The Worst Duke in the World

Written by Lisa Berne

Narrated by Moira Quirk

""Attention, Bridgerton fans: if you're ready to delve deeper into the world of historical romances, The Worst Duke in the World by Lisa Berne is a fun place to start."" —Pop Sugar

A wayward duke must choose: will he be the bad hero in a love story gone awry, or the brave and clever hero who risks everything for true love?  The acclaimed Penhallow Dynasty series continues in this fresh, fun, funny tale!

Life’s no bowl of cherries for Anthony Farr, the Duke of Radcliffe. Duty demands he remarry to provide a spare to go along with the heir — and eligible ladies keep trying to finagle him into a proposal. All he wants is to be a good father to his 8-year-old son, see the Duchess (his truly terrific pig) win first prize at the harvest fête, and stay single. Even if that makes him a Bad Duke. Maybe the Worst Duke in the World.  

Then Miss Jane Kent, a long-lost relation of the illustrious Penhallow family, arrives in the neighborhood and is promptly befriended by the Duke’s son. Jane, Anthony comes to realize, is smart and fun and also very kissable and dazzlingly desirable. Still, that’s not enough to melt his resistance to marrying again. He made a stern promise to himself and promises must, of course, be kept.  

But what if that’s just his head talking, and his heart . . . is saying something entirely different?

“Delicious.” —Sarah MacLean, The Washington Post, on You May Kiss the Bride

“…It's champagne in book form — bubbly, fun, and intoxicating far more quickly than one might anticipate.” —Entertainment Weekly

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperAudio
• Release date: Jan 12, 2021
• ISBN: 9780063074521

Lisa Berne

Lisa Berne read her first Georgette Heyer novel at fourteen — it was the effervescent Lady of Quality — and was instantly captivated. Later, she was a graduate student, a grant writer, and a teacher — and now writes historical romance for Avon Books, with her stories set mostly in Regency-era Britain. She lives with her family in the Pacific Northwest. Please visit Lisa on the web at www.LisaBerne.com . . .  and say hello on Facebook! LisaBerneAuthor

Reviews for The Worst Duke in the World

[pamelad_570511 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I'm giving up on this because of the leaden, try-hard humour. I keep groaning, and muttering, "Get on with the story."

[barbararogers-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

** 3.5 Stars **Well, I hardly know where to start in order to explain my rating. This was a frivolous, lighthearted read that is just the kind of thing I needed after all of the dark and grim books that this COVID pandemic seems to have generated. It was humorous and the dialogue was witty. It also had some of the most immature and silly lead characters I’ve ever read – with that applying more to the male lead than the female. I liked the characters, but I felt they were more on a maturity par with the eight-year-old than the other adults in the book. BUT – all of that said, I enjoyed the read and it was a breath of fresh air among all of the grim releases.Miss Jane Kent shows up at the door of Surmont Hall, home of the Pehallows. Jane is shivering, shabby, emaciated, starving, and desperate. She’s there because of a letter she found – and it is her last hope. After her great-grandmother Kent passed away, Jane was all alone in the world – with no skills and no funds. She knew she couldn’t stay in their home because she had no funds, so she was cleaning out the attic to prepare for leaving when she discovered an old yellowed letter tucked inside one of her great-grandfather Kent’s pamphlets. The letter was written to Charity, her grandmother, and indicated a relationship with the Penhallow family. Jane swallowed hard, packed her very few belongings, and made her way to Surmont Hall. When Henrietta Penhallow saw Jane, she immediately recognized the family connection because Jane looked just like her grandfather, Henrietta’s son, Titus.Anthony Farr, the Duke of Radcliffe, is definitely a different kind of duke. He wasn’t supposed to be the duke, he is different from all of the other members of his family, and his sister constantly tells him he is the worst duke in the world. He isn’t polished in his dress, he hates London, he adores his pig (Duchess) who always wins ribbons at the fete, he adores his 8-year-old son Winfield, and he absolutely, completely, and totally hates marriage. He was trapped in a loveless marriage until his wife died five years ago – it wasn’t just a loveless marriage, each of them loathed the other, but he was forced into it. Now, he is free and he never ever intends to marry again no matter what his vile-tongued sister has to say about it.Jane becomes friends with Wakefield through the local vicar because both Jane and Wakefield are taking lessons there. Wakefield invites Jane to go home with him to meet the Duchess (the pig) and she ends up meeting Anthony as well. Anthony and Jane immediately like each other and enjoy spending time together. Jane’s feelings are steady and they grow over time – until she knows she’s in love with Anthony. Anthony, on the other hand, blows hot and cold. He smothers her with kisses one minute and treats her as a stranger the next. He continues that way until he realizes he may have lost her forever – she is in London having a season – and it turns out she is very popular and has received several proposals. Uh-Oh!Now, for a brief comment about Margaret, Anthony’s sister. She is a gosh-awful shrew who makes everybody’s life miserable. She’s vile, hateful, and mean spirited. I just don’t understand why Anthony would continue to put up with her. He doesn’t have to. She is a widow who was kicked out of her former husband's home by the man who inherited her husband’s title. Anthony took her in and instead of being grateful, she makes life miserable for everyone. Why wouldn’t a rich, powerful duke like Anthony just provide Margaret with a small home somewhere away from him and let her live her miserable life there? I just don’t get it – and it seems a lot of authors write these kinds of characters.Anyway, I enjoyed the read, but I just didn’t connect with the characters. Something has to be wrong when the most mature character in the book is an 8-year-old. I did love the final chapter because it did a wonderful wrap-up for all of the threads that had run through the book – as well as a lovely view of what life was like for Anthony, Jane, and Wakefield several years down the road.If you are looking for a rather inane, fairly witty, lighthearted read, this might be just the book for you.I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.