in a society that condemned them for their mother's behavior, while they were completely innocent. This was a time when women were of little value and were controlled by the men in their lives, so seeing them take charge was uplifting.

They were hired to launch new duke Geoffrey's sister into that same society but didn't know the secrets he was hiding nor his concerns about how all of them would be affected should those secrets get out. Once they learned to trust and support each other, the burden became lighter and easier to bear. The dialogue and characters were outstanding as usual for Ms. Jeffries. I highly recommend this book and look forward to the next in this series..

4 Stars! I enjoyed this book! It’s the first in a new series, ‘Designing Debutantes’, by Sabrina Jeffries. The main female character, Diana, has dealt with the scandal of her parents making by starting a successful business with her sisters, Eliza and Verity. I felt bad for the sisters since they were basically shunned for no good reason. The main male character, Geoffrey, a newly titled Duke and is dealing with a possible scandal that he also had no say in. Diana and Geoffrey reminded me a bit of an enemies to lovers type of romance. Honestly, I didn’t read a lot of romance from them and the story felt a bit slow going only to speed up towards the end, but I still enjoyed their story. A few times I felt like I was getting hints at some scandal only to never read about it again - maybe it comes up in the next book? Scandal, worry over a possible scandal, “sexy times”, planning parties, following the absurd rules of 19th century society, funny and cute banter and falling in love. I’m always satisfied with a Sabrina Jeffries book!
*I received this at no charge & I voluntarily left this review.*

This has to be my least favorite book by author Sabrina Jeffries. What colored the entire book “bleak” for me was the Party Planning business Elegant Occasions. I could not wrap my head around this enterprise A) existing in the Regency Era and B) being run by aristocratic Ladies. I'm not saying some misguided debutantes wouldn't attempt such a business but since they were scandalous, ostracized members of the Ton, it is not likely they would be hired. Then there is the romance. Diana throws herself at Geoffrey until he gives in to her lust. What? Giving it 3 stars is being generous. This is an example of the current trend to insert modern values and morals falsely into history. Ms. Jeffries is capable of so much better.

2.75 stars.

Geoffrey Brookhouse didn’t imagine that he would inherit a dukedom but he did and with a new elevated rank, he knows that his family would suffer from a ruinous scandal if ever a secret gets out. With this, he is quite eager to marry his sister off to a titled gentleman to make sure that she’d be protected when that time comes. Problem is, he and his family have no idea how to move in polite society. Enter Lady Diana Harper and her two sisters; the people behind Elegant Occasions. The sisters were shunned by society when their father divorced their mother who ran off with her lover. Instead of allowing themselves to be ousted, they decided to make a living that would cater to the ton and it has been a success for years. Their new task is quite easy: turn the duke’s sister into a diamond of the first water. Lady Diana has no worries in that regard for she’s sure she can do just that… but she worries that it’ll be the duke who she’d have problems with especially since he makes her feel things that she has never felt before. As they butt heads with each other, something that has never been appealing to either parties before is now mortifyingly so: marriage!

A Duke For Diana is the first book from Sabrina Jeffries’ new historical romance series, Designing debutantes. This tells the story of Lady Diana Harper and Geoffrey Brookhouse. This is the first book I have ever read by this author and I fear that I am not terribly impressed. From the description, it seemed interesting enough. A self made man who inherits a dukedom and a lady of the ton who has her own scandal. However, the book just fell flat for me. I would like to thank the publisher for granting my request for a copy but I must also apologize for I will now state why this book just didn’t work for me.

We have the heroine, Lady Diana Harper. She is a stickler for society rules even though she was shunned by the very same set of people. Her thoughts regarding marriage were relatable enough. I understood the family problem all too well. In some sense, she ought to be someone I should like. She was also very straight-forward which is a trait I like seeing in my heroines. By all means, she’s a heroine that I should’ve loved. But I just did not. To me, she comes off as an annoying girl, who sometimes acted out of character which confused me a great deal. She had only known the duke for more than a month which is why her eagerness to know his secret was frustrating. She felt too pushy at times. She was mad at him because he didn’t want to marry and she didn’t know the reasons. At the same time, her reasons for being mad at him, which I didn’t quite understand, made no sense to me. Then he finally offered marriage and she declined, and right after that, this girl was really thinking “He just didn’t want to marry her.” Huh? girl what? She is just so uninteresting and I was just so bored with her character. I also couldn’t feel her supposed love for the hero. To me, it’s just pure lust. I think the author tried her best to give this character depth, make her interesting and stand out from other heroines, sadly she has failed because this heroine was just insipid.

The hero was just as boring. This man was a civil engineer and a duke on top of that. You’d think he’d at least be compelling. Nada. He isn’t! There was nothing about him that made him swoon-worthy and I like my heroes to be swoon-worthy so that’s an important aspect. He loved his sister and mother, so I guess that’s a point for him. Oh and he is also funny sometimes. But aside from that, there wasn’t anything about Geoffrey that urged me to fall in love with him. I can understand why he kept the secret from his family: he thought he was protecting them, but then, they had every right to know for it’ll be them who’d suffer the consequences if ever those secrets were revealed. He needed to trust the people around him a bit more. He was a civil engineer but we don’t really see him doing anything that’ll show his skill as such. I like self-made heroes and the likes so I was expecting to love this hero. I wanted to love the hero but I didn’t. Just like the heroine, I didn’t feel his supposed love for Diana. The two of them were in heat at the very most, but their love just isn’t plausible. Like the heroine, I think he lacked depth and fell flat. He’s just as insipid, and I’m sorry to say that.

The worst thing is that they had no chemistry whatsoever. Sure, their banter was fun at times but that isn’t enough to save a book. Most of the time, they’re just annoying. They were instantly attracted to each other and I think that until the very end, that was all there was to it. Attraction. No love that these two characters claimed they felt for each other. I just couldn’t see how they fell in love, given that if they weren’t bickering, they were lusting over each other, and then after that the heroine goes back to hating him and assuming the worst. Sure, he revealed his secrets to her near the end but it wasn’t enough to make me believe in a deeper connection that may exist between the two of them. Maybe I’m asking for too much but I want a book that’ll make me feel a great deal: not just annoyance and boredom waiting for the book to finally come to an end.

It also speaks a great deal that I was more interested in Lady Rosabel’s transformation to a diamond of the first water and anticipation over whom she’ll end up with! Also, I couldn’t feel the family dynamic between Diana and her sisters. Their conversations were boring. I think the author wanted for it to come out playful and friendly but in reality it was just monotonous. Neither Eliza or Verity were terribly interesting people so I’m not sure I’d be interested to read the next books in the series. The idea of business wasn’t interesting either, I thought it’d be more plausible (thinking it’d be set some time during the Victorian era) but then it wasn’t, considering this was set during the very early 1800s.

There were good things about the book of course. I learned a thing or two more about the era. I also liked how present the ton is in the story: I like reading about society. It’s very fun. Lord Foxstead piqued my curiosity too…seeing the title of the next book, I have no doubt it’ll be Eliza who he’ll end up with. Not sure how that’ll happen but I am not very eager to know either. Overall, I think I just started with the wrong Sabrina Jeffries book. I think she’s quite popular in the historical romance genre and would be interested to read other books that are much more appealing. However, this book doesn’t encourage me very much to seek her other books.

By the way, I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thanks to Kensington books for the eARC! I would still encourage everyone who has the chance to read this book to give it a chance for you may end up enjoying this more than I did! I think it was a matter of preference. I didn’t like it very much but who knows? It might work for you, so don’t be deterred by my review!

A new, refreshing premise! Sabrina Jeffries' writing skill is so good that she can make being in trade and the aristocracy work. The characters are very real with believable feelings and circumstances. I enjoyed seeing how Ms. Jeffries would pull this off. She does! I recommend this book and look forward to the next in the series.

I was provided with an advance reader copy of this book. This is my honest opinion voluntarily given.

Really loved Diana and Geoffrey. Their story was fast paced and adventurous. I’m hoping Verity and Eliza gets their own story as well.

I just recently discovered Sabrina Jeffries in my search for new historical romance authors. I enjoyed this romance. This is a start to a new series.

This was very entertaining with many layers that gave us a romance for the ages. These characters are likable and expertly fleshed out. There are complicated emotions and messy scandals. The supporting characters are unique and appealing. The cover is intriguing and fresh.

For a brief point at the beginning, I wondered if this was indeed written by Ms. Jeffries. The tone and pacing was unlike her other works that I've read. It took me a bit to become attached to this story, but once boy met girl with plenty of witty barbs tossed about, I was fully invested.

I can't wait for the next book! I have an idea regarding the elusive stranger.

Scandals here, scandals there, scandals everywhere! The three sisters: Diana, Verity, and Eliza, have suffered from their parents scandal. Their mother ran off with her lover, and their father getting a divorce. Society frowns upon divorces, and the girls suffered for it. They moved in together, and started a business that catered to Society functions- Elegant Occasions. Their new client is Geoffrey Brookhouse, a newly minted Duke, who is a civil engineer. He and his sister and mother are untutored in the ways of Society. He hires Elegant Occasions to teach his sister the ins and outs and prepare her for her debut. Diana and Geoffrey but heads from the ver beginning but there begins something simmering between them under the surface. However, the Duke is hiding his own scandal.
A delightful read and great dialogue!

3.5 stars. Diana and her sisters run Elegant Occasions, an exclusive, Regency-era London party planning business. They're hired by Geoffrey, a newly-minted and reluctant duke, who needs to bring his sister out in society. Diana's family lives under the cloud of their scandalous parents, which makes them not quite eligible, and Geoffrey needs to make a good match for himself, but he can't stop thinking about the lovely and capable fashion designer anyway.

