Jessamine Goodfellow is determined to live the life of a spinster, something her family looks down on. She is exceptionally talented at solving ciphers and when the opportunity to make a possible career out of her skills working for the Foreign Office presents itself, she is eager to take it even if she has to pretend to be the wife of another spy. Dougal MacNair, a seasoned spy for the Foreign Office and the new Viscount Fallin, is not as eager to pretend to be the husband of a newly hired spy. His last two missions failed and he can’t afford another one to take a turn for the worst. The two must make a convincing married couple while investigating another strange married couple for possibly being French spies. Will their covers be compromised or will the true feelings in their hearts help get them through a dangerous mission?

The Phoenix Club series by Darcy Burke is the first series that I have read by her and there is a reason that I keep coming back. Irresistible does not disappoint as the newest addition to this series. In fact, I felt like this book was one of the best novels in the series. I really enjoyed the spy storyline to the story and thought that it added a lot of intrigue to the storyline and is not something that you see often in historical romance novels. The fake marriage throws Jess and Dougal into awkward romantic situations that eventually bud real feelings between the two. There were also a lot of funny moments thrown in the story that made me really enjoy not only the budding relationship between the two characters, but the banter and relationships with the other secondary characters. Burke was able to provide not only well written main characters, but also well developed background characters like Gil and Mary who I also fell in love with.

***1/2 stars- Dougal MacNair is now Viscount Fallin due to his brother’s death. His brother Alistair was suppose to be his father’s heir. Dougal was the one who had chosen to risk his life with the foreign office. He never wanted to be the heir of the Earl of Sterling. Dougal has returned from Scotland and is back in London for his final mission. He also needs to find out who sabotaged his last two missions.

Miss Jessamine Goodfellow has had six seasons. She does not want to get married. She is looking forward to being a spinster. If only her parents would give up on her finding a husband. She is an excellent cryptographer. She is recruited for her expertise in deciphering coded messages.

Dougal and Jessamine must pretend to be married for this mission. They are to go to Dorset and befriend Gilbert and Mary Chesmore. They have to determine if the couple are French spies. Dougal is not happy about having a partner. He has never needed one in the past. Jessamine is very excited to be on her first mission. Jessamine has also been tasked to figure out if Dougal is working against England. After two failed missions the foreign office wonders if he deliberately sabotaged his missions.

Dougal and Jessamine have instant chemistry. They both fight their attraction to each other. Gradually they lose the battle. They are a likeable couple. Gil and Mary are a joy! They are hilarious at times. Gil and Mary are quite entertaining. This is the sixth book in the Phoenix Club series. The story flows but has a few slow moments. This is my least favorite in the series but overall it is a good book. I especially enjoyed seeing Lucien again. I relish series where you get to see characters from earlier books. I look forward to the next book in this series. I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and I am voluntarily leaving a review.

I love Darcy Burke books, and add Irresistible to that tally! This is a great romance, and I was happy to see cameos from other books make their appearance. So many tropes! I will say secret agent ones are my least favorite, but I love pretend relationships, staying at an inn scenes, and then the HEA!
The only thing that bugged me and very minor was I did not really like that heroine's name. For one, I didn't know how to pronounce it. It is min or mine? Jessamine's name also for some reason sounds like a very religious name, which I do not know where I got that idea but it just stuck with me, weirdly. It just didn't fit the heroine's character, I think. But it doesn't take away from the book, which I did enjoy greatly.

Book 6 of the Phoenix Club is absolutely irresistible! Ms Burke has done it again with this latest addition. Two unlikely people come together to work on a mission for the Foreign Office. Jessamine is finally about to reach her goal of becoming an independent spinster after avoiding marriage in her last six seasons. She is a brilliant scholar, gifted in cryptography and talented in solving puzzles. Her talents catch the eye of the Foreign Office and she is given the opportunity to work on a secret mission for them. She is one that loves adventure and new experiences, both of which her family frowns upon, but she does not let this opportunity slip by. She will be posing as the wife Dougal, who works for the Foreign Office. He does not appreciate the fact that he has been saddled with a partner, and amateur one at that. Each have their own suspicions about the other, but they work together to complete the mission. In the process, Jeassamine begins to think differently on the ideas of love and marriage. Could she finally have found the perfect life partner? Dougal, despite his earlier reluctance, finds it more and more difficult to remain unattached and professional as he spends more time with her and gets to know her more. The pair is well-matched and the chemistry between them is amazing. I really enjoyed the incredibly witty banter between the two.
The story is captivating and pulls you in right from the start. I liked how the characters were well-developed and I became invested in their story from the beginning. The storyline had a nice flow and the plot twists kept me turning the pages. The story has a nice combination of romance, drama, danger, and intrigue and it was a very entertaining and enjoyable story. I can't wait for the next installment!
I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

This series continues to surprise me.

