Good Duke Gone Wild

The sensual first Bluestocking Booksellers Regency from Bennett (Any Rogue Will Do) kicks off after Caroline “Caro” Danvers’s father, a vicar, discovers that she writes erotica and throws her out of the house. She travels to London to stay with her aunt and uncle at their bookshop, Martin House Books. Outside the shop, Caro runs into a man she later discovers is Dorian Whitaker, Duke of Holland. Caro agrees to Dorian’s request to organize his late wife’s library for sale—and discovers spicy love letters hidden among the pages. A distressed Dorian reveals that the letters were written by the man his wife cheated on him with, and Caro offers to help him learn the man’s identity. Along the way, their friendship evolves into a love affair, but the class difference between them means they can never marry. Meanwhile, Caro anonymously publishes an erotic novel that takes London by storm—especially as the capital’s gossipmongers spread rumors that the hero is based on Dorian. What will happen when Dorian learns of Caro’s scandalous side hustle? Bennett expertly develops her characters, highlighting how their similarities enable them to breach Regency England’s societal strictures. As emotional as it is steamy, this promises good things for the series to come. Agent: Rebecca Strauss, DeFiore and Co. (Aug.)