THE DUCHESS HUNT

A duke entrusts his secretary with the task of selecting his new duchess.

Penelope Pettypeace is the rarity of rarities: a woman employed as a personal secretary to a high-ranking member of the aristocracy. She’s a consummate professional even though she’s been secretly in love with Hugh Brinsley-Norton, the Duke of Kingsland, for years. King is aware that he must take a bride and have heirs, but he has no interest in courtship. He decides on a more direct route and places an advertisement inviting London’s eligible young women to write letters describing their qualifications for the role of duchess. King asks Penelope to choose the best candidate, unaware of her feelings for him; he also refuses to admit that his hyperawareness of Penelope is a sign that his feelings for her are more romantic than professional. Things change between them when a mysterious threatening letter appears in the mail. King has no choice but to reveal a terrible secret about his past, not knowing Penelope has a secret of her own that might ruin her if it comes to light. Their evolution to lovers is pleasing and satisfying, especially since they have to trust each other with truly devastating stories from their pasts in order to make a future together. Heath explores how society’s confining rules force people into uncomfortable and even desperate choices. The end result is a fascinating exploration of power, but the narrative choice to reveal Penelope’s secret to King and the reader simultaneously leaves the book feeling frustratingly unbalanced.

A complex romance explores how two lovers are influenced by class, gender, and societal expectations.