A very well-written emotional story that has wonderful characters, suspense and lovely romance made this a book that was very hard to put down. The hero is tortured by bad memories and unwarranted guilt, the heroine was unsuccessful in her first season and has been virtually disowned by her own parents after she decides that she needs to move out and be on her own.

When these two people are brought together by unforeseen circumstances it could lead to something more. Something wonderful The question is whether or not they can work through their problems to find happiness.

Excellent story that will hold your interest and leave you wanting more. Highly recommended!

This was a wonderfully fun read. A tad far fetched for the beginning of their story but it didn’t keep me from enjoying the book.
While this is a stand alone novel, it is also from a series. There are references to the intriguing tale of the main characters’ close friends’ marriage. Usually I am annoyed by the references, but Burke does a fantastic job at hinting at the story. It’s just enough to interest you without giving the whole story away and/or annoying you.
This was my first Darcy Burke novel but definitely NOT my last!

Big fan of Darcy Burke and absolutely love this series.

I love stories where a spinster wants tutored in the art of love and this one was fantastic. I loved both characters a lot. You know it's a great book when your heart is full and you have a big smile on your face when you turn the last page. This was that kind of book for me.

I will read anything written by this author.

From the USA Today bestselling author of The Untouchables series comes your next Regency obsession: The Spitfire Society...
Jane and Anthony are interesting characters in this story from Darcy Burke.. It is amazing and not to be missed.
I received an ARC of this title.

3.5 stars
A well written historical romance with two main characters that for me felt a fit rare to read about in my happily ever after stories. A spinster estranged from her family and a wounded rake that hates himself and his life and his depression makes him fall into a vicious circle of life.
It's not light story as there may include triggers that many readers are avoiding , and to be honest , for me the perfect match of these two characters is not right, i couldn't feel it at all. Yes, there's a lot of steam and maybe chemistry but that's about it, not enough friendship and companion and other feelings that I'm looking foreword in a romance.

This was SOOOO fun. Regency with a healthy helping of sexiness and women with agency!

Jane decides to declare herself a spinster and just go on with her life, set not to marry or have a family. But who should fall on her doorstep shortly after, but a rakeish Duke? Playing nurse to Anthony, they grow closer and she reveals her ideas and how he could help.

These two embark on a great journey of bettering themselves, and I love how Jane supporting Anthony in dealing with his past and grief. And how he saw her and appreciated her and her convictions was perfection.

This was so fabulous and I want to read everything in this series now!

This was a steamy one 🔥 I love that the the plot was multilayered and had a bit of mystery. Jane is strong and knows what she wants. She's definitely not a wallflower. Colton used vices to cover up his indiscretions and vexed heart. This story isn't flowery. It is deep in emotion and life situations. I can't wait for Jane's sisters story with the Viscount.

This story of Anthony and Jane has lots of tension, is light on romance (at least for me) and heavy on lust and angst. Beta hero, who is insecure, self loathing and drunk most of the time.

This is not a light/fun read. The heroine has been disowned by her parents because she is a spinster who refuses to live by society’s rules and doesn’t want to marry the man her parents chose for her. The hero is a rogue, a reprobate and blames himself for the death of parents. He winds up beaten and bruised on Jane’s doorstep for reasons unknown. She takes care of him as he’s her friend’s brother and she asks him to teach her about pleasure because as a spinster she will likely never experience it otherwise. He thoroughly doesn’t want to be loved because he hates himself so much, of course that doesn’t stop her from falling for him and vice versa. Although I don’t understand why 🤦🏻‍♀️ 🤷🏻‍♀️

It is dual perspective which I enjoy, has well written sex scenes but for me there was very little sweetness which I need for their feelings for each other to be believable.

I would not read again as it made me have too many negative feels. However if you like drama, tension, angst, lots of sex without much sweetness and self loathing heros then this is for you. The only joy or humor I found was in her pet kittens. 😕


I received this ARC from Netgalley, this review is given honestly and voluntarily.

I loved this book! I haven't yet found a Darcy Burke book that I don't love! Engaging characters and situations lead to perfect romance.

I really enjoyed this one and have found The Spitfire Society books to be thoroughly engaging! In this book, Jane Pemberton has moved into her friend's house (the official HQ of the Spitfire Society), away from her family, and is embracing her status as a spinster. When she finds an unconscious Viscount Colton on the doorstep one night, she decides to not only nurse him back to health but having found out there was a rumor about her amongst the men of society which contributed to her five failed seasons, she also takes the opportunity to negotiate payment in the form of lessons...the kind she would never be able to ask of anyone else.

