What the Duke Desires

By: Jenna Petersen

Narrated by: Angèle Masters

Length: 9 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

The duke always gets exactly what he wants . . .

As the new Duke of Billingham, Simon Crathorne has one main duty to fulfill: find a proper wife and continue his family's exalted name. But of all the eligible women who have come to his country party, he desires only one. And she may be the most unsuitable bride of all.

Lillian Mayhew is desperate to expose a devastating secret about Simon's distinguished late father so she can salvage her family's reputation. Yet from the moment she meets her rakishly handsome host, she begins to question if she can destroy his world so callously. She once wanted nothing more than to destroy his good name-and now she wants nothing more than his kiss.

Caught between vengeance and ecstasy, Simon and Lillian begin a passionate affair. But betrayal lurks behind every stolen touch-and the duke's shocking past may be his ultimate undoing . . .

©2009, 2012 Jenna Petersen (P)2012 HarperCollinsPublishers

Very enjoyable

Any additional comments?

I enjoyed this book very much. It had a unique plot and I thought the narration was excellent. I would very much like to listen to more books by this author. I thought the tension between the H and the h was valid, and the ending wasn't all wrapped up in a neat bow. More please!

Secrets, lies and deception!

So many secrets to be uncovered! I enjoyed the twists, but would have liked for some of the characters to be developed more fully. The coitus interruptus scene was priceless! I hope that this is the start to a series so we can get all the answers.

Worth a listen

I liked the characters and the story. I thought it provided some decent entertainment and diversion.

Slow start but warmed up to be a good listen

Simon, the Duke of Billingham, has to find a bride so he and his Mother organises a house party. Lillian, who is one of the 'underclasses', has bitter grievances with the family so she tags along with her best friend, who has been invited, to seek her revenge. However, she discovers that Simon is kind, attentive and honest and Lillian can't help being drawn to him .......but she's not the only one with secrets and, although everyone tells him to stay away from the lower class Lillian, he too is drawn to her.

Good listen, bit hard to get into it in the beginning cause Lillian is so dislikeable but when the plot gets going it's worth the wait and it has some unexpected surprises to the plot. I believe this is the start of a series called 'Bastards of Billingham Hall' so I will look forward to the next in the series.

Worth a credit? Yes, despite Lillian's character !!

Hmm! Interesting

This is one of those books that manages to follow the historical romance formula and still be gut wrenching. The heroines goes in to ruin the hero because of something his father has done and instead encounter a man so honorable that she is unable to follow through with her original plan. I did not expect to enjoy this as much as I did. Well worth the credit.

Pretty good Romance

At least this wasn't the standard romance procedure. The story was convoluted and a bit ridiculous and I was glad when it was over. It wasn't terrible, it wasn't great it was just...meh.
The narrator had such a thick accent that there were times that I could barely understand her. Especially when she was doing the cooing simpering voice of the heroine.

Enjoyable Light Listening

Would you consider the audio edition of What the Duke Desires to be better than the print version?

Have not read print version.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

I would deemphasize the heroine's annoying frequent harping on her not very important Big Secret. The harping increases as the novel continues and it seems silly, in contrast to the real problems faced by the hero. It is as if the author at intervals remembered that she gave the heroine a Big Secret and hurriedly throws it in. The ending is very contrived as a result. The book would have been improved if the author had ditched this weak plot device and continued with the interesting development of the romance, which has real strength. The novel is good enough that the weakness of the heroine's Big Secret stands out.

Would you listen to another book narrated by Victor Bevine?

Not sure. Her narration of the heroine was not entirely pleasing; she did a better job with the other characters.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

There were many moments where the author skillfully developed the relationship between the hero and heroine. She keeps the reader's interest in both characters throughout the novel. The family relationships in the novel add a great deal to the plot and there are some excellent scenes involving those relationships and their evolution.

Any additional comments?

This is a good way to pass time, but not a great book. I recommend this to anyone looking for light diversion and who has a tolerance for a beginning author with real talent finding her way. I look forward to more from this author as she matures as a writer.

What the Mystery Man Wants

Talk about picking your battles,unfortunately for the hero in this story has no choice but to face his,the heroine on the other hand decides to grab bull by the horns and winds up a alot more than she bargained for.

Interesting twist in a nice romance

While it started a bit slow, What the Duke Desires began to heat up midway and things started happening! The romance was nice - not real hot - not cold. Lets put it this way - you probably won't blush but its not PG either.

There is an interesting twist in the story line that I have to say I didn't see coming. I couldn't hit pause the last 4 hours. It was on sale when I got this book so it was definitely worth it. Is it credit worthy? Yes

The only problem was the narrator didn't "act out" the parts very well. She didn't whisper when the author said "she whispered" nor did she get choked up when the author made us believe the character was about to cry. Other than that her voices were good.

An okay book

This was fine. Nothing exceptional. I liked the hero and I was devastated by the big reveal and then a tad annoyed. I know I found something about their romance to be a bit odd but I forget the specifics.

I wish subsequent books were available on Audible.