| Historical - Regency |
| Romance |
| Fiction |
| Historical |
Summary
Summary
The temptation of her lips...
Libby Shaw refuses to accept society's dictates. She's determined to become a member of Edinburgh's all-male Royal College of Surgeons. Disguising herself as a man, she attends the surgical theater and fools everyone--except the one man who has never forgotten the shape of her exquisitely sensual lips.
...will make a prince say yes to her every desire
Forced to leave his home as a boy, famed portraitist Ziyaeddin is secretly the exiled prince of a distant realm. When he first met Libby, he memorized every detail of her face and drew her. But her perfect lips gave him trouble--the same lips he now longs to kiss. When Libby asks his help to hide her feminine identity from the world, Ziyaeddin agrees on one condition: she must sit for him to paint--as a woman. But what begins as a daring scheme could send them both hurtling toward danger...and an unparalleled love.
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Reviews (4)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Ashe strikes gold in her fourth Devil's Duke Regency (after The Duke), giving minor characters from earlier books their own sensuous story. Twenty-year-old Miss Elizabeth "Libby" Shaw, adamantly determined to become a surgeon despite strictures against women practicing medicine, convinces exiled Mediterranean prince and portrait artist Ziyaeddin Mirza to let her board with him so that she may attend surgical school disguised as a man. Although her successful ruse, skill, and dedication catapult her to the head of the class, she makes no headway convincing Ziyaeddin to allow her to construct a suitable prosthesis for his amputated foot, and he cannot persuade her to remain silent while she sits for him, the one form of payment he requests. Stakes run high for each of them-Ziyaeddin will soon be called home to run his small kingdom, Tabir, and Libby knows a discovery of her secret will cost her the career she yearns for. Ashe allows desire to build slowly between the two, giving them time to demonstrate goodness, honor, and love before they act on their long-simmering passions. A subplot involving murdered women and grave-robbing adds mystery to this thoroughly pleasurable historical. (May) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
Two outcasts find each other hiding in plain sightand fall in love.When they run into each other in an Edinburgh bookshop, Ibrahim Kent and Joseph Smart have just one thing in common: Neither of them are who they claim to be. Joseph Smart is actually Elizabeth Shaw, better known as Libby, a smart society lady who wants so badly to be a doctor that she is dressing up as a man to attend lectures at Surgeons' Hall. And Ibrahim, known as "the Turk" and posing as a society portraitist, is actually Ziyaeddin Mirza, Prince of Tabir, in exile from his homeland for 17 years. Ziyaeddin has been enamored of Libby since first meeting her two years ago, so when she asks him to host Joseph Smart in his home, he agrees on the condition that she pose for him once a week. As she devotes every waking hour to her studies and he prepares to re-enter Tabir after its current ruler is deposed, their obsessions leave them little time together. But Libby's hour of sitting for Ziyaeddin each week crackles with chemistry and, eventually, leads to the bedchamber. Given their single-minded plans, as well as Libby's mounting battles with her mental health, it's hard to see how the two can find a happy ending togetherbut, as usual, Ashe finds a way. As with the three previous entries in her Devil's Duke series, she has written a remarkably complex story that historical romance readers will adore. Few romance novelists can conjure such lush, erotic stories alongside substantial historical detail and moral heft.A Georgian-era romance that enthralls and impresses up to the last page. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Nothing and no one is going to stand in Elizabeth Libby Shaw's way of becoming a surgeon. However, because women are not allowed to practice medicine in Scotland, Libby disguises herself as a young man to attend medical lectures. Now Libby, still posing as male medical student Joseph Smart, wants to invite herself to stay with sought-after society portraitist Ibrahim Kent in order to facilitate a meeting with famed surgeon Charles Bell. Ibrahim knows by letting Libby live with him he is opening the door to her discovering his real identity: Ziyaeddin Mizra, Prince of Tibar. But Ibrahim is willing to go along with her scheme on one condition: Libby must agree to pose for him once a week, and Ibrahim wants to make it very clear that he doesn't intend on painting Libby dressed as a man. Ashe deftly infuses some fascinating bits of nineteenth-century history into the fourth top-notch addition to her Devil's Duke series, while at the same time delivering her trademark captivating characters and heart-melting passion.--Charles, John Copyright 2010 Booklist
Library Journal Review
Forensic physician's daughter Elizabeth Shaw will do anything to study medicine at Surgeon's Hall in Edinburgh, even disguise herself as a man. But Libby needs help, so when the popular but reclusive portrait artist Ibrahim Kent (aka Ziyaeddin Mirza, Prince of Tabir) sees through her façade and doesn't give her away, they strike a dangerous bargain. He will allow her to move into his house-as medical student Joseph Smart-and introduce her to a noted artist/surgeon who can help her in her quest; she will pose for him once each week. The plan works perfectly except for one thing-they fall in love. A brilliant, atypical heroine with goals of her own and a responsible royal who has a kingdom to look after star in an engaging romance that keeps things wonderfully unsettled until the very end. VERDICT Sparkling repartee, definitive commentary on social issues, and a pair of deserving protagonists make this a worthy addition to Ashe's series and a delectable summertime read. Ashe (The Duke) lives in Durham, NC. © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
