BETTER THAN A DUKE

Two roguish children trap their parents within the happy ending the couple secretly wants.

Beckett Raines, Marquis of Hentrose, doesn’t want to get married again. He chose his first wife impulsively, and since she died in childbirth, he’s focused on raising their daughter, Rebecca. But his meddling mother continues to put women in his path, and she’s finally hit on an argument for remarriage that resonates: 9-year-old Rebecca is growing up and she’ll need a trusted woman to help. For once, Beckett’s not appalled by the woman his mother’s offering: Lady Pauline. However, moving back to London for the Season means he’s now living next door to Iris Silbern, a vivacious, opinionated, and penniless widow who’s also been thrust back onto the marriage market against her will. Rebecca and Iris’ 10-year-old son, Edmund, become fast friends, and though Iris and Beckett feel some sparks, they’re more focused on the realistic matches they’ve been roped into. After Rebecca learns that Lady Pauline is secretly awful and plans to send her to boarding school, she begs Edmund (and most of the household staff) to help her bring their parents together instead. But though Beckett and Iris grow increasingly close, it may be too late to extract themselves from their impending marriages. Enoch’s latest meets all the expectations of a classic Regency romance and then elevates the story by featuring the mischievous antics of Rebecca and Edmund. Though the story is primarily told from a standard, dual point of view, occasional extra perspectives add depth and whimsy. Don’t be mistaken; this is a story for grown-ups, containing several steamy scenes in addition to a serious consideration of the matrimonial trade-offs even privileged adults had to make in the era. But it’s an adult story that keeps one-upping its own hijinks as it goes along, culminating in an ending that would be ridiculously over-the-top if it wasn’t so satisfying.

A lively Regency romance that brings two lovable families together.