In 1811, Diana and her sisters are trying to outrun the scandal of their mother leaving their father and running off with her lover, and have begun Elegant Occasions, an events company. When Duke Geoffrey Brookhouse of Grenwood hires them to find a suitable man for his shy sister, Rosy, he puts conditions on their payment plan. What he doesn't bargain for is his desire for Diana.
This is a historical romance novel with racy scenes of Diana and Geoffrey. Their initial disdain for one another is quickly shed, along with their clothing!
I couldn't quite believe the "secret" that Geoffrey was keeping and loath to admit to anyone. It didn't seem like that big of a deal, especially since he had evidence to help his account of the situation. I think I would have liked it more if there was more detail of the events planning and fashion advice vs. the steamy scenes.
Thanks to Kensington Books and BetweenTheChapters for the book. ( )

I didn't enjoy this as much as I'd hoped. The big secret reason why they couldn't be together ended up being kind of toothless when it actually came to it. And the relationship focused more on the two of them butting heads, and later some passion, than the romantic feelings and growing attachment I would have preferred. (It would have enhanced the conflict and passion if nothing else). I liked that the women were capable and ran a business, and that the hero was new to high society, (though he was awfully imperious for someone who hadn't grown up in the peerage). ( )

A Duke for Diana by Sabrina Jeffries
Book 1 of the Designing Debutants series. Historical romance.
Geoffrey unexpectedly inherits a dukedom. He hires Elegant Occasions and Lady Diana to help his sister make her debut. Diana has significant work to do to make them ready for the society season.

I liked Geoffrey for his humor and compassion for his sister. That he actually works as a civil engineer is quite different from the usual historical romance. The same can be said about Diana and the business she and her sisters have created. That they build in specific charity donations into her fees is wonderful. The relationship between Geoffrey and Diana is beyond convention with her naivety in experience.
An entertaining story with some high society rules explained, some sexy romping and the eventual love match. ( )

Debutantes and Dukes!

A clever read but not what I expect from Jeffries. Mostly she’s a five star read for me. Don’t get me wrong, I really liked all of the characters but the events became a tad predictable.
Lady Diana Harper and her sisters operate an event planning concern, Elegant Occasions. The women have been forced to make hard decisions, hovering as they are on the edge of society. Why? Well their mother ran off with a General, and their father is suing for divorce. Absolutely scandalous to the ton. Their mother is “married but courting.”
The three sisters all have a gift for various aspects of what is important to polite society—food, fashion and music. Talents that translate to tasteful and interesting ton functions for ladies needing or seeking advice.
As it so happens engineer Geoffrey Brooke has inherited the dukedom of Greenwood. (I love that the Duke make sure to cross the Thames at different bridges to study and enjoy their structural identities. ) Anyway being newly come to the business of Duking brings about its own challenges, particularly as Geoffrey’s sister needs guidance during her London season. This is where Elegant Occasions come into play—much against the Duke’s better judgement. Of course sparks are going to fly between the Duke who has no clue about how the ton works, and the woman who now finds herself on its edges—the Lady Diana!

A Kensington Books ARC via NetGalley ( )

A sparkling start to a new series
5 Stars

I’ve always been a big fan of Sabrina Jeffries - she was one of the authors that first started my romance obsession - but I’d kind of dipped in and out of her more recent works. That’s why it’s great to get a fresh new series where the reader isn’t expected to know any characters or connections. This book starts the Designing Debutantes series but is a complete standalone novel with its own HEA.

The reason for the series title is because of the business that Diana and her sisters run - a sort of consultancy that aids girls coming out into society. This part of the book was interesting but never overshadowed the romance of the story with the details - although it was the glue that held the story and characters together.

I really liked Diana as a character. She was feisty and strong and always thinking she was in the right. This gave her the perfect combination of traits to bang up against Geoffrey Brookhouse, the newly minted Duke of Grenwood, and brother of Diana’s newest client. Geoffrey is a normal, hard-working chap who has found himself thrust into a world that is so foreign to him. As a result, he comes across as a bit crass, a bit rude and quite overwhelming. The perfect man for our proper society miss.

There’s an instant attraction between our couple and I was excited to watch them butt heads and dance around each other, misunderstand each other and then finally collide. This happened but then I felt some confusion which did put a damper on the sexual tension. This was because I wasn’t really sure who was doing the chasing at any one time, and who was doing the retreating. I just felt their motivations weren’t crystal clear which pulled me out of the book as I tried to understand their ultimate purposes.

With that said, there was still a spark of chemistry between our pairing and the scenes when they were together were delicious and just naughty enough to make me happy. I can always rely on Sabrina Jeffries to bring some sauciness to Society.

It goes without saying that I thought the writing was excellent - it always is with Ms Jeffries. I was immediately engrossed in the Regency and with all the characters. Although they didn’t feature heavily, I’m already looking forward to the stories of the other sisters (Eliza in An Earl for Eliza and presumably then, A Viscount for Verity). There was, too, a lot of information in this book and little snippets of Regency life peppered throughout. Always in a way that made it part of the story, but interesting nonetheless as I wasn’t aware of many. I do so like to learn more about the Regency.

I did feel the story and the urgency of the love story faded a bit towards the end of the book - especially as the spotlight moved towards Rosy and her own story. This was a bit of a shame as it took the focus off Diane and Geoffrey. But once I’d finished the book and looked back - I still felt this was a five star read. I hugely enjoyed the read and raced through the book. Furthermore, it was a an exciting start to a brand new series and I’m excited to read more and hopefully revisit our couple from this book. As a result, it’s 5 stars from me. ( )