Jeffries has set up another fun series of siblings. I was disappointed that some of the plot threads didn't pay off (Geoffrey agrees to let Diana style him, but Jeffries doesn't really do anything with this idea). But overall it's a charming read.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC to review. All opinions are my own.

CW: Suicide, grief, loss of parent, divorce, narc family members

It has been a while since I have read Sabrina Jeffries, or at least reviewed one of her books, but remember her being one of the authors I turned to frequently when I first started reading Regency Romance.  She is consistent, delivering that perfect combination of history, romance, and good character development.

A Duke for Diana continues that legacy, with two characters who are carrying trauma from their parents who meet first as client/service provider but quickly realize they can't fight the instant attraction.  What seems like it might be enemies to lovers is really just a masquerade of insta-love/lust.  There are also touches of Cinderella/Pygmalion with reforming the civil engineer (he curses like a sailor) who has inherited a Dukedom almost against his will.  And a bit of the love lessons trope thrown in at about the midpoint to keep things spicy.

I genuinely liked and understood both MCs and thought they had believable chemistry so that the intimate scenes were pretty hot if more of the vanilla variety.  I have given this book some flames both for on the page intimacy (several scenes) and a lot of the mature content (see CW) for which I think a reader should be prepared, even if they are handled with a skillful touch.

There are no villains, misunderstandings, or melodrama and the central conflict is really both the MCs being reluctant to marry, for their own reasons.

I enjoyed both the aristocratic MCs having day jobs, which is unusual.  The Elegant Occasions company is probably a bit of a historic stretch, but as this book feels Victorian (I don't remember seeing a date), I think it works.

The supporting characters (including the sisters who will likely have their own books) were delightful and any setups for the series were very subtle.  Although we learn of some toxic family members, most of the on the page time is spent with fairly supportive, lovely humans so I rate this a pretty low angst book, even though it touches on some difficult topics.

I would recommend this for readers looking for a low angst book that focuses on internal conflict, and a nice pairing of aristocratic, yet working MCs who have ambition, dreams, and a lot of fun with love/romance.

A Duke for Diana is a refreshing new novel by Sabrina Jeffries. It has been a very long time since I'd last read a novel by Sabrina Jeffries, so I was very glad to dive into this one.
The premise of the book was new and refreshing, for a historical romance. The titular main character, Diana, runs a successful business called Elegant Occasions with her sisters, Eliza and Verity. Their family was rocked by scandal, and instead of hiding behind the perceived shame, they stepped forward and created business where the three sisters do what they love. Eschewing the perceived stigma brought upon them by their parents, they become independent and successful on their own. For a story set in the 19th century, what Diana and her sister's accomplished was unheard of and rather inspiring.
It is through this business that Diana comes across Geoffrey Brookhouse, a self made civil engineer who unexpectedly inherits a dukedom. Similar to the female heroine, the hero of this story also has an uncommon beginning. His goal to ensure his sister Rosy succeeds during her first season helps him come across Elegant Occasions, and Diana.
From the get go, they rub each other the wrong way. It's an enemies-to-friends-to-lovers situation with wonderful repartees and banter between Diana and Geoffrey. This made the book is very enjoyable to read. Their refreshing attitudes, the chemistry between Diana and Geoffrey and interactions with others like Eliza, Verity, Rosy and more added positively to the narrative and made the story a delightful read.
The book left me wanting more, and I definitely can't wait to read Eliza and Verity's stories.

Having read many historic romance novels recently and sadly many poor ones, I found this one on a better side. The story is more unique than average and an experienced author delivers. Go and read it.

The only thing that bothered me was Diana's push Geoffrey into disclosing his secret to his family. [Stop ready here if you are sensitive to "spoilers"] I have little knowledge how the society and families perceived suicides of their family members but based on the modern point of view, it was a horrible thing to force someone to do. It really was not Diana's business and the knowledge that your loved one killed himself intentionally rather than accidentally is a horrible thing to live with especially for the young daughter. But once again I never came up on this topic before in the historic literature so maybe in the old society it was perceived very differently. This point did not change my view of the book.

Thanks to Netgalley for the free copy in exchange of an honest review.

I’m a fan of Sabrina Jeffries and excited to review this first book in her new series.

The story is full of simmering attraction, romance, and suspense. Despite her parents’ actions that have cast a shadow over the family, Diana is spirited, creative, and committed to the new business she and her sisters have founded, Elegant Occasions. Geoffrey, a man new to the title of duke, is a pragmatic and practical civil engineer. When he hires Diana to oversee his younger sister’s debut to society, the sparks begin to fly!

The romance is sexy and sweet, and the plot reveals some dark family secrets. The supporting cast is endearing (love Geoffrey’s younger sister, Rosy). I can’t wait to read the next books in the series and see what happens to Diana’s sisters, Eliza and Verity. This book is a wonderful read!

Thank you to NetGalley, Kensington Books, and Sabrina Jeffries for the DRC!