One-Eyed Dukes Are Wild

Frampton's latest Regency never quite delivers on its promising premise. Lady Margaret Sawford is "a lady of scandal": an unmarried writer, an advocate for disadvantaged women, and a skilled card player. She is looking for an opponent "worthy of her skill and attention." The Duke of Lasham has an enigmatic and piratical appearance, caused by the patch over the eye he lost years earlier. He is tired of the dullness of running a duchy and wants adventure. From the time they first meet, Margaret and Lasham fight their attraction to each other, but they keep ending up in situations that are socially, physically, and emotionally compromising. Margaret and Lasham's conflicted romance is slow to evolve, as is the extended story of their trips to seedier parts of London to assist downtrodden women. The heroine and the dragon of Margaret's serialized story serve as a metaphor for Margaret's relationship with Lasham, creating a nice thread through the narrative, but that tale also lacks development. There are several sensual interludes between the two protagonists, and their verbal sparring is witty, but both the encounters and discussions become repetitive. The references to both Margaret and Lasham's family history hint at a deeper dimension to the characters, leaving readers wishing more had been done to bring it out. Agent: Louise Fury, Bent Agency. (Jan.)