This is the first Pepper Basham book I’ve read, though I’ve heard good things about them. I should also note, I have not read the prequel to this book, and perhaps I ahould have. The beginning of this book DRAGGED ON FOREVER. I am very familiar with the regency time period In England, I am aware that a woman’s reputation specifically was a really big deal at the time, but that was the entire basis of this book and it was absolutely dithered over by every main character for what felt like way too long. The book seemed to go on forever before anything actually happened, and the resolution of the source of the main problem (is Arianna Ruined Forever) felt rushed and an afterthought.

Arianna ran off with a clergyman who promised to marry her. This, unfortunately, was the wrong choice, a fact she discovers before getting married, but not before her reputation is utterly ruined. A chance meeting at a ball changes the course of her life; when she returns home a year later (her brother is an EARL, luckily), she has inherited a large sum of money, thanks to the gentleman who helped her by sending her to a woman of means who needed a helper. To Arianna’s surprise, the new rector in town is none other than Thomas, her mysterious savior. Will they fall in love? Of course. Will they push past Arianna’s ruined reputation and Thomas’ attempt to serve the people who had been let down by a scandal with their previous rector? Maybe….


3.5 stars. It could have been great, but for me it just fell kinda flat.

Disclosure: I received this book as a complimentary copy for review purposes, I was under no obligation, contract, or expectation to provide a positive review. The opinions, ratings, and critiques expressed in this review are entirely my own.