My One and Only Duke shares with us a family raised from poverty and familial cruelty to hard earned wealth to possible loss of a cherished brother. Quinn Wentworth is a man who does not fit into his skin. Condemned and accepting his fate for his own reasons, suddenly finds himself a duke. He was already wealthy, but had no idea he was the heir to a dukedom.

While awaiting his hanging, the daughter of a vicar invades his prison cell and his life. Jane Winston has an unbelievably generous, kind heart and a way of getting under your skin that is really welcome. The widowed, pregnant Jane wins Quinn’s heart in a way he does not even see. They wed so she can give her unborn child a future, but when Quinn’s life is spared, Jane is ecstatically happy. I loved that these two hashed out whether or not to stay married before Jane became aware of her change to duchess.

Ms. Burrowes is one of the best at developing her characters in a way that seeps into your heart so you hope for the unusual couple to find their HEA quickly. Yet, the development is at just the right pace to keep you entertained and hoping.

The entire Wentworth family is unique in their upbringing and how each of them dealt with the cruelty of their father. Quinn’s sister, brother and cousin are all prominent in Quinn and Jane’s romance. Quinn and Jane’s challenge to the other to keep honesty in their relationship is pulled to the edge. His family helps to keep us intrigued by making sure Quinn is staying honest. Add in Ned and the other servants brought from Newgate and you have a delightfully complete household.

Jane had a very unique way of disagreeing with others and taking them to task. Quinn become quite good at realizing she was waiting him out and counting to keep her temper. It was good to see her finally deal with her father, but even then, she was kinder than any one else would have been.

The ending is perfect and could not have been written better. One of the things I like best about Grace Burrowes’ books is the feeling you are there with her characters. You begin to feel you are part of the family watching their lives unfold around you. Her ability to develop the human characteristics and depth of emotions keeps you waiting for the next book in any of her series. Looking forward to Duncan’s story!

I just finished reading My One and Only Duke by Grace Burrowes and really enjoyed it. The story follows Quinn Wentworth who has come up in the world from the doing odd jobs, to footman, to banker. Unfortunately at the start of the story we find Quinn in Newgate awaiting his sentence of being hung carried out. It is in Newgate where he meets Jane who is in a precarious situation. Quinn offers to marry Jane in order to to protect her with his name even after his death. It doesn't seem like there is much hope for this relationship.
This is the first in a new series for Burrowes and there are only very very minor mentions of some characters seen in her other books. The writing style is definitely different from other HEA historical romance writers and may not be for everyone but I like the dry/matter of fact style. The characters were quite endearing. Jane is a strong female character and not some milk water miss. Quinn is the quite brooding type but he made genuine efforts and was easy not to like. I'm excited to hear the stories of the supporting characters that are sure to have their day in this series.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

My One and Only Duke is a sweet story full of wonderful characters that manage to pull themselves up by their bootstraps. Quin Wentworth has a date with the hangman when a preacher's pregnant widowed daughter is doing charitable visits at the local prison. Trying to give a good turn, Quin offers to marry Jane to give her freedom from her scoundrel of a father. Sometimes things do not go as planned, Quin has escaped the noose, to have a leg shackle to an unplanned wife and an indebted lofty title. Jane and Quin's love story is sweet as they both become better people for their marriage as Jane convinces Quinn he is worthy of her, his family, and his title. Under Quinn's accepting love, Jane grows a backbone and stands up for herself. Danger comes calling when Quinn cannot give up his quest to find the fiend who framed him for murder and planned to see him hang. I enjoyed the full cast of characters and look forward to visiting each of their stories. I only give five stars to books worthy to be reread and I cannot image that I would not revisit Quinn and Jane. I do not believe you can read this book and not come away a little bit in love with Quinn.. I thoroughly enjoyed the rags to riches feel to the story as everyday people were lifted to nobility. My voluntary, unbiased review is based upon a review copy from Netgalley.

I can’t pinpoint exactly what it is about this story and these new Grace Burrowes characters that has me so fascinated, but I am exactly that. Also desirous of more, intrigued, and giddy with anticipation. The protagonists are candid with each other (in daily events, not their personal histories), they have regrets, love deeply, are stubborn and imperfect. It all makes for a sooo much more interesting read than it could have been.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.