Marriage of Convenience + BDSM | The Duke I Tempted by Scarlett Peckham

Title: The Duke I Tempted
Series: Secrets of Charlotte Street #1
Author: Scarlett Peckham
Published: July 31, 2018
Genre(s): Romance: Historical
Page Count: 318
Rating:

Summary from Goodreads:

Having overcome financial ruin and redeemed his family name to become the most legendary investor in London, the Duke of Westmead needs to secure his holdings by producing an heir. Which means he must find a wife who won’t discover his secret craving to spend his nights on his knees – or make demands on his long scarred-over heart.

Poppy Cavendish is not that type of woman. An ambitious self-taught botanist designing the garden ballroom in which Westmead plans to woo a bride, Poppy has struggled against convention all her life to secure her hard-won independence. She wants the capital to expand her exotic nursery business – not a husband.

But there is something so compelling about Westmead, with his starchy bearing and impossibly kind eyes -- that when an accidental scandal makes marriage to the duke the only means to save her nursery, Poppy worries she wants more than the title he is offering. The arrangement is meant to be just business. A greenhouse for an heir. But Poppy yearns to unravel her husband’s secrets – and to tempt the duke to risk his heart.

This debut romance by Scarlett Peckham is a wickedly addictive combination of a marriage of convenience plot and blisteringly hot sex. The Duke I Tempted is a brilliant, passionate story that’s equal parts sexy and charming. I read it one sitting, and I definitely plan on reading it again. (To put it bluntly: I AM SHOOK.)

The Duke I Tempted begins pleasantly enough. Archer, a duke, has decided to renounce bachelorhood and beget an heir, so he directs his sister to host a massive ball on his estate so he can take his pick of eligible society ladies. Poppy, a botanist, is hired to decorate the ballroom with flowers and trees and suchlike. She instantly hits it off with Archer, and they become…friends. There are some misunderstandings, but they like each other and have fun together. Up until Archer accidentally gives Poppy some smoking hot oral sex in his study. Whoopsie!

Anyway, it’s pretty much downhill from there (downhill as in “shit gets real GOOD”). There is a Marriage of Convenience, AKA my most favoritest trope ever, and boy does Peckham use that trope to perfection. Archer promises Poppy unlimited funding and all of his ducal power in order to realize her dream of opening a successful plant nursery. All he asks for in return is an heir. And under No Circumstances (None!) are they going to fall in love.

Hahahahahahahaha!

My favorite part in the marriage of convenience storyline is when the protagonists ardently promise that their marriage will be a business deal only, no pesky feelings allowed. It’s so adorable and deluded. Silly children, that’s not how this works.

Surprising to no one: Archer and Poppy’s marriage begins splendidly. The sex is like…whew. *fans self* I have obviously read a great many sex scenes, but I can 10/10 attest that Scarlett Peckham’s sex scenes, which are fraught without outrageous amounts of raw chemistry and charisma, are some of the best. Top notch sexytimes abound in The Duke I Tempted!

What’s the hitch? What obstacle keeps Archer and Poppy from sailing off into the sunset immediately after saying “I Do”? A Dark Past and a Perverse Secret, of course. Archer has some bad skeletons in his closet, and also he enjoys sexual submission, as do many a manly business man with untold power at his fingertips. Obviously, Archer is entirely certain that Poppy would reject him if she knew what kind of person he truly is, but silly Archer, your wife thinks you’re amazing and wonderful and she has recently discovered that she, too, is kinky. But, of course, that all needs to be sorted out, and it is—perfectly.

Every single aspect of The Duke I Tempted is a dream, but especially the characterization. The nuances and depth of Poppy and Archer’s personalities, and they ways in which they interact, are flawlessly written. It is rare for me to read a couple where I fully understand both so well. At one point, during a particularly nasty fight, I could exactly empathize with both Poppy’s side and Archer’s side. That’s genius. Even in the best of romances, there is usually a very clearly delineated “Wrong” party and a “Right” party. Yet in this book, everything is more complicated, and is shown in various shades of gray.

I also thought that Peckham perfectly brought out the humor and tenderness that can go hand-in-hand with a BDSM situation. While that aspect of the plot isn’t really central to the book, it’s there, and it’s never once portrayed as a power struggle. Both characters, the whipper and the whippee, are empowered by the game, and it’s made clear that in submitting to his wife, Archer does not lose his own agency or sense of self. It was so beautiful and so exquisitely done.

Clearly, I am a huuuuuge fan of this book. The Duke I Tempted is one of the most perfect books I’ve ever read. Every single scene was masterfully written, and infused with emotion. This book made me happy and swoony and it was just delightful from the first chapter to the epilogue. I loved every bit of it.