One Dance With a Duke by Tessa Dare

By: Unknown on Monday, February 10, 2014

Title:  One Dance with a Duke

Series:  The Stud Club #1

Author:  Tessa Dare

Narrator:  Leslie Bellair

Published:   May 25th 2010 by Ballantine Books

Length:  384pgs/11h/37min

Format:  audio book

Genre:  historical romance

Shelf:  bought

Rating:  ★★★★

Synopsis from Goodreads:

In One Dance with a Duke—the first novel in Tessa Dare’s delightful new trilogy—secrets and scandals tempt the irresistible rogues of the Stud Club to gamble everything for love.

A handsome and reclusive horse breeder, Spencer Dumarque, the fourth Duke of Morland, is a member of the exclusive Stud Club, an organization so select it has only ten members—yet membership is attainable to anyone with luck. And Spencer has plenty of it, along with an obsession with a prize horse, a dark secret, and, now, a reputation as the dashing “Duke of Midnight.” Each evening he selects one lady for a breathtaking midnight waltz. But none of the women catch his interest, and nobody ever bests the duke—until Lady Amelia d’Orsay tries her luck.

In a moment of desperation, the unconventional beauty claims the duke’s dance and unwittingly steals his heart. When Amelia demands that Spencer forgive her scapegrace brother’s debts, she never imagines that her game of wits and words will lead to breathless passion and a steamy proposal. Still, Spencer is a man of mystery, perhaps connected to the shocking murder of the Stud Club’s founder. Will Amelia lose her heart in this reckless wager or win everlasting love?

Adult-content rating: This book contains content considered unsuitable for young readers 17 and under, and which may be offensive to some readers of all ages.

My Review:

This was a sweet, sensual, and heartwarming historical romance. Dare had me hooked from the beginning with her unique tale and ready wit. She throws some definite twists into the typical regency romance, making this an intensely pleasurable read. The author evokes emotions in her readers while giving them suspense and intrigue to riddle through. I also really appreciate the fact that Dare’s characters weren’t perfect, but rather were real individuals living real lives, even if they were from the upper rungs of society.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and it was a brilliant introduction to this author. I’d definitely recommend it to others and fully intend to read more of her work (and can’t wait to see what’s up next for The Stud Club).

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