I loved how the relationship was built up between these two characters. Anthony has been punishing himself for the deaths of his parents and as he and Jane become friends and ultimately, something more, Jane is the one he finds he is willing to listen to and trust.

I'll definitely be picking up more books by Darcy Burke!

CW: Alcoholism, parental death/murder, grief, parental alienation/abandonment

Third in the Spitfire Society Series, this worked well as a standalone. And despite some of the complex themes, this book did it for me. The intimate scenes were hot (and almost a little spicy), the romance was sweet and well charted, and the characters, although full of flaws, were likeable. I also enjoyed many of the supporting characters which also have their own books.

Jane has had an abysmal run at the Marriage Mart and her parents have now tried to force her to wed someone undesirable. Instead of embracing that path, she has decided to defy them and strike out on her own. With the support of her friends, she establishes her own household (in a now married friend’s former house) and focuses on the Spitfire Society and charitable works.

This is disrupted when Lord Colton appears on her doorstep bruised, battered, and black out drunk.

I want to take a moment to talk about Jane and why she worked for me because, in perusing other reviews I see she didn’t work for others.

First, I think she is not a Mary Sue. She is not the most beautiful, or smartest, or sassiest, or any “most” anything. She is just a woman who knows her own mind and is willing to risk her standing, her relationship with her parents (who are revealed as toxic people), and her future marriage prospects to chart her own path. Other readers found her plain. I get that. Jane is no sparkling diamond. She is, in my opinion, an Every Woman. But you could also see through her actions her character was sound; she was caring, loyal, passionate, and a good friend. I found it refreshing to read a MC who wasn’t “the best” but instead was just generally good.

Others also remarked that they had some trouble with how vocal (they characterized it as aggressive) she is about wanting to have some intimate experiences with Anthony. I found the portrayal to be sex positive and thought it was clear that although Lord Colton had some reservations, he was consenting and interested. Other readers clearly felt she was manipulative, pressuring him, and it ultimately resulted in reluctant consent while he was in his sickbed.

I read back through their first interaction to see if I missed something in my reading. Lord Colton was out of his sick bed and almost ready to return home after a week of bed rest. They had had a kiss the day before, and she goes to him to see if it will be their last night together. What follows is the result of mutual attraction and desire. Lord Colton is reluctant, but the text makes it clear that he is reluctant because he worries his past makes him unworthy of a relationship or more with a lady of quality.

I am usually sensitive about consent, and because I love a good Beta hero, sensitive regardless of the gender. I didn’t find anything objectionable about the intimacy between the two…but I wanted to make sure to include a discussion because some readers were obviously upset about consent. There is a lot of intimate scenes, some kind of lengthy, but I found them to be super hot, not overly graphic, and somewhere between the borderlands of steamy vanilla and hot and spicy. Most was typical cis-hetero sex acts that progress throughout the novel (first base, second base, third and home…) and I found used not overly flowery language, but the breadth and depth may be a bit much for other readers.

Lord Colton is a complicated character who has been burying his grief over the untimely death of his parents by abusing alcohol. He was clearly a rakehell before then, getting in to trouble with gambling and partying, and the grief has just compounded the drinking (although he no longer gambles). This is a theme throughout and I thought very delicately handled by Burke. I liked that the romance didn’t magically cure him, but it did show how vital support systems can be for people battling addictions and grief.

I think both MCs had a nice character arc, the romance was passionate but also deep, and the action towards the second half was interesting without being over the top or melodramatic. This was a book that was easy to burn through and left me satisfied with a great HEA.

I will probably re-read at some point, likely the whole series back to back. I recommend this for readers who are interested in sex-positive Regencies that deal with complex themes and complicated characters who can find atonement, healing, and support in love.

★★★★★★ 5 out of 6 Rake and the spinster who loves him band together to fight past demons

“Thank you for considering my request. I must admit, after hearing you talk tonight, I find I’m more curious than ever. I do hope you’ll agree. If not, perhaps you can recommend someone else.” He bloody well would not! “No. That I will never do. “
“Then I suppose it will have to be you.” She gave him a final saucy smile, then departed. Anthony leaned his head back and groaned. This could be very bad. She wanted him. He wanted her. No one knew he was here, and no one need ever know what went on between them. The temptation was overwhelming and impossibly real. What the hell had he gotten himself into?
What should a spitfire spinster request as payment for rendering aid to a drunk and injured rake? Why payment in the form of private instruction of a scandalous and intimate kind, of course. What follows in the wake of that deal is a titillating, humorous, and emotional story. While I love damsels in distress stories where the heroine is saved by a handsome, rakish man, I love save the hero books even more. When Anthony meets Jane after another one of his nights of self-destructive behavior, he finds himself facing something all men fear- a woman who might actually be good for him.
I love these spitfire ladies. I adore their disregard for society’s rules, their boldness. They’re not afraid to speak their mind and go for what they want. While Jane accepted a possible future alone, deep down she wanted that secret smile of satisfaction her friends wore when they spoke of their husbands. The way their eyes lit with heat and desire when they looked at them. When she met Anthony, the possibilities and the desire for that kind of life were even more keen. And when Anthony’s “tutelage” began, she could think of little else. He made her feel desired, special.
I couldn’t help but love Anthony. There’s just something about a tormented hero. Maybe it’s that inherent desire women have to fix things. And the fact that he didn’t feel worthy of being saved made me love him even more. Anthony suffered from his own demons. The torment of guilt, shame, and regrets made him seek numbness in self-destructive ways. But Jane, with her heart of gold, was able to bring hope to his life. He didn’t want to resort to those behaviors because they would dull his time with her. “Let me help you bury the past so that you can be a different man, the man you want to be.” She watched his chest rise and fall as he struggled for breath. Her heart ached for him. “I don’t know who that is.” She gave him a warm, encouraging smile. “Then let’s find out together.”
These two characters were perfect together. They saw the strengths of the other and supported each other. Their road to happily ever after wasn’t easy but those obstacles only made it that more satisfying to see them find happiness in each other. There’s tremendous humor and steam in this story, but there are real life dilemmas too. Issues like death of loved ones, estranged relationships, betrayal, shame, guilt. There’s real character development and a fabulously interesting plot. The wit and sexual chemistry are the outstanding elements of the story for me though. Especially when they occur at the same time, which his often. I have adored this entire series. If you’re a fan of romance, passion, and wit, this series will quickly become one of your favorites.

Review for Book Obsessed Chicks by Amy Compton

The title A Duke Will Never Do is what attracted me to this book by Darcy Burke. It’s the third book in the author’s The Spitfire Society series, but each book more or less functions as a standalone.

Jane Pemberton is caught in the absolute worst predicament — due to her constant failure to capture a husband season after season, her parents have demanded that she marry their neighbor. Jane refuses and officially declares herself a spinster. She leaves her parents to live in her friend Phoebe’s old home, where she enjoys her newfound independence, but longs for pleasures in life she’ll surely miss out on living a spinster’s life. When Anthony appears on her doorstep, she nurses him back to health. When he insists on repaying her, Jane makes a scandalous request.

Understandably, since his parents were murdered, Anthony Colton has transformed from a carefree man content with his life to a hardened, drunken rake desperate to drown his guilt and grief in drink and scandal. Eventually, his self-destructive behavior leads him in a bloody heap on Jane’s doorstep.

Anthony’s character is well-developed, and I found his plotline and choices believable. He’s dealing with profound guilt, and the way he deals with the loss and guilt is understandable. The circumstances leading him to Jane are also fine, but I find Jane’s character to be incredibly problematic. While she won’t marry for love, she’s fine repeatedly asking a man to take her virginity ALTHOUGH HE DOES NOT WANT TO.

There are enough heated moments in the story, and the chemistry between Anthony and Jane is palatable. Still, the fact that Anthony is in such an emotionally vulnerable state made me feel very uncomfortable about the entire situation. It wasn’t just a single, half-hearted no from Anthony; being an upstanding man, he refused Jane’s advances multiple times. Even when Jane loses her virginity to him, it’s done without Anthony’s complete consent (yes, it’s possible, and it’s not something that I enjoy reading). Jane truly takes advantage of Anthony, especially when he’s abusing alcohol, and it makes her character so unsavory, I can’t like her even a little bit. I don’t enjoy reading non-con/dub-con romances, and it makes me uncomfortable acknowledging there are elements of that in this book. Jane is manipulative in this book from beginning to end. Yuck. Anthony deserved better.

