Thank you to NetGalley, Avon, and Ms. Jordan for the opportunity to read an ARC of this title. An honest review was requested but not required.

I *really* like Ms. Jordan's writing style and I was primed to really like Valencia. I have a soft spot for women (fictional or otherwise) coming from abusive situations. She was so supportive of Tru in The Countess (I LOVE the female friend group situation going on here) and I was really ready for her to have her happy ending after the events of Tru's book. Rhain took a lot more work to warm up to, but eventually I came around. I did feel the chemistry between them, the pull towards each other, and living in the same house I suppose there would have been enough proximity for a familiarity to grow.

However.

The plot was somewhat inconsistent in its trajectory, with things introduced that went unresolved (like the "get the sisters ready for their society introductions" plotline that fell by the wayside; like the mom's vociferous objections to Valencia, like the other guy, Burton, who was creepy and persistent - nothing ever happened to him, right? Will he just... recur?, etc etc). I felt myself waiting for resolutions that never came. The "twist" at the end felt a little left field too, and the intimate scene seemed startlingly abrupt and odd.

Not to say that I didn't enjoy the book - I did! I did!!!!! - but I think The Countess was a stronger book. ⭐⭐⭐1/2

The Duchess by Sophia Jordan gives the reader a gritty view of the widowed life facing a spouse of a deceased peer of the realm. For all the glitter and glamour in the life of a Duchess, the reality of her future can be grim and unfair, especially if the husband has not generously provided for his widow. Such is the state of Valencia, former Duchess of Dedham, as the newly found Duke of Dedham makes his appearance and claims the title and house. Adding to her shock is that he has brought his mother and his 6 unmarried sisters with him! Rhain Lloyd, Duke of Dedham, is from a small town in Wales and is his own man in personality and purpose. This invasion of the Lloyds spells the end to Valencia's London life filled with friends and activities. Sophia writes these chapters so sharply that we can feel Valencia's heartbreak over leaving the home she lovingly created during her 15 years of marriage as well as her frustrating powerlessness against the will of men.
Rhain understands the viciousness of the Ton and knows his sisters will be torn apart without a mentor’s instruction. He gives Valencia is given a choice with the promise of economic freedom in the future. Rhain actions reveal a man who deeply loves his sisters. As much as he wants her out of his home to quell his growing attraction to Valencia, he needs her in his sisters’ lives.
The twist at the end surprised me and, in my opinion, the resolution of the story felt abrupt and rushed. I would have liked the book to be a little longer with more chapters focusing on the developing relationship between Rhain and Valencia. Was it more than just lust on his part and was it just Valencia's widowed state that made her want Rhain so much. There are steamy scenes and chemistry between them, but I thought they needed more time to connect heart wise.
I did enjoy reading Valencia’s and Rhain’s story in The Duchess and look forward to the next book in The Scandalous Ladies of London Series.
I received an Advanced Reader Copy from NetGalley and am leaving a voluntary opinion based solely on my reading experience.

The Duchess by Sophie Jordan is the second book in the series.
Valencia, Duchess of Dedham has earned her title. She was once happy to call herself the Duchess, she actually married for love. But that was years ago and so many painful memories from now. Yet with her husbands untimely death she is finally free. She can explore all the things she has been missing and to afraid to take a chance. And how quickly plans change when the heir to the Dukedom appears in London to lay claim to all.
Rhain Llyod is out of his element in London, used to a much quieter life in Bryn Bychan Wales. Choices were taken from him as the laws of primogeniture cannot be ignored, he is the Duke of Dedham. With that comes the responsibility of launching all of his sisters in the unsuspecting ton. Lucky for him he has the perfect tool to assist, the now Dowager Duchess. Sadly, she does not come with all the other trappings of the new title, but keeping his distance may prove to be impossible.

Another Sophie Jordan gem. This book is beautifully written, exploring women’s lives in ways that only romance novels can. I loved the two leads—such well thought out characters. I was a bit smitten with the Duke myself. Sophie Jordan has really perfected the art of storytelling over the years. The chemistry between the leads has you turning pages, but there’s also so much richness to her worlds and text. My only criticism is now that I’ve read this one, I have to wait for her next novel to come out!

The Duchess is book two in The Scandalous Ladies of London Series by Sophie Jordan.
This is such an entertaining, well-written, steamy, historical romance novel that is so captivating I couldn’t put my Kindle away.
I just really adored this novel, I found it to be so interesting, I loved all of the characters and I am just so excited to see where this series go.

Thank You NetGalley and Avon for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

This book had it all--heartbreak, secrets, betrayal, mystery, family, friends and a sizzling forbidden romance. Valencia's married life had been difficult and being widowed actually came as a bit of a relief. She had a wonderful group of female friends and she was ready to begin living her best life. All of this came to a screeching halt when her beloved home was beset by a horde of young women. Making matters even worse, the ladies were followed by their older brother who also happened to be the heir of Valencia's late husband. Rhain, the new duke, was devastatingly handsome. Unfortunately, his presence signaled the fact that Valencia's tenure as duchess was truly over.
Rhain did not know his predecessor. He was only there to take care of estate matters and get his six sisters established in society. He decided that it would be beneficial for his sisters if he kept the lovely widow around to mentor them. At least that's what he told himself.
When I began reading this book, I only expected to enjoy the usual tropes. Yes, they were there but there were also a few unexpected surprises. Valencia was an emotionally deep character and she experienced a lot during the course of the story. The romance was certainly passionate, but Valencia's personal journey stood out as well. Her story is definitely not over and I'm looking forward to seeing more of Valencia and Rhain in the next book of the series. I received a free ARC from NetGalley and this is my honest review.

Once upon a time, Valencia married the man of her dreams, but not long after their wedding, her dream became a nightmare when her husband was injured in an accident and changed from the charming man she married into a mean, abusive drunk. For years she endured his abuse, both physically and verbally, until another accident finally ended his life. Now a year later, Valencia is the widowed Duchess of Dedham, and ready to live again, but things do not go as planned and instead of a fun night celebrating her birthday with friends at Vauxhall Gardens, she takes a dip in the Thames and is pulled out by a rude boor of a man and if that was not bad enough, she is awakened the next day by the arrival of the same rude boor who happens to be the new Duke, along with his mother and six unmarried sisters and is unceremoniously kicked out the house she has lived in for over a decade! But launching unmarried six sisters into London society is more than his mother can handle and Valencia sees an opportunity – she will prepare the girls for their debuts and in exchange the duke will pay her handsomely. She just has to keep her eye on the prize and ignore the attraction she feels for the new duke, because if there is one thing Valencia knows it is love is an illusion. She fell for that trick once and learned her lesson the hard way, so that won’t be a problem…

Welshman, Rhain Lloyd is a self-made man who has no interest in being the Duke of Dedham, but with no choice, he travels to London with his mother, cousin and his six unmarried sisters (he has 12). His plan is to access the dukedom and its holdings then have his cousin act as his steward, so he can return to Wales and his quiet, ordered life. He is shocked to learn that the woman he fished out of the Thames is the late duke’s widow, which makes her off-limits in his mind. And because of his attraction, he needs her gone ASAP, but when it becomes clear that his mother is not prepared to launch his sisters into society, he makes a deal with Valencia. He will pay her to present his sisters to the ton and find them husbands and then she will leave and he will carry on with his original plan. He can control himself and there is no way he would ever fall in love with her, so that won’t be a problem…

This was a well-written, somewhat emotional story that focuses mostly on Valencia’s journey to HEA. The book is filled with emotional healing, some triggers, lots of sisters, a stuffed dog, well-meaning “ride or die” friends, secrets, low steam love scenes, betrayal, blackmail and finally a well-deserved happy ending complete with an epilogue. I liked this story, and my heart broke for Valencia, she was badly used and yet she never broke, she is a survivor who fought for her happy ending, and I was rooting for her all the way. Much like the previous book, this story didn’t “wow” me and I never really felt the romance. And am I the only one who found Poppet uber creepy? Anyway, IMO the book was not a keeper, but it was still a good read with a happy ending. This is the second book in the series, but it could be read as a standalone title with no problems. Please note, this book does have content that might be upsetting to some readers, and I would suggest checking out the content warning before reading the book.

3.5 stars rounded up.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own.*

This is an amazing book that will delight romance fans! I also just really love the cover, which I found striking.

Valencia and Rhain were so fun to read about. From tumbling off a boat into the river and being rescued to the very end, the book was non-stop entertainment. The Duchess had lost her husband and is ready to leave her mourning period. Just when she's ready to move on, Rhain and his sisters take over her house, meaning she'll be relegated to the dowager house in the country. I wish she had the foresight to think of the plan to help the sisters come out to society, but Rhain comes to her "rescue" again, giving her the chance to change her fate. The whole cast really adds to the story, from family to friends. No stone is left unturned in the tale, secrets are uncovered, and a villain is even afoot. the only thing that was kind of odd was the parts told from Hazel's POV. I wasn't quite sure why we needed to sympathize with her, other than to not paint her as a complete villain. Perhaps her story will be the next book? I wish I had read The Countess, and I just might have to grab a copy to dive more into this world. Sophie Jordan has never disappointed me. Looking forward to more stories!

