How to Dance With a Duke [Mass Market Paperback]

Known as part of the Ugly Ducklings, Miss Cecily Hurston and her cousins are used to being wallflowers at the society events. Cecily is more interested in ancient studies and languages than fashion, much to the chagrin of her very fashionable step-mother. When her father is struck severely ill after his last excursion to Egypt, Cecily is determined to secure her father's journals so she can translate them to prove he is being wrongly accused of murdering his secretary who went missing. Unfortunately, no one will admit Cecily within the Egyptian Club to view the journals: only woman married to members are allowed entrance. With no other option to her, she decides she needs to secure a husband among its membership. Cecily seeks her step-mother's help in securing a fashionable wardrobe and a full dance card.

Lucas Dalton, Duke of Winterson, is the brother of Lord Hurston's missing secretary. He is just as interested in the events of the Egyptian dig as Cecily is in hopes he can locate his brother. He decides to work with Cecily in uncovering the clues to his brother's whereabouts and finding her father's journals. As they get closer to discovering the truth about what happened in Egypt, the closer they become to each other.

This was a fun story. Its strength was in the mystery about the events in Egypt. The dig in Egypt had far reaching effects. The secrets of the dig came out slowly creating puzzle pieces you aren't quite sure how they fit together until the end. The villain was a nice personal touch.

I really liked both Cecily and Lucas and thought they made a great pair. As they start to work together, they come to an agreement: Lucas will vet out her suitors to help her choose someone without major vices, etc. and Cecily will share any information and leads in their search about the events of Egypt.

Even though I enjoyed the romance between Cecily and Lucas, there were a lot of small things detracted from it and the story in general.

First, there are two large reasons why Cecily is rushing this marriage plan. Cecily goes on and on about how her heart was broken once before and is afraid to fall in love again. Her own paranoia keeps getting in the way her happiness with Lucas; in fact, she would rather marry someone she isn't in danger of loving. Even though she told us SEVERAL times about her previous heartbreak, I never felt it or understood it. It seemed so "this is why I'm doing this." Also, she keeps mentioning that with her father sick her horrible cousin who is in line to inherit has descended upon them: she doesn't want to be at his mercy with him choosing her husband. But do we ever meet this horrible cousin? No. We are only told this. Again, it seemed so "this is why I'm rushing marriage" explanation.

Second, I also though it odd that several times Cecily mentions how she could sense Lucas entering a room, drawing near to her. Then, a paragraph later he startles her as she had no notion he was there. It was a small inconsistency, but it happened three times that I noted.

Third, Cecily keeps making a big deal about the dance card she "borrows." Yes, she claims those dances at that night's ball. But she acts as if it is a valid dance card for every ball of the season. Yes, I get that it's the tips on flirting Lady Amelia wrote on the back of the dance card, but it really came across as if Cecily planned on using the same card at all future balls.

Despite these small annoyances, Cecily's story was very enjoyable. I loved watching Lucas and Cecily fall in love. The mystery was fresh and very well done. Cecily's fellow Ugly Ducklings are set to get their own books, and I look forward to reading their stories.

The Ugly Ducklings
How to Dance With a Duke
How to Romance a Rake
How to Entice an Earl

Lucas Dalton, Duke of Winterson, gets his first glimpse of Miss Cecily Hurston as she is being unceremoniously hustled out the front door of the Egyptian Club. Cecily is at the club trying to get access to her father's journals, which were sent to the club after his disastrous last trip to Egypt. During the trip, Will Dalton, Lucas's brother, went missing and Cecily's father returned suffering the effects of a fit of apoplexy (now known as a stroke). Will was the secretary to Cecily's father and there are rumors that there was a disagreement between them before Will disappeared.
Lucas is at first pleasant to Cecily but later rudely snubs her when her identity becomes known to him. After this first encounter, he decides he acted hastily and determines to seek her out at the next ton event. Cecily, along with her cousins Julia and Madeline, are wallflowers dubbed The Ugly Ducklings by the ton. Lucas finds her at a ball and makes amends for his behavior. Eventually the two discover that they are both looking for answers as to what really happened on the last Egyptian trip and decide to work together. Cecily is planning to wed a member of the Club to get to the journals and Lucas agrees to help her weed out unsuitable possibilities.
I enjoyed this book, both the romance and the mystery parts. Cecily and Lucas make a perfect couple even if they can't see it themselves. She is smart and independent and has been unlucky in love. He is a decorated and handsome war hero who has never been in love. They are united in trying to get answers about their family members. The secondary characters which include Cecily's cousins and Lucas's friends help move the story along. There is the requisite shrewish beauty and vapid aristocrats which no regency should be without. The mystery aspect is a nice touch even if I figured out the villain fairly early.
This book is the first of a trilogy. The next book is due in July- can't wait to read it.

Cecily Hurston has long been wary of marriage, as she has no desire to wed a man like her father - one who would try and curtail her studies of ancient Egypt. But a disaster on one of her father's expeditions has Cecily hearing wedding bells, for there is no way she can gain entrance into the Egyptian Club and find the proof to clear her father's name unless she marries a member of the club. Though Cecily and her cousins are known as the "Ugly Ducklings," Cecily must learn how to become a swan in order snare a husband. There's just one unexpected complication...

Lucas Dalton, Duke of Winterson, is determined to find out what happened to his brother, Will. Will went missing during Lord Hurston's last expedition and the gossips are whispering that Hurston may have killed Will. Hurston's daughter is Lucas's best chance of learning what happened to Will, and he won't let the opportunity slip him by. Cecily's plan to gain entrance into the Egyptian Club through marriage may make sense to her, but Lucas cannot bear to see the beautiful bluestocking wed one of the nodcocks now dancing attendance on her. Cecily needs someone who will not only aid her in her quest to uncover what happened on Huston and Will's last trip to Egypt, but will also appreciate and adore her for who she is. Though Cecily doesn't see it, she needs someone like him.

An "ugly duckling" comes into her own in Manda Collins's debut novel, How to Dance With a Duke. I was delighted by the premise of How to Dance With a Duke -- it reminded me of the vintage Amanda Quick books. Yet while I think Ms. Collins has a promising future in historical romance, How to Dance With a Duke fell a bit short of my expectations. The elements of a good story were there: bluestocking heroine, considerate hero, mystery, murder, and romance. However, the story was weighed down with repetition, slow pacing, and a bunch of overused historical romance tropes. It took a long time for anything to actually happen in How to Dance With a Duke and Cecily seemed to reiterate the same information ad nauseam. I understand this was meant to highlight information that would come into play later on in the book, but it became a case of beating a dead horse very early on.

For the most part, Lucas and Cecily were likeable protagonists and it was easy to be charmed by their love story. Cecily is prone to pushing Lucas away as a defense mechanism, but at a certain point it got to be annoying. Lucas, in turn, is patient, kind, and all things wonderful, which made him a bit flat at times, but I could overlook it. What did pull me out of the story a bit in How to Dance With a Duke was that -- when talking amongst themselves -- Lucas and the men Ms. Collins sets up to be potential future heroes tended to talk like women rather than men.

Overall, How to Dance With a Duke was a decent read. Its flaws shone brighter than its strengths, but I could see the author's potential nonetheless. While I'm not sure I'll be revisiting How to Dance With a Duke, I am interested in reading Ms. Collins's next Ugly Duckling book, How to Romance a Rake.

Kat
Reviewed for Wit and Sin

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