Lastly, there are MANY historical inaccuracies and plot stretches throughout this story. Most of the time, I don’t expect to have an in-depth history lesson when reading historical fiction. Still, knowing that AOC’s are held to a much higher level of accountability in this area, I have to acknowledge that the author was clearly lax in her research.

ARC provided by the publisher through NetGalley. This is my honest review.

The Good
* A Duke will Never Do was an easy to read entertaining book. I had no problem getting through it and will happily read more from The Spitfire Society series and Darcy Burke's work.
* The characters here had real issues. It wasn't frivolous at all.
* The kittens were adorable and I could have read a whole book just about them.

The Bad
* I liked Anthony and Jane but had issues with both of them.
* Anthony: His issues were big and real and I didn't feel like they were well resolved. He is an alcoholic, gambler and rake who has issues with his temper and is also a massive coward. For the most part I don't think he cared that much if he hurt Jane or not and his change of heart and sudden gain or moral character was too sudden. I wanted more exploration of his growth.
* Jane. I liked her a lot more but she was far too passive and she let Anthony get away with everything. As a spinster who was extremely concerned with her reputation I was surprised that she was so calm when Anthony did not take precautions to prevent her from getting pregnant. She also never really had much to say when he was willing to ruin her solely to protect himself.
* I thought there was a lack of chemistry between them.

The Ugly
* This book was fine. It was perfectly readable and I enjoyed it yet I failed to connect with it in any significant way. I didn't really care which was a real shame.

This was the first book from this author for me.
It was good, but not great. I loved Anthony. He was a great main character,but Jane was so so.
.... Only 3 stars.

A Duke Will Never Do by Darcy Burke is one amazing historical romance! There is plenty of intense moments. Moments that could lead to worse situations for the characters. Every character had risks. Risks of losing one's heart, risk of falling love, and risk of one's secrets coming out publicly. A Duke refused to do something for his parents and were on there way to do the task when they were killed in his place. The killings were not planned. The young Duke owed a lot in debts. To this day, he has had to live with the pain and loss of his parents. It ate away at his soul. Until, he ended up wounded on a young Lady's doorstep. From there, the attraction, heat, and banters between filled the pages. Both were lonely and suffering their own kind of torments. Together they created a happiness and support that neither knew they could have. These characters were charming, sweet, and unforgettable. I love Darcy Burke's historical romance novels! She always creates irresistible protagonists and makes me want to go after the bad guys just as much as the protagonists. Both of these heroes, saved each other. Overall, I highly recommend this fast-paced and action-packed romance. The pages are also filled with plenty of humor.

Melt-your-Kindle hot and a great romantic story. Loved this one!

