The Duke
Page 34
Likewise, Paul’s position that a missionary’s project should be to convert enslaved people to Christianity to ensure the salvation of their eternal souls, but not to fight for abolition, was common in the British West Indies during these decades in particular. After Parliament criminalized the slave trade in 1807 and rumors began circulating that full abolition was coming soon, the wealthy planter class grew increasingly mistrustful of politicians in London, claiming they didn’t understand matters in the islands. During these years, missionaries on the islands were more acutely aware than ever that they walked a fragile line. They were more likely to caution their flocks against demanding freedom and instead encourage them to focus on improving the state of their souls for the afterlife. The work of abolitionists throughout Britain—in England, Scotland, the West Indies, and the east as well—finally did result in the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833, which made Britain the first colonial empire to illegalize slavery.
For the sake of this story, I represented one matter disproportionate to historical reality: Tabitha, her husband, and Charlotte’s brother were all able to purchase their freedom from their masters. In fact, although not unheard of, this happened rarely. But in my story, for Charlotte’s brother to plan to purchase her freedom, and for Jonathan Aiken to own even a small mill that Tabitha could inherit, she and both men had to be free people.
I offer copious thanks to the scholars whose work I depended on to write this novel, including (although not limited to) Sandie Blaise, Trevor Burnard, Emilia Viotti da Costa, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Gad Heuman (whose generous counsel enabled me to include Eliza and Mr. Meriwether’s and Penny and Jonah’s marriages), Carson Holloway of Duke University Libraries, Alison Lodge, Teresa Moore, and Colleen A. Vasconcellos. For Stuart B. Schwartz’s gracefully written Sea of Storms: A History of Hurricanes in the Greater Caribbean from Columbus to Katrina, I am enormously grateful, as well as for the Pierpont Morgan Library’s gorgeous edition of The Drake Manuscript, which was the inspiration for the old duke’s collection of natural specimens and Libby’s catalogue. The title of Chapter Five, “Lords of the Ocean,” comes from Ian W. Toll’s engaging Six Frigates. And, although a tenth-century poet has no obviously direct influence on the historical events in this novel, when I came across Symeon the New Theologian’s poem, it described Amarantha and Gabriel’s early awakening to their love so perfectly that I could not resist borrowing from these lines for Chapter Six’s title: “We awaken as the beloved / In every last part of our body.” The world of the nineteenth century was an interconnected place, when ships of colonial nations and mercantile fleets connected peoples and goods across the globe. I like to imagine that some scholar whom Gabriel encountered along his sea travels introduced him to the medieval poem, and that his heart recognized the words.
For brilliant scholars Celeste-Marie Bernier, Thavolia Glymph, Martha Jones, and Adriane Lentz-Smith, who read this manuscript and offered suggestions I am especially and deeply grateful.
Borthwick Castle and the surrounding lands inspired Haiknayes, and I am very grateful to the good folks who now manage Borthwick for the tour. Kallin—which architecturally is an amalgam of several Scottish manor houses and castles that I adore—is situated in a place that I renamed for my novels: my fictional Glen Irvine is the real Glen Orchy. Just as other places in Scotland that I visited while researching this series, it is spectacularly beautiful, made all the more appealing by the wonderful people I have met throughout this gracious country.
I thank my incredible agent, Kimberly Whalen, for everything she does on my behalf. To the Lady Authors—Caroline Linden, Miranda Neville, and Maya Rodale—I am ever grateful for ideas and support. To Georgann T. Brophy, Donna Finlay, Meg Huliston, Beverly Jenkins, Mary Brophy Marcus, and Stephanie McCullough, whose reading and comments made this a much better book, and to Marcia Abercrombie, Georgie C. Brophy, Sonja Foust, and Lee Galbreath, who saved me yet again: I employ no hyperbole in saying that I could not do this without you. I offer special thanks to Mary Brophy Marcus for the delightful map of Amarantha’s journeys on my website, and to Cari Gunsallus, author assistant extraordinaire. To my son and my Idaho, for patience and love and keeping me grounded in reality, thank you.
