Minerva is different than the regular young miss coming out to the ton. She is beautiful and knows her manners, but instead of frivolity, her interests lie in politics. Her dream is to marry a man with political aspirations and help him effect change. But those hopes were dashed when Lord Blakeney confused her for another woman at a party. As she slept off a migraine in the library, he drunkenly thought she was someone else and put his head up her dress. Of course, that was the moment other people began to walk in the room.

The couple is forced to marry to avoid scandal and neither is happy about it. Blake just wants to live a life free of constraints...a life that includes his sexy and worldly mistress. And though he is next in line to the Dukedom and is devilishly handsome, Minerva can think of nothing but the fact that Blake is notoriously stupid. What the reader learns quickly, is that Blake is not really stupid, but likely dyslexic. He's never been able to read well and cultivated the image of a lazy rake to hide behind. He is terribly ashamed of his shortcomings and he knows that his academic wife would reject him further if she ever knew the truth.

It was very hard for me to like Minerva. Even though she is not wealthy or of high station, she is so very snobby that it's nearly unbearable. She is constantly ruminating about how stupid Blake is and she is completely self-absorbed with her political machinations. Blake was an ok hero, but I never really felt like he got his due. He never really gets over the belief that he is anything more than the brawn in their relationship and that was a shame. It took him a really long time to share his secret --and I don't blame him one bit.

Tying into Minerva's whole reformist yearnings, there is a lot of political weaving in the book. And there is a little blackmail scheme and a dab of danger at the end. But the story really focuses on the mismatched pairing of Blake and Minerva. I can see why she eventually falls for him, but I'm not so sure why he ever falls for her.

This is the fourth book in the Burgandy Club series and it made frequent references to the events of The Dangerous Viscount, which I have not read. Things are explained fairly well, but I was very aware that the books were tied together. This could be read as a standalone, but I feel like it would be better for those who have a history with the series. 3 stars.

*ARC Provided by NetGalley