Barbara’s rating: 4.5 out of 5 Stars
Series: Goode’s Guide to Misconduct #2
Publication Date: 4/23/24
Period: Regency London
Number of Pages: 293

A Miss and a Lord – both have secrets and secret identities – One wants revenge – and the other wants protection. I loved this book from the meet-cute to the last word in the epilogue and I hope you will love it too.

Miss Julia Addison is the daughter of a clergyman and she always longed for more freedom than a young lady of that period was allowed – especially a clergyman’s daughter. The opportunity to gain a small measure of freedom came when Mrs. Mildred Hayes’s niece (and companion) married Julia’s brother. Julia stepped in to become Mrs. Hayes’s companion – and in doing so, she gained the freedom to become the theater reviewer for Goode’s magazine.  No, nobody knows she is writing the reviews – it is all done under a secret identity, but she is very happy with that arrangement. At least she’s happy with it until she discovers that Ransom Blackadder, a satirical playwright, is seeking revenge against her for a review she wrote about one of his plays. Oh!

Graham McKay, the Earl of Dunstane, writes satirical plays under the pseudonym Ransom Blackadder. Those plays are always great successes and bring in lots of much-needed money to save his estates. All the reviewers are writing scathing reviews (which he wants as they bring in the audience) – all except one who writes something different. He absolutely cannot have that and he’ll go to great lengths to identify and unmask that reviewer. How dare she!

Julia intrigues Graham from the first time he meets her at the theater. Will their secrets keep them apart even though they care for one another? Can either or both of them come to trust the other enough to share their secret?

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this fast-paced, witty, entertaining book and can recommend it. So, grab a cup of tea, find a cozy nook, and be prepared for a lovely afternoon spent with Graham and Julia. You’ll be glad you did.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.