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THE DEVIL YOU KNOW a witty and romantic historical Regency romance
A marriage of convenience. A reformed rake. A heroine determined not to lose her heart.
The Honourable Catherine Elford — Kitty to her friends — is faced with an unenviable choice.
Be cast out, penniless, by her penny-pinching half-brother… or marry the handsome, charming Earl of Ledbury — a man who would be perfect if he weren’t a notorious womaniser, and the very same gentleman Kitty once adored during her come-out in Society. Until she discovered him in a compromising embrace with a married lady.
Ledbury has never courted an unmarried woman in his life, and certainly not with matrimony in mind. But Kitty’s generous dowry — enough to keep his beloved racehorses in the stable — proves too tempting to resist. A hasty wedding follows . . . and a wedding night best forgotten.
Determined to survive with dignity, Kitty resolves to let her head rule her foolish heart. Yet as she finds herself drawn into his dangerous charm and the boundaries she set begin to crumble . . . just as the shadows of Ledbury’s past threaten to destroy them both.
Sparkling with wit and brimming with Regency intrigue, The Devil You Know proves that while Society may change its rules, the folly — and fire — of love never does.
Perfect for fans of Bridgerton, Georgette Heyer, Beverley Watts, Beth Andrews, Mary Balogh and Jane Austen.
READERS LOVE THE DEVIL YOU KNOW:
'The Devil You Know is an immensely satisfying read. Everyone loves a Georgian rake and Sophia’s hero doesn’t disappoint. Lord Ledbury’s as naughty as they come – enough George Wickham to set the pulse racing, with a civilising measure of Mr Darcy’s nobility to ensure you fall in love for all the right reasons . . .' Annie Holder, author of Against All Odds
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Rarely do books move me to tears, but this one did. A riveting story, with an enchanting heroine and a fascinating, suitably dissolute hero. Thoroughly enjoyable.' MH.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'This is exactly what a regency novel should be like.' Dana
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Clearly in the Heyer tradition, this book has a wonderful sense of period from clothing to language creating a world for the characters to inhabit and the reader to visit.' Lehrare.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'A very obvious and excellent entry on to 'If you love Heyer, you’ll like…' list. Highly recommended.' Carol
The Honourable Catherine Elford — Kitty to her friends — is faced with an unenviable choice.
Be cast out, penniless, by her penny-pinching half-brother… or marry the handsome, charming Earl of Ledbury — a man who would be perfect if he weren’t a notorious womaniser, and the very same gentleman Kitty once adored during her come-out in Society. Until she discovered him in a compromising embrace with a married lady.
Ledbury has never courted an unmarried woman in his life, and certainly not with matrimony in mind. But Kitty’s generous dowry — enough to keep his beloved racehorses in the stable — proves too tempting to resist. A hasty wedding follows . . . and a wedding night best forgotten.
Determined to survive with dignity, Kitty resolves to let her head rule her foolish heart. Yet as she finds herself drawn into his dangerous charm and the boundaries she set begin to crumble . . . just as the shadows of Ledbury’s past threaten to destroy them both.
Sparkling with wit and brimming with Regency intrigue, The Devil You Know proves that while Society may change its rules, the folly — and fire — of love never does.
Perfect for fans of Bridgerton, Georgette Heyer, Beverley Watts, Beth Andrews, Mary Balogh and Jane Austen.
READERS LOVE THE DEVIL YOU KNOW:
'The Devil You Know is an immensely satisfying read. Everyone loves a Georgian rake and Sophia’s hero doesn’t disappoint. Lord Ledbury’s as naughty as they come – enough George Wickham to set the pulse racing, with a civilising measure of Mr Darcy’s nobility to ensure you fall in love for all the right reasons . . .' Annie Holder, author of Against All Odds
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Rarely do books move me to tears, but this one did. A riveting story, with an enchanting heroine and a fascinating, suitably dissolute hero. Thoroughly enjoyable.' MH.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'This is exactly what a regency novel should be like.' Dana
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Clearly in the Heyer tradition, this book has a wonderful sense of period from clothing to language creating a world for the characters to inhabit and the reader to visit.' Lehrare.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'A very obvious and excellent entry on to 'If you love Heyer, you’ll like…' list. Highly recommended.' Carol
257 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 12, 2025
140 people are currently reading
10 people want to read
About the author
Sophia Holloway
11 books106 followersSophia Holloway describes herself as a ‘wordsmith’. She read Modern History at Oxford, and her factual book on the Royal Marines in the First World War, From Trench and Turret, was published in 2006. Shea takes her pen name from her great grandmother ( hence the photograph portrait). She also writes the Bradecote & Catchpoll mediaeval murder mysteries under the pen name, Sarah Hawkswood. Her third Classic Regency novel, 'Kingscastle' was published in paperback and ebook by Allison & Busby in November 2021, with another due out in spring 2022.
She is a member of the Historical Writers’ Association, the Historical Novel Society, and the Crime Writers' Associationand the Romantic Novelists' Association.
She is a member of the Historical Writers’ Association, the Historical Novel Society, and the Crime Writers' Associationand the Romantic Novelists' Association.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 10, 2025
Just terrible…
Very old school romance… George is a selfish rake who sees no value in caring for others, refusing to sympathize with others because he says no one has ever sympathized with him… Such a child, so in flexible, and generally unlikable. By the end of the story, he has ostensibly changed, but it feels so contrived because he has spent the entire book talking about how he is set in his ways and will always be a rake… That having had mistresses and never a wife, he has little interest in becoming a better man.
Kitty, on the other hand, has been disappointed earlier in imagining that someone… (It seems George…) was a desirable love interest who disappointed her by being an egotistical, self-centered jerk. It’s not even clear in the story how he disappointed her, for they never really met, but she saw him behaving in an unethical way, and this, seemingly, was the impetus for her to force where ever falling in love… It’s a throwaway situation that does not clearly account for her fear of being hurt again; the situation makes her sound silly.
Kitty puts up with a lot of of his crap, and the author really gives her no spine whatsoever. It is true that her marriage is arranged by her half brother who is Neanderthal… But the arrangement is made between two men who are drunk and primarily concerned about the money that will change hands with this arranged marriage.
There is a continual seesaw movement in the plot, both of them wallowing in their own misconceptions, self deceptions, failures to communicate, etc.
George’s best friend is one of the few characters that seems to have any scope; and Lucy is one of the few women in the story that really seems to have her head on straight, even though she’s dealing with grief from the loss of her mother and father.
I skimmed through a lot of of this book because it was just nonsense. The high point of the story was exciting, but the end left me totally dissatisfied.
George, the author would have us believe, has turned some kind of “moral” corner. However, satisfying his own physical needs still seems to be foremost on his mind. And Kitty, ostensibly because of the threat to her life and the surrounding circumstances, forgives all and finally refers to him even as “her devil.“ Obviously this is supposed to tie into the stories title, which I thought was quite lame.
Kitty is presented as a decent woman, but not one necessarily capable of courage, good sense, or independent thought and/or actions, which I think is a disservice to characters in books written these days. The plot development on the story felt so antiquated… Like it was written 20 years ago when women were presented as victims of circumstance, lacking any personal redeeming qualities to cope with their situation— no intelligence, no righteous indignation…. Moving along like a dead leaf flowing down a stream, out of control and without direction.
And George, in my opinion, was just thoroughly obnoxious for most of the story.
There was a lot of back-and-forth in this story, highs and lows—things looking as if they would work out and then, with the turn of a page, everything falling apart.
The characters were overall unlikable and very hard to care about.
I have an issue with closure, so I skimmed through a lot just to get to the end. I did not feel that the plot was well constructed or tight; and I felt the characterizations were vague, smacking of dated clichés,: they did not present most of the “cast members“ in either a strictly positive or strictly negative light.
Thankfully, I borrowed this with Kindle Unlimited, and so did not have to pay for it. I would not read anything else by this author. For me, it was a disappointment.
Very old school romance… George is a selfish rake who sees no value in caring for others, refusing to sympathize with others because he says no one has ever sympathized with him… Such a child, so in flexible, and generally unlikable. By the end of the story, he has ostensibly changed, but it feels so contrived because he has spent the entire book talking about how he is set in his ways and will always be a rake… That having had mistresses and never a wife, he has little interest in becoming a better man.
Kitty, on the other hand, has been disappointed earlier in imagining that someone… (It seems George…) was a desirable love interest who disappointed her by being an egotistical, self-centered jerk. It’s not even clear in the story how he disappointed her, for they never really met, but she saw him behaving in an unethical way, and this, seemingly, was the impetus for her to force where ever falling in love… It’s a throwaway situation that does not clearly account for her fear of being hurt again; the situation makes her sound silly.
Kitty puts up with a lot of of his crap, and the author really gives her no spine whatsoever. It is true that her marriage is arranged by her half brother who is Neanderthal… But the arrangement is made between two men who are drunk and primarily concerned about the money that will change hands with this arranged marriage.
There is a continual seesaw movement in the plot, both of them wallowing in their own misconceptions, self deceptions, failures to communicate, etc.
George’s best friend is one of the few characters that seems to have any scope; and Lucy is one of the few women in the story that really seems to have her head on straight, even though she’s dealing with grief from the loss of her mother and father.
I skimmed through a lot of of this book because it was just nonsense. The high point of the story was exciting, but the end left me totally dissatisfied.
George, the author would have us believe, has turned some kind of “moral” corner. However, satisfying his own physical needs still seems to be foremost on his mind. And Kitty, ostensibly because of the threat to her life and the surrounding circumstances, forgives all and finally refers to him even as “her devil.“ Obviously this is supposed to tie into the stories title, which I thought was quite lame.
Kitty is presented as a decent woman, but not one necessarily capable of courage, good sense, or independent thought and/or actions, which I think is a disservice to characters in books written these days. The plot development on the story felt so antiquated… Like it was written 20 years ago when women were presented as victims of circumstance, lacking any personal redeeming qualities to cope with their situation— no intelligence, no righteous indignation…. Moving along like a dead leaf flowing down a stream, out of control and without direction.
And George, in my opinion, was just thoroughly obnoxious for most of the story.
There was a lot of back-and-forth in this story, highs and lows—things looking as if they would work out and then, with the turn of a page, everything falling apart.
The characters were overall unlikable and very hard to care about.
I have an issue with closure, so I skimmed through a lot just to get to the end. I did not feel that the plot was well constructed or tight; and I felt the characterizations were vague, smacking of dated clichés,: they did not present most of the “cast members“ in either a strictly positive or strictly negative light.
Thankfully, I borrowed this with Kindle Unlimited, and so did not have to pay for it. I would not read anything else by this author. For me, it was a disappointment.
February 3, 2026
Suprise
I had to get in to the rythym of the story before I could get I to it. But really enjoy the interplay of the characters and subplots
I had to get in to the rythym of the story before I could get I to it. But really enjoy the interplay of the characters and subplots
February 15, 2026
He loves me he loves me not
A good story a relationship that sounded real with bitchy women and arrogant men and a happy ever after ending
A good story a relationship that sounded real with bitchy women and arrogant men and a happy ever after ending
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews