Duke Most Wicked is the 3rd book in Lenora Bell’s Wallflowers Vs. Rogues series and hands-down my favorite read from this author yet! This is a class difference romance between a “wicked” Duke and the heroine he hires as the music teacher for his sisters. But wow, was it so much more!

Right from the prologue this story grabbed my attention and was so heart-achy! It broke my heart to read about 12-year-old Brandan asking his mother why his father hates him and why nothing he ever does is good enough for his father the Duke. And then all the dealings with his father after that. Because of secrets in his past, Brandan set out to be the absolute worst Duke’s heir in the world. He decided he would become wild and wicked, break all of society’s rules, and live like there was no tomorrow. The story then jumps to 16 years later, where Brandan Delamar is now the Duke of Westbury.

With 5 younger sisters to support and financial troubles, Brandan must marry for money. Viola Beaton is the music teacher to the Duke’s sisters and no heiress, but she has developed a forbidden passion for her employer. When West decrees that he that he’ll choose a bride for himself, as well as grooms for his sisters…Viola steps in because she has grown to adore his sisters and doesn’t want their husbands chosen for them. She strikes a bargain: if he’ll allow his sisters to attend the Season to have their own choice of suitors, Viola will chaperone and keep them safe from scandal. Now West and Viola are spending more time around one another and he is finding that no heiress lives up to the feelings he has for the music teacher… And along the way maybe Viola will help West reform some of his wicked, rakish ways.

The angst in this one was so good! I love a class difference romance and the wicked Duke with the hired music teacher for his sisters, was just everything. The romance was so good, their banter and chemistry just leaped from the page and I couldn’t get enough of West and Viola. I also loved seeing her relationship with his sisters, her father who is a composer and losing his hearing, his sisters (Blanche, Bernadette, Belinda, Betsy, Birdie) were all so charming, his friend Rafe, a proposal involving gravestones, a piano bench custom-made for reasons 🔥.

Thank you to the publisher (Avon Books) for an e-ARC via NetGalley. All thoughts in this review are my own. Duke Most Wicked has a publish date of September 27, 2022.

Ah, finally a regency romance that feels traditional. Viola is a music teacher to the Duke’s sisters, but she’s is really their mentor and confidant. The Duke is a bad boy with a heart. These two slowly come to realize they can’t live without each other.

A palate cleanser for me. Just a love story.

What a delightful read! I couldn’t stop once I started! I truly enjoyed the heroine, Viola. I thought her to be a sweet, relatable young woman who was doing her best. She was well developed and she gave a great example for the hero. What I truly liked about this book was how well they helped each other. Both partners played a role in growth; which I don’t believe happens often. I recommend this book to regency romance lovers. I don’t believe you’ll be let down!

This was a great addition to an enjoyable series. I loved Viola and West was a wonderful hero. They were a wonderful couple and I loved the story. I am looking forward to more books in the series.

Duke Most Wicked was my first Lenora Bell read and now I'll be checking out her additional titles! I enjoyed the characters (although the B sisters became a bit cumbersome to keep sorted) and the story and it was an enjoyably engaging historical romance. In this genre, sometimes (often) the third act conflict can tend to be really pretty heinous behavior. Without providing spoilers, I was happy to find the conflict genuine but not ruin-it-for-me-angsty. Now I'm off to see if that is Ms. Bell's particular style or singular to Duke Most Wicked by finding my next Lenora Bell read.

NetGalley provided an ARC and my review is my honest opinion.

Duke Most Wicked is a very fun read, featuring an (in progress) reforming rake, West, and the music teacher to his sisters, Viola, who he can't seem to get out of his mind, even as he's trying to find a suitable bride to refill his family's fortune.

Viola and West have a really fun back and forth to their dynamic, and unlike a lot of other books that feature combative leads, Viola is more shy and measured in her responses. She's not constantly yelling at him, but she quietly challenges him to be better and more than he's ever really thought himself capable of being. He, in turn, encourages Viola to be bold and brave in her life and take charge of what she actually wants. One of my favorite aspects of the book is the proposal scene, which I can safely say, has never been done in any other romance novel before.

West's sisters do tend to be easily mixed up because they all have B names and similar characteristics for the most part and I wasn't a huge fan of a late stage plot twist element, but these things didn't take away from the enjoyment of the book itself.

ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to like this since I like so many of Lenora Bells work, but this fell flat. The plot was very basic and uninspiring. The sisters’ names being so similar was meant to be cute and just ended up being confusing especially when one sister ran off with the others love interest in the B plot, which was super contrived and completely tacked on.. I couldn’t tell if the sisters were trying to push the two LIs together or not, or if they were just trying to annoying but they succeeded. The rich fiancée was nothing more than a boring jealous stereotype, and the man’s illegitimacy was so obvious that it absolutely did not need the dramatic reveal. There was almost no heat btn the characters. Just not up to Bells usual

Duke Most Wicked is the third book in Lenora Bell's Wallflowers vs Rogues series. This book is easily read as a stand alone but it has glimpses of the other couples in the series. I would recommend reading the entire series because it's wonderful.

Viola Beaton has been smitten with her employer, the Duke of Westbury, pretty much from the moment she started teaching his five sisters music lessons. The Duke is much more preoccupied with living his most wicked life than running his ducal estate. West realizes that he must reform his wicked ways and settle down in order to get his sister's married off and restore the family coffers, Viola is just the one to prod him along. He soon finds himself thinking about the spinster music teacher with the cutest dimples and the sunshiny yet fiery disposition.

I really liked West. He is a hero tortured by a terrible childhood. He believes he doesn't deserve anything good yet he absolutely loves and dotes on his sisters. He's playful and charming. Viola is measured and a bit serious. I enjoyed seeing her loosen up little by little when she was around West. Once West decided she was the woman for him there was nothing to change his mind. The ending felt alittle rushed, but overall I enjoyed it. Lenora Bell is a beautiful storyteller.

Tropes include: tortured hero, bluestocking heroine, gaming hell, class difference, piano sex, employer/employee, reformed rake, wallflower

Thank you to Lenora Bell, NetGalley, and Avon Harper Voyager for this eARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

This is the third book in the Wallflowers vs. Rogues series (which is definitely in the running for best series title). Now, I’d read several Lenora Bell books before (including the Disgraceful Dukes series and the School for Dukes series, which is related to this one), but not the books in this series. What to do?

I don’t think it is in your best interest to review books if you haven’t read the previous books in the series (and any connected series, actually), so I grabbed the first two books (Love is a Rogue and The Devil’s Own Duke) and started reading. Once I finished those, I felt ready to delve into this one!

This book is about Brandan Delamar, or West, Duke of Westbury, and Viola Beaton. Now, this is where the other books in the series (as well as the third in the School for Dukes, One Fine Duke) are important. Because we have heard a lot about Viola and West in the other books. Viola is best friends with Beatrice, the heroine in the first book, Love is a Rogue. We’ve actually gotten significant background on Viola from that book, as well as The Devil’s Own Duke. They are part of the Mayfair Ladies Knitting League, which is NOT about knitting, btw. I loved Viola from the first time she was mentioned. Viola’s father is a famous composer who is aging and going deaf, and Viola is a very gifted musician and composer on her own—yet surreptitiously. She’s been writing music as her father, as well as under a male pseudonym. Their other bestie, Isobel, is definitely not a romantic like Viola. She is usually undercover as a man, attending a School of Law as her invalid brother. Anyway, Viola is also making ends meet by working as the music instructor for the Duke of Westbury’s five sisters. You learn a lot about Viola in the first book, but you don’t hear much about Westbury in this book. That changes in the second book.

In The Devil’s Own Duke, you find out a lot more about Westbury, specifically that he’s gambled away his entire fortune in gaming hells. You also learn more about Viola’s feelings for the Duke—when she learns that Hetty (the heroine of the 2nd book) wants to confront Ash (who is the gaming hell owner who took all Westbury’s money), Viola’s immediate response is: “He ruined Westbury. I’ll help you defeat him” (The Devil’s Own Duke, p. 41). And believe me, she doesn’t hold her tongue. Viola’s friends know that she has a tendre for the Duke—even if she doesn’t want to admit it to herself; in fact, she’s been working there for free.

West’s description in the second book is one of my favorite in any romance novel: “He was the very picture of a golden-haired Adonis of an English lord . . . if that Adonis was dipped in a vat of whisky, deprived of sleep for a week, and turned upside down to empty his pockets” (The Devil’s Own Duke, p. 294). Now you know why I like Lenora Bell so much!

Anyway, so now we are up to speed for delightful book 3. I am serious, though—you’ve got until late September before this book is published, so read the other two books (and the previous series). Take advantage of that. You won’t be disappointed.

So, Duke Most Wicked—ah, West is definitely that. He’s been a holy terror in women’s beds, gaming hells, you name it. He’s a wild man, subject of the Ton’s most salacious gossip—and it’s all true! So how is it that Viola, one of the most genuine and caring people on earth, falls head over heels for this man? Not only is he wicked, but they’re vastly separated in status. He doesn’t even know her name, or does he?

