The sparkling Lords of Hazard series starter from Jeffries (the Designing Debutantes series) draws inspiration from the true stories of Englishmen detained in France during the Napoleonic War. After being imprisoned for 11 years, Lord Jon Leighton returns to England to find the country radically changed. He also discovers that, with both his older half brothers dead, he is now the Duke of Falconridge. The title brings many new duties, but Jon’s focus is on fulfilling his promise to his mentor, Dr. Morris, who died while imprisoned with Jon, to secure a good marriage for his daughter, Tory Morris, who happens to be Jon’s sister’s governess. Free-spirited Tory, however, has no interest in matrimony, determined instead to realize her dream of opening a school for women artists. The pair clash, only coming to a truce when Tory agrees to husband hunt during the London Season if Jon becomes her sculpting pupil. Mutual attraction blossoms—as does intrigue, as Jon searches for the person who betrayed his escape plan back in France. The result is a page-turning romance complete with a wounded hero it’s easy to crush on and an intelligent, fiercely independent heroine it’s easy to root for. This is a delight. (May)
—Publishers Weekly
“This is a delight.”
