Three Weeks With Lady X (Desperate Duchesses)
*Starred Review* Thorn Dautry doesn’t need an interior design consultant; he needs a miracle worker. At least, that is Lady Xenobia India St. Clair’s initial assessment when Thorn’s stepmother, Eleanor, hires India to redecorate Starberry Court, the rundown country estate Thorn has recently purchased. Thorn is certain that his acquisition of Starberry Court will convince Laetitia Rainsford to accept his offer of marriage. India is equally convinced that if the ramshackle country estate doesn’t scare Laetitia away, Thorn’s own rough-around-the-edges appearance (not to mention his ancestry) will certainly do the trick. However, Eleanor is one of her dearest friends, and India has never yet backed down from a challenge. So, if all she has is three weeks to transform Starberry Court into a properly running home and turn Thorn into a civilized gentleman, India will just have to make it work. This tale is loosely linked to RITA Award–winning James’ popular Desperate Duchesses series (Thorn is the son of the Duke of Villiers, the hero of A Duke of Her Own, 2009),  and her gift for creating complex, richly layered characters pays off with spectacular dividends in her latest scintillating and exquisitely written historical novel, a romantic tour de force. --John Charles