The Gentleman's Dilemma: A BRAND NEW wonderfully romantic Regency romance from Bestseller Jane Dunn for 2026

by Jane Dunn

Must-read page-turning Regency romance from Sunday Times bestseller Jane Dunn. Perfect for fans of Jane Austen, Gill Hornby and The Other Bennet Sister.A penniless orphan, London's most colourful dandy and a scandalous surprise that changes everything.

Ferdinand Shilton, the dandiest, most eligible bachelor of the ton, has decided it is time to abandon his carefree youth. Determined to resist the unruliness of romance however, he prepares to embark on a highly proper betrothal, trading his flamboyant fashions for a sensible, if passionless, life.

Orphan Madeleine Rose survives on the reluctant charity of her aunt, while escaping her dreary reality by secretly penning a romantic novel. But when Madeleine discovers a mysterious foundling on Ferdinand Shilton’s doorstep, real life suddenly takes on the excitement of her fiction.

When an astonishing twist transforms her from a poor relation into a woman of consequence, and with her fate now unexpectedly thrown together with Ferdy’s, everything Madeleine has accepted as her future is upended.

Torn between duty, honour and an undeniable attraction, can Ferdy and Madeleine summon the courage to rewrite their own destinies?

Sunday Times bestselling author Jane Dunn irresistibly scandalous, witty and wonderfully romantic Regency page-turners are perfect for fans of Jane Austen, Janice Hadlow, Gill Hornby, and TV series, The Other Bennett Sister.

Readers love Jane

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘This is the perfect escapist read for lovers of Regency romance, but it is so much more - a deeply satisfying love story, and a tale of found family that will make you happy (which is surely what we all want in these dark times) and linger in your thoughts.’

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘It’s a rare treat to read a book that one just can’t put down… Jane Dunn’s characters, fascinating and utterly believable, play with our emotions… this is a love story, and our heads and our hearts are bound up in a thrilling narrative with entirely unexpected plot twists and turns. Bravo!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Beautifully written, historically accurate and full of characters with deep feeling and charm. This one is so full of love it swept me away and I don't really want to come back!’

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Jane Dunn writes wonderful Regencies that elegantly capture the essence and style of that era. One of her greatest strengths is the beautiful writing that creates such an authentic setting for characters that are thoughtful and nuanced.’

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘The writing is wonderful, the characters leap from the page and I feel I know them and love most of them. The plot is clever and unpredictable but always makes sense for the period. This is such a romantic read, full of passion and grief and coming to terms with love and life. The characters and their world live on in my imagination.’

Praise for Jane

'Authentic, thrilling, touching, heart-wrenchingly romantic.' Bestselling author Emma Orchard

'Brilliant, sparkling and very clever.' Elizabeth Buchan

‘Outstanding, perceptive and delightfully readable.’ Sunday Times Books of the Year

‘Jane Dunn has written a splendid piece of popular history with the ready-pen of a highly skilled writer, endowed with remarkable insight.’ Roy Strong, Daily Mail

‘Jane Dunn is one of our best biographers.’ Miranda Seymour, Sunday Times

298 pages, Kindle Edition

Expected publication October 16, 2026

About the author

Jane Dunn is a leading biographer, the author of Moon in Eclipse: A Life of Mary Shelley, A Very Close Conspiracy: Vanessa Bell and Virginia Wolf, and Antonia White: A Life. Elizabeth and Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens was published in the spring of 2003 and spent seven weeks in the top ten of the Sunday Times bestseller list. A fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, Dunn lives near Bath with her husband, the linguist and writer Nicholas Ostler. Her most recent book is Read My Heart.

Reviews

[Nicola “Shortbookthyme”]

My thoughts:
Author Jane Dunn’ shares a classic Regency romance that was quite delightful.
What do you get reading this book?
You get a very attractive heroine and hero who end up in a very difficult situation.
Lots of misunderstandings arise for both heroine and hero.
Plus…social expectations are a big problem.
I loved the friendship aspect throughout the story.
All in all, a charming historical romance.

