Secrets of an Accidental Duchess

Jennifer Haymore

May 2011 · The Donovan Novels Book 2 · Hachette+ORM

About this ebook

With her pale hair and slim figure, Olivia Donovan looks as fragile as fine china, and has been treated as such by her sisters ever since a childhood bout with malaria. But beneath her delicate facade, Olivia guards a bold, independent spirit and the kind of passionate desires proper young ladies must never confess...

It was a reckless wager, and one Max couldn't resist: seduce the alluring Olivia or forfeit part of his fortune. Yet the wild, soon-to-be Duke never imagined he'd fall in love with this innocent beauty. Nor could he have guessed that a dangerously unpredictable rival would set out to destroy them both. Now, Max must beat a Madman at his own twisted game-or forever lose the only woman to have ever won his heart.

Ratings and reviews

Twenty- one year old Olivia Donovan believes no gentleman would ever want her, after all men want someone who is healthy, not someone like her who could fall ill and perhaps die at anytime from a relapse of malaria that had struck her as a child. She figured her destiny would be to live alone, so she had stopped wishing for a husband and children.When she catches the eye of thirty year old Maxwell Buchanan, he becomes entranced by her and makes a wager that he can seduce her, never anticipating that he just might fall in love with her. Will Olivia and Max find their happily ever after, or will someone try to stand in their way? There were things that I really enjoyed about this book, but a few things that I didn't. First of all I really enjoyed watching the romance grow between Olivia and Max. I was pulled in from the beginning,with Max being unable to take his eyes off of Olivia because of the reserved way she held herself.For me I was a bit surprised at that because in the first sentences I really thought he was going to be a rakish devil, instead he wasn't that at all! I really enjoyed the character of Olivia. She really didn't want to be treated like a delicate flower.She really was a strong woman willing to stand by those she loved. The thing that I didn't like about this story was the bits of predictability. The wager that Max made has been done in many romance novels and ultimately the man that makes the wager always falls in love with the woman.When I picked up this book I didn't realize that it was actually a part of a series, and while there was a few times I felt as if I was missing something it didn't really affect the story, but I enjoyed this book so much that I do intend to read the book that preceded it.Overall I really enjoyed this story and will certainly be watching for the next book in the series. A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Delightful story loved it

About the author

As a child, Jennifer Haymore traveled the South Pacific with her family on their homebuilt sailboat. The months spent on the sometimes quiet, sometimes raging seas sparked her love of adventure and grand romance. Since then, she's earned degrees in computer science and education and held various jobs ranging from bookselling to teaching inner-city children to acting, but she's never stopped writing.

You can find Jennifer in Southern California trying to talk her husband into yet another trip to England, helping her three children with homework while brainstorming a new five-minute dinner menu, or crouched in a corner of the local bookstore writing her next novel.

You can learn more at:
JenniferHaymore.com
Twitter @JenniferHaymore
Facebook.com/JenniferHaymore.Author