What do you think?
Rate this book
Ruthless Regency Dukes #4
The Guardian
Hunter St. John, the Duke of Lincoln, is far too busy hunting the person who murdered one of his closest friends to deal with the problem of his young ward, Miss Evelyn Gardener. Indeed, for the most part he chooses to forget her very existence. That is made easier by the fact he sent her, along with her governess, to his remotest ducal estate in Yorkshire years ago and has seen very little of her since.
Receiving a missive from that governess, informing him that his young ward has run away, is not only inconvenient to his own plans but disobedient in the extreme on hers.
Something Miss Evelyn Gardener will soon learn to her detriment.
Once Hunter has succeeded in finding her, of course…
Evie is tired of living in the country and being ignored by her guardian, the toplofty Duke of Lincoln. To that end she has decided to travel to London and make him acknowledge that, at nineteen years of age, she is no longer a child for him to ignore.
It is hardly her fault if, on the long journey to England’s capital, she is waylaid and captured by a group of footpads.
Nor, when she hears those men discussing demanding a ransom from her guardian in exchange for her release, is she at all sure the Duke of Lincoln will bother himself to pay that ransom. Indeed, she believes the duke might happily wash his hands of her.
When the two of them do finally meet again sparks certainly do fly, but not of the kind either of them had expected…
Receiving a missive from that governess, informing him that his young ward has run away, is not only inconvenient to his own plans but disobedient in the extreme on hers.
Something Miss Evelyn Gardener will soon learn to her detriment.
Once Hunter has succeeded in finding her, of course…
Evie is tired of living in the country and being ignored by her guardian, the toplofty Duke of Lincoln. To that end she has decided to travel to London and make him acknowledge that, at nineteen years of age, she is no longer a child for him to ignore.
It is hardly her fault if, on the long journey to England’s capital, she is waylaid and captured by a group of footpads.
Nor, when she hears those men discussing demanding a ransom from her guardian in exchange for her release, is she at all sure the Duke of Lincoln will bother himself to pay that ransom. Indeed, she believes the duke might happily wash his hands of her.
When the two of them do finally meet again sparks certainly do fly, but not of the kind either of them had expected…
156 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 31, 2023
16 people are currently reading
21 people want to read
About the author
Carole Mortimer
1,299 books909 followersI have written almost 250 romance novels in contemporary and Regency.
I am a USA Today Bestselling Author and recipient of the 2015 RWA Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2014 I received a Pioneer of Romance Award from Romantic Times in the US and in 2012 I was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II for my 'outstanding service to literature'.
I am very happily married to Peter with six sons, and live on the Isle of Man
I am a USA Today Bestselling Author and recipient of the 2015 RWA Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2014 I received a Pioneer of Romance Award from Romantic Times in the US and in 2012 I was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II for my 'outstanding service to literature'.
I am very happily married to Peter with six sons, and live on the Isle of Man
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
June 18, 2025
DNF at the end of chapter 5.
Deep sigh.
So this story has a Duke that sent his new 14 yr old ward off to live on one of his far away properties 5 yrs prior to the start of the story. This ward/heroine is the daughter of the Duke/hero’s father’s mistress. And our hero disliked her on the spot because of her being the daughter of his father's mistress. (don’t worry if you forget this tidbit, you will be reminded many times)
Well the heroine is tired of being ignored, so she decides to run away to London, find our hero (her guardian) and demand some fun in her life, dammit! But she is unfortunately kidnapped the second she leaves her house. The hero is finally informed, he arrives to rescue her… and this is where I lost all hope for the story.
The hero walks up to where the campsite is where the 6 kidnappers are, hears the heroine’s raspy/seductive voice, sees her hair, lips and plump creamy breasts (that were flat as a pancake 4 yrs ago, how did that happen, he wonders?!) and his member immediately becomes engorged. Really? …side-eye. Each time he hears her voice, his britches become a bit tighter. Moving along…. He gets kidnapped on the spot and tied up as well.
Which leads me to the next implausible scene. With 6 kidnappers sitting right there with them around the campfire, the hero tells the heroine to untie his hands, he grabs a knife from his boot and cuts the rope around his feet. How?!?! How did the kidnappers not notice this, they were sitting RIGHT THERE?!?
Which then leads me to the Delete-From-Device moment. The hero didn’t like the heroine’s sassy comments from 5 minutes earlier, so the second he is untied, he grabs the heroine, throws her over his lap, flips her dress up, bares her ass to all SIX kidnappers watching with their mouths hanging open, and spanks her. He gets super duper hard now, and she’s confused because it felt so good and doesn’t understand why she’s so wet that it felt likes she peed herself.
That’s not romance. That’s not showing us how they go from being a reluctant guardian to slowly seeing the ward as a woman and falling in love with her. All it showed me was insta-lust, and the all too common nowadays spanking scene that I find is just a checkmark on authors to-do lists to make sure the story is edgy. It’s only edgy if it’s romantic at the same time. Nothing about that scene was romantic or charming.
