The Duke's Wayward Ward

By: Claudia Stone

Narrated by: Duke DeFoix, Duchess DeFoix

When Lady Emma Percival's father dies, leaving her penniless and alone, she fears that she will end up on the streets. Help is at hand, albeit from an unlikely source, when it transpires that her father has appointed his greatest enemy to be her guardian. The Duke of Liscarroll is a cold-hearted brute whom Emma spars with at every turn, but soon their angry altercations turn to something else entirely....

Peter William Brazil, Sixth Duke of Liscarroll, finds himself strong-armed by his mother into accepting Lady Emma as his ward. Though he is loath to have anything to do with the Percival family, he does want to get his hands on the priceless manuscript the late Earl bequeathed him in his will, on condition that he finds Lady Emma a suitable husband. Peter fully intends to have Lady Emma married off and out of his house within a fortnight, but there's something about the fiery, young lady that sparks his interest, and soon he's not sure that he wants to let her go at all.

When someone attempts to shoot him and the ton label Emma as the prime suspect, Peter knows that he must clear her name before he makes her his bride. The only problem is, there's more than one person with reason to want him dead, and his bride-to-be is less than enamoured with the idea of becoming his....

Can these two warring enemies find the culprit and a happily ever after? Find out in the sweet, Regency listen!

©2018 Claudia Stone (P)2019 Claudia Stone

Entertaining and very well interpreted:)

It's another book by Ms Stone that I really enjoyed:)

When we meet Lady Emma Percival and Peter Brazil, the Duke of Liscarroll, for the first time, they seem to be like fire and ice, with nothing in common and the background of a family feud... Yet appearances do deceive and with every page/minute of listening we wait more and more impatiently for them to finally find their happily ever after. The plot is deceptively simple at first, but then unexpected events complicate it enough for us to feel the tension and anxiety along with our H and h. The background characters are colourful and memorable (I especially liked Peter's mother, the Duchess:)) and the mystery behind the murder attempts well developed. What I also like a lot is that it's not really the 'love at first sight' kind of story, but that we see love between Emma and Peter grow and mature and we witness their doubts, uncertainties and fears about the other's feelings - it's so much closer to real life that the 'insta-love' kinds of romances...:)

It's the second book I listened to in the interpretation of Duke and Duchess DeFoix (the previous one was also written by Ms Stone) and I will repeat what I already wrote once: I like the male-female narration mirroring the male-female point of view chapter pattern of the book, it is very well done, with all the voices of individual characters sounding really natural. I also liked the pace of the couple's reading, it was just about right, no need to speed it up (as I usually do). Generally it's a great interpretation of the book.

DISCLAIMER: I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Great Regency romance

This listen has an interesting backstory - the Duke ruins a man and the man leaves the Duke the guardianship of his daughter at the man's death. (I know, right?)

I liked the slow burn that was the Duke and his ward. Someone is trying to kill the Duke but they find their way to each other anyway. I guessed the whodunnit right away. I was surprised when I was right but yup, nailed it!

The duo narration worked well. I preferred the male voice but the female held her own. Regency romances can be a tricky genre but the narration for this book stayed true.

A Great Listen

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request, and have voluntarily left this review. This is not my usual type of book, but it was a lot of fun. Emma, orphaned but at marrying age, fate is left in the hands of her father's worst enemy when her deceased father appoints him her guardian in his will. The Duke's mother decides it will be her duty to find the poor girl a husband at her son's expense. The Duke's perfect world is turned upside down. Between the well written characters, the fast moving plot and the narration that brings it you life, you'll keep listening longer than you intended.

Amazing Regency Romance and Fantastic Narration!

I love this author writing! She definitely is one of my favorite Regency Romance authors. The story has is all: romance, twists and turns, intrigue, and a little suspense. Duke DeFoix and Duchesse DeFoix are amazing narrators. I love their voices together. The story, and the narration, are fantastic. I HIGHLY recommend it.

Excellent story & narration!

I really enjoyed this audiobook! The story was fun, the mystery engaging, and the h/H love story enjoyable (I am a sucker for enemies-to-lovers or "just don't want to know you" tales to "can't live without you plots!) The mystery gave the story some meat and I thought it was a great combination of both (romance and mystery in one). What more could a girl ask for? The story was well-written and engaging, and I was rooting for Lady Emma and Peter (the Duke) to reach their happy ending.

The voice actors ("Duke DeFoix" & "Duchess DeFoix") were marvelous! I hadn't listened to a multi-narrator audiobook up until now; for all my years of listening, they somehow have slipped my notice. But it's a great audio format and I preferred the male/female narrators' voices and performances of the story made it more of an immersive listen.

I will definitely seek out Claudia Stone's other works and more audio performances by both narrators. I thoroughly enjoyed this book for both story and narration, and it's on my re-listen shelf.

Note: I received this title for free in exchange for an unbiased review.