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Winner Takes All #2
The Lie and the Lady
Following The Game and the Governess comes the second novel in the witty, sexy Winner Takes All series of Regency romances from Kate Noble, the writer behind the wildly popular, award-winning web series The Lizzie Bennet Diaries.
Clerk John Turner thought only of winning a bet when he switched places with his friend, Lord Edward Granville, at a country house party. But while posing as a lord, he fell for a lady—the Countess Letitia! Now she's learned the truth, and he must win her back as plain John Turner. He'd better hope that love truly conquers all...
Lady Letty was publicly humiliated when it came out that she had fallen for the man, not the master. When she meets him again, she's determined to avoid him, but some things are too intoxicating to be denied. Letty knows what choice she must make to survive, but if she turns her back on her dashing rogue—again—will she lose her chance at love forever?
Clerk John Turner thought only of winning a bet when he switched places with his friend, Lord Edward Granville, at a country house party. But while posing as a lord, he fell for a lady—the Countess Letitia! Now she's learned the truth, and he must win her back as plain John Turner. He'd better hope that love truly conquers all...
Lady Letty was publicly humiliated when it came out that she had fallen for the man, not the master. When she meets him again, she's determined to avoid him, but some things are too intoxicating to be denied. Letty knows what choice she must make to survive, but if she turns her back on her dashing rogue—again—will she lose her chance at love forever?
384 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published December 29, 2015
29 people are currently reading
855 people want to read
About the author
Kate Noble
16 books498 followersaka
Kate Rorick
Kate Noble is the national bestselling, RITA-nominated author of historical romances, including the acclaimed Blue Raven series and the Winner Takes All series. Her books have earned her numerous accolades, including comparisons to Jane Austen, which just makes her giddy.
In her other life as Kate Rorick, she is an Emmy-award winning writer of television and web series, having written for NBC, FOX, and TNT, as well as the international hit YouTube series The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Kate lives in Los Angeles with her family, and is hard at work on her next book.
Kate Rorick
Kate Noble is the national bestselling, RITA-nominated author of historical romances, including the acclaimed Blue Raven series and the Winner Takes All series. Her books have earned her numerous accolades, including comparisons to Jane Austen, which just makes her giddy.
In her other life as Kate Rorick, she is an Emmy-award winning writer of television and web series, having written for NBC, FOX, and TNT, as well as the international hit YouTube series The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Kate lives in Los Angeles with her family, and is hard at work on her next book.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews
September 17, 2016
I've given this a B+ at AAR, so 4.5 stars.
I’m going to start this review by saying that while I enjoyed The Lie and the Lady, I can understand that certain aspects of it might not appeal to everybody. The heroine is, at first glance, a coldly calculating fortune hunter out to catch herself a rich husband, and she and the hero don’t interact very much at all for the first part of the book - so if you’re someone who likes the first kiss to happen in chapter three with the first bedroom scene not far behind, you may be disappointed.
But this is a story that needs time to develop because there is a lot more going on than at first meets the eye, and I very much appreciated that the protagonists are flawed, complex individuals whose actions and intentions are not perfect. The book is the sequel to last year’s The Game and the Governesswherein two young men – Ned, the Earl of Ashby and his secretary, John Turner – switched places for a fortnight while attending a summer house-party, in order to fulfil the terms of a wager which saw Ned playing the part of the secretary and humble miller’s son, and Turner acting as the earl. During that fortnight, “Turner” fell in love with the governess, and “Ashby” fell for Leticia, Countess Churzy, an attractive widow.
Even though John and Leticia’s relationship developed mostly ‘off-screen’ in the previous book, it was made clear that while the countess was certainly attracted to Turner, she also had an eye to securing her future. At the end of The Game and the Governess the wager was revealed and Letty, although by now in love with John, ran off, leaving him devastated.
Some months later, Leticia is in Paris and has accepted a proposal of marriage from Sir Bartholemew (Barty) Babcock, a kindly older gentleman who wants only to protect and look after her. Following the deception practiced by Turner and Ashby, she found it impossible to hold her head up in society and has fled from town to town across England, able to settle for only a week or two before the gossip caught up with her. She sold practically everything of value she owned in order to finance a trip to Paris, as much in the hopes of meeting a suitable husband as to escape the scandal.
The daughter of a middle-class family, Leticia entered good society when her sister made a brilliant match. Her elevation brought her to the notice of the handsome, charming Count Churzy, who, she later discovered, married her in order to conceal his true sexual preferences. Left with very little at his death, Leticia has since determined to seek comfort and security, and believed she had found it with the “earl”. But with those hopes dashed, she has to find another way to eat and keep a roof over her head, and accepts Sir Barty, determined to be a good wife to him and a good mother to his young daughter, Margaret.
Arrived back in England, Leticia is in for a number of surprises, not least of which is that Margaret is not the little girl she had imagined, but a young woman of nineteen who has been left to her own devices for most of her life and who is not well disposed towards the prospect of a new stepmother. But even worse, when Margaret shows signs of being in love, Leticia discovers that the object of her affection is the owner of the recently refurbished local mill and former business associate of her father’s – Mr John Turner.
Needless to say both she and John are horrified to find themselves in the same small town and are immediately suspicious of each other’s motives. On the one hand, Leticia’s presence would seem to offer John a chance to rekindle their romance, something he wants very much indeed; but on the other, she could pose a threat to his livelihood, given that Sir Barty’s estate is the region’s largest producer of grain and John needs to secure his business for the mill. And Leticia fears that one wrong word from John will ruin her plans and her life – again.
I said at the beginning of this review that perhaps certain aspects of it wouldn’t work for everyone, one of which is the fact that the romance is a very slow-starter. In fact, there is little interaction between John and Leticia for the first section of the book, given that they have few opportunities to meet or speak privately. But this is quite realistic; for them to have been able to spend time alone together would have aroused suspicion and would not have been at all the done thing. But the slow start also allows the author time to develop the secondary characters – Margaret is not the curl-tossing, stepmother-hating teenager she could have been in the hands of a lesser author, and Sir Barty is fleshed out into more than an old lecher wanting a pretty young wife. Leticia comes across as unsympathetic to start with, given her focus on ensuring her own comfort and security – but through her, Ms Noble makes a very valid observation. After all, what other course of action would have been open to her, an impoverished lady with very few resources or options? What were well-bred women brought up to do other than get married and have children? She’s doing the only thing she knows how to do – and to be fair to her, intends do the best she can for her future husband and family as recompense for his marrying her in the first place. We may find her to be mercenary, but her behaviour makes sense in context of the time frame and her situation.
John Turner doesn’t immediately show to advantage, either, but he possesses a number of redeeming features which meant I was able to forgive him for his lack of apology or grovelling. For one thing, he sees Leticia for who she is and ‘gets’ her in a way nobody else does or ever did. And for another, he’s remarkably clear sighted about who and what HE is, a middle-class businessman who knows what he wants and where he belongs, and is determined to be the best at what he does.
Ms Noble captures both the generosity and the pettiness of small-town life very well and I particularly enjoyed the part of the story which sees Leticia winning over the ladies of the town and then bringing them all on a tour of Turner’s mill. The secondary characters – Sir Barty, Margaret, John’s endearing but somewhat meddlesome mother and his friend Dr Rhys Gray – are all very well drawn and fleshed out, and I ended up liking them just as much as the central couple. And I did like John and Leticia, regardless of their imperfections. They’re clearly shown to have an affinity so strong that they’re perfect for each other, irrespective of their shaky start.
The Lie and the Lady is one of those books that pays dividends if you enjoy stories that take their time to unfold and which, in doing so, reveal a depth and richness that isn’t commonly found in the genre. I enjoyed it very much and am looking forward to whatever Ms Noble comes up with next.
I’m going to start this review by saying that while I enjoyed The Lie and the Lady, I can understand that certain aspects of it might not appeal to everybody. The heroine is, at first glance, a coldly calculating fortune hunter out to catch herself a rich husband, and she and the hero don’t interact very much at all for the first part of the book - so if you’re someone who likes the first kiss to happen in chapter three with the first bedroom scene not far behind, you may be disappointed.
But this is a story that needs time to develop because there is a lot more going on than at first meets the eye, and I very much appreciated that the protagonists are flawed, complex individuals whose actions and intentions are not perfect. The book is the sequel to last year’s The Game and the Governesswherein two young men – Ned, the Earl of Ashby and his secretary, John Turner – switched places for a fortnight while attending a summer house-party, in order to fulfil the terms of a wager which saw Ned playing the part of the secretary and humble miller’s son, and Turner acting as the earl. During that fortnight, “Turner” fell in love with the governess, and “Ashby” fell for Leticia, Countess Churzy, an attractive widow.
Even though John and Leticia’s relationship developed mostly ‘off-screen’ in the previous book, it was made clear that while the countess was certainly attracted to Turner, she also had an eye to securing her future. At the end of The Game and the Governess the wager was revealed and Letty, although by now in love with John, ran off, leaving him devastated.
Some months later, Leticia is in Paris and has accepted a proposal of marriage from Sir Bartholemew (Barty) Babcock, a kindly older gentleman who wants only to protect and look after her. Following the deception practiced by Turner and Ashby, she found it impossible to hold her head up in society and has fled from town to town across England, able to settle for only a week or two before the gossip caught up with her. She sold practically everything of value she owned in order to finance a trip to Paris, as much in the hopes of meeting a suitable husband as to escape the scandal.