As you can probably guess, their feelings are about to change, but what can come of it? See, as we learned in the previous book, his coffers are empty, he’s got FIVE sisters to set up with Seasons and marriage—the only thing he can do is find an heiress and marry her for the money. And he’s got to marry those sisters off as well—Seasons are expensive, you know? So he’ll choose husbands for them. The sisters are aghast, as is Viola, who has become far more than just a music tutor—she’s the glue that’s held the household together while West is out all night being wicked.

As this is a spoiler-free NetGalley review, so I will not say any more about the plot (everything I’ve mentioned previously is in the other books in the series or the book description). But I loved this book. The previous books had me interested in West—his character is a very mysterious one and I didn’t know whether to like him or not. Well, you will fall in love with him in this book. He’s so conflicted, he has so much on him, and . . . he sounds hot: “He had the same gilded hair and dark blue eyes as his sisters, but he was a colossus of a man, with broad shoulders, a chiseled jaw, and the dangerously handsome face of a fallen angel” (Loc. 417).

By the way: The cover is FIRE. The red and gold, PLUS THE PIANO (don’t think I missed that) made me do a triple take. Also, the female model looks very much like I imagined Viola would look. But oh, the male model is perfect—West is described as having the face of a fallen angel, and this captures him. That cover gets a shiny gold A.

Get this book. Pre-order it now; you won’t be disappointed.

4-1/2 stars rounded up to a NetGalley 5!

Historical romances are my jam. They are good and bring a bit of romance and loved it. this one was a good one.

WOW !!!!! I enjoyed and I really appreciate that NetGalley granted me an advance reader copy for my honest opinions. The chemistry between the two main characters is off the charts. Lenora bell definitely knows how to write romantic and sensual scenes. It is really amazing how well hero and heroine compliment and understand each other. Wonderful balance of ; a smart, sexy partnership, an admirable heroine and an amazing, wonderful hero! Thank you! :)

I ABSOLUTELY LOVED this book! I can’t wait for the next book in the series and still hope we get Jax’s story.

Full RTC

5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | 5 Flames 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

This was super cute and fluffy with a bit of an edge. Lenora does such a good job of writing cinnamon rolls with a bit of a dick complex to keep them interesting. Sounds weird but there’s always something a little more substantial to just the pure puppy dog, cinnamon roll type.

From earlier books, I had wondered how I’d come to like a duke who squandered everything and wasn’t paying Viola. Well, it was never really a hard task. He definitely started the book making questionable decisions, but the it opened with a glimpse into his past so you knew where it all stemmed from. He was definitely a misguided jerk trying to pair his sisters up but he redeemed himself swimmingly.

Viola was as lovely as ever and I loved seeing her tell West off a few times. There banter was great and I loved her relationship with his sisters. Speaking of his sisters, I LOVED them. They meddled with his fiancé of convenience and it made that *annoying* decision of his fun! I also just love how that plot line was concluded. It was hilarious and I simply wasn’t expecting it. It also didn’t go on too long to where I started questioning everybody.

As for the Little Mermaid references, they are as a-plenty as gadgets and gizmos but I’ll let you suss them out for yourself because it’s more fun that way. Maybe watch the movie before this one so you’re not as dense as I was. Oh good god I just keep thinking of more and I will note this one because I can’t not: “Up where they stay all day in the sun” and SHE’S the sun I can’t. I CANNOT. And maybe pay attention to Miss Chandler’s name because that one wrecked me too.

The steam was maybe a bit more than we got in book one and a bit less than what we got in book two. That last scene was a perfect conclusion and a surprise! Also when they had a bit of time left until morning and they just talked??? Be still my heart. The pining really did me in here. I can definitely see the “part of your world” tone of Viola’s thinking because she was really down bad for that man. Her crush was very relatable and oof I just really related to her character.

I read this one straight through and super fast. It was the perfect read I needed to cleanse my mind of a previous disappointment. I laughed, I cried, I got a shot…it perfectly delivered on what I expected from West and Viola! I’ve been looking forward to their book for so long and I’m so happy it’s a winner. I was able to just enjoy the ride with this one. I wasn’t emotionally overtaxed, but I wasn’t anything less than riveted either.

Lenora’s writing is perfect for fans of Tessa Dare and Eloisa James who want a light and steamy time! I’ve now read five of her books and have loved them ALL. I own the rest and need to make quick work of them because each one is such a joy. While this can easily be read as a standalone, I would recommend reading the first two books in the series just because they’re fun and set this one up nicely. I’d also suggest reading One Fine Duke as well because there are some fun references to that one as well.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 🌶🌶🌶.25/5