Lady Derring Takes a Lover: The Palace of Rogues

I was so excited to see a new historical from Julie after she had been writing a lot of contemporary. This story did not disappoint that anticipation! What does a Countess do when he husband departs this earth but leaves behind a mountain of debt? One building, yes one building was left to Delilah that she had to make the most of to survive. Of course it was near the docks, not the best of locations but when she runs into Angelique, her former husband's mistress, they devise a plan. What? Really? Well a lady has to do what a lady has to do to survive! They sell what that can and end up opening a boarding house on the property. Tristan is the Captain of the King's Blockade and has been in charge of rounding up smugglers. There is a group of smugglers left he is determined to catch because they committed a heinous crime against a peer. All paths lead him to a piece of property owned by a man who had just died and his widow had taken over the property. Well let the adventure begin! Wondering if Delilah is involved in the smuggling he gets close to her and takes a room at the boarding house. There is a definite connection between these two and he does what he must to see if he can learn information from her. (ok yes there is lust!) I really enjoyed this story and watching the building of the relationship between the two and would recommend to all! I read this through Edelweiss

“Thank you sir. I should never have worked any of that out on my own. Thank goodness a man came along.” And therein is the crux and the tale of this story: women, ill-treated by the men in their lives and wholly fed up with the lot of them, and the ‘constraints’ placed by society that determine their should and should nots. Delilah Derring, formerly known as Countess and her friend Angelique Breedlove have both been left in penury with the death of Delilah’s ‘Dear Dull Derring’ the Earl and her husband. Living in masses of debt, he used connections and his title to afford a life which included his home with Delilah and an arrangement with his mistress, Angelique. Through the first of many ‘unexpected’ actions, Delilah encountered her husband’s former mistress, and the two have formed the start of a friendship – free from ‘conventions’ of society, and bonding together over their common ill-treatment by the men in their lives and their own dire circumstances. Tristan Hardy is a wholly self-made man, rising from extreme poverty to naval hero, to now running a division that is tasked with discovering and eliminating smugglers, particularly after a family was burned in their beds after refusing to aid the smugglers. Tristan has run into a dead end, but thinks it’s possible and plausible that Delilah and Angelique have knowledge of (or are benefitting from) Derring’s apparent connections to the smugglers, and he’s going to avail himself of a room in the newly reopened boarding house, using his skills of observation and detection, and perhaps a bit of late night skulking to find the answers. But, it’s clear to him that Delilah is something ‘different’ and quite special, and that her innocence isn’t possibly an act, nor is the interest she engenders or his need to reach out and… The characters in this story were divine! From Angelique’s rather cynical and world weary attitude that occasionally came off as condescending where the more innocent and less experienced Delilah was concerned. Delilah’s determination to live her life on her own terms, being beholden to, or directed by no one but herself and her own desires. Her maid Dot, who, while possessing a streak of loyalty a mile long has little else to recommend her in terms of skills – but always trying. The friendship between these three, and the dark humor that keeps a sort of balance between Angelique and Delilah adds a familiarity and security to their little group, in very insecure circumstances. The attraction to Tristan, and his for Delilah, counterbalance his own insecurities and his struggles with the emotional side of life, nicely balanced by his right-hand man’s obvious infatuation with his betrothed. You’ll laugh, you’ll sigh and you’ll find this a wonderful escape that feels plausible and probable, full of heart and hope and a wonderful introduction to a new series. With the tease in the epilogue leading to the one very big mystery yet unanswered, I can’t wait for the next. I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via Edelweiss for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

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