Wow, just wow! That’s how I want to start when I describe the hero and heroine in this book. The hero, Caleb, Duke of Colehaven is absolutely swoon worthy. He is so kind and sweet that my heart went pitter patter just reading about him in the first chapter. And the heroine, Diana Middleton, is oh so brave and intelligent. She goes around in disguises as a "weights and measures inspections secretary" and is passionate about standardizing weights and measures. I absolutely adored their story and their sexy romance. This is book one in the Wicked Books club series and I would definitely urge you to pick it up.

* I received this ARC and from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review*

This was an enjoyable book to read .The main characters were funny,kind and interesting. This book had everything drama, history and taught me about the trials women had to endure. It was a romance with a happy ending but it was so well written, I do like reading Erica Ridley books and was not disappointed. I recommend it to be read and enjoyed.

One Night of Seduction⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️by Erica Ridley

The series based on the notorious men who patronize the famous tavern The Wicked Duke. As many tavern of this era gambling and bets were placed.

Duke of Colehaven is dared to find a husband before the end of the season for a supposed Wallflower Diana Middleton. Predictable situation of the matchmaker falling in love with his charge prevails. That being said the powerful angst of Ms Ridley keeps us enjoying this story from being to end. I love it.

actually enjoyed this book more than I thought I would.
Yes, it was predictable but in the very best way. The villain was clear from the outset and, although there was mention of previous heroines, it didn't matter that I hadn't read the previous books in the series.
I did call the majority of the "big reveals" before they happened but it didn't take away my enjoyment and I still couldn't put it down.
I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Heat Factor: Not very much seduction
Character Chemistry: Woman sniping at man is usually good chemistry, right?
Plot: The only way I can have my dream is to be single, so please step off
Overall: Pretty consistently frustrating

The premise of this story is: Brilliant heroine avoids marriage so she can lead her double life secret crusade to save the world. Duke with something to prove and a penchant for taking dares can’t resist meddling in brilliant heroine’s life.

On the whole, the story is engagingly written, and the back-and-forth between the protagonists was believable in terms of chemistry creation. Unfortunately, it also falls into some genre traps, which is the primary focus of this review. It also had some steady pacing and then just … ended. I did not expect the resolution to occur when it did, although for what it was, it was well constructed.

One of my least favorite plotlines is centered on an ostensibly intelligent heroine making a decision about her life and categorically refusing to consider any alternative pathways. This heroine is typically presented as a strong woman, a woman out of time, struggling with the burden of historical limitations on her freedoms. The hero blunders by treating her like fluff, and has to do some level of grovelling in order to get us across the finish line to HEA land. It’s so obnoxious, and this book that's engagingly written and has likeable characters is a good example of why that is.

Even though she likes pretty things and dancing and human interaction, Diana Middleton has decided that she needs to be invisible in her aristocratic milieu because her contribution to society can only be made by enforcing a weights and measures law (it’s more important that the common man can buy bread than that she attend balls) (which, I grant you, is true). So here’s Diana, on her crusade, deliberately sabotaging the possibility of a relationship (or, really, a life that she actually wants at all, because she does like dancing and pretty dresses, etc.), and it’s for a noble cause, yes, but for a really stupid reason. If she’s so brilliant, how does she not realize that there are alternatives for her to accomplish meaningful work, like playing power games in the milieu of powerful people? She just assumes she has to be someone else (demure and insipid) if she wants marriage. How could she stand on the sidelines of every social event and not see that there are different kinds of powerful women in society? And yet here we are, with Diana’s myopic determination.

In steps our duke, Cole, meddling where he wasn’t wanted, because he can’t resist a dare. He honestly can’t comprehend that a woman wouldn’t want to get married, and all of his actions stem from that assumption. It is a superior and condescending mindset, but not outlandish in the context of 19th century England upper class society. And yet, when Cole develops feelings for Diana, he likes her for all the things she’s doing in her secret life, and he thinks of all the things they could accomplish together. He doesn’t articulate it well, I grant you, but he certainly thinks it. Diana doesn’t think of all the things they could do together. She thinks he wants to change her...So he has to change. Frankly, if the two protagonists, Cole seems more on board with the give-and-take compromise that is the unified path of a long-term relationship. Hence the grovel.

And lastly, it turns out Diana does want to get married, so I guess all the condescension on Cole’s part isn’t that far off the mark. Because we shouldn’t believe women when they say they don’t want marriage, after all.

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. We disclose this in accordance with 16 CFR §255.

This review is also available at The Smut Report.

This was an absolutely-delightful, romantic romp. It had all the essential elements that make for a great, historical romance read. The story line was interesting, and the characters were complex and rich with life. I enjoyed this book immensely!

#WickedDukes #NetGalley

This was a lovely story! A really charming story! I usually enjoy historical romance books, but finding a character like Diana was resfreshing. She is very independent, persistent, intelligent... The character's development was amazing (especially Diana's). Their relationship ended up being perfect. They work well together. They complement each other. It was nice to dive in this romantic book with a spicy touch! This was the first book I've read from Erica Ridley, but she has already become one of my favourite authors.

The Wicked Dukes Club series starts off strong with One Night for Seduction! I really enjoyed Cole and Diana's story. I loved that she wasn't content with her lot in life and (literally!) invented her own vocation (a "covert agent out on the streets avenging misapplied mathematics," LOL)--and I also loved that he soon became one of the few people in England able to see through the disguises and smokescreens she put up to see the true Diana. It took him a little longer than it should have to realize her real reasons for not wanting to marry; but eventually he does, and thank goodness--the two of them are very clearly MFEO ;)

It's really easy for a romance that starts off as a wager to go off into squicky territory, but thank goodness this one didn't. As soon as he realized he was developing feelings for Diana, Cole ended the wager, even though it meant breaking his decade-long winning streak. A true gentleman :)

Ms. Ridley did a fantastic job of building relationships here--not just between Cole and Diana, but also between Cole and his friends (fellow "wicked dukes"), Cole and his sister Felicity (I can't wait for her book!), and (more tentatively) Diana and Felicity. The easy camaraderie between people who have known each other for years was fun to read, as was the banter between Diana and Cole. This is my favorite book from this author yet; I can't wait to see what she does with the rest of her share of this series!

Rating: 4 stars / A-

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

Another Wicked Duke story from Erica Ridley. She is quickly becoming one of my favorite romance authors. Colehaven always wins his bets. Diana Middleton is the subject of his latest bet. She is not your typical young woman, but her activities are a secret. Following Colehaven as he follows Diana is fun. And what man doesn't like a lady who knows how to make good beer?

I really enjoyed this book. I felt like the Heroine had realistic desires and a strong reasoning to stick to her guns. Their attraction felt realistic as they came from similar interests despite their initial antagonism.

Feisty and witty, with a dash of hard headedness and a whole lot of delicious tension. This is a quick and fulfilling book, well written, and entertaining. The more of Ms Ridley’s work I read, the more books I want.

I absolutely loved reading this book. The characters are so easily believable and you can’t help but get engrossed in this book and get drawn in. I think you know from the start that the Duke will fall in love with Diana as their intelligence levels and passion is on the same level and they can argue with each other and come to the same conclusion. They have a natural ease about them which the writer very cleverly gets this across in the book. You know that together Diana can help the Duke in his quest and she can maintain her pursuits whilst getting her voice heard. I felt their love blossomed quite quickly as they had a meeting of minds and it’s great to see that other future are also built into the book which I cannot wait to read about. This is an amazing excellent book, extremely well written, a very easy read.

The Duke of Colehaven can’t resist a wager and has never lost one either. This time the challenge is to find a husband for his friend’s “unmarriageable” cousin and ward, Diana. There are rules, of course. Cole can’t marry her himself, nor can he pay someone else to do so. Diana has to want to marry the man. Impossible? Apparently, but Cole is determined to succeed. Step one, meet the woman. It does not go well. Diana is an independent woman, determined to make the world a better place. Marriage would give her husband the power to prevent her from doing what she feels she must. Thus begins a delightful journey with two strong characters each determined, at first, to resist one another, but clearly doomed to fail. What a splendid start to a new series.

I am definitely in the minority here but I ended up not really enjoying this novel.

While I enjoyed Diana’s spirit and her devotion to wanting to make a difference, she just really irked me! I found her character to be so repetitive and frustrating at times. Also, I didn’t feel a strong connection between her and Cole. It was so rushed and lacked depth.

I thought that the bet aspect would be a fun way for the story to add drama and intrigue, but it was only the catalyst for these two characters coming together, and didn’t add much to the plot overall.

Generally, this one was a bit boring and disappointing. I really do enjoy regency romances however, and will probably be picking up the sequel due to curiousity.

Loved the story. Loved the characters. 5 stars.
Unusually I can't really pick one favourite character: I like Diana because she's a woman ahead of her time who knows her self worth. She's organised and smart with backbone. I like Cole because even though he's a Duke (and therefore supposedly perfect as is) he's constantly learning and pushing himself to be more than he is. I liked the fact that he wasn't the usual overdominating and slightly cocky hero, but rather that he approaches everything with the attitude of "Well there's something I don't know about, so here's a good chance to learn.' This makes him more open to the new ideas and different ways of doing things that Diana excels at.
I also really loved the fact that both of them want to make the world a better place but they're not trying to save the world in one stroke, rather they're trying to make things fairer for every person.
I loved the bit where Cole realises that Diana's dresses are chosen with her hosts décor in mind - the shopping scene was hilarious.
This is the first book in this series, and based on this novel, I'm excited to read more by Erica Ridley.

Diana Middleton does not want to become a married woman, she’d much rather become an unmarried spinster so that she can continue her own goals and mission to rectify the measure and weight system in England. Something which she believes that she can do only by flying under the radar and as a single woman outside of the shackles marriage.

Unfortunately for Diana, her cousin and guardian has other ideas. He wishes to see her married and agrees to allow his friend the Duke of Colehaven to find a match for her. Colehaven is a man known for accepting ridiculous dares and never backing down from a wager. He accepts the challenge to find a match for Diana before the Season ends, with a ten year winning streak he has utter confidence that he will win.

Of course that is until he meets the lady in question. She is a force to be reckoned with, head strong and knows what she wants out of life. As the Duke comes to spend more time with Diana, in order to find her a husband, he finds himself drawn to her and she to him.

This is a beautifully written love story set in 1817, between Caleb Sutton, the Duke of Colehaven, and Diana Middleton. I really loved this story, it was a delightful, fun and easy read for me.

I really loved the characterisation of both Diana and Caleb, and I really enjoyed the journey the two of them had through the story. There were some very funny and witty interactions between the two, that showed the two moving from being near strangers that only know each other through Diana’s cousin and Colehaven’s friend, Thaddeus Middleton, to acquaintances, friends and eventually lovers.

As this is a Romance, obviously the two main characters do have a romantic relationship but it is not without obstacles. I really liked that it wasn’t a straightforward romance and didn’t involve “insta-love”. I really liked that they became friends first before their attraction for the other became more serious.

This is a series that I am very interested in continuing reading and seeing the other characters, the other “Wicked Dukes” finding their match.

Note: This series is being written by Erica Ridley and Dary Burke, with Ridley writing all of the odd numbered books and Burke is writing all of the even numbered books as far as I am aware. Also, each of these books centre around different main characters.

I loved the characters in this series and really enjoyed reading about them. I am looking forward to the next in the series!

Another fantastic book in the Wicked Duke series.

Diana Middleton is an orphan who at 25 years old is still loosely seen as the ward or her cousin Thaddeus. Diana is a woman of intelligence and doesn't see having a place in the ton as a good use of her intellect and take it upon herself to improve lives by challenging injustice where she sees it.

The Duke of Colehaven is on a 10 year winning streak, co proprieter of the Wicked Dukes he is challenged by Thaddeus to find his ward a husband by the end of the season.

When the Duke of Colehaven meets Miss Middleton for the first time blending into the wallpaper at a soiree he realises he may have bitten off more than he can chew.

Another great story in the Wicked Dukes series, its another book where the heroine is not a simpering Miss waiting for a man to complete her but someone who is trying to overthrow the shackles of the ton and make use of her intellect for good.

Love this story of Cole and Diana. He makes a bet that he can find her a husband, not knowing that she does not want one. It is a sweet and funny story where they both learn from one another that sometimes things are just meant to be.

Two very different people both trying to accomplish the same thing. Cole is the duke of Colehaven Middleton a woman who at that time had really no say in things. I enjoyed reading how these two get their happy ending. I will be looking for more books in this series. I received a copy of this book and I am voluntarily reviewing.