We have met Dougal along the way in this series. He has been the devil may care friend, always a bit irreverent with a good sense of humor. He has never really had any attachments and likes it that way. Now his life path has changed and he finds himself feeling untethered and lost.

Jessamine Goodfellow is 25 and wants desperately to be left alone regarding marriage. Her parents want different for her. They rejected a suit from a young man when she was first out as a debutante and that hurt her. She has some airy plans that she really hasn't fully thought through. She discovers through her journey, mission, with Dougal her reasons were not based on anything other than a childish need to act out toward her parents. She is incredibly bright and perceptive.

They are an extraordinary team and Dougal is a patient mentor. Together they accomplish their mission. It is during that catches them both by surprise. They each harbor attraction and it is fun to watch as they each try to stay "professional." Dougal knows what he wants and feels, but Jess is not as focused due to her inexperience.

There wasn't really a grand romantic gesture, declaration of love, but Jesse's defense of Dougal at a ball was epic!! She was able to give a verbal cut that took everyone a bit to fully register what she meant. Through a twist of fate they are forced together only to realize it was truly what each wanted. Thank you Gil and Mary.

The supporting characters, as always, are fun, supportive, and loyal. Lady Pickering is a very interesting character and I hope to see more of her in coming books. Kent was too stiff and uptight when dealing with Dougal, but less so with Jess. Lucien is still an enigma and I look forward to his HEA so we can delve deeper in to him. I absolutely adored Dougal's da! He is so supportive, caring, loving and calm.

Disclaimer: I received a complementary copy of this novel from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in anyway

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Irresistible had the makings for a 5 star read. After coming off Max and Ada’s story, I had high hopes. While Jess and Dougal are smart and complex characters, each at a crossroads in their lives, I actually liked them as individuals more so than as a couple. I never felt any chemistry between them. They truly felt like colleagues making as a couple throughout the entire story.

Also, the investigation into Dougal as a potential traitor had no tension. I was not on the edge of my seat waiting to see if was really one (romance novel…..so he’s not) but then who really was. It felt so anti-climatic. The biggest sense of tension was the ballroom scene where they were accidentally outed as a couple.

While the series has really had only 1 amazing book IMO, I’m eagerly awaiting Evie’s story. Was surprised to find out who her ,at her is after reading this book. Will be interesting to see how that plays out.

This interracial mix story had an intriguing and exciting twist. Although I have to say it lacks the sensational excitement I was expecting. It felt like the oomph was missing from this one.

I enjoyed this book a little more than the previous one in the series. The spy plot certainly adds to the romance and it is refreshing after the previous books have all had similar plots.

I received a copy of Irresistible by Darcy Burke from NetGalley. This historical fiction is the 6th addition to the Phoenix Club Series. The book focuses on the romance between Lady Jessamine Goodfellow and Lord Dougal MacNair, the new Viscount Fallin.
These characters have been introduced in the previous books, but there isn’t much I knew about them. Jessamine is committed to spinsterhood because she feels that will finally give her the freedom she wants. She craves adventure, something different and exciting than how her life has been up till now. She is brilliant at deciphering and solving puzzles, and this leads her to unknowingly helping the Foreign Office. Dougal MacNair has been working with the Foreign Office for years. Recently, due to his brother’s untimely death, he has to take up the responsibility of being a Viscount.
Jessamine is recruited to go on an undercover mission. Dougal is paired up with her, and they need to act as a married couple to carry out this spying mission. After a disastrous first meeting, both of them find a tuning with each other. Pretending to be married means spending a lot of time in close quarters. Their chemistry builds up slowly at the start, but it is easy to see they are coming closer. They have to rely on each other completely to make sure the mission isn’t comprised and develop trust. Their attraction and feelings reach a boiling point soon enough. The story maintains the element of mystery enough to keep you intrigued and is woven well with the romance. The relationship and the pull and push between these two are exciting and cute. Their relationship develops at a good pace, and so does their understanding and trust in each other.
The book has an interesting story with good characters and a sizzling romance. I have read all the five books of the Phoenix Series by Darcy Burke and enjoyed them. Irresistible was just as romantic and engaging as the others in the series. I generally love reading historical romances, and this series has been like catnip to me. I can't wait to read the next one.

