London - 1819

Arabella Stoke’s father is not well and their family’s financial circumstances have dropped significantly. Her father had made an unwise investment with a man and now finds himself swindled out of all of his money. Her mother spends a lot of time at her husband’s bedside.

When Arabella is out walking her mother’s dog one morning, he gets away from her. Running after him results in her accidentally knocking into a gentleman. She is dressed as a servant so people won’t know that she is reduced to walking her own dog. The gentleman she ran into very kindly helps her look for and find the dog.

Arabella is finding it difficult to be without money. She had loved being part of the Spitfire Society which is a group of young spinster women who prefer to stay single, live in a home of their own and live life as they want. Her two friends, Phoebe Lennox and Jane Pemberton are happy in their lives as young spinster women.

Arabella’s mother is urging her to find a wealthy man and get married right away as the family needs the money. That is certainly easier said than done.

Graham Kinsley, the seventh Duke of Halstead, inherited a pile of debt along with his title. Halstead Manor is not bringing in any money and the mortgage on Brixton Park, just outside London, will soon be foreclosed on. The previous duke had made some very bad investments and after going through the paperwork he left behind, it appears he had been swindled out of his money. Therefore, Graham has no other option but to marry an heiress.

Graham and Arabella meet again at a ball and she confides about her father. He confides that he, too, is poor. No matter, they are attracted to one another. Graham knows that without selling Brixton Park, he won’t have any money with which to fix up and keep Halstead Manor. He wants Arabella to have a good life and knows he cannot offer her much.

Graham has learned that the man who swindled the previous duke and also Arabella’s father, along with countless others is Piers Tibbord. Now, Graham has made it his mission to find this man and make him return the monies that he stole from people. However, he only wishes he had the money to offer for Arabella.

I really liked this story. Both Arabella and Graham are strong people and make a wonderful couple. Boo-Hiss to the man who swindled money from all those people. However, those people were stupid to fall for his get rich quick schemes. I wanted to plant my foot in Arabella’s father’s butt for lying in bed wasting away at his stupidity with his wife and daughter waiting on him. Gah! Get up and be a man! Take charge and get your money back, weakling! I guess my comments prove that the author’s story got my ire up! Well done, Darcy Burke!

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Enjoyable Story.
A swindler has ruined more than one family who was already in desperate straits but who is he, and can he be compelled to return the money he took? If not then both the new Duke of Halstead and Miss Arabella Stoke will need to marry for money and not follow up on the attraction between them. I enjoyed both the characters and the storyline. Great start to a new series
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

When Graham Kingsley was secretary to the Earl of St. Ives, he made a good living and was happy. Now he has inherited a title. He is the Duke of Halstead, the impoverished Duke of Halstead. As much as he hates it, he needs to marry for money.

Not long ago, Miss Arabella Stoke was to marry David, Earl of St. Ives. He fell in love with and married another. Arabella holds no grudge because she believes in marrying for love. Unfortunately, her family is in dire straits, and, as much as she hates it, she must marry for money.

Graham and Arabella meet at the home of Phoebe Lennox, a wealthy heiress (just what Graham is looking for), the founder of the Sptifire Society (a group of women who intend to be very independent), and a friend of Arabella. Two things happen when these two meet. One, they discover that their financial problems may have been brought about by the same swindler. Two, even though a match between them seems impossible, they fall in love. Can they find the swindler and recoup the money he cheated them out of? Can they each move aside while the other makes an advantageous match? Quite a dilemma they face. They may need help.

Never Have I Never With a Duke is a wonderful start for a new series. I love Graham and Arabella. They are duty-bound, determined to do what is right for those who depend on them, and absolutely meant for each other. I love the way they put their heads together to solve the swindler puzzle. Now if they can just figure out that happily ever after thing. With a strong cast of secondary characters, friends and family, they might just find a way. Besides the worrisome dilemma, this is a quick and entertaining story, cute and fun. I happily recommend it.

I received an ARC of this book from the author and publisher via NetGalley. My review is voluntary.

Darcy Burke keeps your attention like no other. Never Have I Ever With A Duke brings together a special couple who are both suffering due to the bad decisions of others. The Duke of Halstead is the handsome man we met previously when he was secretary to David, the Earl of St. Ives. David was Arabella’s former betrothed. David met and fell in love with Fanny in The Duke of Kisses. David considered Arabella to be dull. That she certainly is not!

Arabella is strong, brave, independent, loving and giving. Graham sees her for the passionate woman she is and falls in love with her knowing they cannot make a match. He and Arabella join together to find the mysterious man who swindled her father and the previous duke, placing them both in the position of needing to marry a wealthy spouse. What follows is a charming story of their search for the swindler and their sensual relationship. I loved Arabella’s honesty and questions when she and Graham do come together for their first lovemaking.

Graham loves the family home he inherited along with the dukedom but realizes there are more important things than brick and mortar. He has a lot of the same qualities as Arabella as you will see in his actions.

You will love this first in the Spitfire Society series. Ms. Burke is great about mixing characters between her books to give you that feeling of community when you read her romances. Characters from other books are part of the Spitfire Society, too. Can’t wait for Phoebe and Ripley’s story. They are as different as two people can be!

This was a well written, interesting story based around the early version of a pyramid scheme. You encourage someone to invest with you a small amount, give a great return, then you obtain bigger and bigger amounts as the returns peter out.
Meantime, these investments fund the next mug investor’s return.
In a time when there are no computers. Few detectives or police, scattered newspapers, and very little formal money management (but lots of gossip about the great amounts to be made in trade, furs, gold etc in the coffee shops of the era), this type of scheme is easy to concoct. Employ a 3rd party as the intermediary and you are well hidden. Until someone figures out your scheme and plays detective.
All layered on top of a Regency Romance.
Nice.
Darcy Burke does this. She takes a social issue and weaves it into her story, from poverty, to female emancipation, to education. It gives the stories that bit extra.

*ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

This is the first book of The Spitfire Society series featuring Arabella Stoke and Graham, the new Duke of Halstead. Arabella’s family was suffering from financial struggles due to her father’s ill-advised investments and gaming debts. The only way for them to escape the situation was for her to marry a wealthy man. Graham suddenly inherited an impoverished dukedom from his relative, who left behind huge debts and financial obligations upon his death. And the only way for him to rescue the dukedom was to marry an heiress. While they were both desperate to find their respective advantageous marriages, they decided to join force to investigate the swindler who took away their money and wished to retrieve it without resorting to loveless marriages. Their romance continued to grow the more time they spent together.

Although the plot sounded intriguing, I found their romance lack a bit of sparks and chemistry, their falling in love was not so convincing, as they were both looking for other prospects who could potentially rescue them from their destitution. However, I enjoyed both characters as they were honest and responsible, trying their best to support and help each other through their difficult time. Darcy’s writing style was pleasant and enjoyable with easy flow.

I’m actually looking forward to the next book featuring the infamous rake, the Marquess of Ripley, who played quite a significant role in this book, and Phoebe, a member of the Spitfire Society who had no interest in matrimony.

Never Have I Ever is book 1 in the Spitfire’s Society series by Darcy Burke. If you are familiar with DB’s other novels you will be pleased to know that a number of characters from the Untouchables series make cameo appearances. Graham Kinsley, a former secretary, inherits an impoverished dukedom and becomes the 7th Duke of Halstead. He concedes that he must find an heiress to marry and enable him to repay his debts. He meets Arabella who is seeking a rich husband to help her family who now destitute having lost all their funds to a poor investment. Together they find love. I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review. All comments are my own.

Darcy is an amazing storyteller that you don't want to put her books down. Engaging characters with so much heart and depth.

Never Have I Ever With a Duke by Darcy Burke is the first book of a new Series The Spitfire Society. The book starts a new series about women who do not want to get married, but it is the time of the regency and there were expectations for young women of the ton. The Spitfire Society was a group of women who were unmarried, and wanted to be upfront and honest.

Leaving the shackles of expectations was quite interesting to Arabella Stoke. It was not an option for her. Her family’s finances were in shreds and she needed to marry money and do so fast! The one man that interests her, she met while walking her mother’s dog. The only problem was she was dressed as a maid and not the lady she was.

How would Graham Kinsley know who she was? How was she supposed to know that he was newly a duke and needed money to save his family’s land? Later when they met - they both knew the impossibility of what they were feeling…

A great new novel for a new series! Never Have I Ever With a Duke by Darcy Burke was a hot fun read.

I am a big fan of Darcy Burke and was excited to see this new series.
Arabella Stoke and Graham Kinsley meet one morning under unusual circumstances and have an instant attraction. Little did they know that they were both in similar straights. Almost penniless and in need of marriage to a wealthy spouse in order to save their families and homes. Unfortunately, that means they can't have each other. When they realize both of their families had been swindled by the same person they try to work on finding the devious fellow and try to regain the fortunes that were lost. Perhaps there will be benefit to Graham's newly inherited title of Duke.
I fell in love with both Arabella and Graham. Arabella is independent and wants to secure her future for her family. Graham is intelligent, having been the secretary to the Earl of St. Ives, and tries desperately to save his side of the family's legacy, the home his ancestor built. They try to keep their attraction a secret along with their financial difficulties.
I loved that this book didn't end with the circumstances all neatly settled. Makes me want to have the next book in the series in my hands to read right away
Arabella is an honorary Spitfire as she wants to be married but has a great friendship with the other ladies of the Society, Pheobe and Jane. I am looking forward to reading their stories.
I received an advance readers copy for an honest review.

A destitute duke willing to do whatever it takes to save his family legacy. A penniless Miss desperate for a wealthy match to save her family from debtors’ prison. They’re the farthest thing from an answer to each other’s financial woes, but the heart wants what it wants. Graham and Arabella are refreshingly different characters for historical romance. She’s spirited and independent while being devoted to her family’s wellbeing. He’s a duke who grew up without knowing the first thing about how to be a peer himself. Together, they’re sweet and clueless and adorable. I would have loved to have seen a solution where they achieve all of their goals, but I like the realism of the sacrifices they make. I look forward to seeing what in store for the other Spitfires.
I received a complimentary advanced copy of this book from the author through NetGalley.

Graham Kinsley, having worked as the secretary of the Earl of St Ives, has inherited a title, the Duke of Halstead. The only problem is that the estate is nearly insolvent and so he has to marry in order to save Brixton Park, a home that is dear to him, due to his father’s link to the property. He meets Arabella Stokes in the park, who is dressed as a maid walking the family dog. He meets her again in his quest to find an heiress, but soon they come to realise that they are both without funds and need to marry. However, their growing attraction to each other means that any feelings that they have for each other, must soon be separated from the reality of their situation.
Both characters were strong willed, and I found the story quite entertaining. I must admit that their romantic interludes seemed slightly improbable, given the time period. However, as always, Darcy Burke weaves an interesting story, with great main and secondary characters.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Never Have I Ever With a Duke was a fantastic start to a new historical romance series with an amazing romance and a delightful group of characters.

As the son of a secretary, Graham Kinsley never imagined he’d inherit a dukedom, let alone a bankrupt one. With one month to repay a loan, Graham needs to marry an heiress fast. But after meeting the penniless Miss Arabella Stoke, Graham finds himself falling hard. After discovering the same scoundrel stole money from them both, the two begin working together on a plan to recover the money and fix their futures. If only the two could stop falling for each other long enough to accomplish their goal.

After her family lost their money, Arabella has felt pressured to make a good match. With her father bedridden due to illness caused by stress, the family’s salvation has fallen to Arabella and you could feel how desperate she was to save them in the hopes her father would get better. I admired Arabella’s ingenuity in coming up with ways to keep anyone from finding out about their situation while at the same time feeling terrible for her due to the weight on her shoulders.

Graham had little to no contact with his family prior to inheriting his title as his side of the family was cut off several generations ago. Before he inherited, Graham worked as a secretary like his father and was comfortable with the direction his life was headed. Graham has no experience with being nobility and it was interesting watching him try and gain his footing in a world he was previously only on the fringes of.

Arabella and Graham’s relationship was full of banter with the two having fantastic chemistry. I loved their meetings in the park and watching them fight their attraction, knowing it was pointless. The fencing lessons in particular were some of my favorite scenes as the sexual tension in those scenes was off the charts. When their relationship does progress, it’s wonderfully done with some amazing scenes. I thought the way the money situation was resolved was well done and I was happy with the direction the author chose to go in.

This book is connected to the author’s other series, The Untouchables, with a number of characters from that series showing up in this one. I have not read any of The Untouchables books, but I am now very interested in picking them up as I want to know more about the characters that popped up in this book.

Overall Never Have I Ever With a Duke was an amazing read and I’m looking forward to the next book in the series. I will definitely be reading more from this author in the future.

