Comment séduire un duc ?

Sons of Sin #3

by Anna Campbell

1828, Londres

Indignée, Penelope se mure dans son refus. Camden Rothermere a le culot de vouloir faire d’elle sa maîtresse durant leur mois de traversée vers Londres, alors même qu’il doit prendre Lady Marianne Seaton pour épouse au terme de ce voyage. Ce duc ne l’aura décidément jamais aimé… y compris lorsqu’il lui a proposé un mariage de convenance neuf ans plus tôt. Pourquoi diable a-t-elle consenti à le suivre, pour restaurer sa réputation entachée dans la haute société anglaise, lorsque le scélérat est venu la dénicher en Italie ? Pis encore, que lui-a-t-il pris de céder sa vertu à Camden, en laissant libre cours à son désir la nuit dernière…

Genres: Historical Romance, Romance, Historical, Regency, Friends To Lovers, Audiobook, Historical Fiction

454 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 26, 2014

About the author

I've written 53 bestselling historical romances: 11 multi-award winning books for Hachette Grand Central Publishing and Avon HarperCollins, and more than 40 as an independently published author, These include my popular series The Sons of Sin (6 books), The Dashing Widows (7 books), The Lairds Most Likely (10 books), A Scandal in Mayfair (4 books), and Scoundrels of Mayfair (4 books). My new series, Cinderellas of Mayfair, launched with Sir Hugo Seeks a Wife in 2025.

When I'm not touring the world seeking inspiration for my passionate stories, I live on the beautiful east coast of Australia.

I've always been a voracious reader and I delve into many different genres, as you'll see if you check out my books list. Favorite authors include Dorothy Dunnett, Elly Griffiths, K.J. Charles, and Loretta Chase.

My website is http://www.annacampbell.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/annacampbell...

Twitter: AnnaCampbellOz

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Anna-Campbell/...

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/anna-...

I love to hear from readers and you can contact me on AnnaCampbellOz@hotmail.com

Reviews

[Carol Cork *Young at Heart Oldie* · Rating 5 out of 5]

THIS IS HISTORICAL ROMANCE AT ITS BEST!

WHAT A DUKE DARES is the third book in the marvellous ‘Sons of Sin’ series and, once again, Anna Campbell delivers an emotive, romantic and passionate love story.

How I imagine Cam…


When Camden (Cam) Rothermere, heir to a dukedom, proposes to his childhood friend, Penelope Thorne, he can’t believe his ears when she turns him down. Even his declaration that he esteems and admires her and enjoys her company does nothing to persuade her to change her mind. She refuses to marry for anything but love. Cam has seen first-hand the devastating effect love had on his parents:

“As a result of love, my father descended into cruelty and obsession and my mother became a byword for promiscuity.”

and it has no place in his life now or ever.

How I imagine Pen...


Penelope (Pen) Thorne has loved her childhood friend, Camden Rothermere for as long as she can remember and, when he proposes, it should be the happiest day of her life…a girlish fantasy come true. The reality is very different because she knows that Cam can never give her the one thing she desires…his heart. If he truly loved her, she’d even be willing to curb her impulsive and headstrong ways to become the wife he needs…someone dignified and above reproach…someone to help him restore respectability to the scandal-ridden Rothermere name.

So they go their separate ways.

In the intervening nine years, Cam is now the powerful Duke of Sedgemoor, renowned for his cold demeanour, self-assurance and his iron control, devoting his life to restoring the family’s good name. Pen had fled England to travel the continent with her eccentric aunt and Cam was well aware of all her amorous intrigues over the years.

When he receives an urgent summons from his friend, Pen’s brother, Peter, Cam travels to Calais to find his friend with very little time to live and fearful for his sister’s safety. Cam is honour bound to fulfil the dying Peter’s request that Cam find her and bring her home to England.

Ms Campbell took me on an enthralling and emotional roller-coaster of a journey before Cam and Pen finally attain their hard-earned Happy Ever After. I enjoyed every moment…the antagonism and the simmering sexual tension; the temptation and the heady passion; the stark danger and the anguish; the scandal and the poignant emotions, the betrayal and the heartbreak; the tenderness and the enduring love.

I enjoyed the secondary romance between Pen’s brother, Harry and Sophie, the sister of Cam’s enemy, James Fairbrother, Marquess of Leath. Their sweet, tender romance forms a contrast to the hot, passionate one between Cam and Pen. It also precipitates events that cause Cam to finally admit his love for Pen.

The Marquess of Leath obviously loves his sister very much which was a point in his favour and, once he and Cam had settled their differences, I liked him even more. I look forward to reading his story in the next book in the series.

Jonas and Sidonie (Seven Nights in a Rogue’s Bed) and Richard and Genevieve (A Rake’s Midnight Kiss) all make an appearance and I love the banter between Cam, Richard and Jonas.

Call me a sentimental old fool but I love a good Epilogue and Ms Campbell made me go all misty-eyed when Cam gives Pen her special Christmas present.

Some Memorable Moments

“What in heaven’s name brought you to choose this hovel?”
One slender hand brushed her tumble of hair back from her face. To his dismay, he saw she was shaking.
“Try the weather.” Her tone was sharper than his sword. “I know you could barge through an avalanche without creasing your neckcloth, but we lesser mortals must seek shelter when snow blocks the roads.”

♥♥♥

For a second that extended into eternity, they regarded one another. He should leave. He had no right to absorb every glorious, forbidden detail and imprint it on his mind to remember forever.

♥♥♥

He’d burned to wrench his wife from her chair and muss her neat perfection. Then fling her across the polished table and do things likely to make the butler resign.

♥♥♥

“ Anyway, you know that even if you were off your head with opium or inclined to slobber into your dinner, chits would still line up for the duchess’s coronet.”

♥♥♥

THIS IS CLASSIC ANNA CAMPBELL – COMPELLING, EMOTIVE, ROMANTIC AND SENSUAL!

REVIEW RATING: 5/5 STARS

My sincere thanks to Anna Campbell for sending me a complimentary copy of this book in return for an honest review.

The Sons of Sin series so far (click the covers for more details):

[Duchess Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

So happy to receive an ARC of this. I was recommended Anna Campbell by Lady Danielle years ago after she realized that I love the unlovable hero. I'm embarrassed to say that this will be my first, but I have three others sitting on my reader or here at home waiting on me. Fingers crossed!!

MY REVIEW:

It's always wonderful to find an author that can take a romance cliche and make it seem as if it's the first time you've read that story. Anna Campell can do that, and this book was immensely enjoyable for it. Penelope and Cam are quite obviously meant to be, but society and their own stubbornness stand in the way.

Pen's family may be titled, but their reputation is less than stellar. And while Cam's own parentage is questionable, by law he is the heir to a Dukedom. He's spent his entire life striving to land a solid reputation and to show the masses that he is acceptable. Penelope knows that she and her family aren't what Cam needs. Despite her desperate love for him, she does her best to stay away from temptation, and flees the country. Years later now, Cam is back in her life...and the burgeoning attraction he had begun to feel for his best friend's little sister becomes more.

This ended up being my second Anna Campbell book, because I read the first book in this series, Seven Nights in a Rogue's Bed before starting this one. Fantastic as it was, I think I liked this one a smidge more. There was definitely more movement and action...in that way, this particular storyline tops many other historical romances. Even aside from the constant changes in scenery, there was a perfect blend of inner conflict and actual dialogue, with no long winded meanderings of the mind. Each page brought me closer to a resolution and the swoon-worthy declarations that I'm beginning to expect from this new(ish) to me author.