Deep sigh.
So this story has a Duke that sent his new 14 yr old ward off to live on one of his far away properties 5 yrs prior to the start of the story. This ward/heroine is the daughter of the Duke/hero’s father’s mistress. And our hero disliked her on the spot because of her being the daughter of his father's mistress. (don’t worry if you forget this tidbit, you will be reminded many times)
Well the heroine is tired of being ignored, so she decides to run away to London, find our hero (her guardian) and demand some fun in her life, dammit! But she is unfortunately kidnapped the second she leaves her house. The hero is finally informed, he arrives to rescue her… and this is where I lost all hope for the story.
The hero walks up to where the campsite is where the 6 kidnappers are, hears the heroine’s raspy/seductive voice, sees her hair, lips and plump creamy breasts (that were flat as a pancake 4 yrs ago, how did that happen, he wonders?!) and his member immediately becomes engorged. Really? …side-eye. Each time he hears her voice, his britches become a bit tighter. Moving along…. He gets kidnapped on the spot and tied up as well.
Which leads me to the next implausible scene. With 6 kidnappers sitting right there with them around the campfire, the hero tells the heroine to untie his hands, he grabs a knife from his boot and cuts the rope around his feet. How?!?! How did the kidnappers not notice this, they were sitting RIGHT THERE?!?
Which then leads me to the Delete-From-Device moment. The hero didn’t like the heroine’s sassy comments from 5 minutes earlier, so the second he is untied, he grabs the heroine, throws her over his lap, flips her dress up, bares her ass to all SIX kidnappers watching with their mouths hanging open, and spanks her. He gets super duper hard now, and she’s confused because it felt so good and doesn’t understand why she’s so wet that it felt likes she peed herself.
That’s not romance. That’s not showing us how they go from being a reluctant guardian to slowly seeing the ward as a woman and falling in love with her. All it showed me was insta-lust, and the all too common nowadays spanking scene that I find is just a checkmark on authors to-do lists to make sure the story is edgy. It’s only edgy if it’s romantic at the same time. Nothing about that scene was romantic or charming.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 10, 2023
Wow, I don't know where to start. This story was really enjoyable, although I was a little startled with the storyline. It was a little OTT with the sexy bits for me and the Duke was too domineering. Saying that, I still enjoyed the read. 5☆
April 25, 2023
I like Carole Mortimer generally. This story just sort of has a "ick" factor. The Hero is the heroine's guardian. This poor girl has been completely isolated and vulnerable. (for example: she asks her elderly companion what the heat between her legs means.) It just felt like the Hero was more of a bully. BTW: Who spanks a young woman you met a couple of hours earlier?
February 16, 2025
REALLY Short 🤔
I love this author! Yet, I've noticed a pattern recently that each book, although complete, is very short. Shorter than a novela. Great characters and a continuation of a mystery that the Ruthless Dukes are trying to solve. This however focused on a mere afternoon, a few sporadic interludes , and a mention that a few weeks were actually part of their gaining the beginning of a happy ever after. No cheating or cliffhanger. Good, yet disappointing. 🧐
I love this author! Yet, I've noticed a pattern recently that each book, although complete, is very short. Shorter than a novela. Great characters and a continuation of a mystery that the Ruthless Dukes are trying to solve. This however focused on a mere afternoon, a few sporadic interludes , and a mention that a few weeks were actually part of their gaining the beginning of a happy ever after. No cheating or cliffhanger. Good, yet disappointing. 🧐
April 1, 2023
Hot and steamy this is the story of Hunter and Evie. Annoyed to be distracted by word of his ward running away from his investigation into the murder of another of the Ruthless Dukes he sets off for his estate in Yorkshire to find his ward who he last saw five years ago had been abducted and held for ransom. The sparks fly and attraction is mutual. Another great read from this author
April 6, 2023
Another magnificent addition to the series
This is another magnificently constructed Tale that is a great addition to this brilliant series. The air of suspense and emotional turmoil, when combined with the amazingly crafted characters, make this steamy story a a very engaging piece of reading.
This is another magnificently constructed Tale that is a great addition to this brilliant series. The air of suspense and emotional turmoil, when combined with the amazingly crafted characters, make this steamy story a a very engaging piece of reading.
May 27, 2023
Winner
Another awesome read from a great series. The love and laughter was what made this book a awesome read. I definitely recommend this book and all of the rest in the series. Get your copies today.📚😍💥📚😍💥📚😍💥
Another awesome read from a great series. The love and laughter was what made this book a awesome read. I definitely recommend this book and all of the rest in the series. Get your copies today.📚😍💥📚😍💥📚😍💥
June 24, 2023
Evie is a delight!
It was very refreshing for Lincoln to realize all of his assumptions to be incorrect. Love Evie's spirit and naivete.
It was very refreshing for Lincoln to realize all of his assumptions to be incorrect. Love Evie's spirit and naivete.
July 23, 2023
The heroes were very nice
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews