The Reluctant Duke

A Seabrook Family Saga #1

by Christine Donovan

Thomas Seabrook, the penniless Duke of Wentworth, walks into White's for night cap. He leaves no longer in need of coin. In fact, he has become a wealthy man and owner of Hamilton Whaling Industries of New Bedford, Massachusetts and guardian of a seventeen-year-old girl. Thomas travels to Boston intent on bringing his ward back and marrying her off to the first eligible gentleman who requests her hand. Except the first gentleman to ask for her, is his own brother, Sebastian. Thomas refuses, because bloody hell, he wants her for himself. Emma Hamilton is not happy with her new situation. Her papa brought her up to be independent and assertive. How dare this stranger, this moody noble, dictate what she can do and not do? When she finds herself thrown into a London Season, being introduced from one gentleman to another, looking for a husband, she realizes only the duke will do. How can she break through the duke's hard exterior and find the loving, caring gentleman she knows he hides from everyone.

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Historical, Regency, Ebooks, Historical Fiction, Regency Romance

336 pages, ebook

First published October 13, 2012

About the author

Once Christine began penning her first novel, she hasn’t stopped writing. She juggles her time between writing indie books and writing for Dragonblade Publishing. She has four grown sons, three granddaughters, one cat, and one black lab puppy named Luna.

Her novels encompass several genres, including regency, contemporary and paranormal romance. Her favorite saying to describe her books is: “Romance that touches the heart, soothes the soul and feeds the mind.”

She lives on the southeast coast of Massachusetts, is a PAN member of RWA a member of Novelist, Inc and Rhode Island Romance Writers. She is a #1 Amazon International Bestselling Author.

Reviews

[Candace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thomas, Duke of Wentworth, finds himself flushed with money after winning at cards. He also has acquired an American ward, Emma Hamilton. Thomas spends a year in America learning the business (whaling industry) he won. When Thomas, Emma and Myles, Earl of Norwich, set sail from America, Emma is ready for her first London season. She with Thomas's two sisters, Amelia and Bella, attends their first ball. Thomas soon discovers his feelings for Emma aren't permitting him to choose a husband for her. He wants to be that husband. But will Emma marry him or book passage to America once she learns his secret? What will Thomas do to keep her?

I enjoyed this novel. The primary and secondary characters feel like friends. The plot and subplots move along at a fast pace. For those who don't like them, there is a misunderstanding between the primary characters. I want to read the secondary characters'stories. This novel contains steamy love scenes.

[Judy Lavik · Rating 3 out of 5]

So-so

I didn't smash my Kindle or refuse to finish the book, but the story just didn't excite me, the characters were all wishy-washy, and there were many grammar errors. Add to that several discrepancies with the era. I didn't hate it, but I have no interest in reading the rest of the series.

[Els · Rating 1 out of 5]

I haven't finished this book. I gave it one star for effort.
The idea for the story was good but it is poorly executed.

[Debbie West · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring..no substance!

Except for 2 incidents in this book, there was nothing to read! The Duke goes through his reasons for not being able to marry Emma at least 5 times She goes through the same thing just as many times. Most of the book has the Duke getting an erection and the virginal trio of women wondering how sexual intercourse feels. 3 sexually explicit scenes round off this completely unexciting book. Emma makes a big deal in the beginning about leaving her friend Amy at the finishing school. But nothing else is said, except for Emma writing a my one letter. The Duke notices a large amount of money spent by Emma before they leave Boston, but he never questions her about it. A good storyline could have been written about Emma wanting Amy to come to London but the author was so busy having girls give stupid names to a man's penis, such as "pizzle", that she failed to make this story interesting. Even the ending was a letdown! I won't be reading the rest of this series. Maybe others will find some redeeming qualities in it.

[Pam Bereznak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Christine Donovan is a new author for me. This is only my 3rd book by her. I had been reading her Widows of Mayfair series and just finished Pursuing a Duke and it was so damn good I added it to my favorite books read for July, 2025. It made me want to get more of her books and read them. She is also published by Dragonblade and a lot of my favorite authors are also published by them.

