Sins Of A Wicked Duke by Sophie Jordan

SINS OF A WICKED DUKE by Sophia Jordan (Published by Avon Books, 2009)
Fallon O’Rourke has been sacked from one maid position after another, her pride and stubbornness, as well has her fight to keep her virtue intact, being the main reasons for her dismissals. While fleeing yet another employer’s unsavory advances, Fallon encounters a gentleman who tries to come to her aid. She shortly learns that this "gentleman" is known in the ton as the "Demon Duke." Dominic Hale, a consummate libertine, is a man who truly believes he has a heart of stone, his spirit having been broken as a child. He is constantly seeking distractions, trying to feel anything to break through the numbness of his heart, before a life of depravity became second nature to him.

Desperate to keep a position long enough to earn enough money for her dream of a small home of her own and tired of fighting off the advances of her employers, Fallon decides to impersonate a man and apply for a position of a footman. It is with great reluctance and no small amount of trepidation that she applies for just such a position at the palatial home of Dominic Hale, Duke of Damon.

As the story evolves, you discover two lonely, tortured souls, their hearts tragically wounded young in life and desperately seeking some form of relief from their haunted pasts. The characters are complex and very well developed. The interactions between Fallon and the Dominic sizzled with heat. Learning about the tragedies that formed them into the people they had become, their individual, skewed perceptions of the world and how those flawed perceptions affected their lives made for an intriguing and very interesting story. I liked Fallon, despite her stubborn nature, because she was a survivor and cleverly used her wits and courage to survive. And, I couldn’t help liking Dominic, as I watched him change and struggle as his feelings for Fallon grew. Also, despite his trying to live up to his depraved reputation, Dominic had a definite code of honor. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it.

This is my first book by this author. I wouldn't hesitate to pick up another book written by Sophie Jordan again.