The Duke's Demon

The Starian Cycle

By: Iris Foxglove

Narrated by: Kris Antham

Length: 7 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

Devon Chastain has always been angry. He burns with it, is consumed by it, lashing out at friend and foe alike, and secures his reputation as a difficult noble son for all to see. Now that his family has betrayed the crown, Devon is a mess of emotion he can’t control, and he finds himself discovered by none other than Sebastien d’Hiver, the mad duke who, rumor says, once killed his entire family and sold his soul to a demon.

He will find, soon enough, that only the last half of the rumor is true. Sebastien d’Hiver is a man given over to the dark that is all he or his demon has ever known, and it isn’t until he drags Devon to the eerie country manor he calls home that he realizes that there’s more to life than pain. Soon, all three of them, noble, traitor, and demon alike, will find in each other the light they’ve all been missing.

©2021 Iris Foxglove (P)2021 Iris Foxglove

My favorite in the series (so far)!!

This book is delightful and I loved it a lot!!! Somehow, this story is dark like I would expect a dark romance to be, and yet it’s still so SOFT at the same time. This may not have as much kink as the first book, but DEMON ROMANCES ARE APPARENTLY MY THING. I have been WAITING for a demon romance to love and this one is so fun and is delightfully a polyam romance with a demon. This is, so far, my favorite in the series. I had first read this by text, so this audiobook is a re-read for me.

Content notes include mentions of abuse, mentions of murders, kidnapping, deaths, and suggestions of maybe incest and rape in an MC’s past.

Devon Chastian is the second son of Lord Chastian. After the events of book one, Devon is on the run, but his attempts to evade capture and the king’s orders of a hanging aren’t the best and he is easily discovered by Duke Sebastien d’Hiver. And the demon who rides his soul.

Sebastien takes Devon back to his home in the north. There are stories that kids tell each other of the mad Duke and all those who enter his home are never seen again. Well, there is some truth to that, and it turns out that Sebastien feeds his demon with the fear of his human prey, and then at last, their souls. Devon is a shining beacon of anger, fear, and a whole gamut of emotions that pleases the demon greatly. And a reason why the demon wants to put him under their knife.

I can’t say I really knew what to expect from this book before I started it? I didn’t have a great opinion of Devon, seeing as how he was one of the many antagonists from the first book who didn’t like Sabre. So, this is pleasant surprise to how quickly I started to fall in love with him when I started reading the story from his perspective.

This book is filled with morally grey characters and I love it!! There’s just something very satisfying about all these characters and how it’s a very quaint found family setting? Sebastien found his demon during an incredibly dark time in his life, and both of them found Devon in a similar predicament. Devon was unlikable in the first book, but I really liked how we got to see his side of the story here. A redemption of sorts.

This book isn’t kinky like the first book is. But what this book DOES have is a lot of explicit consent!!! I just really love how this was written in the text and that everyone really respects and listens to one another. But especially that even a Duke and his demon know not to touch Devon when they know he doesn’t like to be touched unexpectedly. The consent is just really nice to read. This book feels dark to me because of the characters and their pasts, but it is also so SOFT. I loved how this is a polyam with 2 doms and a sub who thinks he’s a dom. There’s a biological aspect here that comes into play that is reminiscent of A/B/O books so nobody is vers, but I think it works within the context of this story. Sebastien has so much heart and I love the way he interacts with his demon (who does have a name! and we find out what that is in the story!) and I love how they both their interests in Devon grows as time passes.

As for secondary characters, I loved Clara, the housekeeper, and her gardener husband, Joaquin! They’re so sweet together and I love how they don’t question anything that happens at the house and just act like it’s all par for the course. I think it’s great that Joaquin simply went up to a Duke who most people feared, and said that the guy’s grounds are a mess so he’s going to see to them now. And that’s how Joaquin become the gardener. I adore that Clara gets to be happy now, and runs the house without batting an eye at all the goings-on and is very no-nonsense! I just really like all her scenes with Devon and when she decides that the once Lord’s son should sit and eat with the rest of the staff because he’s the Duke’s musician now. An unexpected character I fell in love with is a demon pet and she is SO ADORABLE.

So, I do wonder where the story with Marius, Devon’s older brother, will end up. Marius suffered under their father all the same as Devon (if not worse for being a sub and a first son, I think). But where Devon lashed out with anger to hide his fear, Marius just sort of pushed it all away and ignored all of it. Ignored his own pain, and Devon’s. I am very much looking forward to seeing him in a future book, and I wonder if the two brothers will ever see each other again.

I think this book could be read as a standalone if you wished. Of course, events from the first book play into this one, so maybe for maximum emotional impact(!!!), read this series in order. There is an excerpt for book 3 at the end of this audiobook. It is between Prince Adrien and Isiodore (the king’s closest friend and advisor) plays out. There must be a significant age gap between them seeing as how Adrien’s best friend’s (Sabre’s) father was Isiordore’s “buddy”(???) and maybe lovers in their younger years, so the dynamic is an interesting one.

The narrator does a fabulous job here as each of the characters. I did feel like there were times where Devon and Sebastien’s voices sounded similar, but maybe I just need to re-listen to this a few more times to see. Kris Anthem’s voice for Sariel, the demon, is the best and I LOVED it.

One very minor thing, is that it could be because I do listen to audiobooks sped up a bit, but I think the voice for Polly, a child who comes to stay at the estate, was the hardest to understand? The voice for her was very much like a child’s, so like a child’s (so points for accuracy), she was hard to understand at times since the voice was a bit high pitched and quite faster than the other text. But it’s fine.

I really liked that the narrator changed how “d’Hiver” is pronounced from the first audiobook. It is no longer “dee-ver” and I love that correction for Sebastien.

I really loved the narration and can’t wait to see what the narrator does with the next book!

This book is THE demon romance book I’ve been wanting to read. It’s surprisingly not easy to find a demon romance with the right balance of darkness in a book? At least, from my experience. But this one definitely fits the bill and I just really loved it a lot.

Devon's Story is Very Well Done!

I wouldn't really consider this a stand alone as it does build on events from the previous story. It follows Devon as he stays with Duke D'Hiver expecting to eventually pay for his crimes in a way only to blossom under Sebastian and Sariel's attentions. This story focuses on Devon's healing though I think Sebastian is also healed through their interactions in a way. Even Sariel goes through much growth and I love the way these three come together. Devon's past is full of trauma and it could be a potential trigger for some people but it's all off page and treated with much sensitivity and respect. While the kink not as present as in the first story, there is still a lot of exploration of the D/s relationship plus the addition of a demon to the dynamics. The demons in this world are incredibly unique and I love how curious Sariel is. Plus all the side characters are amazing and I loved getting to know everyone at the Abbey.

As previous, Kris Antham is amazing as a narrator. He does great voices and gives a great performance. He definitely makes a great story better!