Wow what a rousing romp. 😊 I really liked Thomas and Emma. I liked this storyline. I really appreciated Myles frank conversation with his sister, Marissa. It was so heartwarming. There was so much going on in the story, I couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen. For an author that doesn’t really have that many books out, she sure does get great depth in her stories. I will definitely finish up this series. I liked all the characters.

[Andria Potter · Rating 2 out of 5]

She is 17 and he's damn near 40. Yes he's a Duke, but that's still just reading all kinds of wrong. Besides which, he is her new guardian. Ugh. And the love triangle between the Duke and his brother? No thank you.

I don't generally mind age gaps, but only if both are adults. She's underage. Big pass on this one for me.

Rated: 2 ⭐

[Vampire-lk · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars really, but rounded up as I loved the beginning lighthearted witty fun atmosphere!!!! The middle got bogged down by details & fluff pieces! Blatantly skimmed through chunks at a time towards the end! Just wanted to be done & checked off sadly! It did not have an even flow I felt to the overall storyline or in regards to individual characters!!!! The main heroine at first was independent & strong willed with feisty attitude, but she seemed to turn into a weak character; not as flesh out in parts & too flighty in other areas! Think the characters as a whole & individually in this novel were botched in a sense as the main plot line was over construed & did not posses the same charm or true escapism as other books from this genre has captured my avid attention!!!!!!

Would I recommend this novel...honestly probably not! There are so many books out now that why waste time on only so so books, but I’m glad I finished it as it was not awful just was not great either!!!!!

[booksthrubifocals · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not far above average, central romantic relationship unconvincing

Thomas Seabrook, the impoverished Duke of Wentworth, indulges in an infrequent round of gambling with Mr. Hamilton, an American business tycoon, only to win his entire fortune. When Thomas tries to refuse most of his winnings, Mr. Hamilton explains his impending death and background. Wentworth's father was a childhood friend of Hamilton's and gave him money to start over in America when scandal ruined his life, and forced him to change his name and flee England. In return, Hamilton made Thomas his heir and ward to his daughter, Emma. After his death, Thomas travels to the Boston area to put his new business affairs in order and to retrieve his ward, a lovely and independent minded maiden of 17. They remain in American until Emma completes her schooling. Thomas and Emma are physically drawn to one another, but both highly conflicted regarding their emotions. Emma is welcomed by Thomas mother and sisters and enters into her first social season. Thomas is extremely jealous of all her suitors but believes it would be scandalous to court his ward. She assumes that Thomas could never marry her since she is far from his social equal. The novel also weaves the romantic interests of Thomas' sisters and his two best friends, all beset with the usual difficulties of mismatched expectations and broken hearts. I am conflicted with regards to this novel. Thomas and Emma's romance never clicked for me. There was sufficient variance to the plot, but the descriptions of the couples romantic interactions dragged the pace and were rarely convincing. I was tempted a few times just to lay this book aside but ploughed through to the end. I would have to say this was not far above average for the genre, not terrible but not entrancing either. The author did however do a decent job with making her characters at least somewhat rounded and realistic. I engaged with some of them just enough to hope the series improves. I may read samples to see. There is little foul language, some fairly graphic sexual scenes and references made to alternate sexual appetites that would likely not appeal to those who prefer "sweet romance" but it is far from trashy. I would not recommend it to younger than adult readers and I can't see male readers finding much to entertain them even though the point of view changes between the hero and heroine.

[Kisha · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought the story had promise but I mean. I could barely remember the hero's name at the end of the book. *yawn* He started out saying that he didn't see why someone would want to marry for love, and then five minutes later, it is near and dear to him. She dropped the whole Amy thing--completely worthless. She dropped Amesbury.. I assume because there will be a book about him. Myles was just running around wanting to marry everyone he met, and everyone wanted to marry Emma, who had very little in the way of personality. There was zero conflict. They wanted to marry each other. There were no real obstacles, but there was pages and pages about those manufactured reasons anyway.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I dont normally read historical romances, but I decided to take a chance on this book, and I could not have been happier. I just loved the story, the characters and just about everything about the book. I am so excited to see Ameila and Bella's stories! It was just such a great book I literally could not put it down.