Copy provided by the publisher for review

[Jonetta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick summary
Cameron (Cam) Rothermere, the Duke of Sedgemoor, proposed to childhood friend Penelope (Pen) Thorne when she was 19-years old. She turned him down flat and promptly fled to the continent after the pressure from her parents got unbearable. She wants a match made for love and he doesn't believe in it. Nine years later, when her brother, on his deathbed, asks Cam to bring her home, he has no choice but to do so.

A bit of background
Cam desperately wants to marry a woman with an impeccable reputation to compensate for his tawdry beginnings (rumor among the ton is he's actually his uncle's progeny). Pen's reputation is now a mess and he wants no part of her.

What I loved about this story
Both Cam and Pen couldn't be better developed. Every move each makes, every word they utter is consistent from beginning to end. They're both passionate and every scene is gripping or engaging. I fell for both of them and their love scenes were incredibly well written.

As crazy as I was about Cam and Pen, there was a secondary storyline involving her brother and his love interest. The two stories converge powerfully, wreaking havoc in both relationships.

The bottom line
I couldn't put this book down, a rarity for me with a historical romance. It's exciting, steamy and oh, so romantic. I loved everything about this book.

(I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)

[Caz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've given this a B- at AAR, so 3.5 stars rounded up

This, the third book in Ms Campbell’s Sons of Sin series , is one I’ve been looking forward to. I enjoyed meeting the very proper and austere Duke of Sedgemoor in the other books, and had high hopes for his story.

The last thing Camden Rothermere needs, in the opinion of his childhood friend, Penelope Thorne – is to ally himself with a family whose name is a byword for scandal. And she tells Cam so in no uncertain terms when she turns down his proposal of marriage, for the Thornes are by no means pillars of respectability. Her father is a rake and gambler, her eldest brother is cut from the same cloth, and Penelope herself is fond of forming her own opinions about things, frequently outspoken and not at all the type of demure debutante who will make Cam a dignified wife.

Her real reason for refusing him, however, is a completely different one, which she can’t tell him. Because Cam watched his parents’ marriage disintegrate -

"As a result of love, my father descended into cruelty and obsession and my mother became a byword for promiscuity.”

- he doesn’t believe in love and wants nothing to do with it.

And Penelope – who has loved him all her life – won’t marry without it.

Like the heroes of the other full-length books in the series, Cam doesn’t know the identity of his father. In order to try to make society forget the circumstances of his birth and the public misery of his parents’ marriage Cam, now the powerful, cold and self-possessed Duke of Sedgemoor, has spent his entire life being fiercely correct, making sure his actions are above reproach, and doing everything he can to restore his family name to respectability.

Shortly after turning down Cam’s proposal nine years earlier, Penelope seized the opportunity to join an eccentric aunt on a trip to the Continent, and then settled with her in Italy. But the aunt has recently died, and in order to fulfil a promise made to Pen’s dying brother, Cam must find her and take her home. He traces Pen to a shabby inn somewhere in the Italian Alps, where he finds her being accosted by a group of nasty Italian bandits. Fortunately, Cam turns up in time to rescue his damsel, guns blazing, in a very “movie hero” moment, which I have to say, Ms Campbell does rather well.

The problem is that Penelope doesn’t want to go back home. England is too confining for a young woman with more than half a brain and she has no intention of going back there to be suffocated by society’s do’s and don’ts. But she can’t refuse her brother’s last wish and the pair set off for England.

Because Pen can’t travel with Cam unchaperoned, they have no alternative but to travel as a married couple and almost make it back without anyone being aware of their deception. But on the final stage of their journey, during a stormy Channel crossing, their ship is seriously damaged and Cam and Pen barely escape with their lives. Once rescued, back on land and ensconced at an inn, they are assumed to be married – and this time, there is no way they will get away with the pretense. Pen is adamant that she doesn’t want to marry Cam, knowing that being married to a man who will never love her will all but destroy her. But she can’t bear to see him surrounded by scandal and gossip when he’s worked so hard all his life to avoid it, so she agrees to his request and marries him, deciding that she will try to become the sort of demure, biddable duchess he wants.

Although of course, in doing so, she becomes a complete stranger to Cam, who wonders where the vivacious, intelligent woman he’d known has gone, why she is wearing horribly drab dresses and where such perfect, cool manners have come from.

Things start to look up when Cam tells Pen to forget about being the perfect duchess and that he likes her for what and who she is. Which means it’s time to throw the proverbial spanner into the works.

Pen’s brother Harry has fallen in love with a young heiress, who happens to be the sister of Cam’s bitter enemy, the Marquess of Leath. The cash-strapped marquess has refused Harry’s suit and instead plans to marry Sophie off to a much older man with plenty of money. Against her better judgement, Pen helps the two to meet in secret – and when things escalate and Pen’s involvement is discovered…let’s just say Cam is not best pleased at the prospect of being once again mired in scandal.

Both Cam and Pen are strongly characterised and there are plenty of sparks flying between them from the get-go. I’m normally wary of “unconventional” heroines, as they can often be too outrageous for the period and frequently oppose the hero just for the sake of it – but Pen isn’t in that mould. I also applaud her decision to get on with her life after Cam’s proposal rather than stay at home and pine over something – someone – she cannot have.

I enjoyed the story, but I confess to coming away from the book feeling just a teeny bit disappointed. Cam is a delicious hero, who struggles to learn that there is more to life than reputation and there is a strong emotional connection between him and Pen. I liked that he knows Pen well enough to realise that she’s deliberately keeping something of herself at a distance (although he can’t work out why) – but my main issue is with the book’s structure. While integral to the plot, the secondary romance detracts too much from the principal storyline in the first section of the book, which I found very frustrating and which ultimately unbalanced it somewhat for me. I felt as if things were just getting going – when I was pulled out of that story and plunged into another one which, to be honest, was rather bland by comparison. This happened not once, but several times, and in fact I almost put the book aside because of it. The fact that I didn’t is down to the fact that I’ve enjoyed other books by Ms. Cambpell and trusted her not to short-change me; and because she had interested me just enough in Pen and Cam’s story, but it was a close-run thing.

On a more positive note, and as she did in the previous book (A Rake’s Midnight Kiss), Ms Campbell provides a beautifully poignant epilogue, which I confess was probably the real high point of the book for me!

In spite of my reservations, What a Duke Dares is certainly one of the better historical romances I’ve read recently, but because of them, I felt I couldn’t in all conscience award a higher grade.

[Annie ⚜️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dagnabit. This one had so much potential and a lot of steamy parts but OMG she won't marry him because he won't love her even though she loves him and he wants to marry her but she won't marry him and their reputations and their familys' reputations and repeat ad nauseum. Also, the being ripped out of the story and dropped into the the subplot was so jarring. It didn't work and all the issues just got so jumbled up, it got ridiculous. Still far from the worst romance I've read and I liked all the characters. There was also a lot of funny banter which I love and the other couples seem sweet.

[Milica's Bookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Camden Rothermere ♥

[Feminista · Rating 1 out of 5]

I find it unbelievable that a woman who has spent nearly a decade by herself to still be a virgin, what's more is that I find it insulting that the hero values such a thing when he can't say the same for himself.

To say that I am disappointed in this author would be an understatement. When I read her books about courtesans, I thought: 'Finally, an author who finds more value in something other than virginity. An author who writes outside of the bounds of now common and vastly unrealistic historical romances.' And contrary to popular beliefs, women did have affairs outside of marriage in Regency Britain with outstanding frequency.

Don't get me wrong, I have and will continue to read books about heroines who are virgins, seeing as though our world is full of these kinds of books and I would have been okay with this heroine's viriginity if the she was still 19 years old and under her parents' thumbs, because it would have been believable/understandable. But not so much when she has had nothing to tie her in the 9 years in which she was free to gallivant around the world. Because of this unbelievable aspect of it, I find that the heroine is being valued for her virginity in a more presumptuous and pronounced way than the other books I have read and I find myself unable to commend this book for it.

Lastly, I don't find it romantic at all that in this, the heroine has 'waited' for the hero for nearly a decade, while the hero hasn't even noticed nor wanted her in the same way.

[Topastro · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was tricky to rate. On one hand I really enjoyed the history the MCs shared along with the forced proximity and marriage. I did think the push and pull did go on for too long, the heroine’s stubbornness was excessive. I really did not like the secondary romance of Harry and Sofie. Their story took away from the main romance, honestly I skipped the chapters that focused on them.

[Inna · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars. After a couple of days of contemplating this book more, and reading the first two books in this series, I decided to drop my rating by a star. I can’t abide the nonsense reason given for the separation and the rest of the story never really made up for this huge lapse.

—————————

I can’t love a book that separates the hero and heroine for 9 years for such a stupid reason. However, despite my personal preferences, this book was well written and generally enjoyable.

This book has two love stories that eventually becomes intertwined. The first is of Camden Rothermere, the Duke of Sedgemoor, and Penelope Thorne (aka Cam & Pen). Cam asks Pen to marry him at the beginning of this book, but she refuses him, even though she loves him desperately. Since Cam has vowed never to love, she feels that being with him will kill her soul (or some such rot). So instead she runs off and spends the next 9 years on the continent with her aunt. Cam is summoned to France by Pen’s dying brother, and his deathbed wish is for Cam to find Pen and return her safely to England. He agrees, finds her, and convinces her that he should accompany her home. Ofc, this is a romance novel, so they are forced into close proximity a few times, narrowly avoid scandal a few more, and come very close to becoming lovers. Cam’s life has been built around the idea that he must avoid scandal at all costs and show society that he is respectable. His best laid plans are tested when Cam and Pen are seen together by a member of the ton, and they are forced to marry to prevent a scandal. They spend a lot of time in a state of miserable uncertainty before a HEA ending.

The second couple was a lot more simple, involving Pen’s youngest brother and the younger sister of the hero from book 4. They are a love at first sight romance, but they face opposition from her brother since H2’s prospects aren’t good and he has been living a dissolute lifestyle. They eventually get a HFN ending, and I’m wondering if more info about them is given in the next book.

The problem I had with this book, as I stated above, is that long separation. I’m sorry, but separating from the man she loves makes no sense to me. She didn’t give him a chance to love her, she just ran away. Over and over, Pen was the most pessimistic heroine I’ve read about in recent memory. She had so little faith that the hero could ever love her that she was willing to allow him to leave her and live alone for the rest of her life. She was ok with walking away from him while he married OW. She was fully expecting him to find a mistress once he got tired of sex with her. What a load of bullshit. She had a backbone of steel in some ways, but she was a coward when it came to the hero. I’m disappointed that the heroine never once tried to change his mind or even try to earn his love.

Overall though, this book was good. The writing, the dialogue, the storyline…all were enjoyable. I just hate wasted time SO MUCH.

Safety was meh. The hero and heroine were separated for 9 years. During that time, he had mistresses and she remained a virgin. 😂😂😂 WHAT A TOTAL WASTE OF TIME FOR HER. I hated the heroine for remaining a virgin for all that time when she obviously had ample opportunity. He was also very nearly engaged to OW. Cam kept saying that the heroine was the only one he had ever proposed to, as if that means something. To me, it doesn’t. He had picked out a new bride and seemed moments away from proposing when he was called away. Otherwise, no OM/OW for either during this book.

The second couple was a manwhore/virgin matchup. He initially meets her when he’s going out to meet with a paramour but gets distracted when he hears her crying. He changes his ways immediately after meeting her - from what I could tell.

[Kathleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Story Rating ~ 3 Stars
Hero Rating ~ 3.5 Stars
Heroine Rating ~ 3.5 Stars
Romance Rating ~ 3.5 Stars
Heat Level ~ 3.5 Stars
Ending ~ 4 Stars
Overall Rating ~ 3.5 Stars

What a Duck Dares was not my favorite read by Anna Campbell, it was just an okay read for me.
Penelope Thorne has been in love with Camden Rothermere since she was a young girl. Cam was her brother’s best friend and he was always there to help her when she got herself into one scrape or another.

The story starts off with Cam asking Pen to marry him. Pen knows that Cam’s heart is closed off and that he never wants to fall in love. Due to that fact, Pen turns Cam’s marriage proposal down. How can she possibly marry the man she loves when he will NEVER give his love in return?

The story line did keep me interested enough to continue reading. I felt the connection between Cam and Pen, but after a while I was tired of them hiding their feelings from one another. It continued on too long in the story and it got on my nerves. I actually rolled my eyes a time or two and was wishing that Cam and Pen would just get on with it. I feel this part of the story took a lot of my overall enjoyment away and did effect my ratings.

What I felt was very well done, was a couple of scenes that had some action added in. These parts had me glued to the pages and gave this story some much needed excitement.

The heat level did not kick in right away, but when it did, it SIZZLED! You can always count on Anna Campbell to write quite a few spicy and sensuous scenes that will satisfy even the most jaded readers.

There was also a secondary romance and I really liked reading about Harry and Sophia’s romance. It was very interesting, but at the same time it also felt like filler. I found myself wishing that Harry and Sophia would have had their own book; the story line was definitely there.

I was very happy with the way it concluded, and there was a wonderful epilogue that wrapped this story up with a neat and tidy bow.

This was NOT my first Anna Campbell read and while it was not my favorite, I will still keep coming back for more.

*A copy of the book was provided by Forever (Grand Central Publishing) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

[Caz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review from 2014

A for narration / B for content - 4.5 stars.

Camden Rothermere, future Duke of Sedgemoor is young, handsome, rich – and completely stunned when Penelope Thorne turns down his proposal of marriage. He and Pen have known each other almost all their lives, and while the Sedgemoor title has been tarnished in recent years by the very public way in which his parents’ marriage has disintegrated, it’s one of the oldest in the kingdom. Cam is determined to force the polite world to forget his parents’ serial infidelities as well as the fact that the old duke is probably not his biological father, and he lives his life by an incredibly rigid set of rules, making sure his actions are above reproach and doing everything he can to restore his family name to respectability.

Penelope – Pen – insists that she’s not the right wife for him. She has a mind of her own, a reputation for hoydenish behaviour, and her father and brothers are hardly models of propriety. Given Cam’s desire to restore his family’s reputation, she tells him he needs a wife who is beyond reproach, one who will never give him a moment’s concern or cause people to smirk behind their hands.

