My Fair Duchess

Starred review from February 15, 2017
Genevieve, the new Duchess of Blakesley, could really use a copy of Duchessing for Dummies right about now. No one, least of all Genevieve, expected a woman to inherit the duchy, but now she finds herself transformed into the latest member of the ton. Because she doesn't have a clue as to what it takes to be a successful duchess, Genevieve turns to her godmother, Lady Sophia, for help. Lady Sophia, in turn, sends her super-efficient steward, the retired Captain Archibald Salisbury, to whip Genevieve into shape. The last thing on earth Archie wants to do is help some feckless aristocrat sort out her new life, but Lady Sophia is his employer, and if that is what she wants, that is what Archie will do. Even if it kills him. My Fair Duchess, Frampton's marvelously clever riff on Pygmalion and the latest in her Dukes Behaving Badly series, following Why Do Dukes Fall in Love (2016), is another captivating symphony of scintillating wit and sophisticated sensuality brilliantly conducted by an author writing at the top of her game.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)