The daughter of a middle-class family, Leticia entered good society when her sister made a brilliant match. Her elevation brought her to the notice of the handsome, charming Count Churzy, who, she later discovered, married her in order to conceal his true sexual preferences. Left with very little at his death, Leticia has since determined to seek comfort and security, and believed she had found it with the “earl”. But with those hopes dashed, she has to find another way to eat and keep a roof over her head, and accepts Sir Barty, determined to be a good wife to him and a good mother to his young daughter, Margaret.
Arrived back in England, Leticia is in for a number of surprises, not least of which is that Margaret is not the little girl she had imagined, but a young woman of nineteen who has been left to her own devices for most of her life and who is not well disposed towards the prospect of a new stepmother. But even worse, when Margaret shows signs of being in love, Leticia discovers that the object of her affection is the owner of the recently refurbished local mill and former business associate of her father’s – Mr John Turner.
Needless to say both she and John are horrified to find themselves in the same small town and are immediately suspicious of each other’s motives. On the one hand, Leticia’s presence would seem to offer John a chance to rekindle their romance, something he wants very much indeed; but on the other, she could pose a threat to his livelihood, given that Sir Barty’s estate is the region’s largest producer of grain and John needs to secure his business for the mill. And Leticia fears that one wrong word from John will ruin her plans and her life – again.
I said at the beginning of this review that perhaps certain aspects of it wouldn’t work for everyone, one of which is the fact that the romance is a very slow-starter. In fact, there is little interaction between John and Leticia for the first section of the book, given that they have few opportunities to meet or speak privately. But this is quite realistic; for them to have been able to spend time alone together would have aroused suspicion and would not have been at all the done thing. But the slow start also allows the author time to develop the secondary characters – Margaret is not the curl-tossing, stepmother-hating teenager she could have been in the hands of a lesser author, and Sir Barty is fleshed out into more than an old lecher wanting a pretty young wife. Leticia comes across as unsympathetic to start with, given her focus on ensuring her own comfort and security – but through her, Ms Noble makes a very valid observation. After all, what other course of action would have been open to her, an impoverished lady with very few resources or options? What were well-bred women brought up to do other than get married and have children? She’s doing the only thing she knows how to do – and to be fair to her, intends do the best she can for her future husband and family as recompense for his marrying her in the first place. We may find her to be mercenary, but her behaviour makes sense in context of the time frame and her situation.
John Turner doesn’t immediately show to advantage, either, but he possesses a number of redeeming features which meant I was able to forgive him for his lack of apology or grovelling. For one thing, he sees Leticia for who she is and ‘gets’ her in a way nobody else does or ever did. And for another, he’s remarkably clear sighted about who and what HE is, a middle-class businessman who knows what he wants and where he belongs, and is determined to be the best at what he does.
Ms Noble captures both the generosity and the pettiness of small-town life very well and I particularly enjoyed the part of the story which sees Leticia winning over the ladies of the town and then bringing them all on a tour of Turner’s mill. The secondary characters – Sir Barty, Margaret, John’s endearing but somewhat meddlesome mother and his friend Dr Rhys Gray – are all very well drawn and fleshed out, and I ended up liking them just as much as the central couple. And I did like John and Leticia, regardless of their imperfections. They’re clearly shown to have an affinity so strong that they’re perfect for each other, irrespective of their shaky start.
The Lie and the Lady is one of those books that pays dividends if you enjoy stories that take their time to unfold and which, in doing so, reveal a depth and richness that isn’t commonly found in the genre. I enjoyed it very much and am looking forward to whatever Ms Noble comes up with next.
Read
January 5, 2016well, I liked it, but I might be biased.
hr-purgatory
January 10, 2016Welcome to my
HR Purgatory shelf
!
In Roman Catholicism, the purgatory is where the souls of the dead wander in an indefinite state. They stay in such a state unless they "become fit for heaven" at some point. Similarly, this shelf is where books that I am warned about stay—untouched and unread—unless a very compelling reason forces me to read them.
***
Reason(s) for putting The Lie and the Lady in this shelf:
Gold-digger heroine with a conscience of a brick. Period.
***
Thank you, Emma and sraxe, for your reviews!
Emma's Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
sraxe's Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
In Roman Catholicism, the purgatory is where the souls of the dead wander in an indefinite state. They stay in such a state unless they "become fit for heaven" at some point. Similarly, this shelf is where books that I am warned about stay—untouched and unread—unless a very compelling reason forces me to read them.
***
Reason(s) for putting The Lie and the Lady in this shelf:
Gold-digger heroine with a conscience of a brick. Period.
***
Thank you, Emma and sraxe, for your reviews!
Emma's Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
sraxe's Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
January 11, 2016
I'm not sure how I feel about this book because I went into it not really liking either character, so I didn't have any grand expectations or anything that were shattered. However, I can't really dislike it, either, because the author gave the readers a hero and heroine who aren't generic HR tropes.
I really didn't like Letty in the last book because of how awful she was. She used other women to prop herself up, and I can't really get behind that. And while I didn't like either Turner or Letty in the last book, I came to understand her a little better in this one. I viewed her as a gold-digger or a title-hunter in the first, but after reading this? I can't say I blame her when really thinking about it.
Letty is cunning, and there's really no other way to describe her. She's a female fortune/title hunter, and while I'm generally not too fond of those, I don't mind the female variety. I don't see that as a double standard because women, unlike men, had so few options and avenues available to them as it was, that you can't really blame a woman for finding security however she can. Letty owns up to this, saying she will "make no apologies for trying to secure [her] future." And you know? More power to her. You can't really fault a girl her hustle in a time when women were little more than property.
Leticia could be considered mercenary for how she goes from one place to the next, trying to secure a future husband. She said she went to many different places, but The Lie followed her wherever she went, until she just had to pack up and go to France. There, she tried even harder to find a husband. Some might think she's moving too fast, but I saw her reasoning behind that too.
She states at one point that "to reflect on the past wondering what could have been was an utter waste of time--and women in general did not have as much time as men to begin with." And those words are so true! Even today, men can get married well into middle age and past, but women? Well, they can get married...but do we ever present women past a certain age as being desirable? Even in films they pair 50+ year old actors with actresses in their 20s as their leads (and supposedly playing older women??). So what about two hundred years ago? I can't say I blame her for rushing from one place to another, trying to secure herself a future.
The other thing I loved that the author did was give the readers the exact opposite of a typical HR heroine. Letty isn't a virgin, she isn't super young, and she is definitely not all things innocent. Letty has been married and widowed, and she isn't one of those surprise!virgin widows, and, as I've mentioned, she's cunning. And one thing that caught me off guard? She's older than the hero.
Bravo, author, for doing something different.
The other thing I liked about Leticia was how she was with her late husband. She said Konrad married her but wasn't interested in her (). What I liked about this was that she remained loyal to him. Even years after his death, Leticia isn't disgusted by him, which is what I've seen in some books with characters . If that character is long dead, then their memory is treated terribly. I didn't feel that the author did this here, and I was glad for it.
Now, Turner...I don't know what to say about him. I started off disliking him, but I don't really feel anything towards him now. If he were switched out and someone else put in his place, I wouldn't be sad about it tbh. The thing I'm grateful for here is that the author recounted none of Turner's sexual history. There's no mention of any lovers or experience when it comes to him. At one point, it even mentions that he keeps an eye out on the mill, day or night, because "it's not like he had anything else to do at night."
Anyway, after he kissed Leticia publically in the last book, he spends half a year chasing after her from one place to another. When Turner finally catches her, she rejects him. I didn't blame her for doing so because he lied to her through their entire acquaintance. How can she trust him now? He says he can't trust her either, and I can understand that, too.
However, what I wasn't behind was Turner being angry and accusatory six months after that (so this book picks up a year after the last one). If Turner had just been honest about his origins before the PDA, then I could understand his anger towards Leticia. Right now, though, he's just an idiot. Instead of being contrite for his deception and behaviour, he's angry. It's only when she calls him out on this that he realizes he's being kind of stupid. It made no sense to me that he wouldn't realize this on his own and had to have Leticia point his idiocy out to him.
And then, even though he's the one in the wrong, he still tries to turn it on her. He says that, had she known he wasn't an earl, she wouldn't have chosen him. But the thing is, that's up to her now, isn't it? If she doesn't want to marry the son of mill owner, she doesn't have to. It's up to her to decide that, not him. Turner and Letty both have their moments of unlikeability, but Turner was the worse of the two, imo.
Turner and Leticia had a lot more chemistry than Phoebe and Edward did, but I didn't like it so much because Leticia spends of the novel engaged to another man. (Which, tbh, lasted far long than it should've. It felt unnecessarily dragged out with her still engaged to the OM until ) And while I wanted something to happen between the two MCs, I also didn't at the same time because she's engaged to another man. I don't care that the other man is not a protagonist/love interest, cheating is still cheating. There are two times in the book that Letty and Turner kiss while she's still engaged to Sir Barty. The only thing I'm happy about here is that they didn't actually do anything past that. So while it's still cheating, I'm glad they didn't go all the way.
Oh, and for those wondering about Sir Barty and Letty: nothing happens between them. He kisses her on the cheek once, that's it.