What she doesn’t say is that she won’t marry him because she knows he will never love her. Having watched the deterioration of his parents’ love-match, Cam disdains love and wants nothing to do with it. And Pen knows that being married to a man she’s loved all her life with no hope of a return will all but kill her.

Nine years pass, and we find Cam, now the powerful and aloof Duke of Sedgemoor, in Calais, at the deathbed of his friend and Penelope’s older brother, Peter. Peter tells Cam that Pen, who has lived on the Continent with an aunt for the past nine years, is in difficulty following her aunt’s death, and asks Cam to find her and take her back to England. Cam has no wish to become entangled with Pen and whatever escapade she has involved herself in, but he cannot refuse a dying man and agrees to do what he can.

Pen, when Cam finds her and rescues her from a group of Italian bandits at a grubby Alpine inn, is no more wishful of returning home than Cam is of escorting her there. She agrees reluctantly to his escort, not at all keen on the idea of their travelling as a married couple in order to stop tongues wagging. While their journey is not without incident, they manage to get to Calais without anyone uncovering their deception – but a disastrous Channel crossing from which they barely manage to escape with their lives puts paid to their anonymity, and Cam feels he has no alternative but to do the right thing and asks Pen to marry him – and of course, she refuses. Again.

But this time, Cam won’t take no for an answer, and insists that if Pen has no care for her reputation, then she should think about his. Pen knows she’s being manipulated, but she can’t bear the thought of Cam plunged into the scandal and gossip he’s worked so hard to avoid and finally agrees, determined to become the sort of demure, biddable duchess he wants.

Pen and Cam are very well-rounded characters who have a strong emotional connection – and there’s no denying the chemistry between them is scorching, something which narrator Steve West deals with incredibly well. I don’t normally dissect the sex scenes in audios, as one man’s meat is often another’s poison, so I’ll just say he gets right into the swing of things and that I needed a long lie down by an open window afterwards!

Pen’s insistence on trying to keep her distance – and her “secret” – from Cam goes on a little too long and becomes somewhat melodramatic as she continually bemoans the fact that he’ll never love her. Apart from that, though, she’s a great character, a woman who is unconventional without being outrageous or confrontational for the sake of it. She loves the life she has made for herself in Italy, and were it not for Cam, would have been happy to return there, continuing to live among people who foster her love of art and don’t berate her for being independently minded. Cam is an appealing hero, obviously a passionate man beneath the stern exterior of frosty control, but who struggles to learn that perhaps there is more to life than keeping a pristine reputation.

I enjoyed Pen and Cam’s story very much, but found the structure of the book a little frustrating. There’s a secondary romance involving Pen’s younger brother which, while it’s relevant to the overall plot, gets in the way of the main story in the early stages which unbalanced things somewhat. I’d be caught up in what was happening to Pen and Cam and – wham! – I was pulled out of that story and plunged into another one which was rather bland by comparison. Rather than serving to build tension, it made me want to fast-forward, which I may well have done if I hadn’t already been completely captivated by Steve West’s superb performance and deliciously sexy voice!

I haven’t listened to him before, although I know he has a fair number of audiobooks to his credit, hardly any of which – I’m sorry to say – are romances. Mr West has a deep, sonorous voice that’s very attractive and easy to listen to, and his interpretation of Cam – austere, unflappable and every inch the duke – is absolutely spot on. He’s just as good when Cam starts to fray around the edges, his clipped tones conveying a sense of barely leashed fury or frustration, depending on the situation. All his characterisations are very clearly differentiated, with each character portrayed in ways appropriate to age and station, and the narrative is performed with clarity and precision at a good pace.

Having listened to all three books in this series (the other two narrated by someone else) I was curious as to how Mr West would portray the principals of the other books, who also appear in this one. I wasn’t expecting him to have imitated the other performer; rather I wanted to hear how he would differentiate between the three principals while making them sound sufficiently different from each other and suitably attractive. He does it brilliantly. Richard (book two) is all languid grace and charm, and Jonas (book one) is gruff and no-nonsense, and there’s never any question as to which of them is speaking in the scenes in which they all appear together. Mr West’s performance of Pen’s younger brother Harry is also terrific, done with a very slight lightening of tone and elevation of pitch which perfectly conveys his youth and romantic nature.

His interpretations of the female characters are every bit as good. There are no unconvincing falsettos, just an overall lightening of tone and subtle changes in timbre which leave the listener in no doubt as to gender.

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dark and angsty and different and compelling. Devoured this one quickly and was reminded of the rich Gothic feel Campbell used to develop in her older novels (in contrast to her newer, lighter novellas). I’m not sure I’ll revisit this since it’s certainly not a comfort read..:but it is a riveting and satisfying one.

[Jultri · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first 60 % of this book was red-hot sizzling. I love when there is a bit of a shared past between the main characters. Camden Rothermere aka the Duke of Sedgemoor had a rough childhood, witnessing this parents' debacle of a marriage and how their scandalous carrying-ons made the Sedgemoor name a laughing stock. Since inheriting the dukedom, he has worked hard to regain the respect of his peers and is on the verge of betrothing himself to a respectable young lady to further his aims. This promise of stability is threatened, when he is forced to make a reluctant death-bed promise to his friend, the heroine's brother, to fetch her from wherever in Europe she is and escort her back to England after 9 years of travelling the continent.

The unconventional Penelope Thorne left England's shores soon after turning down her Cam's unromantic and stiff proposal, running away from the man she loves, who she knows is incapable of loving her back. Cam manages to track down Pen just as finds herself outnumbered by a group of outlaws. She shows no gratitude but bares her teeth at her childhood friend, (just ignore the 8 years difference between them), because she has learnt that being on the attack is the best defence against a broken heart.

They antagonise each other. They throw insults at one another. She throws objects at him. All the while they burn for one another - the sexual tension reaching a crescendo halfway through. She started out fiercely independent and strong, not backing down one inch when confronted by his autocratic and self-righteous ducal personage. He on the other has a tendency to frustrate Pen, himself and me by saying the wrong thing just when things are about to turn into a wondrous sensual explosion. And it all provides for a magnificently entertaining read.

Unfortunately the last 1/3 got bogged down by unjustifiable melodramatic self-doubts and self-induced angst. While I love the emotional tension that accompanied the intense sexual chemistry between them in the first half, the author just went overboard a bit in the latter stages, especially with Pen, turning her into a weak, histrionic shadow of her former glorious self. I also got frustrated by the impulsive thoughtless antics of the young lovers featuring in the secondary romance.

[Gloria · Rating 2 out of 5]

My first by this author, and I will wait to tackle any more of her books. I did not like the secondary love story at all. I really liked both the hero and heroine but because of the secondary love story, I didn't get to know them as well as I'd have liked. By the end, I skimmed the epilogue. Also the major conflict at the end seemed forced in how the hero responded and wrapped up just as quickly, seemingly pointless. Not at all what I expected.

[moi, k.y.a. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Epsilon çevirileriyle tanıdığım yazarlardan ve başladığım serilerden ümidi uzun zaman önce kestim. O yüzden okumaya böyle devam edeceğim ama bu kitabı sevemedim. 🙆

[Laura (Kyahgirl) · Rating 1 out of 5]

1/5; Can't even be saved by a good narrator.

Steve West read this audiobook and was pretty well the only reason I listened to the end.

The characters were poorly developed. There was really no story whatsoever. Penelope is afraid to tell Cam she loves him because he says he doesn't want love. She has loved him since forever but noooooo, she can't say it. This goes round and round for the whole book. This is the second book I've tried by this author and she definitely is not for me.

[Issa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really thought I'd like this more than I did. Cam, the Duke of Sedgemoor, has know Penelope Thorne for years. When he is 27 and she 19, he asks for her hand. He's always known her and their mothers have pressed for the match. She turns him down. Cam's been trying to live down the scandal brought on the family by his mother and the Thornes are no stranger to scandal. She doesn't want to bring that on to him. In addition she loves him and knows he'll never love her. He leaves in a tiff, she's sad but they both move on. Cam does whatever Cam does and Penelope moves to the continent to live and travel with her aunt. Nine years pass. On his death bed, her brother Peter begs Cam to take his place meeting Penelope in Paris. The aunt has died and Peter wants Penelope brought home.

At this point I was excited for this story. Penelope has been everywhere in Europe and done all sorts of fascinating, and likely scandalous, things. Cam catches up to her while she fighting a mob of drunks in the Alps and she agrees to go back to England with Cam because that's where she wants to go anyway.

For all the discussion about what a hoyden Penelope is, we see very little of it. She doesn't do anything and defers to him, though she's not happy about it. That's not the biggest issue I had though. After nine years she's still in love with him and there went the story for me. It's inconceivable to me that she holds that kind of affection after all that time with no contact.

A ship wreck on the way back puts them in a perilous situation and Cam brow beats her into marrying him. I didn't mind that so much until we saw there married life and that's where this story just went sideways.

There wedding night is a travesty. She's a virgin of course, another issue that frustrates me, but that's not enough. The author writes it as if he rammed a telephone pole in her even though there had been plenty of foreplay. A little pain or discomfort yes, but not this. Just didn't make sense.

Penelope tries to be a good duchess by acting as dry as dirt and Cam can't understand why. The two cannot communicate well enough to get out of a paper bag. But her martyrdom all goes back to this ridiculous notion that she loves him and he won't love her back. Both Penelope and Cam also have multifaceted eyes, like spiders maybe, I'm not sure, because they can always "see" in the other's eyes that something is being held back. That notion comes up many times and it started to drive me nuts.

The book was okay. Except for the virgin love sacrifice, I liked Penelope. I understand why she did what she did. I wish we'd had the chance to actually see some of her though. Cam runs hot and cold and while I didn't always like him, he acted true to form.

There's a second story between Penelope's brother Harry and Sophie woven throughout. I'm not a fan of this method and I didn't care for it here but the second story was okay and added to the plot.

I love older hero's and heroines but they acted like they were both barely out of the schoolroom. Just didn't work.

[Mei · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was better thank the previous one in the series, thus the 3 and 1/2 stars...
It did have its share of sensual, but still missing Ms. Campbell's mystery and darkness. Maybe this series is a completly different type of book, but I was still expecting it!

I liked the overall story, but too much time was to Cam's denial. I didn't like it. Cam was so much in dinial that it was over the top.

Not that Pen was better... I was constantly asking myself why she didn't want to fight for him. Why she just decided that Cam wasn't capable of love? Why did she think that even when it was obvious to every soul under and above the sky that he was in love with her???

A little bit of indecision, angst, denial is OK, but when it is a constant undertone of the whole book, that's too much!

They both have a wake up call only in the last few pages of the book...

I will give a try to the next one hoping for something more! And because I like Ms. Campbell's writing style!

[Alloverthebooks ✎ · Rating 5 out of 5]

J'ai presque eu un coup de cœur pour cette romance aussi palpitante que sexy.
Son intrigue de prime à bord n'a rien d'extraordinaire, mais le contenu, en réalité, était à la hauteur de mes espérances grâce à la manière dont cela a été écrit et aux surprises que nous réservent nos personnages. Impossible pour moi de deviner tous les enchainements ; je me suis donc laissé surprendre plus d'une fois.
L'alchimie entre les protagonistes était très forte, c'était même palpable. Les sentiments assez intenses étaient aussi parfaitement décrits, à tel point que j'en ai eu des papillons dans le ventre. C'est d'ailleurs pour cela que j'étais à deux doigts d'avoir un coup de cœur pour cette romance.
Je ne peux que vous recommander cette romance qui, je l'espère, arrivera à répondre à vos attentes comme elle l'a fait pour moi.

[Kelley Carpenter · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was kinda disappointed in this novel by Anna Campbell vs. some of her older novels. Just didn't feel the chemistry between her two main characters as much, and to be honest....I grew bored with their constant back and forth.

I also had a problem with the additional subplot of Harry/Sophie story line. Just when I was finally relating to Pen and Cam, the POV switched to the second story.

That being said, I do like Anna Campbell and I will continue reading the next books in the series.

[ᑭᑌᑎƳᗩ [Punya Reviews...] · Rating 3 out of 5]

My review contains spoilers and they're mostly my thoughts as I went with the book... for more, visit Punya Reviews...

Anna Campbell’s Sons of Sin book 3, What a Duke Dares, was one of my anticipated releases of this year. I’m really hooked in this series, so definitely wanted to read Cam’s book as soon as possible. Unfortunately, I was very disappointed. The storyline was going SO WELL for the first 150 pages that I thought finally a 5 star read! The rest, sadly, didn’t even begin to compare.

The Sons of Sin series basically tells the story of 3 friends who are burdened by the truth of their illegitimate birth, the one thing they have in common and made them stick together since they met as children, to fight the judgmental society. In their adulthood, Jonas, Richard and Cam are still together in their struggle, even though they are privileged people of the society. Jonas is rich but he’s scarred both inside out, needing a soft touch in his life. Richard is a baronet and a charming rake. Widows certainly don’t bother about his illegitimacy when they fall into his bed! Cam is the Duke, who is very serious about upholding the moral codes and pristine reputation as his status befits.

The series starts with Jonas’s story, book 1, Seven Nights in a Rogue's Bed. Burdened with a facial scar marring his face, Jonas has lived alone for the most part of this life. Oh he has had women, and he’s good too, but they don’t want the lights on! When he’s resorted to spending his life this way, Sidonie enters in it. She finds herself on his doorstep due to a gambling debt from her flighty, selfish elder sister. One look at her, and Jonas knew he doesn’t want to let her go, though he knows, eventually she’ll leave him. So the rogue in question drives a hard bargain. She has to spend seven nights in his bed, all his to do whatever he wants to and he’ll do whatever possible to help her. I found it superb that Sidonie was neither appalled by his looks, nor revolted by his demands. The chemistry was sizzling from the very first moment. Loved how they came to know each-other, through sex and then conversations, trust and finally, love. Seven nights are not enough to fall in love, yet that’s what happened. Later on, trouble and a rather silly misunderstanding threaten to tear them apart but they overcome it together.

The novella in the middle, Days of Rakes and Roses, is the story of Cam’s sister. It was rather forgettable IMO so I won’t be talking about it.