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange of an honest review.
This is a 1,5 review
I took a very long time to write this, because I’m aware that many people worked and gave their time for this; and as I finished this novel my response probably would have been a long frustrated scream followed by “this irked me so much!” so… I read three other books and used time to place those feelings into something cohesive.
So, the story follows Jane Pemberton who, after five failed seasons and cornered into marriage, decides to run from home and live in her friend’s house. After a while living there, she one day finds a hot Anthony on her doorstep, with broken ribs and unconscious – so, because she is really trusting of her months-old relationship with the members of the house-staff and the doctor they call, that NONE of this will ever be divulged, she decides to nurse him back to health for a week, while his ribs mend (girl… I don’t know if I want to shake her or just stare blankly in dumbfound pity). Anthony on the other hand is a tortured man – drinking to excess and getting in fight every night; trying to go numb to forget his doings. You see, after his father cut him off, he borrows money for gambling with a man called The Vicar; instead of fixing this by himself, his parents take the carriage and, as a warning for him to pay his debts, a man from The Vicar kills both of them. The man who murdered them is hanged. Anthony is drunk.
It is absolutely horrifying what happened to him; but there’s a point of rupture between an excuse and just plain being a bad person (I would have liked to have liked him, but I had no reason to after a while, no reason even to empathize with him, and that was very problematic). Let me explain. Jane was incredibly naïve. She left her home, her family does not speak with her, she is not accepted in high society anymore, she has no house, no money (her friend lends her both) and absolutely no plans for her life. She is by no standards independent. She has very little except for not being ruined. The most her personality goes is that she is goodhearted (recommendable) and she does not get angry. Anger is necessary, anger is good, anger is what stands in the way of injustice. And I believe Anthony is not just. Anthony uses her.
Jane helps him, and she should not have. Jane asks him to take away her virginity, and she should not have. Anthony seems torn by this, but his actions take another turn, and he reprimands her for making him lust her, but still has sex with her, saying that she is not allowed to expect anything from him, not marriage, not love; because she asked for it. Most people wake up and get out and see other people and easily avoid having sex with MOST of other people (I mean, if you do, it’s your body your choice and it’s fine, I just need the stats), and they turn out just perfectly fine. You don’t make it so that you are not a jerk. At one point in the novel, there was a possibility he could have gotten her pregnant, he gets angry, and, after jane tells him to forget about it – HE DOES! This had SERIOUS consequences for her, and absolutely NONE for him. And still he says that the affair could be bad for his reputation and she should understand.
As for their relationship, most of it seemed like “they lust each other very much”. They had good chemistry I guess, but that does not make for a good romance. It’s painfully clear that they do not know each other. They can’t seem to meet each other without taking off their clothes, which is fine, but not deeper of a connection is made before they “realize” they’re “in love”. It felt fake. It felt breakable.
Their point of contention was weak for me – there’s a reason for that you see – earlier on, Anthony decides to open up with his sister (the only family he has left – someone who worries about him and loves him) about what really happened, and decides to ask Jane if she agrees that’s a good idea – she says he should not do it (I did not agree with her idea but that’s not my major issue here). Later, when Anthony must choose between his sister knowing the truth or helping Jane, he is… mad… at her? (What?) And then he changes his mind with no further explanation.
I also had an issue with the villain too; in order to make him a hero in a later novel, the author minimized the pain and anger Anthony had towards the Vicar.
Anthony is made to be a suffering hero, and I understand his burden is heavy, but really, he uses Jane. If I was supposed to like him better, I wish he had better values… At some plot points, he seems mad at Jane for wanting to have sex with him. I understand from some references that, in Burke’s previous novels, Anthony was portrayed as a “good man” that turned tormented, but I saw nothing of this good in him in THIS novel. And I would have gladly welcomed it. Honestly, by 65% I was reading deeply hoping Jane would refuse him and send him to hell.
Jane’s sister’s wedding at the end was good, it was fast paced and well written, but I wished more of THAT plot had been worked from the beginning of the novel.

Sadly, I didn't enjoy this one all that much. I found the characters to be a bit irritating but otherwise it was an enjoyable enough read.

After a disastrous first season and equally abysmal follow up seasons, Jane Pemberton has declared herself a spinster much to the consternation of her family. Eschewing society's norms, she moves into the recently vacated house of a friend and joins the Spitfire society. As a Spitfire, she can work on bettering the world and curing its ills... including one beaten and bloodied Lord Colton who she finds collapsed on her doorstep.

Anthony, the Viscount Colton, is trying to escape his past, ideally in the neck of a bottle and embrace of a woman. In his past, his gambling addiction led to a terrible price and now he is wracked with guilt. Guilt which leads him into self-destructive behavior. When he awakens in Miss Pemberton's home, he quickly realizes his attraction to her. An attraction which is inflamed when she makes a very indecent proposal...

--

I've heard a lot of good things about Darcy Burke, so when this title appeared on NetGalley, I snatched it up. It has a lot of the tropes that I like... Independent women supporting women, troubled hero, a hint of mystery, and sensual shenanigans. But I was, I don't know, disappointed with this book.

Jane was, quite frankly, very unlikable. She did things that if she were a man would be construed as noncon or at the very least dubcon. She blackmailed the hero. She coerced him into sex multiple times. There were several instances where he told her "No" or "Stop" and she refused to listen. It was disturbing... This was made even more disturbing because she was proud of her behavior and didn't regret it... to the point where the hero actually apologized for his reluctance to have sex with her. After he'd been beaten to a pulp, had cracked ribs, and was going through withdrawal. Because Anthony was an addict... an alcoholic and there are several times where he has intimate relations with the heroine while sloshed. Relations which the heroine pushed him into. This alone accounts for the loss of not one, but two stars.

I also was very very very angry with the supposed happy ending of the book. It features one of my least favorite tropes ever because it removes so much consent. I didn't love how the two mysteries within the text were handled. They were introduced too late, IMO. And resolved a little too neatly.

That being said, I did like Ms. Burke's writing style and turns of phrase. I liked Anthony and wished he'd ended up with Jane's sister and not with Jane. I even liked the Vicar. There were hints of other interesting stories and of course any story with cute kittens is awesome.

But ultimately I was disappointed and angry with how this book turned out. And because of that I can only give this:

Two Stars.

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley.