Undercover Duke

Written by Sabrina Jeffries

Narrated by Beverley A. Crick

In the fourth Duke Dynasty novel, New York Times bestselling author Sabrina Jeffries, one of the best-known names in historical romance, weaves an enchanting Regency romance with a mystery at its core, as stepsiblings investigate the truth about their mother’s succession of beloved husbands—and their own surprising identities as eligible young nobles. For an uptight duke still nursing a broken heart, the last thing he needs is a pretend engagement with a vivacious and alluring young woman. As they’re drawn deeper into secret schemes, could she solve not just the mystery of his family, but the riddle of his heart as well?

Bridgerton fans and readers of Madeline Hunter, Eloisa James, and Lisa Kleypas won't want to miss this humorous and clever new love story from the historical romance legend.

Along with his stepsiblings, Sheridan Wolfe, Duke of Armitage, is determined to finally solve the mysteries behind the suspicious deaths of their mother’s three husbands. Tasked with investigating a possible suspect, Sheridan finds himself in dangerous proximity to her captivating daughter, Vanessa Pryde. But still haunted by a tragically lost love, the duke is resolved to resist the attraction—and avoid any “scheming” husband-hunters. Besides, lovely Miss Pryde seems utterly smitten with a roguish London playwright …

Vanessa thinks a little scheming may be in order—for it’s Sheridan she truly has her sights, and her heart, set on. Her theatrical flirtation is intended only to break through his business-like demeanor and guarded emotions. And as Sheridan’s jealousy becomes aroused, the two soon find themselves propelled into a scheme of an altogether different kind, involving a pretend engagement, a secret inquiry—and a perhaps not-so-secret leap into true love …

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: May 25, 2021
• ISBN: 9781980001140

Sabrina Jeffries

Sabrina Jeffries is the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of several Regency-set historical romance series, including the Royal Brotherhood, the School for Heiresses, the Hellions of Halstead Hall, the Duke’s Men, and the Sinful Suitors. When she’s not writing in a coffee-fueled haze, she’s traveling with her husband, caring for her adult autistic son, or indulging in one of her passions: jigsaw puzzles, chocolate, music, and costume parties. With more than nine million books in print in twenty languages, the North Carolina author never regrets tossing aside a budding career in academics for the sheer joy of writing fun fiction and hopes that one day a book of hers will end up saving the world. She always dreams big.

Reviews for Undercover Duke

[jorgeousjotts · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This could probably stand on its own, but previous couples do show up quite a bit, and there is an overarching mystery that culminates in this one, so it's probably best read in order. I was pretty certain I'd solved the mystery two books ago, and I was right, but I'm really here for the romance, so I didn't mind that much. In the beginning they both have ulterior motives that bring them together, and I thought it was handled well. I like that the heroine reached for what she wanted, and that the hero slowly fell for her despite himself. Both characters made a couple foolish choices, but were overall likable.
The last few chapters really leaned heavily on long explanatory conversations to bring everything together, and it felt a bit forced and flat. I'd also already guessed how the ending would play out a couple chapters earlier, so it wasn't a particularly interesting ending for me, but it wasn't too shabby how things turned out.
Overall I would rate the series:
1: 3
1.5: 2.5 rounded to 3
2: 4
3: 3
4: 3

I received as advance copy for reviewing purposes, but my thoughts and opinions are entirely my own.

[eyes92c · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Dukely deaths unmasked!A convoluted plot as Sheridan Wolfe, the Duke of Armitage, and his siblings try to discover who might have killed the various Dukes, and their fathers, their mother, the Dowager Duchess Lydia Pryde Drake had married. Their suspicions have landed on three women. That investigation was to take place at a house party by Sheridan’s half brother Grey, the Duke of Greycourt, but that’s now not possible, so it’s up to Sheridan. This leads to Sheridan pretending to be engaged to Vanessa Pride, whom it seems is “too attractive for Sheridan’s sanity.” Vanessa has her own reasons for joining in this deadly farce. Something to do with a playwright, Konrad Junker she’s “gushing” over. Vanessa’s woven a web of deceits that she’s afraid she’ll find hard to untangle. Hmm!Vanessa is one of the best aspects as we come to the unveiling of who’s been disposing of the Dowager Duchess’s Dukely husbands over the years. Another great episode in Jeffries highly readable, yet deadly, regency romance saga!A Kensington Books ARC via NetGalley

[n.w.moors-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was an okay ending to a series with a great premise: a woman marries three different Dukes (each dies) and has various children by each. The family discovers the three Dukes (and others) were murdered and the children investigate.This book is Sheridan and Vanessa's story. The mystery of the murderer is resolved in a satisfactory manner but I was disappointed with the romance. There didn't seem to be much chemistry between the H/h, only lust on his part and infatuation on hers. At times, she acts like a high schooler though she's twenty-five years old, trying to make him jealous by kissing other guys or flirting. He is mostly fascinated with her breasts, not that there's anything wrong with that but it put him in a high school YA portrayal also. There's a lot of tropes that done well are fine, but here it seemed to be just padding out the book for the mystery. Still, I mostly enjoyed the series and am happy they caught the murderer.

[amym3317 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Sheridan Wolfe, Duke of Armitage, is determined to once and for all find out who was behind the suspicious deaths of his uncle and father - along with his mother's other two previous husbands. With the help of his siblings, and their significant others, they know that events in the past play a key part in figuring out who is behind the murders. They each have their own person to question. Sheridan is tasked with questioning Lady Eustace, and the best way to do that is to get close to her daughter Vanessa. With Vanessa's affections caught up with a local poet, Sheridan feels like they can both benefit from a fake courtship: Sheridan will have ample opportunity to question Vanessa's mother, and Vanessa can make her unrequited love jealous enough to actually commit to her. But Vanessa has a secret. She's not really in love with the poet. She's actually quite taken with Sheridan himself, but he's never seemed to notice her before. Vanessa hopes that being in constant close proximity with one another will force Sheridan to finally see her. But will they ever be able to reach one another with all the secrets floating around?I've rather enjoyed this series. The big draw for me was following the murder mystery throughout each book. I liked how it linked each story together. If I'm being honest, I wish that it was more prevalent. I know that this series is romance first and the mystery is something extra, but I wish that we could have seen more cohesion in regards to putting the pieces together at the end. I think this is especially highlighted because we're at the end and readers are figuring on things getting solved. There was just still so much for the siblings to piece together that I would have appreciated some scenes from other characters' points of view as they question their respective suspects. Since each book focuses on a different sibling though, I understand why Sheridan / Vanessa were the focus. Sabrina Jeffries would have had to setup the flow of the story differently from the onset for it to have made sense at the end. I won't say that the reveal was super shocking, but I always enjoy how the past ultimately influences the present / future and oftentimes revisiting the past will give us the insight we're looking for.As it stands, Vanessa and Sheridan's road to happiness was a tangled web indeed. There were quite a few times I had to stop and remind myself why they were pretending to be together. Who it was supposed to benefit and what secrets were still being kept. I think, for the most part, Sabrina Jeffries handles the various points of their fake relationship rather well. I mean that if you take both Vanessa and Sheridan's parts and view them separately it makes a certain sense. It's also speaks a lot to things that we leave unsaid. To see the points where Sheridan and Vanessa's feelings for one another actually converge yet they've set their own roadblocks in between what they could have together, it's almost a bit comical dare I say. But I like them together and I like how well they kind of play off of one another. The highlight for me is the family interaction. I think with this being the last book we get a good view of all the siblings and their significant others together quite a few times and I love seeing that connection especially given the fact that they are such a large blended family. Overall, I've found this series to be enjoyable. I'd say you could definitely read these as standalones but you might miss the build up of the mystery that runs throughout.

[scoutmomskf · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Good book. I liked the romance between Vanessa and Sheridan and how it tied into the investigation of the murders. This is the final book in the series, and the family's determination to solve their fathers' murders comes to a satisfactory conclusion. In the first book of the series, Project Duchess, Sheridan is the one who suspects that the deaths were neither natural nor accidental. Eventually, they conclude that three aristocratic ladies had the means and motivation to carry them off. Sheridan finds himself tasked with investigating Lady Eustace, mother of Vanessa Pryde. Sheridan is unwillingly attracted to Vanessa and doesn't look forward to spending time in her company. Vanessa is in love with Sheridan and has been for months. Unfortunately, he doesn't appear to see her as a woman instead of his half-brother's cousin, so she sets out to gain his attention. To do so, she fakes an interest in playwright Juncker in hopes of stirring Sheridan's jealousy. I liked both Sheridan and Vanessa. Sheridan never expected to become the duke and trained for a diplomatic career. He is kind, honorable, protective, and a bit on the serious side, which gained him the nickname of "Saint Sheridan" within the family. He spends much of his time trying to figure out how to save the estate from bankruptcy due to his uncle's profligate ways, and he faces greater than usual challenges in doing so. Sheridan also closed himself off to any idea of marriage after the death of his fiancée. Vanessa is intelligent, independent, and willing to go after what she wants. She spent her life watching her parents fight their way through their marriage. Her mother is selfish and cruel in her treatment of Vanessa, currently pushing her toward marriage with an older peer. I liked watching the development of the relationship between Vanessa and Sheridan. Vanessa's interest in Juncker irritates Sheridan though he doesn't know why and he becomes determined to show her what a poor choice he is. While looking for a way to get closer to Lady Eustace, he agrees to pretend to court Vanessa so she can stir Juncker's jealousy (?!) and he can prove to her that Juncker is a cad. The convolutions of their schemes lead to some interesting verbal battles and the growing realization that each has misjudged the other. I loved seeing them engage in their verbal fisticuffs around their families, who can see the truth about their feelings, while Sheridan and Vanessa remain oblivious. I ached for Vanessa when a moment of uncontrolled passion led to a hasty marriage because she never wanted him forced into marriage with her. Her hopes take a hit when she finds out what brought them together. Meanwhile, Sheridan continues to fight his feelings for her until a comment by his half-sister opens his eyes: "You don't choose love; love chooses you. ...resistance is pointless." That revelation nearly comes too late, but in the end, both Sheridan and Vanessa admit their feelings for each other. I loved the epilogue with all of the couples from the series. I felt mysteries were addressed in this book. The first was Sheridan's battle with the estate's finances and how they got to be in such bad shape. My suspicions on that subject focused on one person, and I wasn't surprised to discover I was right. The second mystery dealt with the deaths of the dukes. This was somewhat more convoluted. I was fascinated with how the men focused on the aristocratic women, while Vanessa pointed out that they completely overlooked the servants who also had motive and opportunity. When the truth came out, the link between the two mysteries didn't surprise me, but the motivation did. The final confrontation was intense and had me glued to the pages until it was over.##netgalley

[barbararogers-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful, bright, kind, vivacious diamond of the first water who married a duke during her first season. After his untimely death, she married two more dukes and had a total of five children before the age of five and twenty. Luckily for all of them, the last duke managed to live long enough to raise and be a father to all five of those children. Upon his untimely death, those now-grown children begin to put two and two together and realized that someone had been killing off their mother’s husbands. Who would hate their mother that much? As we’ve worked through each of her children’s books - Fletcher “Grey” Pryde, 5th Duke of Greycourt and Beatrice Wolfe (Project Duchess), Lord Heywood Wolfe and Cassandra Isles (A Perfect Match – a novella in the Seduction on a Snowy Night anthology), Lady Gwyn Drake and Joshua Wolfe (The Bachelor), and Marlowe Drake, the Duke of Thornstock and Miss Olivia Norley (Who Wants to Marry a Duke) – we’ve gotten more and more hints about who the murderer is. You may have figured out who it is – or not – but not the true reason behind it and you won’t know that until the murderer is revealed.Since the murders have been solved and all of the step-siblings have found their HEAs, I think this must be the last book in the series. There is a novella coming out near Christmas that will feature a recurrent character, Juncker, in this series, but I don’t really think it is part of the series. Anyway, this book was a delightful, exciting, twist-and-turn, cannot-put-it-down wrap-up for the series. All the threads are wrapped up and we get to visit with all of the step-siblings. It is well-written, delightfully complex, and wonderfully sensual – not to mention breath-holding while in pursuit of the villain.Sheridan Wolfe, new Duke of Armitage, was the one to put the puzzle together and recognize that all of the deaths in his family may not have been what they appeared to be. With the death of his father a year ago, Sheridan inherited a duchy that was on the brink of insolvency. It seems that no matter what he does, how hard he tries, he cannot bring the estate around to make it pay for itself. He doesn’t blame his father because he was only the duke for a few months. His father was never supposed to be the duke, but when his uncle died unexpectedly, his father had to return to England and assume his role as duke. It was his uncle who bankrupted the duchy. Sheridan – known to his siblings as Saint Sheridan – always tries to do what is right, what is correct and honorable and he just cannot see a way to save the duchy. He certainly won’t consider marriage to an heiress; he just can’t do that. He supposes he’ll have to marry and produce an heir someday, but that will be far in the future if at all. He loved once and it nearly killed him – he won’t do it again.Vanessa Pryde has been attracted to Sheridan Wolfe since the day she met him. However, if he notices her at all, he treats her as a little sister. She is so frustrated that he won’t notice her as the grown woman she is! What is a girl to do? Well, she’ll just do a little scheming and make him jealous by pretending to be interested in the poet/playwright Juncker – and she’ll ask Sheridan to help her make Juncker jealous. Convoluted – Yes! Misguided – Yes! However, it is fun to watch Sheridan stew because he hasn’t been as unaware of her as she thinks. Of course, he has his own motives for agreeing to help her – and they aren’t exactly aboveboard either.I definitely recommend this book and this series. It is delightfully entertaining with wonderful, very likable, and relatable characters. The book, the plot, the characters, the romance, was so engaging I couldn’t put it down and read it straight through in one sitting. If you try it, I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did.I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.