Finally, to my husband, Professor Laurent Dubois, who first introduced me to Caribbean history, and who for this series put me in touch with his colleagues, recommended books and articles, offered me ideas, helped me create a fictional network of people entirely grounded in real history, read the manuscript and gave me crucial feedback, reassured me in my worries (again and again), and pretty much lent me his entire library to research this novel, I haven’t sufficient words of thanks. So I have dedicated The Duke to him, and to my father (in memory) and brothers and all the good men I know and have known—as friends or from afar—who work hard every day to make this world a place of justice for all.
With each novel I write, my fictional world of early nineteenth-century Britain grows. Gabriel first appears in The Rogue (Constance and Saint’s story) and The Earl (Emily’s story), which both take place during Part III of The Duke. Gabriel also has a cameo in my novella The Pirate and I. Amarantha first appears in When a Scot Loves a Lady of my Falcon Club series, and again in The Earl. And here and there throughout The Duke one can find passing mentions of characters from my other books too.
Gabriel and Amarantha now have their much-deserved happily ever after. But an intrepid lady is determined to become a member of Edinburgh’s exclusively male Royal College of Surgeons—despite the delicious distractions of a certain exiled royal who requires her for another sort of project altogether. My Devil’s Duke series concludes with Libby and Ziyaeddin’s love story in The Prince, coming in the summer of 2018 from Avon Books.
For more information about all of my books and series, and for bonus scenes, timelines, and family trees, I hope you will visit my website at www.KatharineAshe.com. I love hearing from readers.
An Excerpt from The Prince
Keep reading for a sneak peek from
THE PRINCE
Coming Summer 2018
“My knowledge of anatomy is lacking. Male anatomy, in particular,” she clarified.
A single brow lifted. “Is it?”
“When the other students trade puerile banter, I am conspicuously silent. My studies on the subject are proving insufficient for the pretense of manhood I am living.”
“I see.” He glanced at her books stacked all over his parlor, about which he had said nothing for weeks. He was a generous host. She was depending on that now.
“Haven’t you been examining male cadavers?” he said.
“Those do not move, of course.” She looked squarely into his eyes. In the candlelight they were the color of coal and, as always, very beautiful. “But you do.”
“Ah,” he said, smiling slightly. “I begin to see the direction of this conversation.”
“Will you help me with this?”
“Your studies would continue to suffer.” The knuckles wrapped around the end of his walking stick were stretched tight. “I, as you know, am not a whole man.”
She stepped forward. It was unwise, especially now that she knew what she was capable of in his proximity. But she could allow nothing to hinder her project, not even memories of his breathtaking musculature.
“If I am to succeed in this charade, I must know everything about being a man,” she said. “And it is not male legs that interest me now.”
His gaze snapped to hers, and in that moment it occurred to Libby that this man, who had agreed to her terms for living in his house, was neither celibate by nature nor inclined to remain so for much longer.
About the Author
KATHARINE ASHE is the USA Today bestselling, award-winning author of historical romances that reviewers call “intensely lush” and “sensationally intelligent,” including How to Be a Proper Lady, an Amazon Editors’ Choice for the 10 Best Books of the Year, and 2014 and 2015 finalists for the prestigious RITA® Award of the Rom
ance Writers of America. She lives in the wonderfully warm Southeast with her beloved husband, son, dog, and a garden she likes to call romantic rather than unkempt. A professor of history, she writes romance because she thinks modern readers deserve grand adventures and breathtaking sensuality too. For more about her books, please visit www.KatharineAshe.com.
www.avonromance.com
www.facebook.com/avonromance
Discover great authors, exclusive offers, and more at hc.com.
Praise for the Novels of Katharine Ashe
THE EARL
“A tender and gripping romantic adventure.”
—BookPage (TOP PICK!)
“A rollicking page-turner.”
—Publishers Weekly (★Starred Review★)
THE ROGUE
“Powerful, suspenseful, and sensual.”
—RT BOOKreviews (TOP PICK!)
“The desperate yearning—and dangerous secrets—between the star-crossed lovers had my stomach in knots until the very end of this hypnotic book.”
—Amazon’s Best Books of the Month
I LOVED A ROGUE
“Passionate, heart-wrenching, and thoroughly satisfying.”
—All About Romance, Desert Island Keeper
“A blissful read.”
—USA Today
KISSES, SHE WROTE
“Smoldering.”
—Library Journal (★Starred Review★)
“Finished it with tears in my eyes. Yes, it was that good.”
