#Review: DECEIVING THE DUKE by Elizabeth Ellen Carter

 

  4 of 5 stars

Seth Musgrave is the new Duke of Auchen after the death of his estranged father. Throughout his life, Seth had been bullied and called an imbecile by his father and Seth had tried so hard to prove his father wrong. His father's final wish was to return to Scotland and against his better judgment, Seth indulges the old man. Lady Ruby McAllister believes the former duke cheated her father out of his share of the profitable mill and pretends to be the old man's nurse to try and get him to do the right thing. What she doesn't count on was falling for Seth, but can they have a loving relationship based on lies and deceit?

This was an interesting read and the first book I've read by Ms. Carter. I felt such empathy for Seth trying to reconcile his feelings for his dying father who was proving to be the monster Seth remembered from his childhood or was he? The calming presence of Nurse Ruby is something Seth never counted on and he found himself falling in love with her. Ruby was a strong character who receives a shock in her quest for revenge and compensation from the old duke. She does redeem herself by letting Seth travel to London alone to adjust to being the duke while she stays in Scotland and tries to forget him. The plot moves along well and I especially liked Roddy, Seth's friend. He added some much needed levity to the story. While it was a rocky road, Seth and Ruby finally find their own HEA.

I voluntarily read the advanced reader copy and all opinions are my own.