Richard, the jovial rake of the bunch, has his story told in book 2, A Rake's Midnight Kiss. He wanted to find a family heirloom in hopes of restoring the tattered family reputation, for which he’d always blamed his promiscuous mother. Richard isn’t the son of the late Lord Harmsworth and everyone knows it, though the man had acknowledged him as such, making him the heir to the Harmsworth legacy. He has always battled the rumors and gossips in his own way, being the rake, being fastidious about his clothing and avoiding his mother as much as possible. Then a crazy scheme takes him to this quaint little village, close to Cam’s estate, where he knew the lost Harmsworth jewel is located. He thought that upon acquiring it, he can show it off and his peers would shut their mouths. What he didn’t anticipate was he’d be bested by the most unexpected rival he’d ever encountered, in mind, body and soul; the vicar’s scholarly, spinster daughter, Genevieve. It was a journey for Richard that transforms him completely. He didn’t believe in love or emotions that went beyond lust, boredom or hatred. But after knowing Genevieve, also the humbly living people around the village, Richard yearned to be a better man. Yes, he was masquerading to get inside the vicarage because she held the jewel. I didn’t like this masquerade for a long time, mostly because it was apparent that both Genevieve and Richard was falling for each-other, yet she had no idea who he was, most especially the ‘reason’ for his appearance as an apprentice to her father. But the last chapters of the book gave me hope because those were beautiful, showing just how very much Richard has transformed from a shallow, happy-go-lucky rake to a man who valued the treasure he’d found in a woman, hoping that she feels the same about him, that she’d give him a chance. Genevieve, after the inevitable misunderstanding over his true identity, forgives him after Richard comes clean about his childhood burden. I absolutely loved it when Richard finds out about his real father, resolving the differences he had with his mother over this issue. The villain in the story, one Lord Neville, is ‘taken care of’ by Cam, but his ‘ghost’, in parts, returns to haunt Cam’s story.

Cam, the serious Duke, has his own troubles. But What a Duke Dares with a flashback. Cam in his late-twenties proposing to a girl named Penelope Thorne, who was 19 or so at that time. Cam believed that the match was very suitable, hence he wanted it. What he didn’t know that Penelope, or Pen as she goes by, is in love. With him. She knew Cam doesn’t believe in that particular emotion, so even though it broke her heart, Pen believed she can’t settle for less, most especially to the man she has loved ever since she met him. She rejects his proposal on-spot, never revealing her true emotion. But Cam took it personally, interpreting that she didn’t want him. He was confused as he’d assumed that she did. His ego gets a bashing over it. Cam leaves, knowing Pen Thorne will never be his Duchess, not really sure if he’s supposed to be relieved or hurt.

Much like Jonas and Richard, Cam’s family has been the target of scandal and gossip over his paternity. Cam’s mother... well, she just seemed to love the Rothermere males. Of course, her husband didn’t know at first that his wife is sleeping with his own younger brother. But it didn’t stay a secret for long. So when Cam finally came into this world, no one knew who his real father was. But he had the Rothermere blood in him which made him the heir nonetheless. Moreover, his uncle died young, a result of his wild living, without anymore heir, so in due time Cam becomes the Duke. Though, as a Duke, he can ignore anyone he likes and shake off the gossips that has been swirling since his birth, Cam is still very determined about holding up the moral codes that wouldn’t ruin his pristine reputation. It seems to be his motto, to never to get entangled in a scandal, ever, in his life. So it was a surprise, even for him, when he sought for the hand of Pen Thorne, who comes from a family that has been mired in all sorts of scandal.

It’s not like Pen didn’t know about the scandals that dogged the Thorne family since the days of her ancestors, mostly related to loose women or some kinds of financial debts. Pen is very sensitive, observant and undoubtedly smart. But she also knew any kind of relationship with the Rothermere heir would bring her absolute misery, because unfortunately for the Thrones, when they fall in love, they love unconditionally, irrevocably. And for better or for worse, Pen has been in love with Cam. He was Peter’s close friend, which is how he came to visit the Throne family in the first place. When Cam proposed to her in such a callous, authoritative way, as if she should be ecstatic just because a Duke asked for her hand, Pen couldn’t take it. She knew from an earlier conversation of Cam, that she’d eavesdropped on accidentally, that he never wants to fall in love, never wants to get his brain scrambled over this silly emotion. Since then, all of Pen’s dreams about being the Duchess were shattered. She couldn’t live without his love, and due to the scandals still now dogging her family that includes her womanizer father and his own gambling debts, Pen knew it wouldn’t take much long for Cam to begin resenting her. And she couldn’t live with it either.

So after she rejected Cam, Pen had to leave the country for the Continent, thanks to a relative because her b!tchy mother was absolutely horrified by this. She even asked her father to beat Pen so that she relents. Pen has not returned ever since. Cam has gone his own way, living the life of a Duke. And though he’d deny it, Pen’s rejection hurt him. He has never been able to drive that gangly teenage girl out from his mind even after all these years. Not only that, the tales in the gossip sheets of her being a scholar of sorts, and the ‘many men’ she’d enthralled over the years, drenched Cam in utter jealousy. Oh he’d deny that too, but he wasn’t happy about her supposed lifestyle. Not at all.

Then one day, a missive from Peter arrives, who has been languishing somewhere in France. Cam goes to help his buddy, only to find him on his deathbed. Peter, though not a successful man in his life, genuinely loved all his younger siblings; Pen, Harry and Charles. Even now, while he lay dying, Peter is concerned about Pen. And he knows Cam is the only person who can handle his headstrong sister. Their parents have passed on a long time ago, so before he took his last breath, Peter requests Cam to find Pen and bring her back to England, safe and sound. This was something someone like Cam could never ignore. And that is how he finds himself in search of the illusive Pen Thorne, the perpetual thorn at his side, whom he hadn’t seen in the past 9 years, all his Duke-ly responsibilities can go take a hike for a while.

I absolutely loved Pen and Cam’s journey through the continent; every scene containing their banters, the awkwardness and the attraction that never died down. The chemistry was Ah-Meh-Zing, it was THAT good! Pen’s long buried heart started pounding the moment she saw Cam had found her. He also becomes her hero, again, as he had been numerous times when she was a child, by saving her from these goons at the very right moment. For Cam, he was at first annoyed, then angry, all because he thought she’s being the typical Thorne; still bold and headstrong, doing anything that’d cause a scandal. His one task seemed to be keeping Pen Thorne out of trouble, though it didn’t seem like she appreciated his efforts all that much. Of course, Pen was still in love, Cam still thought Pen didn’t care about him, which still hurt his fragile manly ego because, yes, he still cared, even if he won’t acknowledge it to anyone. But boy, she has grown from that gangly teen to this beautiful, statuesque woman, and damn if Cam couldn’t help but notice it!

Trouble for them seemed to start from there because obviously, there came a time when they couldn’t keep their hands off each-other; Cam not thinking beyond the moment, whereas Pen has been a lost cause where he was concerned. It happened when they were ship-bound, almost close to the end of their journey back to England. Cam blunders at the moment of this really hot interlude. He assumed that Pen is not a virgin anymore, so why not ask her to be his... mistress? *tire screeching, car crashing* I actually heard these sounds, trust me for that was NOT what I was expecting from the apparent upholder of all things moral and true! After all, Pen was his best friend’s sister, someone who died requesting him that he take care of her. WTF? Pen, who was grieving Peter’s death, the news brought to her by Cam, becomes instantly angry, and I couldn’t blame her one bit.

But then, the very next disaster in their very colorful journey happens; a shipwreck where Pen is thrown at the ocean. It is then that I think Cam reached the realization just how much Pen means to him. His slow brain grabs the fact that he’s probably going to lose her, and without thinking, he jumps in search of her. He rescues her, barely alive but breathing. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the end of it. Though Cam was still reeling from this recent incident, they have already reached somewhere on England’s shore. And because the Great Duke that he is, someone even in that ramshackle inn recognized the mighty Duke of Sedgemoor... with a woman in his arms. Oh boy, talk about fodder for gossip... and scandal! The bane of Cam’s existence, the stuff he avoids at all cost! He knows the news will travel to London and soon. So what the upholder of all things Moral does? He proposes to the Lady because that’s the right thing to do.

*siiiiigh*

Pen is plain horrified by this proposal. It’s like her nightmare coming true. She’s oh-so-tempted, yet she knows this is going to be a disaster. Hell, the marriage is based on a scandal in the making! When his callous proposal doesn’t work, Cam finally tries to have this serious talk that inexorably brings in that long ago rejection. This time, Pen had to come clean about her feelings. She expresses her feelings for him, the pain of unrequited love and why she didn’t think it was a good idea. Why she still doesn’t think she’d make the perfect Duchess for Cam, even though with all her being, she wants to be with him. Cam is a bit stupefied because he genuinely never thought Pen had any feelings for him. I’d say he was blind, but there it was. Cam promises to be a good husband, and asks her to give this a chance, which is how they come to be married ASAP, before they even return to London.

In between, there was this secondary romance blossoming between Pen’s younger brother Harry and the Marquess of Leath’s sister, Sophie. Now, when I said that Lord Neville comes to ‘haunt’ this story, I meant that he was Leath’s uncle. After his ‘death’, Cam and Leath harbor nothing but hostility for each-other due to the scandal it brought on Leath’s family. He’s trying to squelch every bit of it by staying on the straight and narrow, also by arranging a marriage between Sophie and this elderly political peer who still favors him. Leath thinks he’s doing his best for the family, and Sophie, not caring (or noticing?) that she has no intentions of marrying a man old enough to be her father, or at the least, an uncle. Leath wants this match so that his political ambitions are realized, as well as the family name reinstated. And for that, he would do anything. The likes of Harry Thorne has no place in any of Leath’s plans for Sophie’s future.

Harry is the ‘blacksheep’ of the family, a womanizer who seems to be following his father’s footstep with much enthusiasm. But lately, nothing seems to be the same for him after Peter’s death. Sophie happens to Harry, alone, on a chance meeting and his world tilts upside-down. It was love at first sight, for the blonde and petite Sophie won his heart. Harry is a big man, and handsome with the typical Thorne good looks. What I loved about their connection is that it never felt flighty or wrong to me. Harry, from the first moment, knew he wanted Sophie as his wife, not a mistress or a fling. He didn’t even know at that time who she was, and how difficult it’d be for him to gain Leath’s blessing. The fear is realized soon enough. After a few stolen moments, on impulse, Harry decides to face Leath about it, even though Sophie asked him not to. If she knew her brother well, they’d never get a chance. True to this, Leath just laughs at Harry, who had nothing to bring into this marriage but bad reputation. He even sends Sophie away for a while to keep them apart. But the young lovers were holding strong, hoping that a break comes soon enough and they can grab the opportunity.

Sophie and Harry had their own little story within Cam and Pen’s but I wasn’t really bothered by the dual narratives. I really loved reading about those secret meetings, the yearning to be together was so plain that it melt my heart. Then, at this point, Pen returns to London with Cam, as his Duchess. She also meets up with her estranged family. Her own marriage started out less than perfect. Cam still thought she wasn’t a virgin on their wedding night, which caused another small rift between them. Its then I felt Cam’s righteous behavior beginning to grate on my nerves. He’d assume things, not even bothering to use his brain, then act on it, only to realize later that he’d been an a$$. It has happened more than once and I got superbly annoyed at Cam’s activities.

While Sophie was ‘locked away’, Harry was brooding, something that caught Pen’s attentions. Then Harry confesses about his ladylove, and Pen knew trouble is ahead. For one, she knew about Leath and Cam’s enmity. When Harry asks her to use her status to help meet Sophie when she returns in a few days, Pen also knew she had to tread lightly. She knew this was going to be a disaster if Cam ever found out, which he probably will at length, yet she helps the pining lovers to a secret meeting just because she herself knew how it felt to be on the outside. On this meeting though, Harry and Sophie plans on something that does become the ‘big disaster’ of the story, one that rattles Cam and Pen’s already shaky relationship. Leath also becomes involved, wanting to kill Harry because he was sure his innocent sister didn’t know any better; another idiotic assumption IMO as Sophie knew what she wanted and went after it. She seemed matured for her age and helped Harry change his ways in a matter of days. And eloping was, to them, the only option to get away from their condescending families and start over somewhere far away.

Cam is furious when Leath comes knocking at the door, blaming him for everything and his instant suspect is… yup, Pen. She, though afraid, confesses what she’d done. What pissed of me off was the fact that it wasn’t even the elopement that bothered Cam. He was mad that Pen went behind his back, and did something which is now becoming a big scandal that involves Leath no less! The word ‘scandal’ seems to blow anything they have shared in the past few months as a couple out the window. Pen was so scared, she was anticipating Cam leaving her once this disaster is sorted out. But she had to step in since she blamed herself for everything that happened. I couldn’t stand this strong, marvelous woman being so vulnerable, all because she was in love with this presumptuous a$$. Needless to say, even though I knew things would get sorted out in the end, after observing Cam’s instant aloofness that hurts Pen to no end... it just didn’t sit well with me. I was NOT impressed Cam!

I’m not going to comment on the rest. Sophie and Harry do get their HEA. Leath comes out looking like a douche due to an incident. He’s got real bad temper, reminding me of a wounded, grumpy bear. But I still want to read his story, that’s going to be the next in the series, A Scoundrel by Moonlight. 3.5 stars but this has nothing to do with Anna’s writing. I blame Cam for my discontent. *sigh*

[Dorothy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anna Campbell’s What A Duke Dares. I absolutely loved it. What a gem!!! !!! Kept me captivated through all 41 chapters. If you like romance novels, you’ll definitely love this one. Anna Campbell is one of my favorite authors. She kept me spellbound with this one. Bravo, Anna

[Teresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anna Campbell is one of those authors, where simply seeing her name on the cover is enough incentive for me to buy the book! So, I cannot tell you how excited I was to receive an ARC copy of her upcoming release, WHAT A DUKE DARES, the third book in the luscious “Sons of Sin” series. Huge thanks to Anna and Grand Central for a long night of excellent reading!



To begin with…who doesn’t love stories where the hero and heroine are childhood friends, but things go awry when for at least one of them, that friendship turn into something much greater?



Such is the case with Penelope and Camden.



Penelope has been in love with Camden for as long as she can remember, but unfortunately she knows her friend well enough to know that his parent’s disastrous marriage has put him off the idea of romantic love forever. The scandals both of their families have created over the years only make things worse, as Camden is determined to clear the family name and Penelope knows herself well enough to understand that being proper and tame just isn’t in her genetic makeup.



Soo, when Camden proposes (badly, I might add), with more care for how he can help her conform to the ideal of a proper duchess, versus offering any hope that he might ever care for as more than a friend, Penelope turns him down flat.



To escape her disgruntled parents and the memories of what might have been with Camden if he had a heart to give, Penelope runs away to join her eccentric aunt on the continent.



Jump forward nine years and as predicted tales of Penelope’s scandalous behavior have been filling Camden’s ears to overflowing, but when a deathbed promise is made to see Penelope safely home to England he is forced to face the past and the unwanted attraction that had sparked that fateful day he proposed.