Interesting, complex characters, but the chemistry and possible tension between them didn’t quite live up to its potential.

Jessamine Goodfellow’s goal of gaining spinster status is almost within reach. She dreams of adventure and taking charge of her own life. When her work as a code breaker for the Foreign Office leads to an offer for a secret mission, she grabs it with both hands.

Dougal MacNair, the reluctant new Viscount Fallin, is trying to figure out what went wrong on his last two missions. He isn’t all that interested in an assignment that will take him away from town, and he is even less interested in having a partner.

The pair pose as a married couple in the hopes of unearthing a possible traitor.

Dougal is an interesting character. His mother had an affair with a Black man, but her husband, an earl, claimed Dougal as his own. Dougal must navigate new social waters after his brother died and left Dougal as the heir. I think the author handled this aspect of Dougal’s life very well. The entire idea was very believable. Dougal is very entrenched in his role as spy and his main focus is finding out who is trying to sabotage his career. Jess is quite smart and that comes across very clear.

Their entire mission was wholly unnecessary, but a lot of fun in the end. The couple that they suspected of treason were truly delightful and quirky. The pretend marriage and ensuing confusion to distinguish between real and fake feelings could have provided a lot of intrigue and excitement, but it fell a bit short.

I really have enjoyed the entire Phoenix Club series so far and I look forward to more.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Darcy Burke is one of my favorite romance authors and I have read all the previous titles in the Phoenix Club series. I enjoyed this book as I have enjoyed the others. Our heroine is Jessamine, a determined spinster who is a master at solving ciphers. She is tapped by the Foreign Office to embark upon an undercover mission, during which she and her partner are to go undercover to determine if a couple are spies, and to decode a missive discovered in their possession.

Jessamine's partner, and our hero, is Dougal McNair, newly the Viscount Fallin. He has been working for the Foreign Office for several years and is struggling with giving it up now that he is his father's sole heir. Dougal loves his father, however - the man accepted Dougal as his own and loved him as such even though Dougal was the result of his mother's affair with a Black man. So he accepts the mission with Jess as his last, or at least the last that does not involve his own investigation of two prior failed missions.

So the two are sent out to pose as a married couple in order to get into the other couples' good graces, which of course means they must share a room, and a bed. They complete their mission but not before they find the passion between them close to overwhelming. They return to London with Dougal (and Jess) convinced she wants to remain unwed. This does of course, end up not being the case, but it does take some time to get there.

I liked this book. I found the interactions with the Chesmores amusing and I loved that Jess was unapologetically smart and Dougal appreciated that about her. I do think the book dragged a bit upon the return to London, but I can forgive that for the overall sweetness of Jess and Dougal's story. And I adored Dougal's family, both immediate and extended. His aristocratic father's easy acceptance of his son's Black relations and desire to allow Dougal to be loved by as many people as possible is heartwarming, if likely a bit improbable. I would recommend this book and will of course read the next one in the series. 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Zealous Quill Press for an ARC of this book. My opinions are solely my own.

Irresistible by Darcy Burke is the sixth book of the Phoenix Club. Jessamine is determined to be a spinster. She has endured six Seasons, and she hopes how her parents will relent. Jess adores solving cyphers, so when she is approached by the Foreign Office to embark on a secret mission, she is eager to get started. She is surprised to find out her mission won’t just be about cyphers. She must also secretly investigate her partner who is under suspicion of working against the crown. Lord Dougal McNair, the new Viscount Fallin, is used to completing his missions for the Foreign Office alone. When his latest mission involves him working with a partner, let alone an amateur spy, he is not thrilled. Dougal knows that after two failed missions there is someone working against him. The partners must pretend to be a married couple while they fight the growing temptation the roles bring.

I really liked this historical spy romance. Dougal and Jess are very compatible as a couple and as spy partners. I loved them together. I also really liked Dougal and his family. The dynamic between them is awesome and wholesome. Darcy Burke is becoming a favorite of mine!

A charming read. Jessamine and Dougal are thrown together without any planning and with the unenviable task of ferreting out Napolean spies and deciphering coded messages. Jessamine surprises Dougal with her sharp mind and her ability to speak in accents. I loved how they quickly developed a bond and a way of working together to support one another. The fact that they have to pretend to be husband and wife adds a different level of excitement to the mix. This is a book you can pick up and read in one day. It's entertaining and light but well written and with characters you want to spend time with.