[TF]

The Gentleman's Dilemma is an engaging historical romance set in Regency era London.
While written as a standalone story, the main male character - Ferdinand Shilton - was previously introduced in 'An Unsuitable Heiress' and featured in 'The Accidental Debutante'.
Ferdy is the most eligible bachelor in London this season, and has decided to make a match which is driven by sensibility and not passion. Having decided to offer for the hand of a young lady who is both sensible and pretty (what more could a bachelor want) Ferdy's calm world becomes chaotic with the return of his scandalous friend Lord Flambard - a RAKE in every sense of the word. Add in to the mix the witty orphan Madeleine Rose and foundling baby Billy, and things get very tumultuous indeed!
I don't want to give any spoilers, but this is a fun read that also highlights the wide disparities of options for young men and women in these times. If you are a fan of Jane Austen or Julia Quinn, this book is for you. Enjoy!

Thank you to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the review copy.

#TheGentlemansDilemma
#NetGalley

[Meg Pearson]

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC!

This was my first Jane Dunn book, and I am officially wondering why it took me this long to discover her! I’m a big fan of Regency romance, and The Gentleman’s Dilemma had everything I want from the genre: romance, witty characters, societal expectations, secrets, unexpected twists, and just the right amount of Regency chaos.

Ferdinand “Ferdy” Shilton is a wealthy, fashionable, and very eligible bachelor who has decided that love is far too inconvenient. With his friends happily married, he decides the sensible thing to do is choose a respectable wife and settle into a calm, orderly life. Naturally, this is exactly when his life decides to become anything but orderly.

Enter Madeleine Rose: an orphan living as an unwanted poor relation, secretly writing romantic novels while dreaming of a life rather more exciting than her own. She’s clever, kind, funny, and wonderfully unexpected. And then there’s a baby mysteriously abandoned on Ferdy’s doorstep, which is really the last thing a man attempting to maintain a perfectly respectable existence needs!

I especially enjoyed the contrast between Ferdy and Madeleine. Ferdy has all the freedom and privilege in the world, yet he’s determined to box himself into the life he thinks he should want. Madeleine has almost no control over her circumstances, but she has an imagination and inner strength that make her far more formidable than she initially appears. Watching these two gradually unsettle each other was one of my favorite parts of the story.

Ferdy’s struggle between duty, loyalty, expectations, and what his heart actually wants was so much fun to watch. And Madeleine is exactly the sort of heroine I love—warm and romantic without being helpless, with enough backbone to stand up for herself.

There are also some genuinely unexpected twists that kept this from feeling like a predictable Regency romance. Between the foundling baby, family complications, scandal, meddling friends, and various secrets, Ferdy’s carefully organized life goes spectacularly off the rails—and honestly, I was here for it.

I also loved the sense of friendship and found family woven throughout the story. Even though this is part of a larger series, it worked perfectly well as a standalone, and now I absolutely want to go back and meet some of these characters in their earlier stories.

Charming, romantic, witty, and full of surprises, The Gentleman’s Dilemma was a delightful Regency escape. Jane Dunn has definitely earned herself a new reader!

4.5 stars!

[Jan Mawdesley]

The Gentleman’s Dilemma from Jane Dunn continues the story of three men, lifelong friends, two of whom have married for love, Lord Purfoy and Alick Wolfe, leaving Ferdinand Shilton, depressed, alone and in London.
Pondering what next, Ferdy is considering leaving a ball at an unfashionably early hour. On his way to offer his farewell he sees a young woman curled up on a sofa, sound asleep. His curiosity is piqued and requests an introduction to the young lady, Miss Madelaine Rose.
Although she is intriguing, Ferdy makes up his mind that he should a marry a woman who will not disturb his peace, that looks serene, beautiful and always compliments him, believing that Miss Hester Payton will do very nicely, although she is a ‘managing kind of woman’.
His very organised life is about to be upended with the arrival of his long-time friend Max Flambard to London after having been in exile for many years. Lord Flambard has scandal attached to his name, the woman he was involved with, whose husband he shot and killed in a duel, happens to be Hester Payton’s mother.
But the quaint, intriguing Miss Maddie keeps intruding in his life at the most inconvenient of moments. Ferdy is intrigued with the fact she is writing a book, the people she meets often become characters and her life is anything but ordinary, peaceful and ordered.
Suddenly life becomes very complicated; a baby is left on Ferdy’s doorstep, Alick, Corinna and Purfoy come to town to see why he is considering a loveless marriage and in the middle of all the confusion, Ferdy is beginning to understand that love really is one of the most important things in life, something he is only beginning to understand.
Where will his now less than orderly life lead him is to be discovered as Ferdy discovers that there is far more to life than an orderly existence.
Jane Dunn has delivered a riotous romp through the scandals of Regency England which will delight the lover of light-hearted and enjoyable Regency Romance fiction, with a large dash or romance to colour what was once the very bland life of the loveable Ferdinand Shilton.