And I'm not sure how it works, but is it really normal for Leticia to be living in Sir Barty's house for the month while the banns are being read? Sure she's a widow, but I just found it a little odd that she's living with him and it's all perfectly fine. She seems to be all for propriety, especially with how she kept trying to mold Margaret, so I found it rather odd that The Lie was such a BFD but it's fine for her to be living at Sir Barty's alone.
There were also parts of this novel that reminded me of the first. Like the first, the character introductions don't happen until later. Leticia's meeting with and engagement to Sir Barty takes place in the beginning, with Turner not even making an appearance until the fifth chapter of the novel. And also like the first, the conflict came to a head too late and then things were resolved too quickly. This book also laid the groundwork for what I think may be the romance for the next novel, which is what happened in the first with Letty and Turner.
I really didn't like Letty in the last book because of how awful she was. She used other women to prop herself up, and I can't really get behind that. And while I didn't like either Turner or Letty in the last book, I came to understand her a little better in this one. I viewed her as a gold-digger or a title-hunter in the first, but after reading this? I can't say I blame her when really thinking about it.
Letty is cunning, and there's really no other way to describe her. She's a female fortune/title hunter, and while I'm generally not too fond of those, I don't mind the female variety. I don't see that as a double standard because women, unlike men, had so few options and avenues available to them as it was, that you can't really blame a woman for finding security however she can. Letty owns up to this, saying she will "make no apologies for trying to secure [her] future." And you know? More power to her. You can't really fault a girl her hustle in a time when women were little more than property.
Leticia could be considered mercenary for how she goes from one place to the next, trying to secure a future husband. She said she went to many different places, but The Lie followed her wherever she went, until she just had to pack up and go to France. There, she tried even harder to find a husband. Some might think she's moving too fast, but I saw her reasoning behind that too.
She states at one point that "to reflect on the past wondering what could have been was an utter waste of time--and women in general did not have as much time as men to begin with." And those words are so true! Even today, men can get married well into middle age and past, but women? Well, they can get married...but do we ever present women past a certain age as being desirable? Even in films they pair 50+ year old actors with actresses in their 20s as their leads (and supposedly playing older women??). So what about two hundred years ago? I can't say I blame her for rushing from one place to another, trying to secure herself a future.
The other thing I loved that the author did was give the readers the exact opposite of a typical HR heroine. Letty isn't a virgin, she isn't super young, and she is definitely not all things innocent. Letty has been married and widowed, and she isn't one of those surprise!virgin widows, and, as I've mentioned, she's cunning. And one thing that caught me off guard? She's older than the hero.
“As you might know, my father, the late Lewis Turner, built this mill almost twenty years ago. I was a lad of nine when it opened—”
Leticia’s eyebrow perked up. Considering her own passage into her thirties a few years ago, the math would indicate that she was older than Turner.
Bravo, author, for doing something different.
The other thing I liked about Leticia was how she was with her late husband. She said Konrad married her but wasn't interested in her (). What I liked about this was that she remained loyal to him. Even years after his death, Leticia isn't disgusted by him, which is what I've seen in some books with characters . If that character is long dead, then their memory is treated terribly. I didn't feel that the author did this here, and I was glad for it.
Now, Turner...I don't know what to say about him. I started off disliking him, but I don't really feel anything towards him now. If he were switched out and someone else put in his place, I wouldn't be sad about it tbh. The thing I'm grateful for here is that the author recounted none of Turner's sexual history. There's no mention of any lovers or experience when it comes to him. At one point, it even mentions that he keeps an eye out on the mill, day or night, because "it's not like he had anything else to do at night."
Anyway, after he kissed Leticia publically in the last book, he spends half a year chasing after her from one place to another. When Turner finally catches her, she rejects him. I didn't blame her for doing so because he lied to her through their entire acquaintance. How can she trust him now? He says he can't trust her either, and I can understand that, too.
However, what I wasn't behind was Turner being angry and accusatory six months after that (so this book picks up a year after the last one). If Turner had just been honest about his origins before the PDA, then I could understand his anger towards Leticia. Right now, though, he's just an idiot. Instead of being contrite for his deception and behaviour, he's angry. It's only when she calls him out on this that he realizes he's being kind of stupid. It made no sense to me that he wouldn't realize this on his own and had to have Leticia point his idiocy out to him.
And then, even though he's the one in the wrong, he still tries to turn it on her. He says that, had she known he wasn't an earl, she wouldn't have chosen him. But the thing is, that's up to her now, isn't it? If she doesn't want to marry the son of mill owner, she doesn't have to. It's up to her to decide that, not him. Turner and Letty both have their moments of unlikeability, but Turner was the worse of the two, imo.
Turner and Leticia had a lot more chemistry than Phoebe and Edward did, but I didn't like it so much because Leticia spends of the novel engaged to another man. (Which, tbh, lasted far long than it should've. It felt unnecessarily dragged out with her still engaged to the OM until ) And while I wanted something to happen between the two MCs, I also didn't at the same time because she's engaged to another man. I don't care that the other man is not a protagonist/love interest, cheating is still cheating. There are two times in the book that Letty and Turner kiss while she's still engaged to Sir Barty. The only thing I'm happy about here is that they didn't actually do anything past that. So while it's still cheating, I'm glad they didn't go all the way.
Oh, and for those wondering about Sir Barty and Letty: nothing happens between them. He kisses her on the cheek once, that's it.
And I'm not sure how it works, but is it really normal for Leticia to be living in Sir Barty's house for the month while the banns are being read? Sure she's a widow, but I just found it a little odd that she's living with him and it's all perfectly fine. She seems to be all for propriety, especially with how she kept trying to mold Margaret, so I found it rather odd that The Lie was such a BFD but it's fine for her to be living at Sir Barty's alone.
There were also parts of this novel that reminded me of the first. Like the first, the character introductions don't happen until later. Leticia's meeting with and engagement to Sir Barty takes place in the beginning, with Turner not even making an appearance until the fifth chapter of the novel. And also like the first, the conflict came to a head too late and then things were resolved too quickly. This book also laid the groundwork for what I think may be the romance for the next novel, which is what happened in the first with Letty and Turner.
December 22, 2015
When I was re-reading my review of The Game and The Governess, the author's prior work to familiarize myself with it before reading this sequel, I was taken by the fact that I commented about how many characters there was to keep up with. I was so hoping that was not the case in this new book. I loved the story the author crafted, but trying to follow a lot of characters was difficult.
Thankfully, this book was a lot more manageable and had me following along at a brisk pace throughout. I really enjoyed the character development in this story. The main leads were likable and a bit of mystery in the plot added a lot to the story as a whole. Some twists and turns to keep the reader engaged and hopping was a great addition. Not to mention secret feelings and love that cannot be discussed or addressed in public....
What was also interesting is that you learn much about the class and nobility ranking in this book. Letty is going to be soon without funds and marrying into the right class seems to be her only option. Men and women didn't really marry for love back then, did they? As long as they kinda liked each other, it would be okay. Right? Changing perception, learning acceptance, and perhaps getting something you desire along the way is a lesson to be learned in this story.
The author has created a strong Regency story that offers insight into the history of the time along with good character development, some passion with plenty of innuendo, and an all together enjoyable read. I think I even have a clue about the next installment which will be a great match up!
This was a delightful read and one to grab for a taste of the Regency life.
Thankfully, this book was a lot more manageable and had me following along at a brisk pace throughout. I really enjoyed the character development in this story. The main leads were likable and a bit of mystery in the plot added a lot to the story as a whole. Some twists and turns to keep the reader engaged and hopping was a great addition. Not to mention secret feelings and love that cannot be discussed or addressed in public....
What was also interesting is that you learn much about the class and nobility ranking in this book. Letty is going to be soon without funds and marrying into the right class seems to be her only option. Men and women didn't really marry for love back then, did they? As long as they kinda liked each other, it would be okay. Right? Changing perception, learning acceptance, and perhaps getting something you desire along the way is a lesson to be learned in this story.
The author has created a strong Regency story that offers insight into the history of the time along with good character development, some passion with plenty of innuendo, and an all together enjoyable read. I think I even have a clue about the next installment which will be a great match up!
This was a delightful read and one to grab for a taste of the Regency life.
June 8, 2016
Review posted on Got Fiction?
This book has what I thought would be a fantastic premise. Letty needs to marry. Her late husband left her impoverished and when she meets the Earl of Ashby, it's love at first sight. But he's not really the earl. He's traded places with his buddy for a bet and has to pretend to be the earl. But when he and Letty fall in love, he realizes he has to tell her, even if it means losing the bet. The book opens with him telling her. She thinks he's proposing, and he's telling her he's a secretary, not an earl.
Betrayal plots are my catnip. I love them so much! But this is not a story about that first paragraph. We literally only see the part where she's expecting marriage, and he tells her he's not who he says he is. I thought this would be a book about their meeting, their falling for each other, his telling her he's lying. She'd be mad, he'd go after her, they'd live happily ever after. But...that's not what this is.
Letty can no longer show her face amongst civilized company, because they all have given her the cut direct for being taken in by a mere secretary. The countess who was tricked and left hanging. Her own sister won't allow her back in until it all blows over.
She's in Paris as a last ditch effort to secure a husband to allow her to go back to being respectable. And she meets an older gentleman who she likes. More importantly he likes her. He proposes. She accepts. She goes to his estate to meet everyone, and he surprises her with a nineteen year old daughter Margaret, who is still mourning her mother. And who happens to have a crush on the local owner of the grain factory...