—Elizabeth Boyle, New York Times bestselling author
HOW TO MARRY A HIGHLANDER
RITA® Award Finalist 2014
Romance Writers of America
HOW TO BE A PROPER LADY
Amazon Editors’ Choice 10 Best Books of 2012
WHEN A SCOT LOVES A LADY
“Lushly intense romance . . . radiant prose.”
—Library Journal (★Starred Review★)
“Sensationally intelligent writing, and a true, weak-in-the-knees love story.”
—Barnes & Noble “Heart to Heart” Recommended Read!
IN THE ARMS OF A MARQUESS
“Every woman who ever dreamed of having a titled lord at her feet will love this novel.”
—Eloisa James, New York Times bestselling author
“Immersive and lush. . . . Ashe is that rare author who chooses to risk unexpected elements within an established genre, and whose skill and magic with the pen lifts her tales above the rest.” —Fresh Fiction
SWEPT AWAY BY A KISS
“A breathtaking romance filled with sensuality and driven by a brisk and thrilling plot.”
—Lisa Kleypas, #1 New York Times bestselling author
By Katharine Ashe
The Devil’s Duke
The Duke
The Earl
The Rogue
Coming Soon
The Prince
The Prince Catchers
I Loved a Rogue
I Adored a Lord
I Married the Duke
The Falcon Club
How a Lady Weds a Rogue
How to Be a Proper Lady
When a Scot Loves a Lady
Rogues of the Sea
In the Arms of a Marquess
Captured by a Rogue Lord
Swept Away by a Kiss
And from Avon Impulse
The Pirate & I
Kisses, She Wrote
How to Marry a Highlander
A Lady’s Wish
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Excerpt from The Prince copyright © 2018 by Katharine Brophy Dubois.
the duke. Copyright © 2017 by Katharine Brophy Dubois. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins Publishers. For information, address HarperCollins Publishers, 195 Broadway, New York, NY 10007.
Digital Edition OCTOBER 2017 ISBN: 978-0-06-264173-1
Print Edition ISBN: 978-0-06-264172-4
Cover illustration by Ann Kmet
Avon, Avon & logo, and Avon Books & logo are registered trademarks of HarperCollins Publishers in the United States of America and other countries.
HarperCollins is a registered trademark of HarperCollins Publishers in the United States of America and other countries.
About the Publisher
Australia
HarperCollins Publishers Australia Pty. Ltd.
Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street
Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia
www.harpercollins.com.au
Canada
HarperCollins Canada
2 Bloor Street East - 20th Floor
Toronto, ON M4W 1A8, Canada
www.harpercollins.ca
New Zealand
HarperCollins Publishers New Zealand
Unit D1, 63 Apollo Drive
Rosedale 0632
Auckland, New Zealand
www.harpercollins.co.nz
United Kingdom
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF, UK
www.harpercollins.co.uk
United States
HarperCollins Publishers Inc.
195 Broadway
New York, NY 10007
www.harpercollins.com
Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Dedication
Epigraph
Contents
Prologue
PART I: 1817 Chapter 1: The Departure
Chapter 2: The Storm
Chapter 3: The Aftermath
Chapter 4: The Captain
Chapter 5: Lords of the Ocean
Chapter 6: Awaken as the Beloved
Chapter 7: The Promise
PART II: 1818 Chapter 8: Courses Set
PART III: 1822 Chapter 9: The Dark Lord
Chapter 10: The Devil
Chapter 11: The Journey
Chapter 12: The Dream
Chapter 13: Luck & Strategy
PART IV: 1823 Chapter 14: A New Plan (This Time Better)
Chapter 15: Black Magic
Chapter 16: The Devil’s Keep
Chapter 17: Prayer, of a Sort
Chapter 18: The Knight
Chapter 19: The Dungeon
Chapter 20: Candles
Chapter 21: The Seventh Sin
Chapter 22: A Rooftop
Chapter 23: A Prelude to a Kiss
PART V: 1823 Chapter 24: The Secret
Chapter 25: A Revelation
Chapter 26: The Unexpected
Chapter 27: Temptation
Chapter 28: Kisses First
Chapter 29: A (Desperately Conceived) Plan
Chapter 30: Dissembling
Chapter 31: For Love
Epilogue
Historical Inspiration & Thank-Yous
An Excerpt from The Prince
About the Author
Praise for the Novels of Katharine Ashe
By Katharine Ashe
Copyright
About the Publisher
h friends