From the moment they meet again the attraction is fairly combustible, but time hasn’t changed Penelope’s feelings about marrying Cam for anything less than love and his heart seems to be as cold as it ever was. The constant battle between her love and his attraction help set the pages of this book on fire, but it’s the deep emotional and almost tragic moments in this book that really keep you riveted to every word.



And if that weren’t enough…Ms. Campbell has interwoven a sub-romance of star-crossed lovers with Penelope’s younger brother Harry and Camden’s enemy’s sister, Sophie into the mix. In most books a secondary story like this one can sometimes feel like an annoying distraction that takes you away from the characters you want to stay focused on instead, but this is not one of those times. In fact, Harry and Sophie’s provide a great compliment to the story, especially when the two merge into one with the outcome providing a great tipping point for Pen and Cam.



I can’t stress enough how much I LOVED this book and revisiting the great heroes and heroines from the previous “Sons of Sin” books was a great added bonus that made me want to go back and read their stories all over again.



If you are looking for a marvelous read for the beach or just enjoying the cool comfort of the A/C this summer in your favorite reading spot, then look no further!

*Originally posted on Be My Bard.com

[Missy · Rating 1 out of 5]

According to some reviewers, you should read this series in order. At least book 2 before this book (book 3). I have read the second book, but I don't recall very much from it, yet I was able to follow along in this book just fine.

Oh, man. This book was frustrating--the weakest in this series thus far. I like that hero, Cam, Duke of Sedgemoor, initiates communication at least three times in the book.

I'm paraphrasing:
Cam: "We need to discuss this."
Penelope (Pen): "I'm tired."
Cam: "It cannot wait till morning."
Pen: "Fine."

However, I believe on the last occasion, it was frustrating when they didn't say exactly what they wanted to say. Like, come on, we're almost to the end of the book, be honest with each other already.

Pen's in love with Cam since childhood but she rejected his offer of marriage because he doesn't believe in love (all thanks to his parents) and will never come to love her. She's 19 and he's 27 or 28 when he proposes to her (their mothers also wanted them to marry). Time skips nine years and they hadn't spoken to each other. I don't think she's ever had a season because she's been traveling with her aunt. I find it hard to believe that Pen still loves him. When they reunite (Cam has to escort her back to London), there is so much tension -- conflict and sexual. Their push and pull got frustrating after no real development has been made. I looked forward to the love scenes though, because this is Anna Campbell. She can write some steamy stuff and many of them, too. There was a library love scene that reminded me of the one from Netflix's Bridgerton series.

There is a secondary love story with Harry (Pen's brother) and Sophie (the sister of Cam's nemesis). I enjoyed this side story at first, but the author would switch between both stories, which I eventually found distracted from the main characters. Now, it appears that the only reason why Harry and Sophie were even mentioned at all, is so they can cause the big conflict towards the end of the book, which will push Cam to finally realize his feelings for Pen.

I've yet to find a book that I truly enjoy by this author, but I'm not giving up yet. I'm currently reading the last book in the series (book 4, not book 4.5).

[Jaci · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anna Campbell is an amazing storyteller. Her books are pure Historical Romance at it's best. A beautiful love story, lovely sensual scenes and great plots with fascinating characters. Her stories draw you in from the first page to the last, and the endings are very satisfying. This is the third book in the series, and it is as good as the first two. Penelope and Camden have an intense and complicated relationship that keeps you intruigued throughout the story. Anna's prose is sweet, romantic and addictive. I could not put it down. I have read all of her books and always eagerly await her next one. Her descriptions of the period are insightful and historically accurate. Do not miss this one!!!

[Sofia Lazaridou · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am kind of glad that I didn't mark the book as DNF. The first 150 pages were not idyllic. I was bored and tired of the constant hot and cold showers between the two main characters. There waw a lot of tension and passion, but after seeing them get close both emotionally and playsicaly and a minute later arguing or something similar for the 100th time I didn't have the best impression of the book.

I couldn't understand Pen. I don't know if it was pride as come said or something else but I thought she should fight for Cam and not retreat all the time. I wanted to see her fight for Cam and she didn't. She had feelings for him and she was acting as if she had nothing to lose.

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deliciously decadent, angsty, over-the-top novel. I thought Camden and Penelope were both larger than life and their dramatic, years-long relationship was engrossing. The only low point was with the overly sweet, immature romance of Penelope's little brother with a forbidden heiress. That secondary romance played a role in the plot, but with such striking, bold characters in Cam and Pen as the leads, the weaker secondary romance really flopped and I found myself skimming to get back to the drama of Cam and Pen.

You definitely want to be in the mood for a darker, angsty tale when you read this, but if you are, Anna Campbell definitely delivered on this one.

[Betty · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a 4.5 star for me. Narrator, Steve West was a superb Cam, in fact all of his characters, but especially the males, are brilliantly portrayed.

I've only really just started on Anna Campbell's books and whilst they are excellent, and very well written, I do think she drags out an argument/misunderstanding, for far too long. Apart from that criticism, I loved this novel; a friends to lovers, and would definitely recommend it. Ms. Campbell certainly can dish up the swoon worthy heroes!

[Addie]

DNF 27%

[Suzanne (Under the Covers Book blog) · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an unexpected and entirely wonderful surprise! If you follow Under the Covers on Facebook you will have noticed that I have been splashing quotes around for this book for the last couple of weeks, I wanted to share some of my favourite bits of this What a Duke Dares and get everyone else excited about it as well!

Essentially it takes one arrogant duke who doggedly suppresses his feelings due to a difficult childhood and awful parent and throws him at his old childhood friend and the woman who dared turn down his proposal of marriage nine years earlier. The woman in question just happens to be outspoken, eccentric and slightly scandalous, everything he doesn’t want in his future duchess. Add a shipwreck, a besotted younger brother and a few London balls full of vicious gossips, then you have What a Duke Dares.

The romance between Cam (the repressed duke) and Penelope (his tormentor) was contentious, full of tension, mainly of the sexual kind and unsaid feelings. This made the book both exciting and threaded through with heat right from the start, but also a frustrating. I very much wanted them both to get over their fears and just be happy together, instead they bickered and have fantastic sex.

This also contained something else that I love; a secondary romance. This took place between Pen’s younger brother and Cam’s enemy’s beloved younger sister. Already you can see disaster brewing. I loved the contrast though between both the romances, Harry and Sophie’s was sweet and straightforward, the only thing holding the back were their impossible circumstances; a penniless younger son from a notorious family doesn’t marry a rich sister of a duke. Whereas Pen and Cam had a carnal, passionate and emotionally complex relationship, but had perfect circumstances, they were already married.

However, as much as I did enjoy it, the reason it is a little shy of 5 stars is that I found at times the pacing to be rather slow, it seemed to take a while for the book to make any progress. This is part of the reason I enjoyed the secondary romance so much, it gave you timeout from the main couple and added some movement to the book. It also did the same thing a lot of other romances do, the hero and heroine didn’t come together properly till the last part of the book, all in a large and grand gesture, and suddenly all their problems were solved.

I really enjoyed this book, it managed to surprise me after being a bit underwhelmed by the previous book in this series. It had the right mix of romance, humour and heat that had me glued to my kindle avidly turning the pages and I highly recommend you give it a try.

*ARC provided by publisher