REVIEW: One Duke Down by Anna Bennett

One Duke Down by Anna Bennett: We return to the beautiful town of Bellehaven Bay in One Duke Down, the second book in the Rogues to Lovers series. We met the lively heroine Poppy in the first book, Girls Before Earls, when she befriended the headmistress and students at the Bellehaven Academy. She’s the daughter of a poor fisherman but her pride and determination push her to keep her family’s fishing business going while her father is ill. Finding a handsome but scraggly dressed man who insists he is a duke trapped in her fish nets one fine morning astonished her.

“My love for you is as real as the ground we walk on. As vast as the sky above us. As strong as the ocean’s currents.”

Andrew Keane, the Duke of Hawking, went to the beautiful seaside town of Bellehaven Bay to escape the gossip in London. He never expected to be attacked and left to die there. When Poppy discovers him lying on the beach, he pleads with her to let him hide while he heals. While his enemy thinks he is dead, Andrew can work to uncover who wants to kill him.

Poppy has a hard time trusting aristocrats after being turned away from her mother’s family. She judged Keane and doubted his intentions from the beginning. She had built a wall to protect her heart but he slowly got through with one question at a time. I loved how Poppy and Keane got to know each other through their adventures to find Keane’s enemy. They had a connection from the beginning that grew while they had their adventures.
This was a light and fun historical romance with a few twists and turns of intrigue. The characters were charming and their witty banter added some cute humor to the story. This was a great addition to the series and everything I expected it to be.

Book Info:

Publication: January 24, 2023 | Mass Market Paperback | Rogues to Lovers #2

A FISHERMAN’S DAUGHTER
Miss Poppy Summers is determined to keep her family’s fishing business afloat. Her poor widowed father has fallen ill, and her foolhardy brother has moved to London, leaving her precious little time to read or pursue her own dreams. But she’ll do anything for her family, so she cheerfully spends mornings in her rowboat, casting her nets. The very last thing Poppy expects or wants to find tangled in them is a dangerously attractive man. Especially one with a head wound—who’s convinced he’s a duke.

AND A DUKE OUT OF WATER
Andrew Keane is the Duke of Hawking, but he’s having the devil of a time convincing his fiery-haired rescuer of that fact. The truth is he came to the seaside resort of Bellehaven Bay to escape his life in London. Unfortunately, someone in Bellehaven wants to kill him—and he intends to find out who. He implores Poppy to tend to his injuries and hide him on her beach, reasoning it will be easier to find his attacker if that man assumes Keane is already dead. She wants no part of the scheme but can’t refuse the generous sum he offers in exchange for food and shelter while he recovers. It’s a mutually beneficial business arrangement…nothing more.

ARE ABOUT TO MAKE WAVES
Under Poppy’s care, Keane regains his strength—and a sense of purpose. As they work together to solve the puzzle of his would-be murderer, he’s dazzled by her rapier wit and adventurous spirit; she’s intrigued by his mysterious air and protective streak. Though Poppy’s past gives her every reason to mistrust someone like Keane, the seawalls around her heart crumble in the storm of their passion. But when clues hint at the prime suspect in Keane’s attempted murder, Poppy must decide where her loyalties lie. Torn between the world she’s always known and the one she’s always dreamed of, she’ll need true love for a shot at her fairytale ending.