The Heroine
Jessamine was in love with a man her parents didn't approve of, so they paid him to go away, leaving Jess devastated and angry. She vowed never to marry to spit her parents. So she devoted herself to the prospect of spinsterhood and avoided all the men her mother pushed at her. Jess is very smart and stumbled upon an opportunity to decode messages which led to her being asked to assist the Foreign Office in a case that involved secret, coded messages. But being partnered with Dougal is rattling her and pretending marriage is all too easy and real. She starts to realize that maybe she would be lonely in her spinsterhood and that she has some pretty strong feelings for Dougal.

I liked Jess quite a bit, however I was a little frustrated at her drive to be a spinster, even with Dougal since she was clearly attracted to him, he was a kind man, and she had been attracted to him for years. I was hoping she wouldn't resist as much as she did.

The Hero
Dougal MacNair has been serving the Foreign Office for years, but, with the death of his brother, he will need to step down from serving and become the Viscount Fallin. The prospect of that is not appealing in the least and he is angry about it, sad about the death of his brother and battling two failed missions. Dougal has always completed his missions alone, but having to work with the beautiful Jess isn't so bad until he can't stop thinking about her. He never planned on getting married, but with becoming the heir, he will need to marry and produce an heir.

The Plot
Neither Jess nor Dougal planned or even wanted to get married, but pretending to be a married couple comes to easily as does their attraction to each other. I was disappointed that their mission only lasted a few days and small part of the story. I was hoping it would be a bit more of an adventure, but it started and stopped abruptly without any real drama. I kept thinking they were going to find something or get caught or that Jess would have reason to suspect Dougal of being a double agent. But, alas, nothing. When they got back to London, I again thought maybe, maybe, someone they knew was the bad guy, someone I would never suspect. Or that Jess would be kidnapped by the couple they were investigating or the real double agent. But no. So although the romance and the plot were fine and I enjoyed it, I was bummed that there wasn't more adventure! More danger!

Tropes
Historical Romance, Georgian Era, Country Life, Season/Marriage Mart, Beta Hero, Detective/Agents to the Crown, Illegitimate Hero, Soldier/War Hero, Titled Hero, Detective Heroine, Spinster Heroine, Virgin Heroine, Fake Relationship, Workplace Romance, Forced Proximity, Sudden Nobility/Rags to Riches, Suspense/Danger/Murder

It's a simple, straightforward story with likable characters.
There's a slight mysterious element as is expected with a spy novel. But the main focus is on the love story of our protagonists.

Loved reading the amazing and awesome romance story. Jessamine Goodfellow, a woman wanting to become a spinster, gets the opportunity to work for the Foreign Office ciphering coded messages, but she has to work with Lord Dougal MacNair pretending to be a married couple. The attraction and chemistry between Jessamine and Dougal is getting harder and harder to resist as they continue to work on the case. Read the highly recommended, wonderfully written, and a riveting must read love story. Can't wait to read another book by the fabulous and fantastic author, Darcy Burke!

Irresistible….. incredible. One of those rare books that should be dispensed on prescription to every household. Fabulous storytelling.

I love the new plot direction that this series has taken. Rather than remaining a "standard run of the mill" regency romance, the characters are thrown into a world of spies and espionage. Traitors may walk among us but can they discover who without losing themselves in the process? Darcy Burke has an amazing ability to suck in the reader, hold you hostage and not let you go until the last pages. Irresistible is no different. I can't wait to see what she does with Lucian!

OH MY GOD. THIS WAS THE CUTEST THING I HAVE EVER READ. ALSO

THE SHARING THE BED TROPE GETS ME EVERY SINGLE TIME

I love this series so much that I read it without checking the blurb. For that reason, this whole book caught me a bit off guard. It wasn’t anything I was expecting, and I think I love it all the more for that fact. Jess is brilliant and, like Ada before her, she’s not afraid of letting her intellect shine. Dougal is part of so many worlds yet separate from them as well. It’s one of his strengths while also being his greatest weakness. However, I think I’m in love with his whole family. I adored the lengths they’ve gone to in order to make sure that Dougal knows how loved and valued he is, and how well the families blended together. Why can’t real life be more like fiction that way? Overall, I had a lot of fun with this book, and I can’t wait to see what the author has up her sleeve for the next one.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley.