The Corinthian Duke

Rogues & Gentlemen #13

by Emma V. Leech

Oscar Paget, Duke of Rothborn, is a Corinthian to his marrow. Sport is in his blood, no matter the variety. Winning is all he cares about.
The handsome young duke has no desire for a wife to impede his exciting lifestyle and though engaged to the beautiful Lady Pearl Aldous since infancy, he keeps putting off the big day.
Little does he know Pearl’s tomboyish younger sister, Ella, has been in love with him her whole life.
When Ella does something reckless to save Oscar from losing a bet to a man he despises, they are caught in a compromising situation. The only way to save her reputation is to marry her instead of Pearl. To Oscar, Ella can never be more than a friend. He considers her as a little sister, not a wife, and he knows there can be nothing more than a marriage of convenience between them.
Ella knows nothing of the sort. All she must do now … is prove it.

***Warning:This book has a feisty heroine and mild swearing and descriptive sex scenes may pop up!

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

302 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 19, 2018

About the author

Bestselling author hiding mostly in 19th-century England, venturing out only for chocolate and tea.

Emma V. Leech is the award-winning author of multiple bestselling series across Regency romance, Regency mystery and paranormal romance. Fall in love with swoon-worthy rogues, bold heroines, witty banter and deeply romantic happily-ever-afters. Follow Emma on BookBub for new releases and exclusive deals.

EMMA’S BOOKS

Rogues And Gentlemen
Regency romance – 17-book series (ongoing)
Sexy, tumultuous and irresistibly romantic. From pirates and smugglers to earls and dukes, these unforgettable rogues will sweep you away!

Winter Rogue
A Regency Christmas romance within the Rogues & Gentlemen world
A scandal-weary earl, a runaway heiress and a crumbling country estate snowed in for Christmas. A sensual, heart-tugging holiday novella about redemption, desire and a love neither of them expects.

A Rogues and Gentlemen Christmas
A standalone Regency Christmas romance
A collection of three romantic holiday stories featuring beloved Rogues & Gentlemen characters. Expect snowstorms, sizzling tension, unexpected proposals, mistletoe moments and heart-melting happily-ever-afters – a cosy festive escape for Regency romance lovers.

The Girl Is Not For Christmas
A standalone Regency Christmas romance
Miss Olivia Penrose is the only thing standing between her family and ruin when a brooding aristocrat crashes into her carefully laid plans. Sparks fly amid family secrets, snowy scandals and irresistible festive longing in this passionate, witty and deeply romantic winter read.

Girls Who Dare
Regency romance – 12-book series
Inside every wallflower is the heart of a lioness. When these overlooked young women make a pact to change their lives, rules are broken, reputations are risked and love becomes the most daring adventure of all.

Daring Daughters
Victorian romance – 19-book series and two compilations
The next generation of the Girls Who Dare. Their mothers risked everything for love – now their daughters are ready to be even bolder. An ongoing series of fiercely romantic stories set in a rapidly changing world.

Wicked Sons
Victorian romance – 12-book series
Their mothers dared all for love. Their sisters did the same. Now it’s the sons’ turn… dangerous, tempting and determined not to fall – until the right woman brings them to their knees.

The Venturesome Ladies Of Little Valentine
Regency romance – my current series
A quiet seaside village, a wave of scandalous newcomers and local ladies who refuse to be swept aside. A warm, witty Regency series full of secrets, second chances and delicious enemies-to-lovers romance.

The Regency Romance Mysteries
Regency romantic suspense – 3-book series
Dashing heroes, wicked villains, murder, mystery – and heroines who refuse to sit prettily and wait to be rescued. Perfect if you like your Regency romance served with danger and intrigue.

The French Vampire Legend
Paranormal romance – 4-book series
A dark, dramatic and heart-wrenching tale of courage, sacrifice and a love that not even time, war or monsters can destroy. Gothic atmosphere, high stakes and a romance that refuses to die.

The French Fae Legend
Fantasy romance – 4-book series
An award-winning saga with close to sixteen million online reads. Moving between modern-day France and the Fae Lands, these books weave powerful magic, danger and an all-consuming love that proves stronger than any enchantment.

The Book Lover
A standalone paranormal romance novella
A book-obsessed young woman, an infuriatingly charming stranger and the unnerving sense that stories might be bleeding into real life. A short, intensely romantic tale for anyone who has ever fallen in love with books… and perhaps with something not entirely of this world.

Reviews

[Jultri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ella has known the Duke of Rothborn her whole life, hero-worshipped him from the start and in love with him since her adolescence. Oscar Paget is her brother's best friend. Eight years younger, she has followed them around like a pesky bug, and Bug is the pet name they both have for her. He is betrothed to her beautiful and elegant older sister since infancy, and a better future duchess one cannot find. Ella on the other hand is rambunctious and rarely out of trouble, even at the age of eighteen. And it is her habit for getting herself into strife and Oscar's tendency to come to her rescue that sees them caught in a compromising situation and forced to marry. Problems facing the newly wedded couple are many: a nasty, vengeful sister of the bride, a bride who struggles to be an instant duchess, and a groom who struggles to not see a little sister when he looks at his bride.

EVL is a good writer, sometimes let down by her plot and/or the characters. Unfortunately this is one such time. The hero, although quite reluctant to marry Ella's older sister and been postponing it for years, did acknowledge the sister's attractiveness and didn't think bedding her would be a problem. However, when it comes to Ella, he felt absolutely no attraction for her up to 60% and in fact, they had no romantic interactions up to that point.

I can't blame him for running away from his bride due to the downright uncomfortable situation he found himself in. As he puts it to her brother:
“How would you feel if you’d been forced to… to… with your own sister?”

So for him to go from that and then start to have growing sexual attraction for her in the last part of the book, well it was a bit icky and forced. His own foolishness in not being able to resist a sporting wager was also reckless and immature.

[Judi Easley · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit loosely held together. Ella forgives her new husband for abandoning her right after the wedding, she also forgives her abusive sister and helps her out when she has her crisis. How much can one person take? The young Duke is running away right after the wedding saying "she's like my sister" and a month or so later he's back and in love and lust after one look. Deep emotions. Personally, I think she should have fallen for Ranleigh and made him happy. He adored her.

[Coco.V]

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[Vivian Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ella and Oscar

I sincerely believe that I spent the majority of this book grinning! I loved Ella and her antics, watching her become a duchess, seeing how she conducted herself the same no matter who she was in the company of. The writing and the antidote phrases used through out the book make the book so charming, soft and loving. But you had me at hello cause I love this series!

[Wealhtheow · Rating 4 out of 5]

A young hoyden and her childhood playmate (now all grown up) are caught in an innocent-yet-seemingly-compromising clinch and forced to speedily marry. Although Ella has been in love with Oscar for years, he thinks of her as a platonic friend and struggles to think of her as a romantic or sexual partner. They both feel trepidation about stepping into the adult roles that are asked of them, and I liked seeing them overcome their fears and turning their energy and big personalities to help others.

I like when people get to know each other better and fall in love *after* they've married, and it's even better when they realize they have to improve themselves to be worthy of that love. Plus there's a real sense that Oscar and Ella have been friends for years. When they're angry or disappointed with each other, I could really feel the hurt, and there's a great amount of affectionate teasing and laughter between them that made me root for their relationship. I've read so many disappointing regency romances, but this one was fun to read and never annoyed me.

[Pamela · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Corinthian Duke

I loved this book absolutely amazing writer and lots of drama,excitement,suspense and lots of love.This book made me laugh and cry.Thank you for this wonderful read.