Never Have I Ever is book 1 in the Spitfire’s Society series by Darcy Burke. I thought this book started off very strong. Graham Kinsley has inherited an insolvent dukedom and he must find a wealthy heiress to rescue him. Arabella Stoke’s family has been financially devastated as well and she must also find a wealthy man to wed. But when sparks fly between Graham and Arabella what are they to do when being together means they lose everything. The trop of someone needing to be rescued from financial ruin through marriage is common enough and probably very common during this era of history. I liked the character of Graham. But not everything about him made sense. He’s employed himself for years as a trained secretary so managing an estate comes as second nature to him. The underlying mystery to me is why doesn’t he just instantly sell his estate Brixton Park? He claims that his attachment is very deep and very personal, but that doesn’t make sense when Graham’s ancestral line has been ignored for four generations. Another mystery is Graham’s relationship with his father. One of the reasons that Graham claims he wants to keep Brixton Park is because his father had cared about it. “Sell the one thing Graham’s father had cared about the most aside from his late wife and beloved son?” But then later in the book we find that his father didn’t care enough about Graham to prepare him to take over the bankrupt estate. Granted the villain in the story declares the following so it may not be true, “The money is gone. Furthermore, His Grace didn’t care. He suspected there would be no return, but as he was not long for this world, he said it would be your problem and he didn’t give a fig if you were bankrupted or not.” A father who loved his son but at the end of his life didn’t care to prepare him for the insolvency of his inherited estate? It didn’t make sense.
I liked the various male relationships that Graham has. A number of characters are from Burke’s other novels in the Untouchables series: The Duke of Seduction, The Duke of Kisses and The Duke of Distraction. Anthony The Viscount Colton is mentioned briefly in The Duke Distraction but he plays a more prominent role in this book as a friend of Grahams along with the Marquess of Ripley.
As for the romance between Graham and Arabella I felt it was too compressed and quite frankly too modern. There wasn’t enough sexual tension building up to the climax of the characters coming together. I felt more could have been done to enhance the relationship and their attraction for one another. There just didn’t feel like much depth there. I have enjoyed Burke’s Untouchables series immensely. I’m afraid this book fell a bit short for me.

Arabella and Graham are both in a fix. her father had been swindled out of his money, and Graham inherited a dukedom that had been swindled. They join forces to find out who the culprit is, only to find love. I wasn’t sure how this was going to end an HEA but it does, and leaves one smiling.

Here is the thing, this story started with a lotta drama and intrigue, which took up the first half of the book. It gave me the impression that it was going to be, you know, another run of the mill type. But Arabella proves me wrong, she knows what she wants and who and wasn’t ashamed of going for it. She is determined to fight for her man, money or not. In my book, she is a woman of class and Graham a man of honor. I love how they heated up the pages in the second half of the book.

Arabella and Graham are both penniless due to their family’s poor decisions. They each need to marry someone of wealth. They fall in love and must decide what really is most important in life. Can’t wait to read the next in the series! I received an ARC for my honest review.

Graham Kinsley finds himself a duke and impoverished which means he needs an heiress. Arabella Stokes is also in need of a rich husband. Their families have each been taken to the cleaners financially and need to get back on the plus side again. They decide to work together to try to get their fortunes back. Can they get the money swindled from this character? In the process of trying to work it out they fall in love. Now they really do have a problem. You will see how they work it out.

I have read all of Darcy Burke’s books and always enjoy them. This one wasn’t my favorite, it just felt like something was missing. That being said I look forward to the next. Thank you to netgalley for the ARC!

Pros: the characterizations, hands down, and an ejoyable play against the usual the tropes (but not in the stereotypical "she's not like all the <i>other</i> girls" and "he's a <i>rebel</i> gentleman" way" you usually see). They're both pragmatic and practical about it, even if they waver between various feelings of guilt and embarrassment and acceptance about. For Arabella, marrying for wealth is the only way to rescue her family, even if she'd rather have an option for love or independence; it's the only option left. Graham's searching for another way for the money, but he knows marriage is the best way and he has to marry eventually anyway, right?

Spoiler-y pros: {SPOILERS} I really appreciated that Arabella had been in love before and had no regrets or apologies about it, only a wistful remembrance about what might've been (and I was super surprised that he never did a surprise return for a conflict during the book considering he left England to make his fortune. Maybe he'll eventually be a character in a sequel?) and that Graham struggled with ~emotions and feelings~ before Arabella ever did. Also, I'm so happy that Arabella gave zero cares about St. Ives and had no bitterness, even when Graham felt awkward about his bff's role in her life. {/SPOILERS}

Cons: A few of the motifs felt forced, or at least placed for future series set-up. The plot meandered a bit and felt a little flat, especially considering it has one of my favorite things (a con man/scheme). However... it also ended on a really good set-up that's going to make me search out the second book. (Even if I'm not sure how much I like the proposed pairing.)

<b>tl;dr</b>: This a was a solid, unconventionally fun 3.5 series starter that not only enticed me to look for book #2, but also convinced me I need to go look for more of Darcy Burke's stuff.

Disclaimer: Thanks Netgalley & publisher for the free ARC, with no incentive or coercion on your parts!

Goodreads shelves: bookshelves: historical-romance, netgalley, 3-to-4-stars, 4-stars, arc-read, family-matters, friend-tp, i-ship-it, read-in-2019, you-go-girl