The Mad, Bad Duke

Author: Jennifer Ashley
Published: November 2006 (Leisure Books)
Category: Regency Romance/Fantasy
Series: Nvengaria #2
Rating: 8/10

I enjoyed Jennifer Ashley's Immortals series, so I figured I'd give her regency romances a try, as they have a fantasy twist. The Mad, Bad Duke has hints of Beauty and the Beast. The Nvengaria series features people from the tiny country of Nvengaria (somewhere in the Balkans) as they wade through British diplomacy and social customs. Nvengarians are a magical and passionate people, very at odds with the stuffy Brits.

Meagan Tavistock, daughter of a not-too-well-off untitled gentleman, was dragged along with her friend, Mrs. Deirdre Braithwaite to a witch's house for the purpose of obtaining a love spell. Deirdre is that sort of friend you wish you didn't have, as she's bossy and threatens Meagan in order to make her fall in to her plan to cuckold her husband by seducing Grand Duke Alexander of Nvengaria, right hand man to Prince Damien (from the first book, Penelope and Prince Charming). He's extremely powerful in that "danger beneath the smooth, civilized exterior" kind of way. Instead of making a love spell for Deirdre, the witch makes the spell for Meagan instead.

The spell treats both Meagan and Alexander to shared erotic visions, and when they meet at a ball, they make love, and get away undiscovered. Alexander, being a man of honor, and one unable to stop thinking about this lovely young woman, proposes marriage... via a letter to Meagan's father the next morning. They do get married, and boink like crazy afterward, but the possibility that they might not be happy with the marriage after the love spell fades looms in the near future.

Clearly, Alexander's obstacle as a hero is his refusal to let go of his cool and super serious attitude. The love spell makes it extremely difficult to stay that way, as every time he and Meagan are in the same general area, the spell drags them into the visions. Well, actually, his other obstacle is dealing with his mother's legacy. She was a logosh, a sort of Nvengarian shape-shifting demon, and Alexander's tight control over his emotions has repressed this side of his nature all his life. The love spell opened the way for his other side to emerge and he's trying to control it without hurting Meagan or his young son from his first marriage. He does that annoying romantic hero thing where he pushes his new wife away without giving an explanation, when a bit of communication would've made things a lot easier.

They do get married, and their relationship is so funny in that bickering kind of way. One particular giggle-inducing moment has Meagan mispronouncing the Nvengarian word for salt so she asks for some penis at the dinner table by accident. Clearly, I have the maturity of a ten-year old. Meagan is unprepared for the role of Grand Duchess and is new to the political intrigues that can occur during a ball. I found myself rooting for Meagan as she rose above the bitchy Deirdre and the society women who thought she wasn't good enough for Alexander.

I really enjoyed reading this book and have placed Penelope and Prince Charming on my "To Buy" list. The third Nvengaria book is Highlander Ever After, is scheduled for April 2008 release. Jennifer Ashley actually stopped by my little blog the other day and left a comment my review on The Gathering! I was so honored and sheepish over the fact that she responded to a comment I made about the name for a certain lion...