This was such a fun read. Prudence is the daughter of a military man and well versed in shooting, horse riding and all things sporty. When her father wages more than he is able in a card game and loses to Jasper St. Vincent, the Duke of Montford, she tries to get the money back from him. Unknown to Prue, Jasper was planning to forgive the rest of his debt.
Providence falls into Prue’s lap when she finds a pair of earrings Jasper has retrieved from his former paramour and proceeds to undertake her own extortion of Jasper so he will have to forgive her father's debt. All of this gets more complicated when Jasper’s maternal grandfather who raised him following the untimely demise of his parents, being very intrigued with Prue after meeting her, deems her the perfect duchess for his flirt of a grandson.

Some real LOL moments had me turning the pages and kept me interested in their story. The chemistry was good. Jasper was finally able to redeem himself in the eyes of his family and loved ones and was a sigh worthy moment.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and the author with thanks and submit my honest review.

Forced marriage, opposites attract, reformed rake - so many favorite tropes in Damned If I Duke. Anna Bradley weaves together a witty, swoony story of two people who try very hard not to fall in love; but of course they do. Great regency romance!

Phew what a book.

We have Prue, daughter of a military man, well versed in shooting, boxing and riding. Her father lost a significant amount to the hero Jasper, that if called fully, will leave them in penury. She is considering marrying Stoneleigh a pompous idjit.

Jasper, rake personified. Rich, carousing and a little aimless. He just kicked out his last mistress Lady Archer (the villian). Also feels bad for wagering against Prues father and is thinking of forgiving the rest of the debt.

Story premise, Prue finds Jaspers compromising earrings. She blackmails him, I'll return the earrings, you cancel my father's debt. He's always planned to do it anyways, but does not give in to blackmail so he fights back. She's remorseful about blackmailing.

In comes Jaspers grandfather who has raised him and forces them into a marriage of convinience. He's a duke and has to produce heirs anyway. He offers her freedom to do what she wants and forgives the debt.

Working through the marriage and feelings is the next half of the book.

Jasper is in lust for his wife and is also developing feelings, but they are so new to him he does not know what to do.... he flounders very sweetly.

A few uncomfortable situations later, the h and H reconcile.

Loved these scenes

She sniffing the pillow on which he slept and then throwing it away in panic.

Him racing down the hill to rescue her when her horse goes a little wild.

She shooting his arse by mistake

Her friend looking at Jaspers naked pics.

Him trying to raze the door because wants her so badly.

Him kinda dueling the secondary villian.

Historical romance author Anna Bradley favors a heroine that is willful and headstrong and a hero that is a serious flirt and playboy, a very wealthy playboy at that. Her story Damned If I Duke is reminiscent of the frequently used troupe of rich ladies man falls in love with the underprivileged damsel, often featured in the works of Johanna Lindsay and Jo Beverley.

Prudence Thorne is the daughter of a retired military man. Jasper Vincent is the Duke of Montford. When Jasper misplaces ruby earrings that he took back from a former paramour, it is Prudence who finds them. Rather then returning the earrings that belong to Jasper, she decides to blackmail Jasper into releasing her father of a hefty debt that he owes Jasper.

Countering her offer is Jasper's grandfather, believing that a woman who blackmails his grandson might be the type of woman who would make a good wife and a good duchess for Jasper. The only drawback is Jasper and Prudence are continually baiting each other, tormenting and tempting each other. The tension is meant to intensify their passion but it actually has an adverse effect on the reader, who finds the tension grating, never really grasping why these two would stay married once the debt is forgiven.

Damned If I Duke is a historical romance that is reminiscent of several stories that have come before. It's a good doctor's waiting room read. A story that will transport the reader's mind into an entertaining world rather than seating in one where the reader is left twiddling one's thumbs.

Picture Julia Quinn’s The Viscount Who Loved Me mixed with a little How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days? And now, just to make it even better, add in a marriage of convenience. And just like that, I’m in, tell where to sign up.

I really really enjoyed this, it was a lot of fun and I’m glad I took a chance jumping into a series cold. The sex scenes are nicely mildly spicy (shaking hands, desperate moans ), the MC’s are wonderful, and together - the chemistry is 🔥 And I loved Jasper’s grandfather.

I found this well written, engaging, and it had no trouble holding my interest and made me chuckle out loud at several places. This was my first time reading Ms Bradley and it won't be the last as I plan on reading the other titles in this series - in fact, I borrowed the first book in the series from the library before I’d even finished reading this.

I can’t wait to read more of this series.



Thank you to Zebra and NetGalley for the DRC

Did avowed rake Jasper truly swindle Pru's father out of a fortune? No matter; the real question is if these two can keep their hands off each other. In Damned if I Duke, the reader is delightfully immersed in discovering Jasper's backstory and whether these two star-crossed lovers will find happiness.

