Ophelia is a writer for a Ladies' Gazette, and when a close friend/cowriter is taken to an asylum without cause, Ophelia will do anything she can to help her friend. Ophelia is a little impatient and quick to judge. She turns to a friend of a friend, the Duke of Trent, for help but at the same time feels suspicious of his possible involvement.
Piers (the Duke of Trent) is the recently established president of the Lords of Anarchy. He is trying to give the club a new reputation, and when he hears of the clubs' potential involvement with the asylum, he decides to help Ophelia investigate. Soon his main reasons for continuing the search change as he grows attracted to Ophelia.
The duke is one to think before he acts or speaks, and impatient Ophelia jumps to conclusions about him frequently. I found their conversations to play out similarly to mine and my husbands'! I loved that this story made that connection for me. However, while the initial interactions had great potential for a swoon worthy romance, I felt it didn't meet my first expectations.
The mystery was done very well. I am proud that I was highly suspicious of the correct suspect from the beginning, but I'm not sure if that's a compliment to my detective skills or to it being rather obvious. This part of the plot really kept me turning the pages. It was almost nice in a way how the pulling force of the book alternated between the romance and the mystery.
Some very small things didn't work for me in this book. While the overall plot was exciting, the individual situations were boring at times. The flow of the story wasn't the best either. At times I just felt like the main characters needed to get back to saving Ophelia's friend, not going to balls. My last little peeve is the oddness of the title. It doesn't properly represent this book. I remember feeling similarly when reading it's predecessor, Good Earl Gone Bad.
Good Dukes Wear Black was a good read. It is a historical romance as well as a mystery. I found the romance to be relate-able and sweet. The mystery was interesting and kept me on the edge of my seat for the most part.Overall it was a likable book, and I enjoyed reading it. I will most likely pick up future books by Manda Collins.
**ARC provided by Publisher**
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