My Dangerous Duke (Inferno Club, 2)

Not the best in this series. Readable but not enthralling. The search for the “treasure” reads rather like Raiders of the Lost Ark! The leading lady starts out well, but becomes kind of maudlin. The hero was fun but not too bright and there is not a spark of humor to be had!

I've been reading Gaelen Foley since the days of Pirate Prince and Princess and she's always been my favorite romance author. Even without a romance component I've always found her stories to stand well on their own plots and the romance is just an added bonus. The first of the Promethean/Order of St. Michael books, My Wicked Marquess, however didn't have me entirely persuaded that this series would have the quality I had come to anticipate with excitement. Therefore, I was eagerly awaiting My Dangerous Duke so it would prove me wrong. And it did. Beyond the simple fact that "the Beast" is one of the more alluring male leads that Foley has written, My Dangerous Duke was a bit more self contained in the developing romance. At least to me, the Promethean plot was secondary and I didn't mind it so much. It laced the background with some tension, it provided a nice, action-packed climax, but it was nice to linger in the sexual tension with Kate and Rohan. Besides, it allowed for enough amusing situations to make me laughed out loud while I was on my lunch break or at the gym where I received several odd looks. It's a short review but I don't feel the need to give every opinion I had while reading this book. Simply said, I liked it...a lot. I'd recommend this book to all my friends. I have, for that matter, and we're all quite smitten and now I'm definitely looking forward to 2011 and the next installment.

The plot was well thought out and executed. Ms. Foley kept you guessing while enjoying the emotional play of her charming characters.

In 1816 Cornwell, the smugglers drug Kate Madsen so they can abduct her and hand her over to the Duke of Warrington, known as the Beast; in order to appease his wrath. Kate refuses to cooperate with either the kidnappers of the beast. Believing he is cursed just like all his family males, Rohan Kilburn works for the Crown as an assassin. He conceals his activity by being a card carrying member of the Inferno Club, just like the other so called wastrels who belong. He returns to his family castle in Cornwall where he is known as the Beast and where allegedly the ghosts of the murdered wives of his cursed ancestors linger. His job is to end the smuggling, but even he is taken aback when the latest stolen merchandise is kissable Kate. She may end the curse and he may help her understand her heritage as they fall in love, but he fears he will have to kill his beloved as he thinks she may be an enemy agent instead of a "gift". However, neither is aware someone evil waits their entering a deadly maze. The second Inferno Club Regency romance is an enjoyable historical filled with action starting with the kidnapping of the heroine for several weeks and never slowing down especially once the smugglers present beauty to the beast. Fully engrossing with plenty of action, readers will enjoy the adventures of Rohan and Kate as he falls in love with his "gift" and his "gift" falls in love with him. Harriet Klausner

My Dangerous Duke starts out with excitement and mystery. It ends that way too but the middle portion is not as tension filled. This second book in the Inferno Club is better than the first, the heroine is spirited and the hero at times mesmerizing. Kate Madsen is kidnapped, drugged and basically thrown at the feet of the devilish Duke of Warrington, Rohan Kilburn. She is unable to even plead her case since she is drugged plus she truly fears Rohan, a tall imposing man who according to her captors, loves to debauch young virgins like herself. Rohan accepts his tenant's gift of Kate with pleasure, he finds her beautiful and he has no idea that Kate is in his castle unwillingly. Rohan is best described as earthy and elemental, a connoisseur of women who partakes of the pleasures of bedsport on a daily basis. He is also an assassin for a secret order called the Inferno club, dedicated to stopping evil throughout the centuries. When Rohan discovers that Kate is a victim of kidnapping, he is outraged but also suspicious, after all he knows nothing about Kate, and as an assassin he is on his guard. He slowly draws out the bluestocking scholarly Kate but he safeguards his emotions. He realizes fairly quickly that Kate is more than she seems and that she is in real danger. He is honor bound to protect her but also he desires her too. Kate is unafraid to share her opinions yet she is not bossy nor is she arrogant. She is kind and intelligent and also trusting and trustworthy. She sees true loneliness in Rohan, a condition she shares, but unlike him, she allows her walls to fall in a short amount of time. This novel moves at a good pace until the middle chapters where the mystery almost overshadows the leads romance because the Inferno club is a major portion of this story, especially its history and present day activities. The leads seemed to lose some of their emotional connection during this middle section. The pair does have a strong connection reestablished in the last third of this novel, in fact, the dialogue here is strong and heartfelt, and this is where Ms Foley really shines. Her characters are vulnerable especially her hero who is a richer more interesting character than her heroine. I found him fascinating, much more so than Kate but then again Ms. Foley has always written strong amazing heroes. Together Kate and Rohan join forces to discover Kate's past and they do so without a lot of fuss. Kate is smart and fortunately Rohan is not intimidated by her keen mind. The passionate encounters in this novel are not as steamy or frequent as Ms Foley's former novels. This was probably the part that I missed the most because it is in these situations that Rohan's feelings are at the surface, her heroes many times discover and express their feelings in the physical realm first. I am rounding this book up to four stars due to the good dialogue and intriguing hero.

Loneliness is a strange bedfellow and has so many degrees to its nature. It can make you feel unwanted even in a crowded room or untrusting of your best friend. But the worst part of loneliness is trying to break free of the fear it causes and all the second guessing of every decision you make. Kate Madsen knows about being alone as she was shielded in a small cottage away from society by her guardian who cared for her after her parent's death. She enjoyed a nice cup of tea and her beloved books but often wondered what was going on outside her little piece of earth. Rohan Kilburn, The Duke of Warrington and ruler of Kilburn Castle also knew about being lonely as he was trained to be a top assassin in the secretive army of The Inferno Club and deal with an enemy so cunning and ruthless that world domination was a reasonable goal to this ancient organization. But the night Kate is delivered to him as a gift the world stopped being lonely and started being chaotic and out of control something Rohan did not think he wanted but suddenly craved and ancient curses and evil empires seemed less important than having this beautiful woman in his arms. However, Kate is not the trollop that Rohan has been led to believe; she is a naïve, and studious woman, who was kidnapped, drugged and dumped on Rohan without her consent. As these facts start to unfold Rohan begins to believe she may be a spy sent by his enemies to destroy the righteous cause he protects and when he learns that she is in fact a direct descendent of the society that has cursed his family, everything comes to a crashing head. But in reality Kate knows nothing of her past and learns that Rohan does know quite a bit and is keeping secrets from her. Slowly over time Rohan learns to trust in what Kate say and understand her innocence then begins to tell her about her bloodline and where everything began with their individual families. Kate realizes he is not a beast but a lovely man in need of someone to love him and she is the one to take on this cause. When both Rohan and Kate discover that the dead have come back from the grave and that Kate is in danger they become a united front to battle the demons that chase them both and discover critical information to unlock any number of curses is in one of Kate's beloved books and this books holds the key to taking down the enemy. The adventure these two take would make Indiana Jones cry with envy as they go deep into the bowels of the enemy's domain and come out realizing that together they are everything and apart they are empty shells. I am a shameless fan of Gaelen Foley and every word she writes is magic and I can never use enough adjectives to describe how fascinating the characters are, spell binding the story and heart melting the romance. This book shows again what a great writer can produce and no one will be disappointed with the read or able to stop reading once you start. This is the 2nd book in the series and while you do