[Angie Baer]

This was my first time reading a book by this author, and oh my— I knew from Madeleine and Ferdy’s first encounter that I was going to like these two. And when an author can make me feel the sparks between two characters through intellectual conversation? That, my friends, takes talent.

What I especially loved about A Gentleman’s Dilemma is how completely Madeleine unsettles a man who has built his life around practicality and societal expectations. He has chosen a sensible fiancée and a calm, respectable future—until this seemingly mousy, slightly odd woman makes him feel things he absolutely did not plan for. And watching him realize it is delightful.

The entire time I was reading him, I kept thinking of Colin Firth’s 1995 Mr. Darcy (don’t ask me why, especially as Ferdy is blond). Once he recognizes his feelings for Rose, the internal battle between what he believes he should do and what he actually wants begins, and I thoroughly enjoyed watching him try to reason his way out of being in love.

I also loved that he is a bit of a dandy. His love of fashion and color reflects a part of his personality that he has slowly subdued to fit the life he thought he wanted. Rose doesn’t merely make him fall in love—she seems to wake him up.

The supporting characters, were wonderful, and the subplots added depth without overwhelming the central romance. There are quite a few characters, but I never struggled to keep them straight. Although this is part of a series, it also worked beautifully for me as a standalone.

Intelligent conversation, wonderful friendships, emotional restraint, and a gentleman having an increasingly dramatic internal crisis because he has fallen for the entirely wrong woman? Yes, please.

Thank you to the author and publisher for providing me with an ARC. I was delighted to have the opportunity to read and review A Gentleman’s Dilemma. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Kardelen]

Ferdinand Shilton doesn't want the madness and chaos associated with love in his life. When all his married friends leave London, he starts feeling lonely and decides to get married. After proposing to the proper and practical Miss Payton, he seems to be satisfied with his life. However, a chance encounter with Miss Rose wreaks havoc on his plans.

Ferdy Shilton is one of the most eligible bachelors in London; he is handsome, rich, and respected by society. After seeing the chaos that love has brought to his friends' lives, he wishes for a marriage of convenience. He is very generous and honorable. Even though his decision to marry Miss Payton may ruin his life and make him unhappy, he is too honorable to break off the engagement.

Madeleine Rose is an orphan forced to live with her cousins, who don't care much about her. She is romantic and reckless, sometimes doing things without considering the risk to her reputation. She is also very intelligent and caring.

I liked both characters, though I wish they had been more fleshed out. I couldn't fully connect with them. The plot was interesting and engaging. The frequent changes in POV, sometimes to characters who have no major role in the story, such as a valet, made the book a bit confusing at times.

Overall, it was an enjoyable read. If you like Regency romance with a "finding love in unexpected places" theme, you will like this book.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Luisa Jones]

I’m a big fan of Jane Dunn’s regency novels, so when I found out there was a new one out I had to be among the first in line. The Gentleman’s Dilemma focuses on Ferdinand Shilton, who has appeared as a secondary character in previous books, but no prior knowledge of the character is required as this works perfectly as a standalone.
Ferdy is literally a colourful young man - he takes delight in beautiful and brightly-coloured clothing. But now that his closest friends are married off, he’s decided it’s time to settle down and marry someone suitable. He already has someone in mind when he meets a charming but mousy girl at a ball.
A sweet romance ensues with twists and turns and plenty of obstacles on the way to the couple’s happy ending. Fans of regency romance will find this a worthy addition to the genre.

[R Evans]

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. The plot was really well worked and unpredictable bringing to life some of the lesser well documented aspects of regency life. Its two lead characters are great, one a hopeless romantic, the other a thoroughly likeable rich lord who wants a wife who will maintain his orderly lifestyle. But the book has a collection of likeable characters who bring warmth and complications to the life of the mmc, ferdy. One feature of the book is that a baby is abandoned on Ferdys doorstep by a mother forced by a man to give up her child. Apparently this was not uncommon, especially if the member of the gentry is suspected of being the father. This illustrates the very different lifestyles of the haves and have nots. This aspect and the absorbing plot and good characterisation made this a readable, entertaining novel.

[Carol]

Ferdy finds a sleeping beauty at a ball and wakes her. That same lady has spied him from the window of her house and finds him attractive and has written him. Into her secret novel as a hero. She then finds a baby in a box on his doorstep and becomes involved with him in the care of said child problem is he is betrothed and she is a poor cousin if the family she lives with things become complicated as the pair become closer as the child draws them together. He is marrying for duty and when her grandmother leaves her property to he the position in he cousins house becomes difficult.
This was a pleasant story. Of love finding a way for things to work out
Thanks to Netgalley and Boldwood books for my arc copy

[Carolina CHC]

Ferdinand Shilton, the peacock friend of Alick and Corinna Wolfe, and of Eliza Grey and Raven, the Earl of Purfoy, from previous installments, is the MMC of this story.

This short story evokes Cinderella, but with a small twist toward the end and unlike Cinderella, Madeleine isn't conventionally beautiful.

I'll admit I found Ferdinand's character a bit boring at times. The fact that appearances and other people's opinions matter to him more than almost anything else made the first part of the book slower than I expected. Madeleine, on the other hand, is naive but sweet, which makes you want to keep reading to see how this HEA happens.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this ARC. This is my honest and voluntary review.

[Rick Molitor]

This is a slow burn Regency romance. Ferdy decided it was time to take a wife. He was the most eligible bachelor at the time. He was also quite the dashing hero. He chose Miss Payton who was very pretty and a rule follower. He had recently met Madeline Rose who had lost her parents and was living with cousins who didn't treat her well. She was an aspiring author of romance books. She was also a very good person who thought of others first. This is an interesting about how the right person can appear and worm their way into your life even at the wrong time. Ferdy's friends, who were out of town, arrive back at just the right time to tell him to consider what he really wants. This is a story of love prevailing whether it is the love of friends or the love of your life. I quite enjoyed it.

[Mary Hart]

5 stars

Ferdy has been a secondary character in previous books. Makes me wonder if this series is coming to an end. He is known for his love of fashion and kindness. Having seen his friends fall in love he is dismayed and wonders if he wants to go down that path or take the safer (to his heart) path of a marriage of convenience. We meet the possible wife and internally I'm screaming NO don't do it. There's complications with the fiancee's mother and Ferdy's old friend.
The heroine is delightful and for me gave off a bit of a Cinderella vibe. Good story heartily recommend.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

[Julia]

Jane Dunn’s A Gentleman’s Dilemma is a classic Regency romance, with all the familiar ingredients you would expect from the genre: an attractive hero, a heroine who finds herself in a difficult situation, misunderstandings, social expectations and, of course, a developing romance.

The story unfolds much as you would expect, following the conventions of the genre without too many surprises. I didn’t dislike it, and there was enough to keep me reading, The heroine is probably the strongest aspect of the book. Given the constraints of a traditional Regency romance, Dunn does a good job of developing her character and giving her enough personality and depth to make her engaging.

[Ella]

Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the Arc!

This was my first Jane Dunn book! & I had not realised this was part of a series (whoops!) but I was able to read it as a standalone which was wonderful and I do plan to go read her other books which are part of this universe as I enjoyed the writing and I am a very big lover of the regency era romance!

This story was great, there were a few turns and twists I did not expect which made it more enjoyable than the standard romance story.

[Jill]

A fun story with lots of action and moving parts. Madeline's character is sweet, yet unloved. Her life is limited, but writing continues to give her meaning. Ferdy's character is constant and holding true to his beliefs. Yet his beliefs call for a very limited view of life. The story is well written and has many memorable moments. It is full bodied.

[Heather]

I have loved Jane Dunn's other Regency romance novels, and this one was no exception. I liked the Cinderella-type story, but the comfort I drew from the fairy tale's predictability was balanced nicely by a couple of unforeseen twists. Overall, another lovely addition to her oeuvre.