John Turner never thought Letty would leave him. He thought she'd understand that he had to fool her for the bet's sake. But when she actually left, his heart broke. And to have her show up at church in his town, why he thought she'd come back to him! Until he heard the banns read.
Meanwhile, Letty realizes that Margaret is in love with John. How on earth can she deal with the fact that her step-daughter-to-be is crushing on her ex-lover?
This is where I stopped. about page 100, and I just don't want this. I didn't get to see John and Letty fall in love, so I don't care about them. I find Letty to be obnoxious. I don't mind that she's only marrying Sir Barty to secure her life, I get that, he knew it wasn't a love match. I feel like she's not necessarily a gold-digger since she's not trying to fool Sir Barty, and she seems to genuinely want to make it work between them. Plus, she's a countess, so it's what she's raised to do.
But I just didn't like the plot, not once I realized how different it was. I didn't like how the author skipped around quite a bit. It was hard to follow sometimes, and awkward. For example, We're told dinner doesn't go well. But the next sentence goes backwards and picks up before dinner. Then back to dinner, then back to earlier. It was unnecessary. It wasn't flashbacks. Although I'd love some flashbacks to where she and John were falling in love.
By 100 pages in we don't know John well enough to care about his side of the story, and I definitely didn't like Letty at all. By this point, I actually wanted her to end up with Sir Barty, win over the village, win over Margaret, and see Margaret get a debut in London.
Looking at the description of The Game and the Governess, book 1 in this series, it looks like the bet begins there. I really hate to think I need to read a different hero and heroine's book in order to see this hero and heroine fall in love.
So, with confusing writing, unlikeable characters, and a tangled plot, I think I'm done at page 100.
Sorry about the DNF, guys, but I just don't want to read it anymore.
***ARC courtesy of Pocket Star
This book has what I thought would be a fantastic premise. Letty needs to marry. Her late husband left her impoverished and when she meets the Earl of Ashby, it's love at first sight. But he's not really the earl. He's traded places with his buddy for a bet and has to pretend to be the earl. But when he and Letty fall in love, he realizes he has to tell her, even if it means losing the bet. The book opens with him telling her. She thinks he's proposing, and he's telling her he's a secretary, not an earl.
Betrayal plots are my catnip. I love them so much! But this is not a story about that first paragraph. We literally only see the part where she's expecting marriage, and he tells her he's not who he says he is. I thought this would be a book about their meeting, their falling for each other, his telling her he's lying. She'd be mad, he'd go after her, they'd live happily ever after. But...that's not what this is.
Letty can no longer show her face amongst civilized company, because they all have given her the cut direct for being taken in by a mere secretary. The countess who was tricked and left hanging. Her own sister won't allow her back in until it all blows over.
She's in Paris as a last ditch effort to secure a husband to allow her to go back to being respectable. And she meets an older gentleman who she likes. More importantly he likes her. He proposes. She accepts. She goes to his estate to meet everyone, and he surprises her with a nineteen year old daughter Margaret, who is still mourning her mother. And who happens to have a crush on the local owner of the grain factory...
John Turner never thought Letty would leave him. He thought she'd understand that he had to fool her for the bet's sake. But when she actually left, his heart broke. And to have her show up at church in his town, why he thought she'd come back to him! Until he heard the banns read.
Meanwhile, Letty realizes that Margaret is in love with John. How on earth can she deal with the fact that her step-daughter-to-be is crushing on her ex-lover?
This is where I stopped. about page 100, and I just don't want this. I didn't get to see John and Letty fall in love, so I don't care about them. I find Letty to be obnoxious. I don't mind that she's only marrying Sir Barty to secure her life, I get that, he knew it wasn't a love match. I feel like she's not necessarily a gold-digger since she's not trying to fool Sir Barty, and she seems to genuinely want to make it work between them. Plus, she's a countess, so it's what she's raised to do.
But I just didn't like the plot, not once I realized how different it was. I didn't like how the author skipped around quite a bit. It was hard to follow sometimes, and awkward. For example, We're told dinner doesn't go well. But the next sentence goes backwards and picks up before dinner. Then back to dinner, then back to earlier. It was unnecessary. It wasn't flashbacks. Although I'd love some flashbacks to where she and John were falling in love.
By 100 pages in we don't know John well enough to care about his side of the story, and I definitely didn't like Letty at all. By this point, I actually wanted her to end up with Sir Barty, win over the village, win over Margaret, and see Margaret get a debut in London.
Looking at the description of The Game and the Governess, book 1 in this series, it looks like the bet begins there. I really hate to think I need to read a different hero and heroine's book in order to see this hero and heroine fall in love.
So, with confusing writing, unlikeable characters, and a tangled plot, I think I'm done at page 100.
Sorry about the DNF, guys, but I just don't want to read it anymore.
***ARC courtesy of Pocket Star
April 3, 2016
I am sorry I never warmed up to Letty and couldn't understand why John loved her. Letty was insistent that she was going to marry Sir Barty up until the last 15 pages of the book. What??? Also Letty's sister, really??? You push your sister off because of rumors and something that wasn't even Letty's fault? I did feel for her, but I just couldn't like her.
February 6, 2024
I love fortune hunting heroines, it’s the best way for a woman to get settled back then, they just make sense to me. Letty is calculating but uses that to benefit everyone she cares about, not just herself.
I was surprised by how good this was because I never see this author mentioned, I liked the conflict and I was into the town intrigue.
I was surprised by how good this was because I never see this author mentioned, I liked the conflict and I was into the town intrigue.
February 23, 2020
Better than book one
This was better than The Game and the Governess, mostly because John is vastly more sympathetic than Ned. Even when I wanted to shake him because he was being an ass. I loved Leticia, and I wouldn't call her a gold-digger at all.
This was better than The Game and the Governess, mostly because John is vastly more sympathetic than Ned. Even when I wanted to shake him because he was being an ass. I loved Leticia, and I wouldn't call her a gold-digger at all.
December 28, 2015
5 Stars | Some Hot Steam
THE GAME AND THE GOVERNESS fans rejoice! The second installment of Kate Noble’s superb Winner Takes All series, THE LIE AND THE LADY, has arrived, and it is glorious! Our collective longing, high anticipation and excitement for Letitia and John’s momentous HEA has been heartily rewarded with an extraordinary romance so original, ingenious, enchanting, beautiful, spectacularly thrilling and utterly unforgettable that you’ll be shouting its praise from every rooftop and street corner! Truly, Letitia and John’s incomparable journey is absolute perfection. Surprising, stirring and spellbinding perfection. The singular kind of perfection that has you bargaining with higher spirits to never let it end. And, when it does, you find yourself clutching the epic wonder tightly to your chest as happy/sad tears run down your broadly smiling cheeks.
I began THE LIE AND THE LADY with weighing uncertainty. How was Kate Noble going to successfully transform flagrantly wealth-and-title-chasing Lady Letitia from THE GAME AND THE GOVERNESS into an admirable, sympathetic and redeeming heroine? Furthermore, I questioned sensible John Turner’s swift and blinding love for a woman so seemingly superficial, scheming and inscrutable as Letitia. However, by the end of chapter one of TL&TL, any lingering doubts with her character were speedily replaced with understanding, appreciation, affection, sympathy, trust and an infallible faith that Letty was indeed worthy, deserving and in dire need of her own overdue happiness—and I simply couldn’t wait for her to have it! Letty is a heroine for the ages—regal, seasoned, smart, strong, pragmatic, industrious, kind and positively resplendent! By the end of the novel, like John, she became my Letty too. I just adored her and sincerely missed her when I had to say goodbye.
John Turner. Leave it to Kate Noble to write a stellar hero so ideal, layered, hardworking, uncompromising, sensitive, sexy, loyal and infinitely lovable that he ruins you for all other men. (Ashby who?) Her fabulous heroes have always left a heated imprint in my naughtiest fantasies but, oh my goodness, John Turner is one of her very best! Sigh… That man is so very delectable!
Not only was I completely captivated by Letty and John’s rocky path to forever, I was equally taken by the amusing town full of remarkable secondary characters whose own motivations—some good, others nefarious—prod and pull the story in unexpected, delightful and endlessly entertaining directions. I especially savored Rhys's bookish and hilariously bumbling presence. His endearingly awkward and sweetly kindred friendship with young Margaret simply melted my heart.
With the release of THE LIE AND THE LADY, Kate Noble has delivered a crowning achievement in romance as well as a career-defining novel, propelling her Winner Takes All series from great to legendary and solidifying her name on countless new readers’ shortlists of auto-buy authors.
Bottom line: Letty and John’s story is a must-read gem that will take center stage on your prized keeper shelf—just as soon as you can bear to part from it. :)
Complimentary copy provided in exchange for an honest review.
THE GAME AND THE GOVERNESS fans rejoice! The second installment of Kate Noble’s superb Winner Takes All series, THE LIE AND THE LADY, has arrived, and it is glorious! Our collective longing, high anticipation and excitement for Letitia and John’s momentous HEA has been heartily rewarded with an extraordinary romance so original, ingenious, enchanting, beautiful, spectacularly thrilling and utterly unforgettable that you’ll be shouting its praise from every rooftop and street corner! Truly, Letitia and John’s incomparable journey is absolute perfection. Surprising, stirring and spellbinding perfection. The singular kind of perfection that has you bargaining with higher spirits to never let it end. And, when it does, you find yourself clutching the epic wonder tightly to your chest as happy/sad tears run down your broadly smiling cheeks.
I began THE LIE AND THE LADY with weighing uncertainty. How was Kate Noble going to successfully transform flagrantly wealth-and-title-chasing Lady Letitia from THE GAME AND THE GOVERNESS into an admirable, sympathetic and redeeming heroine? Furthermore, I questioned sensible John Turner’s swift and blinding love for a woman so seemingly superficial, scheming and inscrutable as Letitia. However, by the end of chapter one of TL&TL, any lingering doubts with her character were speedily replaced with understanding, appreciation, affection, sympathy, trust and an infallible faith that Letty was indeed worthy, deserving and in dire need of her own overdue happiness—and I simply couldn’t wait for her to have it! Letty is a heroine for the ages—regal, seasoned, smart, strong, pragmatic, industrious, kind and positively resplendent! By the end of the novel, like John, she became my Letty too. I just adored her and sincerely missed her when I had to say goodbye.
John Turner. Leave it to Kate Noble to write a stellar hero so ideal, layered, hardworking, uncompromising, sensitive, sexy, loyal and infinitely lovable that he ruins you for all other men. (Ashby who?) Her fabulous heroes have always left a heated imprint in my naughtiest fantasies but, oh my goodness, John Turner is one of her very best! Sigh… That man is so very delectable!
Not only was I completely captivated by Letty and John’s rocky path to forever, I was equally taken by the amusing town full of remarkable secondary characters whose own motivations—some good, others nefarious—prod and pull the story in unexpected, delightful and endlessly entertaining directions. I especially savored Rhys's bookish and hilariously bumbling presence. His endearingly awkward and sweetly kindred friendship with young Margaret simply melted my heart.
With the release of THE LIE AND THE LADY, Kate Noble has delivered a crowning achievement in romance as well as a career-defining novel, propelling her Winner Takes All series from great to legendary and solidifying her name on countless new readers’ shortlists of auto-buy authors.
Bottom line: Letty and John’s story is a must-read gem that will take center stage on your prized keeper shelf—just as soon as you can bear to part from it. :)
Complimentary copy provided in exchange for an honest review.
August 20, 2016
First up I didn't like Leticia, the widowed Countess of Churzy. She is after security and safety.
Why should I object to this? Puzzling!
After all she's a woman of her time, cast upon the good wishes of others due to her lack of funds and husbands. And you know for someone of this era, where there are no social securities or safety nets, she is going about the business of making that secure place for herself. So, Well Done, I decided!
And John Turner, whilst he may have fallen for Letty when masquerading as the Earl of Ashby, actually played her falsely and raised Letty's expectations. Just not cricket, John.
So Letticia is thrown once more upon her own resources.
I ended the story thinking she was coming out the stronger and more clear headed person.
So, bravo Letty!
Why should I object to this? Puzzling!
After all she's a woman of her time, cast upon the good wishes of others due to her lack of funds and husbands. And you know for someone of this era, where there are no social securities or safety nets, she is going about the business of making that secure place for herself. So, Well Done, I decided!
And John Turner, whilst he may have fallen for Letty when masquerading as the Earl of Ashby, actually played her falsely and raised Letty's expectations. Just not cricket, John.
So Letticia is thrown once more upon her own resources.
I ended the story thinking she was coming out the stronger and more clear headed person.
So, bravo Letty!
January 2, 2016
First, highly recommend reading the first book in the series, otherwise you will not fully understand just how mad Letitia is at John for The Lie.
Second,a delightful continuation of the story, seeing just how big the Fallout from the Lie is, sucking in an entire town of characters, all of them as wonderful to read as only overly dramatic small town characters can be. When you shrink the world - ever little thing becomes quite big, from wedding dresses to flour mills.
Great mix of humor, romance and tension, Nobel's second in this series is as good as the first, and leaves a great set up for the next book.
January 23, 2016
I loved John and his mother, Helen. I loved Sir Barty and his daughter Margaret. I loved Dr. Rhys Grey. Unfortunately, I didn't much like Leticia. She wasn't awful, she was just kind of vain and entitled and, at the same time, boring. I mean, I understood why she was these things, but that didn't make me like her.
And, please, Ms. Noble, let the next book be about Margaret and Rhys because I adore them. Two smart, socially-awkward, science-minded people finding each other by sheer chance? Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! Nowpleasethankyou.
And, please, Ms. Noble, let the next book be about Margaret and Rhys because I adore them. Two smart, socially-awkward, science-minded people finding each other by sheer chance? Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! Nowpleasethankyou.
December 30, 2015
ARC REVIEW TO COME
February 18, 2021
This was a fun and relaxing read. It follows after a couple that we met in the first book in the series, The Game and the Governess. Because of that, we missed the start of them falling in love and had almost no first hand indications of what happened during that time period so I thought that was a bit odd. Still, I liked the characters and their situations and it was a better read than the first.
January 19, 2016
**Originally posted on Undeniably Book Nerdy**
Initial Reaction
Kate Noble has been on my list of to-read authors. I love the cover of The Lie and the Lady! Also, a second chance love story? I'm sold!
Plot
I picked The Lie and the Lady up knowing it's the second book in the Winner Takes All series that started with The Game and the Governess, which I did not read. I don't think it's a requirement to read the first book because I was still able to enjoy Turner and Leticia's story but I feel I did lose a bit of the progression of their relationship and the full impact on why Leticia was so angry at Turner.
Okay, so the back story was that John Turner was Ned, the Earl of Ashby's secretary and friend. They had a wager and they switched places for two weeks while attending a house party. Turner played the earl and Ned the secretary. While in their roles, Ned ended up falling for a governess (The Game and the Governess) while Turner fell for Leticia, the beautiful widowed Countess of Churzy. When the wager was revealed, Leticia was humiliated and left Turner. Turner went after her and eventually caught up to her, but she's still very angry with him and rejected him. She eventually ended up in Paris and became engaged to Sir Barty, a rich older gentleman with a 19-year-old daughter. But when Sir Barty took her back to Lincolnshire Letty found herself face to face with Turner because it turned out his family owns the town's grain mill.
Main Characters
Neither Turner or Leticia were particularly likable, which was fine with me. I don't have to love the main characters to enjoy reading their story. I just have to understand their motivations behind their actions, which I did.
Letty made a bigger impression on me than Turner. I really enjoyed her character--she's different from other historical romance heroine in that she's very flawed, older than Turner, a widow, not a virgin, and she's unapologetically a fortune hunter. She wanted to find a rich husband to take care of her but after the humiliation with Turner, she had a hard time. She had to move from place to place all over England with not much success because the gossip always followed her until finally ended up in Paris where she redoubled her efforts in pursuing a husband. She eventually found her rich husband in Sir Barty and accepted his proposal.
Letty was basically a gold-digger and her personality will not endear her to some readers. But she really wasn't a bad person. She did mean well and cared for Sir Barty and his daughter Margaret--she wasn't planning to marry him and then turn around and spend all of his money and have affairs. She wanted to be a good, faithful wife to Barty. If it wasn't for Turner, I think she would've have and been content. I didn't even mind her mercenariness. In a way I kind of admired her, especially considering her history and thinking about women's position in society in those days.
As for Turner, I also enjoyed his character, but like I said, Letty made a bigger impression on me. He's a good guy--hardworking, smart, not a manwhore--but also had he was also flawed. He and Letty did have great chemistry, but don't expect much sexy times in this book--they had only one and it on the third to the last chapter. But like in Pride and Prejudice, the build up to that scene made it all the more special. I typically like my romance novels with a lot of steam, but I didn't mind the lack of smexy times in The Lie and the Lady because I was too busy enjoying everything else and the story simply didn't need the distraction of sex.
Okay, I do have to address the whole cheating thing. Letty was engaged to Sir Barty for almost the whole novel--The Lie and the Lady had 24 chapters and Letty and Sir Barty were engaged until the end of Chapter 21. Turner and Letty shared two passionate kisses while Letty was still engaged. I knew Letty and Turner were end game (obviously!) and there wasn't any strong feelings of love or anything sexual between Letty and Sir Barty, but it's still cheating. I am glad they didn't take it further than kissing, but I kinda felt bad for Sir Barty because he was so taken with Letty.
Pacing/Writing Style
Ms. Noble's style kind of reminds me a bit of Jane Austen and a bit of Meredith Duran. She penned an atypical romance novel with uniquely flawed characters and an engaging plot that didn't need the distraction of sex. I found the writing clever, witty, smart and with great humor--there were times when I even laugh out loud which was unusual when I'm reading a historical romance. The pacing of the story was appropriate for Letty and Turner's situation.
Final Thoughts
The Lie and the Lady was a different kind of historical romance novel. We don't get the typical hero and heroine in Turner and Leticia and I really appreciated that. I also enjoyed Ms. Noble's writing style. The plot included some intriguing social situations (Letty vs. the town's queen bee--I loved how Letty stood up to her), some twists and turns in the secondary mystery plot to keep things interesting, unique characters and great chemistry between them, and wondeful humor. This was my first read by Ms. Noble, but it won't be my last.
Initial Reaction
Kate Noble has been on my list of to-read authors. I love the cover of The Lie and the Lady! Also, a second chance love story? I'm sold!
