Sometimes a quiet plot is better than an exciting one. Unmasking the Duke’s Mistress was good, if not high-action, for about three-quarters of the book until the author threw in a blackmail plot that fell flat and dropped the grade down to a C.

Arabella Tatton is a young widow who has fallen on very hard times, and her elderly mother and young son depend on her for their livelihood. When the madame of a high-class brothel offers her a job, she can’t help but accept, and she becomes “Miss Noir.” Her first client, though, is not just an anonymous stranger – it’s Dominic Fourneaux, Duke of Arlesford and the man who broke her heart and ruined her life.

Dominic remembers things differently, and is as bitter about how things ended as Arabella. He can’t stand the thought of any other man buying her, so he buys her himself, setting up a home for her as his mistress. Their past stands between them, though, and Arabella’s secrets keep them from having the usual mistress-protector relationship.

Much of the book is enjoyable, with both Arabella and Dominic behaving and reacting with believable emotions and realistic pain. She thinks he abandoned her; he thinks she jilted him and married another. Both have a lot of scars from this misconception which affect their actions, but not absurdly so. One of my pet peeves in books about former lovers is how strongly they hold grudges after 10, 15, even 20 years. The gap here is only six years, which is long enough to provide distance without totally numbing the emotions, and as one character says later in the book, in this circumstance actions speak louder than words.

The book ended on a bit of a sour note, though; instead of allowing the book to only be about the conflict and evolution of the relationship, the author tacked on an overdone blackmail attempt. It was unrealistic and fell utterly flat instead of adding suspense to the conclusion of the story. It felt contrived and unnecessary, especially after the whole book focused solely on more subtle ups-and-downs of the relationship.

This weakness falls in the midst of an otherwise enjoyable book. It’s not bad overall, and has a lot of moments that I really enjoyed. I just wish the author had stuck with her slightly more unconventional story arc, instead of falling into the trap of ending all historical romances with some element of suspense.