[Amanda Siegrist · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book from beginning to end. A Duke with decent morals and the love for a woman he tries to deny. An American woman who is feisty and speaks her mind. Perfect combination for a well-written novel. I also loved the other characters that surrounded Thomas and Emma. I'm sure their stories will be just as intriguing.

[Space Cowgirl · Rating 5 out of 5]

His Beautiful💃💋Ward.

Alpha Male Adult Regency Romance💞 and Abduction.

Thomas Seabrook, Duke of Wentworth🐺🍆🌋, wins an American man's Whaling Company🐳 and the guardianship of his daughter, in a gentleman's card🃏 game. Thomas🐺🍆🌋 thinks the winning was too easy, and then he finds out the man and his late father were good friends at one time. The man is dying of cancer and is sure Thomas🐺🍆🌋 will take proper care of his business and daughter.

Emma💃💋, the daughter, finishes her schooling, then sails⛵ to London with her tall, handsome, yet stern guardian as her chaperone and protector.

Thomas has already fallen in love with Emma, but thinks he cannot marry a woman with no title! Beautiful Emma💃💋 is the new toast of the ton, but she only has eyes for Thomas🐺🍆🌋.

There is a fair amount of angst in this book between both Thomas🐺🍆🌋 and Emma💃💋. Adult scenes are included, but tastefully done.

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy writing style, likeable characters.

[Margaret Fisk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally posted on Tales to Tide You Over

I was in the mood for a fun, light read, and The Reluctant Duke certainly offered that. The Regency is one of my favorite historical periods because of how English society teetered on the border between strict rules and extreme debauchery. The class issues, the iron hand of society matrons, and the frantic nature of the marriage mart are rife with opportunities for good stories.

The Reluctant Duke fulfilled my request admirably, offering a story that touched on many of those fascinating elements including the perceptions of the United States during the 1800s held by the English people. Though sensual (in both talk and light description), the story shares its mood with sweet romances in the focus on well-drawn characters facing period-appropriate dangers of gossip and reputation, along with more physical dangers caused when fortunes could be won or lost at a card table.

Thomas Seabrook, the Duke of Wentworth, had both lost his fortune through his father’s mismanagement and wasteful ways and gained a new one at the card table as the story begins, though things are not what they seem as we quickly learn. He is very much a Healthcliff figure in the beginning. He is broody and full of his own responsibilities.

Emma Hamilton is a wealthy American debutante who has lived a sheltered life for very good reasons her father has kept from her. Emma’s story we learn in trickles throughout the book, little teases that are seeded, but mostly relevant as a background while the foreground is firmly set on their relationship.

The connection between these two, fraught as it is with Thomas’s understanding of his own nature as well as a strict desire to keep his family name out of the hand of gossips (after his father almost destroyed their reputation) and Emma’s innocence, can be felt on the page. Emma suffers from ignorance, but her nature leads her to follow her heart even when she’s sure Thomas is oblivious to her virtues. Thomas believes his feelings are solely lust, and she’s undeserving of the insult. He’s had little interest in doing his duty for the continuance of the title and cannot accept the possibility when the first to inspire love is his very own ward. Despite the odd method through which he obtained the responsibility, Thomas is determined to do right by her, even if it costs him everything in the process.

The story, both plot and feel, is very much in keeping both Georgette Heyer and Jane Austen. There are lovely nods to the circumstances of the times, and beautiful descriptions. While there were a couple places where the story jumped further ahead than I would have preferred for the transition and I caught a few typos, the book is well-written, enjoyable, and has reasonable conflicts, both internal and external. There are also some elements left open for the continuation of the series, beyond the simple existence of Thomas’s siblings and two best friends, all of whom are unmarried.

I enjoyed the active family feel, the generational differences in the perception of marriage, and the way the characters acted while the mature nature of the content didn’t distract or undermine the characters and period in any way. The language gets rough at times as well, though many readers may be unaware of the severity behind some of the swears used. The Reluctant Duke offers a good balance between hitting the traditional markers for Regency romance and the more modern expectations for sexual content in romances without breaking or distracting from the story. It left me curious about the characters’ future, and happy to spend more time with these people.

[Toni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent Historical!

Excellent historical romance! It was hard to put the book down! I loved reading about Emma and Thomas fighting their attraction for each other! I look forward to reading more about the Seabrook family in future books!

[Sherri Diebel · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the story. But there were a LOT of grammatical errors. My biggest complaint is that they changed the name of a minor character halfway through the story. She started off as Lady Beth. They even said “had he said Lady Elizabeth, they would have questioned which one, but everyone knew who Lady Beth is”. Then halfway through, Lady Beth became Lady Ann.
Someone did not do their job as an editor!!!
I read an E-book version, hopefully the physical book was edited better.

[Ruth Switzer · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story was good and could have been quite enjoyable. However, I don’t think I’ve ever read an eBook with so many spelling errors, typos, misused words and grammar and punctuation errors. It was so distracting I couldn’t enjoy it. Page after page after page. It was also rather confusing when one of the minor characters, Lady Beth, mysteriously became Lady Anne half way through the book, with no explanation.
Very disappointing. I won’t be reading the remaining books in the series.

[Suzanne · Rating 1 out of 5]

mediocre story further marred by copy-editor sloppiness, grammatical errors, one character changing name in midstream.

[Vicki · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great story. I loved Thomas and Emma. Thomas was a wonderful Duke and a great friend. He deserved a lovely woman like Emma. If only he realized that for himself. A very good book.

[Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Plenty of storyline and pretty romantic.

[Janejellyroll · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you like old-school romances where an unexperienced literal girl falls in with a powerful man who controls her money, lies to her, takes her far from home, and treats her with mercurial swings between pawing her and berating her, all while she barely knows anything about adult life or relationships, this is the book for you!

I have no idea what is up with the item description for this book, but this is the story of Thomas, a duke who wins a substantial fortune at cards. As Thomas is basically broke, this is a huge windfall. The man explains to him that he meant to lose as he felt an obligation to Thomas and his family due to past family associations. And he tells Thomas he's about to kill himself and would Thomas please watch after his daughter, as she has no one else in the world. Now this man could have done just about anything for his daughter, who he supposedly loves. But instead he ensures she has no money of her own and will have to leave her home in America to travel to England with a duke she barely knows. Thomas goes to Boston and meets Emma, who is horrified to learn of her father's death . . . and that she basically now belongs to a man she's never met. The author continually stresses how young and girlish Emma is, which makes Thomas immediately craving her feel weird. After Thomas spends a year learning how to run the business that might have been Emma's inheritance if her father cared one bit for her, they sail to America. At first, Emma wants to be an author and doesn't want to marry . . . which she promptly forgets as soon as they land. I'm all for people changing their minds, but her completely abandoning a prior part of her personality just makes her seem younger. And the giggling conversations between her and Thomas' sisters about "pizzles" don't help. There's an attempt at subplots, including a ridiculous abduction.

Once in England, Thomas swings back and forth between pawing the young woman who lives at his mercy as his ward and yelling at her. Emma's extreme inexperience and the stress on her youth made this feel like anything but a romance to me. The author didn't seem to understand a lot of things about the period, including the need for chaperones when you're going on a cross-ocean trip with a man who isn't part of your family or that a young woman in Boston wouldn't aspire to be "America's Jane Austen" during Austen's lifetime.

[Eliza Lagonia]

I DNFed this book so I won't star it, but I can't not write something.