Plot
I picked The Lie and the Lady up knowing it's the second book in the Winner Takes All series that started with The Game and the Governess, which I did not read. I don't think it's a requirement to read the first book because I was still able to enjoy Turner and Leticia's story but I feel I did lose a bit of the progression of their relationship and the full impact on why Leticia was so angry at Turner.
Okay, so the back story was that John Turner was Ned, the Earl of Ashby's secretary and friend. They had a wager and they switched places for two weeks while attending a house party. Turner played the earl and Ned the secretary. While in their roles, Ned ended up falling for a governess (The Game and the Governess) while Turner fell for Leticia, the beautiful widowed Countess of Churzy. When the wager was revealed, Leticia was humiliated and left Turner. Turner went after her and eventually caught up to her, but she's still very angry with him and rejected him. She eventually ended up in Paris and became engaged to Sir Barty, a rich older gentleman with a 19-year-old daughter. But when Sir Barty took her back to Lincolnshire Letty found herself face to face with Turner because it turned out his family owns the town's grain mill.
Main Characters
Neither Turner or Leticia were particularly likable, which was fine with me. I don't have to love the main characters to enjoy reading their story. I just have to understand their motivations behind their actions, which I did.
Letty made a bigger impression on me than Turner. I really enjoyed her character--she's different from other historical romance heroine in that she's very flawed, older than Turner, a widow, not a virgin, and she's unapologetically a fortune hunter. She wanted to find a rich husband to take care of her but after the humiliation with Turner, she had a hard time. She had to move from place to place all over England with not much success because the gossip always followed her until finally ended up in Paris where she redoubled her efforts in pursuing a husband. She eventually found her rich husband in Sir Barty and accepted his proposal.
Letty was basically a gold-digger and her personality will not endear her to some readers. But she really wasn't a bad person. She did mean well and cared for Sir Barty and his daughter Margaret--she wasn't planning to marry him and then turn around and spend all of his money and have affairs. She wanted to be a good, faithful wife to Barty. If it wasn't for Turner, I think she would've have and been content. I didn't even mind her mercenariness. In a way I kind of admired her, especially considering her history and thinking about women's position in society in those days.
As for Turner, I also enjoyed his character, but like I said, Letty made a bigger impression on me. He's a good guy--hardworking, smart, not a manwhore--but also had he was also flawed. He and Letty did have great chemistry, but don't expect much sexy times in this book--they had only one and it on the third to the last chapter. But like in Pride and Prejudice, the build up to that scene made it all the more special. I typically like my romance novels with a lot of steam, but I didn't mind the lack of smexy times in The Lie and the Lady because I was too busy enjoying everything else and the story simply didn't need the distraction of sex.
Okay, I do have to address the whole cheating thing. Letty was engaged to Sir Barty for almost the whole novel--The Lie and the Lady had 24 chapters and Letty and Sir Barty were engaged until the end of Chapter 21. Turner and Letty shared two passionate kisses while Letty was still engaged. I knew Letty and Turner were end game (obviously!) and there wasn't any strong feelings of love or anything sexual between Letty and Sir Barty, but it's still cheating. I am glad they didn't take it further than kissing, but I kinda felt bad for Sir Barty because he was so taken with Letty.
Pacing/Writing Style
Ms. Noble's style kind of reminds me a bit of Jane Austen and a bit of Meredith Duran. She penned an atypical romance novel with uniquely flawed characters and an engaging plot that didn't need the distraction of sex. I found the writing clever, witty, smart and with great humor--there were times when I even laugh out loud which was unusual when I'm reading a historical romance. The pacing of the story was appropriate for Letty and Turner's situation.
Final Thoughts
The Lie and the Lady was a different kind of historical romance novel. We don't get the typical hero and heroine in Turner and Leticia and I really appreciated that. I also enjoyed Ms. Noble's writing style. The plot included some intriguing social situations (Letty vs. the town's queen bee--I loved how Letty stood up to her), some twists and turns in the secondary mystery plot to keep things interesting, unique characters and great chemistry between them, and wondeful humor. This was my first read by Ms. Noble, but it won't be my last.
October 4, 2017
This series seemed to be tied up in the drama of the situation more than the romance. It might make a good gateway series for someone wanting to get into romance—some good moments and some good kissing.
June 5, 2018
4.5 stars
Back in 2014, I read and reviewed the first book in Kate Noble's Winner Takes All series, The Game and the Governess. In that book, the hero and his secretary, a man whose family had once owned a flour mill, switched places for a wager.
When I heard that John Turner, the secretary, and Leticia Herzog, Countess Churzy, the woman who had sat her cap for him thinking that he was an earl, would be the central couple in this book, I was curious to see how their courtship could resume after John’s deception.
The answer is that it doesn’t resume, at least not right away. Instead, Leticia moves on. The novel begins with a prologue set during the summer when John, masquerading as the earl, fell for Leticia and she for him. In the prologue, John and Leticia almost make love, but his conscience raises its head and he stops because they go too far, without revealing what it is he hasn’t told her.
Then we flash forward a year. It’s the following summer, and Leticia accepts a proposal of marriage – from another man. Sir Bartholomew “Barty” Babcock is heavyset, far from intellectual, and has gout, but he also has a good heart.
Leticia met him after she sold all her jewels to finance a trip to Paris in a last bid to catch a husband from the upper classes. The daughter of a middle class family whose sister had made a brilliant marriage, Leticia would have remained a wallflower had not her late husband, an aristocrat from Austria, asked her to marry him for ulterior motives.
The marriage wasn’t all that Leticia could have dreamed of, and it made her crave greater security, something she thought she had attained when the “earl of Ashby” fell in love with her. But when John’s lie was revealed, Leticia became the butt of cruel jokes. Her trip to France was as much an escape as a gamble that she would meet an eligible bachelor on his grand tour.
Now Leticia, almost all out of funds, says yes to Sir Barty’s proposal. She is determined to be a good wife, and so as not to have the scandal with John ruin her relationship with Sir Barty, she tells him about how she had believed herself in love, only to learn that the man had misrepresented himself.
She does not, however, give him John’s name.
When the newly engaged couple arrives at Sir Barty’s estate at the village of Helmsley in Lincolnshire, Leticia is stunned to realize that Sir Barty’s daughter Margaret isn’t a small child as she supposed, but a grown young woman—one whom Leticia immediately antagonizes and has to make amends to.
But that’s not the worst of the shocks Leticia will confront in Helmsley, because when she realizes Margaret is in love, Leticia ferrets out that the object of Margaret’s affection is none other than the owner of Helmsley’s newly refurbished flour mill, John Turner.
Having tried and failed to win back Leticia after the debacle that was his summer in disguise, John isn’t sure how to feel about Leticia’s presence in Helmsley. On the one hand, it could bring about a second chance with her, which is what John wants more than anything. But on the other hand, it could also spell disaster for him and for his livelihood, since Sir Barty estate is the region’s largest producer of grain.
At the first opportunity to speak alone, Leticia and John agree not to reveal their prior connection, and to continue leading separate lives. But can they keep from revealing their feelings? And can they be sure no one in Helmsley knows that John is the man who impersonated the earl of Ashby the previous summer?
Complicating Leticia and John’s reunion even more are Margaret’s feelings for John, Sir Barty’s feelings for Leticia, the arrival of John’s friend Rhys in Sir Barty’s home, John’s mother’s meddling, and one Palmer Blackwell, a business rival of John’s, who turns up like a bad penny later in the novel.
Because of the way The Lie and the Lady is constructed around Leticia’s engagement to John, the romance between Leticia and John doesn’t take off immediately. Compared to a lot of today’s romances, this one hearkens back to some of the genre’s older classics in its willingness to take its time.
Then, too, John and Leticia aren’t immediately “sympathetic” in the sense that readers sometimes look for. John lied to Leticia and later compounded his mistake by refusing to apologize, telling her he couldn’t because he would not have met her if it weren’t for his deception. Leticia, for all that she means well and intends to make a good wife to Sir Barty, isn’t above some selfishness and has a calculating turn of mind.
This is a partial review. The complete review can be found at DA, here: http://dearauthor.com/book-reviews/ov...
Back in 2014, I read and reviewed the first book in Kate Noble's Winner Takes All series, The Game and the Governess. In that book, the hero and his secretary, a man whose family had once owned a flour mill, switched places for a wager.
When I heard that John Turner, the secretary, and Leticia Herzog, Countess Churzy, the woman who had sat her cap for him thinking that he was an earl, would be the central couple in this book, I was curious to see how their courtship could resume after John’s deception.
The answer is that it doesn’t resume, at least not right away. Instead, Leticia moves on. The novel begins with a prologue set during the summer when John, masquerading as the earl, fell for Leticia and she for him. In the prologue, John and Leticia almost make love, but his conscience raises its head and he stops because they go too far, without revealing what it is he hasn’t told her.
Then we flash forward a year. It’s the following summer, and Leticia accepts a proposal of marriage – from another man. Sir Bartholomew “Barty” Babcock is heavyset, far from intellectual, and has gout, but he also has a good heart.
Leticia met him after she sold all her jewels to finance a trip to Paris in a last bid to catch a husband from the upper classes. The daughter of a middle class family whose sister had made a brilliant marriage, Leticia would have remained a wallflower had not her late husband, an aristocrat from Austria, asked her to marry him for ulterior motives.
The marriage wasn’t all that Leticia could have dreamed of, and it made her crave greater security, something she thought she had attained when the “earl of Ashby” fell in love with her. But when John’s lie was revealed, Leticia became the butt of cruel jokes. Her trip to France was as much an escape as a gamble that she would meet an eligible bachelor on his grand tour.
Now Leticia, almost all out of funds, says yes to Sir Barty’s proposal. She is determined to be a good wife, and so as not to have the scandal with John ruin her relationship with Sir Barty, she tells him about how she had believed herself in love, only to learn that the man had misrepresented himself.
She does not, however, give him John’s name.
When the newly engaged couple arrives at Sir Barty’s estate at the village of Helmsley in Lincolnshire, Leticia is stunned to realize that Sir Barty’s daughter Margaret isn’t a small child as she supposed, but a grown young woman—one whom Leticia immediately antagonizes and has to make amends to.
But that’s not the worst of the shocks Leticia will confront in Helmsley, because when she realizes Margaret is in love, Leticia ferrets out that the object of Margaret’s affection is none other than the owner of Helmsley’s newly refurbished flour mill, John Turner.
Having tried and failed to win back Leticia after the debacle that was his summer in disguise, John isn’t sure how to feel about Leticia’s presence in Helmsley. On the one hand, it could bring about a second chance with her, which is what John wants more than anything. But on the other hand, it could also spell disaster for him and for his livelihood, since Sir Barty estate is the region’s largest producer of grain.
At the first opportunity to speak alone, Leticia and John agree not to reveal their prior connection, and to continue leading separate lives. But can they keep from revealing their feelings? And can they be sure no one in Helmsley knows that John is the man who impersonated the earl of Ashby the previous summer?
Complicating Leticia and John’s reunion even more are Margaret’s feelings for John, Sir Barty’s feelings for Leticia, the arrival of John’s friend Rhys in Sir Barty’s home, John’s mother’s meddling, and one Palmer Blackwell, a business rival of John’s, who turns up like a bad penny later in the novel.
Because of the way The Lie and the Lady is constructed around Leticia’s engagement to John, the romance between Leticia and John doesn’t take off immediately. Compared to a lot of today’s romances, this one hearkens back to some of the genre’s older classics in its willingness to take its time.
Then, too, John and Leticia aren’t immediately “sympathetic” in the sense that readers sometimes look for. John lied to Leticia and later compounded his mistake by refusing to apologize, telling her he couldn’t because he would not have met her if it weren’t for his deception. Leticia, for all that she means well and intends to make a good wife to Sir Barty, isn’t above some selfishness and has a calculating turn of mind.
This is a partial review. The complete review can be found at DA, here: http://dearauthor.com/book-reviews/ov...
September 22, 2017
3.5 stars
Once again, Kate Noble shows off her skills in plotting, writing, historical detail, and character development. And once again, I fail to ship it strongly, but I really enjoy the book anyway.
To be fair, The Lie and the Lady was not the sort of ship that typically sets my soul aflame anyway. We join up with Letty about a year after the events of The Game and the Governess as she finally succeeds in catching a wealthy husband who hasn’t heard about her scandals. She travels to Sir Barty’s home in Leicester and discovers to her distress that her step-daughter-to-be doesn’t like her and that John Turner’s mill is in the same town. Somehow, Leticia has to survive the six weeks until she and Sir Barty wed and she’s once again safe.
For all that I’m not a fan of this basic trope (where one of them is engaged to someone else), Noble does a really nice job with it. Sir Barty’s actually super sweet and lovable. I mean, a bit gross to think about being married to what with his gout and all, but he’s a genuinely good guy. Letty doesn’t love him, but she does like him. I also really like what a mess of attempted matchmaking this book is, as everyone tries to set Margaret up with someone and keep her from someone else. (Also, I’m super excited about Margaret and Rhys and their nerdiness.)
John and Leticia do end up a pretty good couple. They do seem to fit each other, as is shown in how they weather the events of the book together. I wasn’t sure about Letty as a miller’s wife tbh, but she’s got awesome ideas and I was totally convinced by the end that they’d be fine. It’s also pretty cool that Letty’s actually older than him. And how often does the heroine give up her title for love in historical romance? Basically never. As with The Game and the Governess, there’s not much sex (or even kissing) and the ship gets together right in the last couple of pages. Though these books are fairly long, they could do with a bit more.
I really like these books so far, but it’s a bit unfortunate that the weak spot has been the lack of shippy feels which is what this genre is all about.
Once again, Kate Noble shows off her skills in plotting, writing, historical detail, and character development. And once again, I fail to ship it strongly, but I really enjoy the book anyway.
To be fair, The Lie and the Lady was not the sort of ship that typically sets my soul aflame anyway. We join up with Letty about a year after the events of The Game and the Governess as she finally succeeds in catching a wealthy husband who hasn’t heard about her scandals. She travels to Sir Barty’s home in Leicester and discovers to her distress that her step-daughter-to-be doesn’t like her and that John Turner’s mill is in the same town. Somehow, Leticia has to survive the six weeks until she and Sir Barty wed and she’s once again safe.
For all that I’m not a fan of this basic trope (where one of them is engaged to someone else), Noble does a really nice job with it. Sir Barty’s actually super sweet and lovable. I mean, a bit gross to think about being married to what with his gout and all, but he’s a genuinely good guy. Letty doesn’t love him, but she does like him. I also really like what a mess of attempted matchmaking this book is, as everyone tries to set Margaret up with someone and keep her from someone else. (Also, I’m super excited about Margaret and Rhys and their nerdiness.)
John and Leticia do end up a pretty good couple. They do seem to fit each other, as is shown in how they weather the events of the book together. I wasn’t sure about Letty as a miller’s wife tbh, but she’s got awesome ideas and I was totally convinced by the end that they’d be fine. It’s also pretty cool that Letty’s actually older than him. And how often does the heroine give up her title for love in historical romance? Basically never. As with The Game and the Governess, there’s not much sex (or even kissing) and the ship gets together right in the last couple of pages. Though these books are fairly long, they could do with a bit more.
I really like these books so far, but it’s a bit unfortunate that the weak spot has been the lack of shippy feels which is what this genre is all about.
September 30, 2016
This was kind of a funny book, because it was almost entirely Leticia's, not Turner's. The genre trend seems to be shifting perspectives between hero and heroine, but this is really about Leticia coming to terms with who she will trust and where her place in the world is.
So, there's a lot of reviewers negging Leticia for being a gold digger and I just -- did you not read the scene in Dover? She's not opposed to marrying Turner because he's poor, she doesn't want to marry him because he lied to her and shamed her and made it impossible for her to live her life without judgment and cruelty. Like, literally every historical romance ever is about a woman finding a rich and titled man who can financially support her because that is all that women were allowed to do for centuries, but we all decide to hate Leticia because of it? When in fact the gold digging is like way, way, way far down on the list of reasons she won't marry Turner? When in fact, reason number one is that he publicly humiliated her? UGH READING COMPREHENSION.
Okay so obviously I am #TeamLetty all the way here.
I love that she is a survivor. I mean, girl has dealt with some shit from the men in her life and she's still trying to give it another go. She never stops. Even at her absolute lowest in this book she's planning for the next thing.
She is so kind to Sir Barty. I loved him. I hope he marries Helen and they get a HEA. I want more middle aged couples in romance novels. I love that he wasn't a joke, I love that his character had dignity and that Leticia treated him not just well, but with gratitude for his kindness and trusting nature.
She genuinely tries with Margaret. I was dreading a tiresome stepmother-stepdaughter war but there was none. A few early sparks but they end up finding their way.
In The Game and the Governess, Leticia seemed like an only-slightly-less villainous version of her sister and I love that we got to see her true colors and true motivations in The Lie and The Lady.
If anything, Turner's character wasn't all that much more fleshed out from The Game and the Governess -- I liked it that he wore his heart on his sleeve in trying to win back Leticia but he was in many ways still the same grumpy guy with a chip on his shoulder.
So, there's a lot of reviewers negging Leticia for being a gold digger and I just -- did you not read the scene in Dover? She's not opposed to marrying Turner because he's poor, she doesn't want to marry him because he lied to her and shamed her and made it impossible for her to live her life without judgment and cruelty. Like, literally every historical romance ever is about a woman finding a rich and titled man who can financially support her because that is all that women were allowed to do for centuries, but we all decide to hate Leticia because of it? When in fact the gold digging is like way, way, way far down on the list of reasons she won't marry Turner? When in fact, reason number one is that he publicly humiliated her? UGH READING COMPREHENSION.
Okay so obviously I am #TeamLetty all the way here.
I love that she is a survivor. I mean, girl has dealt with some shit from the men in her life and she's still trying to give it another go. She never stops. Even at her absolute lowest in this book she's planning for the next thing.
She is so kind to Sir Barty. I loved him. I hope he marries Helen and they get a HEA. I want more middle aged couples in romance novels. I love that he wasn't a joke, I love that his character had dignity and that Leticia treated him not just well, but with gratitude for his kindness and trusting nature.
She genuinely tries with Margaret. I was dreading a tiresome stepmother-stepdaughter war but there was none. A few early sparks but they end up finding their way.
In The Game and the Governess, Leticia seemed like an only-slightly-less villainous version of her sister and I love that we got to see her true colors and true motivations in The Lie and The Lady.
If anything, Turner's character wasn't all that much more fleshed out from The Game and the Governess -- I liked it that he wore his heart on his sleeve in trying to win back Leticia but he was in many ways still the same grumpy guy with a chip on his shoulder.
January 10, 2016
This is a standalone novel but I do wish I had read the first book in the series (The Game and The Governess). Not because I needed more information to enjoy this book, but because I just wanted more of the wager and what happened at that ill-fated house party the year before. I will definitely be rectifying that oversight shortly.
Leticia, Countess of Churzy, is a product of her times. She has come from a “trade” background, married into the aristocracy, was left widowed and nearly destitute so she needed to devise a method to go on living. She thought she had found that way when she fell in love with Lord Ashby, but it wasn’t Lord Ashby, it was John Turner and she was made a laughing stock when the wager and ruse was made known. She fled to Paris and that is where she met Sir Barty, a kind, generous elderly gentleman who proposed and who she accepted.
John Turner was not proud of duping Leticia. He fell in love with her but she was humiliated and ran from him. He didn’t know how he would go on with his broken heart so he poured his energy into rebuilding the family grist mill in ….what?...the same town in which Sir Barty lives!
This is truly a delight of a novel. We see Letty arriving at Sir Barty’s estate confident, content at ease and ready to make friends with Sir Barty’s daughter, and the town’s people. She is a Countess after all. And then she sees John Turner and the contented Countess slowly becomes a scrambling hamster-on-a-wheel. But she is intelligent and she does devise several delightful plans. And as if that’s not enough we have a villain thrown into the soup.
Well written, lots of sexual tension, lots of twists and turns thrown into Letty’s plans, a good look at Dr Rhys Gray the hero of the next book in the trilogy and a hint at who the heroine might be. I could not put this book down. Hooray for Kate Noble!
I received this book free for review from the publisher.
http://ladeetdareads.wordpress.com
Leticia, Countess of Churzy, is a product of her times. She has come from a “trade” background, married into the aristocracy, was left widowed and nearly destitute so she needed to devise a method to go on living. She thought she had found that way when she fell in love with Lord Ashby, but it wasn’t Lord Ashby, it was John Turner and she was made a laughing stock when the wager and ruse was made known. She fled to Paris and that is where she met Sir Barty, a kind, generous elderly gentleman who proposed and who she accepted.
John Turner was not proud of duping Leticia. He fell in love with her but she was humiliated and ran from him. He didn’t know how he would go on with his broken heart so he poured his energy into rebuilding the family grist mill in ….what?...the same town in which Sir Barty lives!
This is truly a delight of a novel. We see Letty arriving at Sir Barty’s estate confident, content at ease and ready to make friends with Sir Barty’s daughter, and the town’s people. She is a Countess after all. And then she sees John Turner and the contented Countess slowly becomes a scrambling hamster-on-a-wheel. But she is intelligent and she does devise several delightful plans. And as if that’s not enough we have a villain thrown into the soup.
Well written, lots of sexual tension, lots of twists and turns thrown into Letty’s plans, a good look at Dr Rhys Gray the hero of the next book in the trilogy and a hint at who the heroine might be. I could not put this book down. Hooray for Kate Noble!
I received this book free for review from the publisher.
http://ladeetdareads.wordpress.com
August 12, 2016
This is the second book in the winner takes all series. I love Ms. Noble's writing and look forward to reading the next book.
This is John and Letty's story and it is a good one. John has gone back home to get his grain mill running so that he can build his life back up after having the mill burn twice. Letty has finally out run the rumors and gossip of the ton about her being duped into falling for the Earl of Ashby's secretary. When they switched places. She is set to marry Sir Bartholomew Babcock, Barty to his friends but when she travels to his home town who should she meet again? None other then John Turner and the feelings that began in the last book are still there.
Will she give up her happiness for security?
I loved that this book wasn't all romance and that it had a lot of twists and turns but in the end they all lived happily ever after.
This is John and Letty's story and it is a good one. John has gone back home to get his grain mill running so that he can build his life back up after having the mill burn twice. Letty has finally out run the rumors and gossip of the ton about her being duped into falling for the Earl of Ashby's secretary. When they switched places. She is set to marry Sir Bartholomew Babcock, Barty to his friends but when she travels to his home town who should she meet again? None other then John Turner and the feelings that began in the last book are still there.
Will she give up her happiness for security?
I loved that this book wasn't all romance and that it had a lot of twists and turns but in the end they all lived happily ever after.
May 27, 2017
I was really looking forward to reading The Lady and the Lie (Book 2 of Winner Takes All series), especially the romance between Turner and Letty, which we saw a little bit from Book 1. Half way through the book, I realized that it had very little romance between our two main characters. What's a historical romance without the romance? Needless to say, I was disappointed and ended up skimming the rest of the book. I hope the next book has more romance between the main characters.
February 6, 2016
I loves me a good Regency romance. This is an entertaining one, in which an impoverished widow finally think she's achieved financial security by becoming in engaged to a wealthy British nobleman. When she visits his home, she discovers that his neighbor is the man who lied to her and broke her heart a year ago. AWKWARD. Fun characters, including a recalcitrant stepdaughter, a posse of mean village ladies and a doctor who'd rather be in his lab.
February 1, 2016
The prose was well-written; I really like Kate Noble's voice. The plot was interesting, too. It just wasn't romantic enough for me. The heroine was too practical. I could have used some more yearning or angst.
March 21, 2016
I love Kate Noble's books. Her characters are unique but believable. When I pick up one of her books I know it's going to be an enjoyable read!
December 13, 2016
No spark, no fun, annoying characters and a stupid plot. I have enjoyed Kate Noble in the past, but did not warm to this series at all.
September 9, 2023
Kate Noble is such a good writer.
The story starts about the time that book #1 is ending -- the Earl of Ashby and his secretary, John Turner, reveal that, over the previous two weeks (covered in book #1), they have switched identities as a bet, and the earl has managed to fall in love with (and be loved by) someone who doesn't know he's really an earl, and John Turner has managed to fall in love with (and be loved by) Leticia, who was *really hoping* John was an earl. She is devastated to find out he in, in fact, only an earl's secretary and, even worse, a mill owner. (Leticia is the daughter of a mill owner and has been striving her entire adult life to escape that existence.)
So soon after the start of "The Lie and the Lady," Leticia runs away from Turner and from England, and takes herself to Paris to snag a man with a title. She meets sweet, old, gouty Sir Barty, and quickly agrees to marry him. Success! She has landed a guy with a title and money, so she can finally feel secure. She travels back to England with him to start planning their wedding ...
But of course, Sir Barty just happens to live in the *same town* as John Turner (and has, in fact, known John Turner all of Turner's life). So now Leticia and Turner, who still have the hots for each other, have to figure out how to live in close proximity while she's planning to marry the local aristocrat. Hijinks ensue.
Kate Noble manages to write humorous and clever stories without falling into the trap of over-modernizing/anachronistic language and for that I am quite grateful.
The story starts about the time that book #1 is ending -- the Earl of Ashby and his secretary, John Turner, reveal that, over the previous two weeks (covered in book #1), they have switched identities as a bet, and the earl has managed to fall in love with (and be loved by) someone who doesn't know he's really an earl, and John Turner has managed to fall in love with (and be loved by) Leticia, who was *really hoping* John was an earl. She is devastated to find out he in, in fact, only an earl's secretary and, even worse, a mill owner. (Leticia is the daughter of a mill owner and has been striving her entire adult life to escape that existence.)
So soon after the start of "The Lie and the Lady," Leticia runs away from Turner and from England, and takes herself to Paris to snag a man with a title. She meets sweet, old, gouty Sir Barty, and quickly agrees to marry him. Success! She has landed a guy with a title and money, so she can finally feel secure. She travels back to England with him to start planning their wedding ...
But of course, Sir Barty just happens to live in the *same town* as John Turner (and has, in fact, known John Turner all of Turner's life). So now Leticia and Turner, who still have the hots for each other, have to figure out how to live in close proximity while she's planning to marry the local aristocrat. Hijinks ensue.
Kate Noble manages to write humorous and clever stories without falling into the trap of over-modernizing/anachronistic language and for that I am quite grateful.
April 11, 2020
Leticia has worked hard to rise above meager beginnings and after meeting her husband she thought she was set. Losing him and then the support of his family pulls the rug out from under her quickly. She thought she had finally found the next best thing meeting and falling hard for Lord Granville. Except that is not exactly who she met. Following the story line of the first book in the Winner Takes All series, this picks up with Leticia and her attempt to find calm in her life. And running in to John Turner is not calm at all. John felt bad for his part in hurting Leticia but not at all for meeting and falling for her. He has a second chance with her but can he convince her that he is the right gamble. A really lovely story that needs to follow the first book in the series to really understand but a great second chance romance. Great read!
January 25, 2025
I’m not even sure where to start …. This book was entirely uninspired. The core love story was insipid and weak, barely believable. Maybe I’m missing something vital not having read the first book in the series, but even if I had, I can’t imagine it would have made Letty any more likeable or John Turner less boring. The premise for this story was weak, at best, and the resolution was far fetched. Coupled with next to no steam, the term “snoozefest” comes to mind. The only redeeming thing about The Lie and the Lady were the supporting characters - Margaret and Rhys, Helen, and of course, Sir Barty. I can’t decide if I should read Margaret and Rhys’ story, hoping it’s much better, or scrap the whole series.
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