Jasper, a rake, is furious when he has to make a marriage of convenience. Forced by society to marry, Prue just wants to be left alone and to spend her days working with her cousin. Thinking he got a quiet manageable wife, Jasper figures his married life won’t be much different as his single life. Prue will not be managed however. When her cousin is kidnapped they must work together to find him. It is when danger threatens that they realize how much they care for each other. I received an ARC from NetGalley and Zebra for my honest review.

Prue has come to London to find a husband as her beloved father is in debt to Jasper the Duke.
They clash at every meeting as she hopes to blackmail him into forgiving the debt. Jasper has his own trials with a vindictive former mistress. As their contentious relationship evolves, they understand each other and try to make amends but someone is always interfering making life difficult.
Lots of scandalous happenings, an unexpected betrothal, and twists in the story.

This proved to be an immensely entertaining tale of enemies turned lovers. Prue finds herself in a precarious situation as her father accumulates a substantial gambling debt owed to Jasper. Employing a set of alluring and somewhat scandalous jewelry (yes, jewelry, believe it or not) as leverage, Prue attempts to blackmail Jasper. The narrative takes an unexpected turn as they eventually find themselves in a marriage of convenience, and the ensuing dynamics unfold predictably.

Prue, a spirited and rebellious character, captured my affection. What set her apart was her genuine passion for activities like riding, shooting, and fencing—skills instilled in her by her military father. Unlike trends in recent books aiming to portray characters as excessively "fierce," Prue's interests were authentic and intrinsic. It was refreshing to witness her blend of soft-hearted sweetness and unwavering spirit.

Anna Bradley is good at writing ton-centric historical romances that really sell you on the attraction between the main couple as they interact during a series of society events. In this case, Prudence is predisposed to hate Jasper because she believes he essentially swindled her father out of his fortune because Jasper figured her dad was bad at cards. Unfortunately, her friend Francesca's (previous heroine) husband Giles is best friends with Jasper so they keep coming across each other. Cue Prudence's slapdash blackmail attempt that somehow ends with Jasper being shot in an.... indelicate place, and then holy matrimony.

Jasper is a good example of a rake hero. He's a louche aristo-type who has series of meaningless society affairs, he has a natural sex appeal that Prudence is not indifferent even though she hates him (who knew a runaway horse rescue scene could have so much sexual tension?), he has potentially compromising nudes set in pieces of jewelry, etc. etc. Of course in natural rake fashion, he's thoroughly bewildered by his attraction to Prudence, and even more horrified after their marriage when he realizes there are Feelings involved.

Jasper is intent on not falling for Pru and is convinced he'll make a terrible husband, so he attempts to place distance between them after their wedding (it's pretty similar to Julia Quinn's The Viscount Who Loved Me in this way, sans the bee-string death trauma). Meanwhile, Prudence who is an unconventional sporty type and loves to ride and hunt, wants nothing more than to take fencing lessons at a usually all-male establishment. Jasper HATES this, which is why a bet is struck up between them: if he can't seduce her within 10 days, she can attend fencing classes forevermore. This might arguably be the best part of the book just because of how increasingly desperate Jasper gets— man's fully banging on her bedroom door by day two(?). Again, Pru isn't unaffected which is why I'm pretty sure they wordlessly decide oral doesn't count.

Here's the thing about Pru being a sporty gal: it actually has plot ramifications in that a blackmail plot nearly succeeds only because Prudence is uninformed about the hymen/virginity myth while being an enthusiastic horse girl. While I could buy her lack of education to a degree, I didn't super enjoy how much the plot hinged on this one fact.

My final note: If there's one thing a year of reviewing historical romances has taught me to appreciate, it's the sniffers, and Prudence does not disappoint when she sniffed the pillow on the chair Jasper was sitting on not once, not twice, but three times before panic-hurling it away.

The sex:

I enjoy Anna Bradley's sex scenes. She does such a thorough job of building up the tension between the couples so the payoff is always good. The wedding night scene in particular was excellent, and that's in part because Jasper comes with, and I quote, a "defeated groan", (my new favorite phrase) on their wedding night presumably because the pussy was that good and he just lost all willpower. And it only goes downhill from there (downhill for him; uphill for us): Their next encounter, his hands are literally shaking with lust. By the time he's four days into a celibacy streak due to the bet, he gets hard because Prudence touched his arm. It's so great.

Overall:

This is another solid addition to Anna Bradley's Drop Dead Dukes series; it certainly gave me a laugh and also gave me good sex scenes and chemistry between the hero and heroine. I look forward to the next book in the series, which features Jasper and GIles's friend Stoneleigh who is (also) vocally opposed to marriage...

Thank you to Kensington Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.

Anna Bradley is one of my favorites and "Damned If I Duke" was a great way to pass an afternoon. Prudence Thorne was raised by an ex-soldier father who taught her to ride and shoot but nothing about feminine arts. Then he went and lost everything in an ill-advised wager with Jasper St. Vincent, Duke of Montford. Montford is one of the BFFs of the husband of Prue's BFF, so she ends up seeing him more than she would like. A drunken encounter leads to a plot of blackmail, which leads to more interactions, which leads to more disasters - and a rising attraction.

The disasters are funny, and the chemistry appealing. The duo end up in a marriage of convenience (somehow even in the face of their mad attraction to one another) and Jasper quickly shows his whole arse as he runs from his feelings. Prudence's unwillingness to be anyone but who she is is admirable and touching. And the pair's eventual HEA is incredibly sweet.

A solid 4 stars. Bring on Grantham! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a complimentary ARC of this book. The opinions herein are my own.

Her books are always so good!! Prue is a headstrong woman who isn't looking to get married, until she is. Her life turns upside down when she meets Jasper. It becomes a battle of wills. They can't agree on anything, until they do. Loved this book, until I didn't. JK!! It's great!!

This is an easy 4 stars for me. Loved the two main characters and while the plot was predictable, the writing was fresh and the pace good that I read through in 2-3 sittings. Would read the next in the series too.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley, this doesn't change my opinion in any way.

A fun, slightly spicy romance! I liked the protagonist and the love interest, and it moved at a great pace. I will definitely be reading more books from this author! This was a very fun period romance, and was hard to put down!

I wish I could read this book again for the 1st time. Japer needed Prue to see what being a grown man was all about. He certainly got an education.

This was a really fun enemies to lovers story. Prue's father owes a huge gambling debt to Jasper and Prue is using some scandalous sexy jewelry (yes, jewelry lol) to try to blackmail Jasper. Eventually they enter into a marriage of convenience and well, you can imagine how it goes.
I loved Prue and how much of a hellion she was. However she wasn't just rebellious for the sake of it. She was raised by a military father and so there was a reason for her to have been trained and interested in riding and shooting and fencing and I really liked that these were just genuinely her interests, it wasn't an attempt by the author to make her seem more "fierce" like so many books are doing recently. Prue was still very soft hearted and sweet.

I want to say I've read Bradley before and I've liked her, but I can't recall. I will say this book was passably boring; that is to say I only got 40 percent into it before finally giving up. I realized early on that each scene takes up pages of the book at a time, and the timeline is day by day instead of over time. It's dreadfully boring to read every single step the character's take! Leave SOMETHING for the imagination.
And there is no major conflict...not at the point that I left the book, which was almost halfway. All the characters were nice! There was no villain, except maybe a pissed-off x mistress. But even then..it's nothing.

The sexual tension was meh too. But it was there, just not hot enough for me.

#2 in the Drop Dead Dukes series is a bummer because looking at her website, I did read the first one in this series and I think I liked it so much more than this book.

When FMC is faced with the prospect of marrying the MMC, a Duke, in order to pay back a gambling debt owed by her father, she rebels and instead attempts to blackmail him.

He, of course, turns the tables and they instead find themselves attracted to each other.

While the plot is in no way original, the characters are developed enough to hold the readers attention, and the many side characters are a nice addition.

A simple, enjoyable, quick read, easily finished in an hour.

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this ARC in return for my honest opinions.

I will read anything Anna Bradley writes so I was so excited to get this ARC. Jasper and Prudence don’t like each other. Well, she doesn’t like him cause her father lost a bet to him and now she has to marry a man she doesn’t love. He thinks she is too smart with her mouth, and those hazel eyes? Too lovely.

This books is enemies to lovers with a whole lotta fun thrown in. I thought this book was great. I was smiling and laughing. Can’t wait for the next one.

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Books for the ARC!

Dammed If I Duke is the second book of Drop Dead Dukes series by Anna Bradley.

This book, which can be read as a standalone, is about Jasper St. Vincent, Duke of Montford and Miss Prudence Thorne who are the dear friends of the Duke and Duchess of Basingstoke.

Jasper is the typical young Duke who lost his parents at a young age and even though he’s been raised by his maternal grandfather, still has lots of unresolved emotional issues in his life.

On the other hand, Prue, short for Prudence, can’t stand Jasper since he is part of the reason his dear father is about to lose everything they have, forcing her to find a husband when that’s the last thing she wanted to.

Jasper, and Prue are forced to face their unwanted attraction and the consequences of their decisions.

At the begging the attraction between Jasper and Prue seems somehow forced to me. However, towards the middle you could see the relationship better established with the story. There are lots of funny and hot moments between the main characters. Definitely an enjoyable reading.