Name a more iconic duo than a duke and a bluestocking.

That’s what we’re getting in Emily Sullivan’s latest historical romance, Duchess Material [Buy Bookshop Amazon LibroFM]. Phoebe is from a family with money, but she wants to do some good in the world. She’s left her family behind for the most part and is now a teacher for women in a rough part of London in the 1890s. When one of her students disappears, she takes it upon herself to investigate and lands in police custody. The only thing she can think of to save herself is to drop the name of her childhood friend, Will, who happens to be a duke now.

He also happens to be her childhood crush that she never really got over. Seeing him again after several years brings a lot of those feelings back. On Will’s side of things, he’s trying to find a duchess and is surprised to find he doesn’t mind when Phoebe distracts him from this quest. The quest to find the missing student quickly takes over and shows him things about his fancy duke life that he didn’t know.

One of my favorite aspects of Duchess Material is that it works through an aspect of the time period that you don’t often see. It feels so fresh for the genre to get glimpses into prostitution and what crap women went through in order to be on their own.

Overall, this is a spicy and fun ride. I don’t know what it is about romances in 1800’s UK with a mystery subplot that I love so much, but it’s basically crack. This one did not disappoint and I’m definitely looking forward to Phoebe’s sister Alex getting a story next.

124. BRIGID KEMMERER: Finding balance in characters, relationships, genres, and real life – LiteraryHype Podcast

Send us Fan MailThis week on LiteraryHype Podcast, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author Brigid Kemmerer joins me for a delightful conversation about all things romantasy. Brigid recently released the conclusion to a YA trilogy, as well as kicked off her adult romantasy series with Warrior Princess Assassin. We're mainly focused on the latter of those two books, and talking all about writing why choose romance for adults after years of writing for teenagers. Plus, we're talking about her personal hobbies and how they impact her writing fierce female characters.Join us for a fun chat!FOLLOW BRIGIDBUY THE BOOKS:BookshopWarrior Princess AssassinCaptive Traitor KingSparking Fire Out of FateForging Silver Into StarsAmazonWarrior Princess AssassinCaptive Traitor KingSparking Fire Out of FateForging Silver Into StarsLibroFMWarrior Princess AssassinCaptive Traitor KingSparking Fire Out of FateForging Silver Into StarsAudibleWarrior Princess AssassinCaptive Traitor KingSparking Fire Out of FateForging Silver Into StarsSupport the showSupport the podcast by shopping:EtsyMy Bookshop.org listsLibroFM audiobooksTry Audible Plus  Gift Audible Membership Glocusent LED Neck Reading LightTry Shameless Snacks10% Off at Once Upon a Bookclub10% off Goli VitaminsTWO FREE AUDIOBOOKS with new LibroFM Membership: Kindle Unlimited FREE FOR THREE MONTHS!Prime Television FREE TRIALJoin the fun!WebsiteInstagramTiktokY…

1. 124. BRIGID KEMMERER: Finding balance in characters, relationships, genres, and real life 18:34
2. 123. SEBASTIEN DE CASTELL: Swashbuckling fantasy, writing fight scenes, and dealing with ADHD 29:56
3. 122. BECCA COFFINDAFFER: Oldest Sibling Energy and Assassins in a Dystopia | The Bloody and the Damned 19:52
4. 121. MATT DINNIMAN RETURNS: Dungeon Crawler Carl's eighth book, Operation Bounce House, & handling fame 24:27
5. 120. VERONICA ROTH: Returning to Divergent and Dystopian Fiction While Protecting Mental Health 16:13

Note: I can receive compensation for qualifying purchases through links on this site at no additional cost to you. Your support of this site is appreciated.