As I read the synopsis for this story in Netgalley, I thought that this was right up my alley. It was and I did think the story was okay. It is a fun regency read. Jane or Lady Pemberly, the main character stood out because she was a “self proclaimed” spinster. Naturally in a romance book if you proclaim this, it is when your match shows up. As for tropes, the story relied so much on the tragic hero/heroine and forever spinster/rake trope.I like reading this kinds of stories since one way or the other they will be redeemed in the end.

The story starts of with Lord Colton or Anthony being found seriously injured in the front of Lady Pemberly’s residence. From this the story started and their relationship rolled. As they progressed on, they develop feelings for each other. It became complicated since both have pasts which weigh heavy on them. I like the writing of this story, it was simple and modern. It had the entertaining witty banter which I like in a regency read. I was bothered with the consent in a particular scene in this story. Also, the amount of love making scenes were too much for me. I would have appreciated it more if it was used as an enhancer for the story.

I gave this story a 3 hearts rating because it was a usual regency read. It had a lot more love making scenes than I prefer. I would have liked for the story to shine more. Also, the consent in a particular scene bothered me. As for the writing, I liked it. The self proclaimed spinster was a nice touch on the heroine’s character. It is my first time reading a character with this attribute. I was irritated with Anthony but his depressive state was valid. It was nice to read that he was able to overcome this hurdle in his life. I could say that both characters are survivors and deserve each other. The Daffodil and Fern were a cute touch to the story too.

This is a great love story and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Jane’s lucky day was when she found Anthony laying in her doorway badly beaten. She spends a week treating his injuries and starting to fall for him. Jane has declared herself a spinster and a member of the Spitfire Society. Anthony is beating himself up for over the death of his parents which he tries to drown in alcohol. There is a lot going on in this book which involves extortion and the man behind this. The story is well written, entertaining and I would highly recommend it as a great read.

I’ve read one of Burke’s books before and one thing I loved about her books is how quickly you’re engrossed into the story. Since the very first page, it’s nearly impossible to put down a book.

For me, the way they met is too early. Given the blurb you would expect for the meet-cute to happen later in the book, maybe a couple chapters in, but in this one it’s the first or second page. There’s no introduction to the scene, her situation (declaring a spinster and living in a house all on her own). We find that in the following chapters.

I talked to one bookstagrammer about this and she said I need to read the previous two books. This one is a standalone but apparently some clues about them are mentioned before. I still wish we get some of them in this book.

Once they meet, they start an affair. He’s a brooding hero, invested more in the past than his future so she brings a light to his days. I loved her determination.

I especially loved those little moments in between. They are mostly connected to her kittens, but hey, I’m a cat lover so reading about him going all love dovey on a pair of kittens is making me go all gooey. And probably every other reader, too.

When we’re introduced to the Vicar, the man behind the Society’s curtains, I admit, I got curious. I’ve been thinking if maybe, just maybe he’s not who he is supposed to be and when I read the blurb of the following books I knew I was right. I just wish his book would follow next. I would absolutely LOVE reading about him!

4 stars.

Title: A Duke Will Never Do
Author: Darcy Burke
Publication date: 19 May 2020
My rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads rating: 4.31
Pages: 248
Genre: Victorian Historical Romance

A Duke Will Never Do is book # 3 in the Spitfire’s Society series by Darcy Burke. I absolutely loved this book and enjoyed reading every single page.

Amazon’s blurb book description: “After failing on the Marriage Mart, Jane Pemberton has two choices: submit to her parents’ edict to marry their boring neighbor or become a self-declared spinster and take up residence in the official headquarters of the Spitfire Society. It’s really no choice at all, and Jane is eager to embrace her newfound independence. She soon finds an unconscious viscount on her doorstep and nurses him back to health. When he offers to compensate her, she requests payment in the form of private instruction of a scandalous and intimate kind.”

My Review:
Jane Pemberton has decided to declare herself a spinster, an unmarried woman. She moved out of her parents home and has decided to get away from the shackles of society. She’s moved out on her own and intends to start living her life for her own pleasures. When Anthony, Lord Colton, turns up on her doorstep beaten and incapacitated, she brings him in to nurse him back to health. The two form a friendship that blossoms into more, but can the secrets of Anthony’s past, with a possible extortion, be put to rest for the couple to have their happily ever after?