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed this book

I have read all of this series and have enjoyed them all now waiting for the next book but I would like to read about pearl and Ranliegh I think they would make good reading

[Winnifred D. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Emma Leech's books when both hero and heroine are a bit different, and they fall in love despite, and even because of, their off-beat natures. Unfortunately, this plot felt phoned in. My heart sank when I realized the heroine would have to undergo a makeover for the hero to notice her (I absolutely hate that trope). Ella's been loyal and adoring toward Oscar for years, has a great personality, has made him laugh, etc. But he absolutely shudders at the thought of touching her--until her eyebrows are plucked, she's nicely dressed, and has other men falling at her feet. Ugh. The "marriage of convenience causing the man to run away and 'find himself' until he manages to make it back to his lonely wife who's been holding down the fort" trope is another one I hate. Oscar comes across as a spoiled, shallow boy for leaving Ella, and too many chapters are spent describing events they aren't even involved in together. A real marriage cannot form out of separation. Frankly, I think Ranleigh should have been the hero of this one. I would have been much happier if there had been a way he could have ended up with Ella. Also, I know we're supposed to feel sympathy toward Pearl later in the book, but she treated Ella so badly in the beginning I just couldn't sympathize with her.

I liked the re-introductions of old characters from previous books and thought the horse race was very excitingly written. The tropes just killed this one for me.

[WyoGal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stayed up all night to read this straight through

Wonderful protagonist who’s unbelievably spunky, caring, loyal to a fault, and who demonstrates resilience when life is terribly unfair. She perseveres until she gets her happy ending, with patience, forgiveness, and a good sense of humor. The warm-hearted male protagonist grows into a more mature, self-aware human being who strives to make things right, even after he’s blown it. Secondary characters are quirky, interesting and memorable. The inciting action is fantastic if the reader can get past the first few pages.

I wish the story were longer and included a ballroom scene with the main characters dancing, but otherwise, this book has lots of heart, excellent character development, an engaging plot, and is one I’d recommend to readers who love romances with historical settings and females who push the boundaries of social strictures. There are way too many missing commas between independent clauses, but otherwise, the writing is top notch. I haven’t read any other books in this series, but I didn’t feel like it was necessary to enjoy this one.

[Lana Birky · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book and it was so entertaining with a lot of humor! Oscar Paget, Duke of Rothborn, is a handsome, young, rich duke and the ultimate Corinthian - if you can bet on it, win it and celebrate it, you can count him in! He doesn't need a wife, although he has been engaged to Lady Pearl Aldous since they were small children - he isn't going to marry anytime soon as he is happy with his lifestyle.

Pearl's younger sister, Ella has been in love with Oscar her entire life, even though he doesn't realize it and treats her as a little sister. Ella does something to save Oscar from losing a bet to a man he dislikes and then Oscar and Ella are caught in a compromising situation which Oscar must marry Ella to save her reputation.

The fun, humor, romance and entertaining adventures take place after their marriage in name only! The main characters are a great couple with witty, fun dialog and the secondary characters are lovable and hilarious. I highly recommend this book and the whole series!

[E Oygard · Rating 4 out of 5]

An immature hero with a feisty heroine

Another entertaining story from this author, yet not my favourite. Ella has loved Oscar Page Duke of Rothborne all her life, but he has been engaged to her older sister Pearl since infancy. He looks upon her as a little sister whom he has led into many and various scrapes when youngsters accompanied by Bertie, Ella's older brother.
Caught in a compromising situation, Oscar has no option but to offer marriage to Ella, but cannot stop thinking of her as the young tearaway he has always known.
While I enjoyed the story I couldn't help comparing Oscar to some of the other hero's of Emma Leech's books and found him lacking. Indeed compared to the Duke of Ranleigh in this story too. Oscar comes across as immature and young (as he obviously is) and I like a more mature hero with a background story. (I do wonder how many Dukes Emma thinks there are in England). In the other hand I liked Emma's character. Emma Leech does heroines well. They are never insipid or dull.

[Martha B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Following your heart is always a good thing.

For as long as she can remember, Lady Ella has adored Oscar, her brother's best friend. Sadly, since the cradle he's been promised to her older sister.

For as long as Oscar can remember, little Bug has been his shadow. Her spunk and madcap adventures have always been a source of amusement. If only he could feel something similar for her sister, his betrothed.

Emma V. Leech is one of my top five favorite authors, and The Corinthian Duke is an example of why I love her books. It is well written with just the right balance of description, thoughts and dialogue. All of the characters are well developed, especially Ella and Oscar. Ella is as courageous and loyal as Oscar is caring and clueless. Their love story is filled with twists and turns and punctuated with some truly heart-pounding scenes and smile-worthy interactions. When they finally chase down their happy-ever-after, it is both tender and satisfying.

Content 411: In addition to a some mild swearing, there is also a moderately described sexually intimate scene.

[Elouise · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oscar Paget and Bertrand Aldous were children who often played together. Bertrand's little sister, Ella, was always tagging along, trying to keep up with them. As children, Oscar and Pearl Aldous were pledged to marry when they grew up, so it would seem that the families would remain close. Ella is one who was a bit rambunctious, so at the races in the village, when she was 18, she took the place of a sick jockey and won the race of the day without anyone realizing who was riding the horse! It was after this race that she and Oscar were caught in a compromising position. This caused a problem for the families which was solved in a marriage event. That's when the tale gets really interesting. Definitely an action packed love story is this one. The reader finds him/herself rooting for Ella yet again as she tries to show Oscar how much she loves him. The book is a very good read and now I think I will have to get the rest of the series.

[Vania Nunes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sou totalmente suspeita para falar desta serie, mas a bem da verdade, Emma Leech se aperfeiçoa a cada novo livro.
Neste, somos apresentados à impetuosa Ella.
Caçula da família Aldous, ela sempre foi apaixonado por Oscar Paget, Duque de Rothborn. Ele era melhor amigo do irmao dela, e assim, ela sempre teve a chance de estar perto de Oscar.
O problema era que Oscar era comprometido com a irmã de Ella, Pearl, a bela do baile.

Numa decisão impulsiva, Ella faz algo que pode não so acabar com a reputação dela, mas também a de Oscar. Pegos em situação comprometedora, ele se vê obrigado a casar com a irmã errada.

Ella, agora, teria um longo caminho para tornar-se digna do título de Duquesa de Rothborn. No entanto, ela conta com o apoio de alguém inesperado.
Porém, o próprio Oscar precisa tirar a cabeça que enfiou na terra e começar a ver o que está bem diante dos olhos dele... e que toda a Ton já descobriu e pode fazer com que ele perca a melhor coisa que já lhe aconteceu.

[Merrilyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun Read

I had a good time following Ella’s adventures tagging along after her older brother Bertie and his best friend, Oscar. They had tried leaving her behind, but she’d always find a way to find them and stick to them like glue. Growing up, she idolized Oscar, who not only looked like a hero, but he was her hero as he was nice to her and protected her along with her brother. As much as she loved Oscar, she had learned early on that he had been betrothed to her beautiful perfect-acting sister since they were babies so she knew he would like never be hers. Fate steps in when Oscar doesn’t know has a big problem and she comes up with a screwball plan to help him out. With Ella, you never know what she’ll do next so there are surprises coming! I’d recommend this to older teens and adults.

[Trudi Jorda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ella has followed her brother and his best friend Oscar around since her teens and secretly loved Oscar for a while but they call her "Bug" as she is a bit of a pest. Oscar has been promised to her older sister as a husband by their parents since birth. There is no love between them but her sister wants the title he is inheriting, The Duke! She longs to be a Duchess. He loves to race his horses but his jockey has fallen ill. He would need to forfeit the race but Ella cuts off her hair and replaces the jockey. She wins the race and everyone is unaware that it was a female that ran the race until the Duke finds out. Thats all I will tell you but the book is fun and full of action. A feel good book!

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never a dull moment

Ella is a young lady willing to meet life head-on. Always following her brother Bertie and his best friend Oscar as a child, they include her in their adventures. Now Ella's eighteen. She's loved Oscar for many years, only he's been engaged to her sister since her sister's birth. Nothing's worse than loving someone you can't have, until Ella takes matters into her own hands and Oscar once again has to save her. Funny, heartbreaking and extremely entertaining, Leech is on my TBR list.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ella races in place of a jockey who has an appendicitis attack. She can’t stand the idea that Oscar might lose this race because his jockey can’t race. But not once did she stop to think what would happen to her if she were caught. Of course she was caught but they thought she was messing around with Oscar. They were married two days later. This was quite a scandal because Oscar had already been engaged from birth to her sister Pearl. For Ella this is what she had dreamed of because she loved Oscar. But Oscar didn’t love her. Can they work this out? Quite a fun book.

[Pontiki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ella is a fun, daring lady, in love with Oscar for as long as she can remember. He still sees hers as a child, but truly cares for her.

When some interesting circumstances force them to marry, he continues to see her as Bug, the childhood tag along to him and her brother.

But, with patience and support from Oscar’s mother, she becomes the toast of the ton, and he grows to see the woman she is, whom he can love.

Great story, with its battles, silliness, and love.

KU

[Susanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable for the most part. Oscar has a lot of growing up to do and I was a little bit cross with him for being such a 'young man' rather than stepping up into his role as husband. Ella is also young, but she is a feisty and fun character, always getting into scrapes and later, bringing her own distinctive personality to the role of duchess. She is brave and heroic and thoroughly likeable.
Minor characters are also interesting, and I can't wait to read more of these stories.

[Wendy Tavenner · Rating 5 out of 5]

His Second Chance

I loved Ella and Oscars story. She has been in love with him her whole life but he has been betrothed to her sister since birth. What is a girl to do but leave after there married. Then Ella gets herself into a pickle and when Oscar tries to protect her they are caught in a compromising position. Can he come to love the little bug who used to follow him everywhere. A wonderful written story with a beautiful ending.

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy this "friends to lovers" and compromised troupe so I did enjoy this story. I would have liked a little more of them actually getting to know each other as spouses. I felt it was a little instantaneous on the part of the H. You know from the beginning how the h feels which is fine. I would have just liked a little more development of feelings on the H's part. Still a great read and a fun few hours. I do always enjoy this author so definitely recommend!

[Richard Burlton · Rating 5 out of 5]

On form, this is a plot that really works as it incorporates humour, drama and emotion. There is no need for a villain or any real peril for any of the characters. It is as worthy as some of the works by Georgette Heyer.

Ella is superb both in her early appearance as a reckless tomboy and in her later transformation as a fully capable lady of quality. Oscar is an idiot but that seems to be the role for many of the leading men in this genre.

[Carilyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Story of Ela and Oscar

Oscar Duke of Rothborn has been spoiled all his life and has had a friend since she was little,Ela. After a possible scandal, Ela marries Oscar and despite married life,Ela continues to do truly odd things while her husband finally realizes that she has grown up.

[Sonie · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was fine for a couple of hours of light reading. Found the MCs a bit boring and annoying. It took plucking/threading the female MC's eyebrows and putting her in nice dresses to trigger the male MC's interest. Boring. There was no real interaction between the two MCs. I suppose at least the female MC was acting her age (19)

[Betty B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Emma Leech is an excellent author. Her characters have personality, depth, intrigue all of it. I loved this story and Ella. She was such a fun character. Leech does have a tendency to write some steamy stuff and though this wasn't as bad as Flaming June, (which also was an entertaining story in itself) just be aware.

[Kotori · Rating 3 out of 5]

it should've been better

all the elements were assembled for a marvellous story but ultimately deflated.
Two dimensional characters who are written off as witchy are so vexing.
The mc sister is one such.
Overall the story was vexatious.
I'm tired of being introduced to the next hero within this story, and very little interest in it too.

[Phil Ellenberger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most emjoyable

Sniper good story by !s. Lrech. Her characters always seem so realistic. She weaves the flaws in with the strengths to make realistic people. She even works a few wrinkles into her plots just like life

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy read

This book had a nice plot and well developed characters. After an unexpected marriage due to an unforeseen situation this couple (although old friends) have to deal with some complications before it can be a happy ever after.

[Mary Baker · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a quick, fun read that provided good escape. I enjoyed watching Ella get into interesting situations. Now I'm going to have to read the next book in the series to see what happens to an honorable villain.