A man could hold these pleasures at arm’s length, appreciate them with the proper detachment, and not mourn their absence overmuch. The first included art, fine weather, good company, and all the rest of the world’s benign delights. Here’s the passage in question, which I’ll break down into three sections.Īsh knew all too well that there were two varieties of pleasure in life. One phenomenon it’s critiquing is the literary convention of a male character presenting his female love interest in ways that can be reductive and objectifying. It’s a novel in dialogue with a set of traditional literary tropes that also makes critical variations on them. It is also a queer m/f romance (Verity is bi) with one extremely reluctant duke. None of the listed CWs are discussed in this post.Ī Duke in Disguise is a m/f romance featuring, as the title suggests, a duke. Buy link and CWs are available on the author’s website. Can Verity accept who Ash must become or will he turn away the only woman he’s ever loved?īlurb from publisher. As they explore their long-buried passion, it becomes harder for Ash to face the music. She knows from bitter experience that she isn’t cut out for romance, but the more time she spends with Ash, the more she wonders if maybe she’s been wrong about herself.Īsh has a month before his identity is exposed, and he plans to spend it with Verity. Lately it seems she’s not getting anything she wants.

Without a family or a proper education, he’s had to fight for his place in the world, and the idea of it-and Verity-being taken away from him chills him to the bone.Īll Verity wants is to keep her brother out of prison, her business afloat, and her hands off Ash. The last thing he needs is to discover he’s a duke’s lost heir. Now he has his hands full illustrating a book and trying his damnedest not to fall in love with his best friend. But he’s never been able to deny Verity Plum. If anyone else had asked for his help publishing a naughty novel, Ash would have had the sense to say no.

A Duke in Disguise by Cat Sebastian