I have many issues with this book and I only read about 1/3 of it.
1. Both the Duke and Emma are lusting after each other after seeing each other once. Emma I kind of understand but only a little but for the Duke- I'm like "go get laid."
Really you see the girl once in the 8 months you're bin America!
I mean if it's going to be this strong of an attraction have him see her once a month or something while he's putting the businesses affairs in order.

2. The Duke it upset his brother is flirting with Emma and it seems everyone in the family knows the Duke has a thing for Emma and brings it up all the time. In front of him.

3. And the thing that annoys me the most: how they talk about age. Yes, during the Regency Era they do the age as something like 5 and 20 or 1 and 20. It's how it was done. However, and this is where this book got it wrong wrong wrong, it doesn't start until you get to twenty! It's not 3 and 10 or 8 and 10, you say thirteen or eighteen!
And sometimes they are talking about age and the difference in ages so much you have paragraphs with so many 4 and 10 or 8 and 10 or 3 and 10. It was so annoying.

[Alejandra Guerrero · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF 35% He’s super creepy, his friends are creepy, and the writing is all over the place. All historical times are jumbled together, and things that didn’t exist at the same time are mentioned here as if they were. Jane Austen being famous in America while still alive, people using fedoras (which would have been fine but for Jane Austen being alive at the same time), letters between Boston and London arriving as if they had been delivered by plane (way too fast). I didn’t care for the characters, and the weird power dynamics between the MC’s didn’t work for me. Add a love triangle between brothers and I’m out. I hate love triangles.
Also, why does this have different blurbs for different editions?

[Dr. Lillian · Rating 1 out of 5]

Part of the Dancing With Desire series starter book. First, this book description is incorrect in Goodreads. Second, I almost DNF but thought it might get better. It didn’t, I’m sad to say. Initial plot engaging and interesting but the follow through was sloppy, inconsistent, and interrupted by minor character subplots that stalled the overall story. First few chapters held promise, then downhill. Spelling and grammatical errors abound, too much anachronistic dialogue, situations, and storytelling for me to enjoy this one. Won’t plan to read the remainder of the series.

[Jeanne Johnston · Rating 1 out of 5]

Welp... I wanted a simple palate cleanser after my last ridiculously rambling book and this was as simple as they come. Every stupid Regency stereotype is here, and plenty of half-finished side stories to boot.

I knew there would be trouble when I started to see things like "He new she would be..." Always a sign of "editing" by spellcheck instead of an actual... You know (or is that "now" or "no?") legitimize editor. Ugh.

[Dianne Lowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story of Thomas, Duke of Wentworth, and Emma Hamilton, his ward. Very good story of two people falling in love. Thomas wins the Hamilton holdings in a card game. Hamilton names Thomas his heir and his daughter Emma the ward of Thomas. Thomas goes to America to put the company in order and brings Emma back to England with plans to marry her off quickly. Story involves several adventures including surgery for Thomas and kidnapping of Emma.

[Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Inheritance!

Winning a business in America was for the Duke a windfall as his Father had lost the familys money.
Going to America to meet his Ward whom he had also inherited, he fell in love. Not that he'd
relised it. Many months of taking his two sisters and his Ward to Balls etc that he realised he wanted her for himself. This love story is a good read.

[Debbie Odachowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good start to series

I really enjoyed this book. Emma and Thomas's story is fast paced and ever changing. You meet the other likely characters of the next in the series of books and try to piece together what their stories will be. I look forward to the next book to see if my impressions and theories are correct. I love good mysteries.

[Hilary Ramage · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed it. It initially had a unusual setting which gave an interesting background to the book and will I imagine provide a setting for one of the next in the series. I liked the characters and look forward to reading their love stories.
The down side was the use of Americanisms by English people and not careful editing. Both of which I find annoying.

[Cheryl Rosenwald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Liked the story of a destitute duke who has a mother, brother, and two sisters to take care of and inherited a ward when he wins a fortune in a card game. Although he didn't know that it was all made up by Mr Hamilton, an American business man. There are several twists and a mystery which keeps the reader interested making it hard to put down.