Almost a year after the death of her husband, Valencia, Duchess of Dedham, can finally begin to enjoy her life as a widow. The only problem is that the day she decides to take charge of her life, the new duke, his mother, and six sisters arrive taking their place in here home. And, the new duke, Rhain, is unfortunately the very handsome man who had nothing nice to say about Valencia the night before after she fell into the Thames. Rhain agrees to allow Valencia to stay at the London house so she can help launch his sisters into society, but finds himself constantly distracted by her attractive presence and soon learns she finds him equally distracting.

I enjoyed the previous book in this series and I liked this one even more. The vibe is kind of a Real Housewives of Regency London with confessional quips starting each chapter. As always Sophie’s writing is fast paced and easy to read. I read the book in one sitting on a Sunday afternoon and had a delightful time. While the book does have darker undertones it is overall a book about love. I loved Rhain and the sections in his POV were absolutely wonderful with him fully taken over by lust/love that he could not string together a coherent thought let alone a coherent sentence. This is the type of thing I want in my romances but have found to be lacking in so many recent romances. I want to feel the heat and tension between the characters and I always know Sophie can deliver on that front. I am excited to see where this book goes. From how the book ended my guess is the next book will be about Valencia’s step mother Hazel, but we shall see. No matter who the next book is about, I will read it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this installment of the Scandalous Ladies of London series. I loved seeing Valencia moving on from her horrible marriage and I thought she and Rhain made a great couple. I loved their first meeting when they had no idea who each other was, then when they met for the second time and then found out one was the Duchess and one the new Duke, bringing along six!! of his sisters.
I really enjoyed how even though the focus wasn't on the sisters (maybe a future series?) they felt fleshed out and real, they didn't overtake the storyline. In fact, I would have enjoyed getting some scenes of Valencia teaching them about society instead of her telling us about what she had done with them. Honestly, I would have loved for this story to be longer, not because it was missing anything although I wouldn't have minded more one-on-one scenes with Valencia and Rhain but because I was enjoying this story so much that I didn't want it to end.

I can't wait to see what is going to happen next with this series!

I always enjoy Jordan's historical romances, and I certainly like the idea of a group of women supporting each other through bad situations and emerging stronger at the end. As a survivor story, I applaud Valencia's determination to take control of her life and find happiness in independence. Unfortunately, the 19th century is not exactly encouraging of women's independence, so having her late husband's heir show up with family in tow puts a damper on her plans. It's a good set up, and the new duke's sisters were amusing in their chaos. But something about the execution was just a little lacking--having Valencia offer to train the girls for society makes perfect sense as a plot device, but it seemed like she hardly ever spent any actual time with them. And while pairing Valencia with the new duke is the obvious outcome here, it didn't seem like they really spent any time talking and getting to know each other, either. While I recognize instalust as a standard trope, I'd really prefer seeing an intelligent, verbal path to romance rather than just "he's hot and in the adjoining room." So, while this was perfectly fine as a standard, formulaic romance, it didn't have that extra oomph to push it to the next level.

Three stars. I am a am fan of this series. It feels more like a drama than a romance though. I didn’t super mind this but I wish I had more of the couple interactions or his POV.
That all aside, I have a good time and I am looking forward to the next book. I love the circle of ladies and I need to more about what happens between Valencia and her stepmother.
I would love to see this as a limited historical series.

I liked this book. I think the premise and set up was fun and creative. I think the way Jordan handles abuse and sexual assault is gentle and thorough. The MMCs relationship with his sisters and mother had the potential to be something special. Unfortunately it just didn't all come together for me. I didn't really buy the MCs attraction to each other, nor their love story. I loved book 1 in this series though and am still eagerly anticipating the next installment.

Valencia is a widowed duchess and finally trying to live her best life after her year of mourning. It turns out her late husband was cruel and abusive to her in his latter years and she’s relieved that he’s gone. The downside is that the new duke and his mother and six very loud sisters have just arrived in town and taking over her home. Rhain is disturbed to find that the widowed duchess is young and beautiful and wants to get rid of her as soon as he can, but then realizes he needs her to help give his unruly sisters some polish before they enter society. It’s all sorts of chaos and strong personalities as Valencia whips them all into shape. Plus, Valencia and Rhain have all sorts of simmering attraction for each other, despite trying to stay away from each other. The romance here was a bit underdeveloped for my tastes, with a quick flip from arguing to falling in love; however, Rhain’s good-natured protection of Valencia and his sisters was enjoyable to read.

Thank god that man is dead. Now let’s hope the Duchess can get a HEA after all that. This is a faced paced, second chance after a horrible marriage, with some mystery, oh and add in a Welshman and his many many sisters. The end of this one wasn’t the greatest- they needed more time together before bam.

I have enjoyed this series so far so can’t wait to see what is next!

Genre: historical romance
London, 1822

Valencia, Dowager Duchess of Dedham, has all of the intent to live out her life as a merry widow. She’s ready to celebrate her re-entry to society on her 32nd birthday, 11 months after the death of her husband. She loved him, yes, but by the time of his death he was no longer the same man. Rhain is the new Duke of Dedham, and when he arrives to take his station, he comes with his mother and six unwed sisters in tow. Gone is Valencia’s dream of commanding her own realm, but she agrees to usher Rhain’s sisters into society in exchange for not having to leave the only house she’s known as an adult. Close proximity to Rhain proves difficult, and Valencia starts experiencing desires she hasn’t felt since her debut.

The Scandalous Ladies of London series features slightly older female main characters than we are used to in many historical romances. In The Countess, Tru is 37, and in The Duchess, Valencia is 32. While they are still younger than I am as a reader, I fully appreciate the life experiences the older heroines have had, making their backstories the richer for it. If there’s one thing I truly love in my historical romances, it’s an experienced heroine.

Not as ridiculous as The Countess, The Duchess features one of the other widows of the ton from the same group of friends. It gets dark at times - check CWs in the comments - but because Sophie Jordan places those events in the past timeline and we know we have a happy ending, Valencia’s darker experiences feel like they have a resolution, and this story is just for Valencia’s own pleasure.

Rhain shows up with six - which is only half! - of his sisters, all unwed. I admire the way Sophie Jordan handles this. All six are named, and all have distinct personalities, but you only get little glimpses of each, and you aren’t meant to focus on them. So while the house probably felt crowded, the narrative never does. Jordan lets the sisters fade into the background, emphasizing Valencia and Rhain’s emotional growth.

This got a little bonkers at the end (and if you read the Countess, you know that did too). Ultimately, I wanted 15 more pages: 5 for more plot to get us to the end we got, and 10 for more sex, because I know Jordan can give it to us. This is fairly low-steam, and I definitely wanted a bigger payoff for the emotional buildup. But I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Duchess.



CWs: abuse, sexual assault - they are in past timelines, but appear on page

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
Sophie Jordan’s Scandalous Ladies of London series got off to a great start last year, and as a result, I greatly anticipated the next book, The Duchess. However, I found myself sadly underwhelmed by what this book had to offer. While the prior book managed the “high-concept” nature of focusing on a group of scandalous women, while not forgetting to flesh out the central romance, this book unfortunately did not.
I was greatly looking forward to Valencia’s story, and I really enjoyed getting to know her better. She endured a loveless marriage, and her husband’s death, which originally happened toward the end of the prior book, happened quite unexpectedly. I appreciated getting context for their marriage, and the toxicity within it. I also appreciate how the story highlighted the tenuous nature of a dowager peeress’s standing once the new peer (when he’s not from her direct line) takes up the title.
Rhain was rather uninspiring, and even more uninspiring are his six sisters used as a McGuffin to get him and Valencia to come to an agreement that he will allow her to remain in the home, while she helps usher them into society. But he had little to no personality, and he also just never really treats Valencia all that well, despite trying to portray himself as a “good” person, which made the romance incredibly tepid. As a result, any attempt to force conflict toward the end fell flat.
But all hope is not lost for the series, as the dynamics among the women continue to be a highlight. While Gertrude has stepped back from the spotlight to live out her HEA, I loved getting a bit of a tease for what’s to come for Hazel’s story.
While this book fell a little flat, due to its underdeveloped and sometimes questionable romance, there’s still some aspects I enjoyed. I would still recommend this to readers interested in historical romance centering somewhat older, widowed heroines.

Another regency romance in "The Scandalous Ladies of London" series,

Valenica is a newly widowed duchess that is finally getting to experience life as she wants it, until the new duke Rhian appears and takes over her home - and brings along his mother and six sisters looking for husbands. In a last minute effort to save her home, Valenica agrees to help get his sisters ready for presentation to the ton. It was a fast read, some steamy (some not so believable) parts.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for a temporary, digital ARC in return for my review.

I adored Rhain and Valencia's story!! She had been through so much with her first husband, I loved watching her finally get her HEA!