I came into this series thanks to Netgalley’s ARC from Darcy Burke. Jane is a sweet and unassuming woman who has spent her life pleasing others. She longs for something more than a life lived pleasing others, and she has finally gotten the courage to grab that life for herself. Jane’s parents are just horrible to her and make her feel worthless and inferior for various rumors that were started about her during her First Season in coming out in society. These rumors made it impossible for her to find a nice gentleman to marry her, throw her over the edge and move out of her parents house.

Anthony is a rogue, in disguise of course. He is known all over town for his drinking and bar fights, but underneath it all he’s hurting from his parents murder. His way of hiding his true feelings is by drinking his sorrow away and fighting others in bars that he attends at night.

I absolutely loved the vulnerability that Anthony portrays in his love for Jane, but decides to hide it inside and not tell her. I was hoping for a happily ever after sooner, rather than later. Anthony is indeed mourning the loss of his parents and his ability to share that grief with Jane was one of my favorite parts of this book.
This book has been one of most satisfying reads I have had this year. I am giving this book a 5 star. Even though I started with Book # 3 in the Spitfire Society series, I loved these two characters, Jane, Anthony, and the kittens. Who can forget the wonderful little kittens, Fern and Daffodil. They were truly the icing on the cake in this novel.

Darcy Burke is a new author to me and I’m excited to read more from her. If you do not know Darcy Burke, do yourself a favor and pick up this series today. I will most definitely come back for more of her Victorian Historical romance novels, including her upcoming new releases.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Darcy Burke Publishing for sharing an eARC of A Duke Will Never Do by Darcy Burke. This is my honest review.

This is the second book of the spitfire series, but can be read alone and everything understood. I have not read the first but I may as I enjoyed this book. This book does have some heavy points in it. Anthony, Viscount Colton, is a drunk accurately blames himself for his parents death. Most of the time I don't agree when they blame their self but with his I think its believable and he is to blame. His actions were the direct cause of his parents death, as it was a planned attack on him. He has many redeeming qualities and I liked that he held off as long as he could to be seduced but Jane Pemberton would not take no for an answer, almost to an annoying point. But I'm getting ahead of myself here.
Jane Pemberton failed in her first and second season, so her parents found her a match and she didn't love him. So she makes the rash decision to live in a friends house instead of her parents to declare herself a spinster. She regrets this but doesn't see any way out of it. Can her and Anthony heal their hearts and find true love?

I had high hopes for A Duke Will Never Do. I didn't read the previous two books in the series but I love the idea of the spitfire society. I might read them soon. But this book features a self-declared spinster named Jane and a tortured, self-destructive hero named Anthony, Viscount Colton. And the story started with Jane finding Anthony in her doorstep and then she make it her duty to take care of him.

I like Anthony's character and I find his self-destructive behaviour valid. His parents are murdered because of him and it should've been him in the carriage. But he was busy gambling and drinking that his parents who went. The murderer was expecting Anthony too but ended up killing his parents instead. It's horrible and Anthony is in need of therapy, if you ask me. On the other hand, I didn't connect with Jane as much as I wanted. Sure, I liked that she took it upon herself to live her life. In her time, it's brave to declare herself a spinster and that despite the fact that she really wants to marry. She just want to do it for love. But I didn't like her behaviour the rest of the book, which brings me to the romance.

The main characters' individual personas should've been enough to make the romance great but there are plot elements I didn't like. Anthony wants to make up for Jane for taking care of him and Jane proposed that he takes her virginity. Still, that's okay but Anthony doesn't want that. Because Anthony despite his current behavior is an honorable man. He knows Jane as his sister's friend. He knows he's not the right person for her considering his current way of living and of course he can't ruin him.

But Jane kept pushing herself to him. Like, come on!!! Sure, Anthony is already attracted to her. But every man will jump at any woman who basically throws herself at him. I'm all for women who knows how to ask for what they want sexually but Anthony refused him so many times. I want to scream at Jane to let him be. He's an adult and he has the right to decide for himself. His life is already a series of bad choices that ruined him.

And CONSENT!!!

This is romance, so eventually, Anthony gives in to her requests. But even then, she does whatever she does sexually. She loses her virginity at a time that Anthony didn't want it to happen yet. She initiated it. Of course, it should be the woman who decides when to loose her virginity but with consent from the other party!!!

Again CONSENT!!!

It almost seems to me that Jane took advantage of Anthony's attraction to her. Worse, there are times that Anthony's not sober. Anthony is an alcoholic. Like I said, he needs therapy. Jane is such a turnoff and I don't like that once they start having sexual relationships, they have sex every time they see each other.

