A Beast of a Duke by Eva Devon

Known as a young idealist, no one expects Roderick Morrowby, heir to the Duke of Wrathborne to become a beast. Yet, when his father dies, that is exactly what happens. Loathed by his younger brother, abandoned by his friends, and casting off all his dreams to reform his family mines, Roderick is alone. Secretly blackmailed by his father from the grave, he is determined to find the key to change his fate. In search of that key, Roderick sails to Devon. Swept overboard in a fierce storm and half dead, he is taken in by a woman who saves his life and may have the power to save his heart. If only she can see the man he truly he is.

Hazel Smith walks the cliffs every night, praying that her abusive husband will never return from his watery grave. One night, a vicious storm tears at her cottage and she is shocked when someone pounds on the door. Despite her fears, she lets in the formidable man who is on death’s door. The man swept in by the storm brings the possibility of change into her life and perhaps the possibility of much more as well.

But Roderick and Hazel face a dangerous road to love. It is a road of secrets and society’s disapproval. With so much between them, how can something as fragile as love stand a chance?