by Emily Rath
Part of Second Sons
First published 2022
Rosalie Harrow is twenty-two, broke, and out of options. Marry a rich man or become a governess. She wants neither. When an invitation arrives to Alcott Hall, she expects a quiet meeting with the Dowager Duchess of Norland, a woman who knew her late mother. What she walks into is a full house party, a roomful of society women competing for one duke, and a social minefield she never agreed to enter. Rosalie tries to ignore the husband hunt entirely. That plan falls apart fast. Lord James, the duke's younger brother, runs the household in everything but title. Lieutenant Renley has just come back from the West Indies and is reluctantly in the market for a wife. Then there is Mr. Burke, who manages to irritate Rosalie at every turn and somehow keeps showing up anyway. The Michaelmas ball is coming. The duke will name his bride. Rosalie still does not know why she was really invited. She is not looking to be caught, but she is starting to wonder whether the chase itself might be worth something.
Genres: romance, historical-fiction, adult, adult-fiction, contemporary-romance
Vibes: charming, lighthearted, romantic, social-intrigue, witty
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, forced-proximity, love-triangle, slow-burn-romance
Setting: Alcott Hall, West Indies
Period: Regency era
480 pages · Paperback · Kensington