I also don't buy the fact that when Anthony is ill is he can't go home. He can walk around jane's home. Surely, he can walk to the carriage and go home. So it turns out as just convenient to the plot. The only fun part of this book are the kittens who love Anthony may be more than they love Jane. Wise kittens!!!

I'm really sad that this book and I didn't agree. But hopefully,the other books in the series are better.

i give this book 4 stars because it was Riddled with guilt and self-loathing over the death of his parents, Anthony drinks to numb himself. After a fight leaves him bruised and broken on our heroine’s doorstep, he spends the week recovering at her house and for once is sober as she has instructed her staff not to serve him strong spirits. Whilst not in an alcoholic haze, Anthony starts to connect and feel once more but his guilt is not easily assuaged.
A lovely story about forgiving yourself, leaving darkness behind and moving forward into the future. The rather heavy and tragic backstory is handled with a light touch that makes it an engaging read.

A Duke Will Never Do is the third book in The Spitfire Society series, and can be read as a stand alone. This is the first book in this series I've read, and I had no problems following along. Just enough backstory and character appearances from previous books (and I believe some characters and name dropping from other series by this author) to make me want to read the other stories.

Jane is a "Spitfire". Her family demanded she get married, but Jane wanted to hold out for love or become a spinster. She left her family and is living alone (with a house full of servants) in the home of her friend Phoebe (who just got married and moved away). So even though Jane is trying to exert her independence, she's not really having to "rough" it. She's not having to make her way on her own. Her friend is even giving her an allowance! I applaud her for wanting to be independent and go against society's conventions, but she's not having to do so with any real sacrifice or hard work, and I think this makes her character just a little less interesting. I didn't sympathize with her because she still had it all.

I have to say, the character of Jane was a problem for me. I just didn't like her. She was selfish and demanding. Every conversation with Anthony was about what she wanted and needed. He would finally start talking about his issues, and she'd change the subject to her problems (the biggest being finding out who started a rumor about her 5 years prior, a rumor about being "loose"). Anthony is dealing with trying to quit alcohol, extortion, and grief and guilt over the death of his parents, but sure, a rumor you're just hearing about now is way more important!

There were also instances of dubious consent. Jane throws herself at Anthony, even after he says no and stop. Several times. She corners him alone. When Anthony feels guilty about things when they get intimate with each other, she talks about how much she wanted it, and that's basically the only thing that mattered.

Anthony was a very beta hero, and I thought he was emasculated by Jane just a bit. And I felt sorry for him. He could do better. I didn't feel the chemistry between these two at all. Jane was perfectly content with being a mistress for most of the book.

There were quite a few intimate scenes, and except where consent came into question, they were well done. The banter between the characters was good, some witty moments. I enjoyed Anthony with his friends, as I enjoyed Jane with hers.

So in all, this book was well written, and it did keep me entertained, but I had some issues with Jane and consent.

2.5 stars rounded to 3. I received this book from NetGalley, all opinions are my own.

I received an ARC of this book to read through NetGalley in exchange for a fair review. A Duke Will Never Do is the second book in Darcy Burke’s The Spitfire Society series. I think it would be best to read the first book in the series prior to reading this one and, note that for those who don’t enjoy duke books, that there is no duke in this book. After five disappointing seasons without a match, Jane Pemberton has declared herself a spinster and moved into her friend Phoebe’s house to avoid an unwanted marriage that her parents were promoting. She discovers Anthony, Viscount Colton, unconscious, severely beaten, and quite drunk on her doorstep and takes him in to nurse back to health. Anthony is on a one-way trip to disaster, he blames himself for his parents' deaths and uses alcohol to numb his feelings of guilt. Jane helps him to dry out, and a friendship grows between them, leading to her ask him to teach her about passion. Secrets and lies, blackmail and last-minute rescues from villains make this a story that will have you avidly turning pages until way past your bedtime. Medium Steam. Publishing Date May 19, 2020. #ADukeWillNeverDo #DarcyBurke #HistoricalRomance #NetGalley #bookstagram

A Duke Will Never Do
Series: Book 3 in the Spitfire Society Series
Rating: 3 stars
Thank you to the author/publisher for the ARC given through NetGalley for an honest review.

A Duke Will Never Do was an okay read for me. Jane has decided to become an official spinster and has been living on her own for some time. It is until one day she finds a beaten up man at her door that her life changes for ever. Anthony has no recollection on how he ended all bruised up and is now being nursed by Jane and her household.
As a repayment for her care she wants an affair with him. He’s a little reluctant at first. He’s carried a very big guilt in his heart that has affected the way he’s been living his life. I liked how he was honest with her about them being together was not a good idea. Jane’s determination that he would be the one moved their relationship to the next step.
Their sexy times were very hot, but I felt the romance was missing a little. They were great together talking about their problems. Anthony even goes through a big personal change that made him worthy of Jane’s love.
An added sweet bonus were Jane’s kittens. They were scene stealers! So cute!

Duke will Never do was lovely, entertaining, and steaming hot story. Jane Pemberton was due to false rumors about her purity denied to get courted and a marriage proposal. She decides to have her own freedom and becomes a spinster. She wants to do great things for commons. When she finds Anthony Colton beaten on her doorstep she helps him to get better. They became friends and the attraction between both of them is undeniable. When she makes him scandalous proposal he is thorn....he could never ruin a lady. He never was marriage material but the feelings for Jane  were getting stronger day by day. If he wouldn't be in so much trouble himself maybe then...

I loved every second of this entertaining tale and can't wait for the next book in these series

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A Duke will Never Do, by Darcy Burke, will be available at booksellers on May 19th, 2020. This is book 3 in Ms Burkes Spitfire Society series. A group of ladies, spinsters, gather together to support and advance each other. With the help of friends and society members they take their lives in hand and vow to make good lives for themselves. With no one to tell them no or society judging their actions these ladies set about to make things around them better. Besides helping each other they take up charity work, some a little controversial, but mostly women and children. I admire and commend them.

A Duke Will Never Do gives us Miss Jane Pemberton, avowed spinster. Her seasons were a flop, her parents pushing her to marry, well anyone really. She's tougher than her family thinks & moves out. I like that she's sweet and kind, not jaded by ton judgement. She's content now but realizes she may never have a family. That makes her sad but resigned. I like her just get on with it attitude.

Anthony, Viscount Colton, is a mess left over from series book 2, A Duke Is Never Enough. He's twisted himself into a thousand knots. He's a nice guy at heart, was a typical young man around town. A little selfish and oblivious but mostly harmless. He comes to realize how much Jane is changing his life for the better. He's becoming a better man and I like that guy. He's got a lot of baggage but has the good sense to finally work through it.

#DarcyBurke #Netgalley #ADukeWillNeverDo #SpitfireSociety #DarcyBurkePublishing #historicalromance

Yay, another book in the Spitfire Society series of Darcy Burke. It had almost been too long, so I kinda forgot the names of the member of the Society. The story starts with Anthony Colton lying unconscious at the steps of Jane Pemberton's house. She takes him into her home and nurses him back to health. Anthony can't recall how and when he has ended up at Jane's doorstep. He only knows that he wants to return to his drunken state, so he doesn't has to relive his parent's death. But Jane won't let him. She is determined to keep him sober. And when she realizes he knows more about her ruined season on the Marriage Mart, she needs him to find out what happened all those years ago. And, since she won't be marrying anyone, she also wants Colton to teach her some things about the intimate activities in the bedroom. After all: a spinster from the Spitfire Society certainly needs to know her stuff.
Colton can't help but admire Jane and her approach to live. Although handed with a lot of misfortune, Jane is always looking bright and sunny into the future. He wanted he could do the same. And when Jane extends her offer to help him with that as well, he hesitates. Because a scoundrel like Colton doesn't deserve a second chance, right? A wonderful read about gossip, murder, intrigues and lot of love. Four out of five stars and a special thank you to Netgalley for providing the arc.

The third book in the series, ‘A Duke Will Never Do’ follows Jane Pemberton who belongs to the Spitfire Society. Jane wants to move out from her family and follow her own pleasures. Yet when Anthony, Viscount Colton, turns up at her doorstep seriously injured, she needs to take care of him. The relationship they form, blossoms yet will Anthony’s past soon come back to haunt their relationship.
This was a lovely romance with two people, dealing with this past, with great dignity. In doing so, their ability to draw from each other is all the more endearing, as it is clearly evident, the intensity of their feelings for each other. This intense romance is balanced with humour and great dialogue.
As always, with a Darcy Burke series, I find myself missing the characters in the series, but so looking forward to another great series. This has been a great series, so if you have just started to read Ms Burke’s books, this is a great series to delve into.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I received an ARC from the author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

A Duke Will Never Do is my second Darcy Burke, the first being the previous book in the Spitfire Society, and I enjoyed this one much more. That one lacked a lot of substance to the characters and plot that this one delivered on so much better.

I was skeptical of the arc with Anthony descending into rakishness to numb the pain in the aftermath of his parent’s’ murder, as I feel like reforming the rake can often be done poorly. But I enjoyed the way he was portrayed, being self loathing but also trying to be a good person. Him getting together with Jane isn’t a cure-all, and while it’s rushed a bit, I like that he acknowledges he needs time to work on himself.

The Spitfire Society ladies are fascinating in their living independently on the fringes of society, and Jane is no exception. I like how she decided to stop caring about what people thought about her after a rumor ruined all her prospects.

There’s a mystery element in this one, and the way it connects Anthony and Jane, amping up the stakes for those they care about was wonderful, and provided a nice secondary conflict that was really compelling.

I really enjoyed this one, and am excited to hear that there’s more stories coming soon for the supporting characters from this book, especially Jane’s sister. I recommend this for fans of steamy historical romance.

I received an Advanced Reader Copy from Netgalley. This did not impact my review.

This book begins with Jane Pemberton, a self-declared spinster who moves out of her parents house to live on her own, finds a badly beaten up Anthony, Lord Colton, on her front doorstep. She nurses him back to health both physically and emotionally, and love begins to blossom between the two.

Overall, I truly enjoyed this book. I don't want to sound cliche, but it really was sweet as sugar. Jane is one of the most likeable characters I've ever read, and I appreciated her patience and support of Anthony throughout the entire book. It really endeared her to me as a character. I think in historical romance everyone tries to write feisty heroines, and I think Jane was a nice change. That isn't to say she doesn't stand her ground, because she does, she just is such a refreshing character. Anthony has some issues that he has to work through that go deeper than the normal drinking, gambling, and womanizing, but even though he has those issues I felt he was still a gentleman throughout the entire story. This book was an easy read, and it focused a lot on the love story. That is the whole reason I read romance so I loved it!

My Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

One of the things I enjoy most about this author's novels is the way that each one, no matter which series they come from, or in which order you pick them up, they can be read as a stand-alone. I very much enjoy seeing characters from prior novels (and in some cases even prior series') appear in other works. It often feels like seeing old friends at a party.

I also enjoyed the way that Jane stood up for herself and took control of her own future (as much as a woman in her situation and time period could). It's always fun when you read about spinsters (or any young woman really) who not only take charge of themselves, but also go out of their way to help others. Anthony was also an interesting character, on a guilt-ridden path of self-destruction over something that he felt he could have prevented. Watching as Jane tried to help Anthony overcome these feelings (and the destructive ways he was coping with them), made for an intriguing story by itself - and the later threats of extortion and secrets being revealed would have caused this story to stand out. The kittens? Were an amusing distraction that rang true to life and offered some light-heartedness in otherwise serious moments.

Where it lost points with me is the fact that Jane seemed to take advantage of Anthony's attraction to her, and in some cases, it could be argued his alcohol-fueled mind. There were some definite moments of dubious consent in this novel that left a rather sour taste in my mouth. Just because it is the woman making the moves and pushing for what she wants doesn't make it okay. Another thing that bothers me is when two characters who are already interesting and have chemistry start having sex and that becomes the focus. I don't need numerous sex scenes to showcase their feelings for one another, nor do I think (as so often seems to happen with these stories) does sex equate to love, I much rather enjoy scenes of the characters falling in love without taking their clothes off repeatedly.

Even with what I mentioned above, this is still a novel that people are going to enjoy. I enjoyed it and am looking forward to the next series (I am desperate to unravel the mystery surrounding the man they call the vicar, and curious as to what happens to another character we briefly meet near the end of the story). I will definitely read more from this author!

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

I love Darcy Burke stories. They encompass real life experiences with love makes this such a small and loyalty. This one is no different and I loved every word written.

I received an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review

Sweet and spicy, with one of the more affable heroes and daring heroines I’d seen in a while. Darcy Burke never disappoints!

Lord Colton shows up unconscious and beaten on the doorstep of the disgraced spinster, Jane Pemberton, She nurses him back to health and asks him to relieve her of her virginity. What ensues from there has everything you want in a historical novel you want - great characters who you wanted to cheer, a plot that made you think and had some unexpected surprises in it! I absolutely adored this book and I would highly recommend it. I will definitely look for other books from the author, as this one was my first from Darcy Burke.