I’m of two minds about this book. Mostly because this felt like two separate stories using the same characters. The first half of the book, that goes with the blurb, I didn’t really enjoy. Emma and Vinnie, I still love to bits and pieces. Tuppence and Nicholas, however, not as much. I’m sure they’re supposed to come across as eccentric and charming, but that’s not the impression I’m getting. Instead, I see him as overbearing and an insufferable prig while she’s scheming and manipulative. I might even go so far as to say ‘easily offended’. Neither characterization does either of them any credit. By the second half of the book, the pair has ‘loosened up’ and we’ve gotten a chance to get to know them a bit. It’s here that the fun and quirky starts to work with the story. It’s a pair of madcap adventures. I found one to be more fun than the other, and I will probably continue to read the series.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley.

“If I were a better woman, perhaps less of a spinster and a quiz, I would be gracious and let you have your say. But I have far too much respect for you to let you condescend to my feelings.”

Having read Lynn Messina before (HERE), I knew I would be up for a fun and enjoyable romp in Regency England - she did not fail to deliver. This book is a lot of fun. Part of the ‘Love Takes Root’ series, do not fear for this is a standalone read and I had no problems at all with it. Following along classic lines, Messina puts her own spin producing a fun historical romance with intrigue - all very polite of course! It is a refreshing take on strong willed heroines with fabulous dialogue that takes a stand for female characters in an era when it would have been frowned upon. Far from being one dimensional, Messina provides a range of fun and inviting characters that I would be most interested in reading more from the series for light entertainment.

“I would never consider a beau who had made his declaration on the way to claiming a prawn.”

There were passages that I found repetitive, especially concerning the inner dialogue of both Tuppence and Gage, and I just wished it were filled more with the witty banter between both the leads and other prominent characters (the sisters were thoroughly entertaining). The plots are clever and really so amusing that is provides a wonderful escape as it is guaranteed to bring a smile to your face (even a chuckle is on the cards). Traditional regency readers beware! This light and humourous read may not be for you unless you are prepared to suspend your inner critic and just lose yourself in this fun regency romp.

The duchess clutched the side of the window with one hand as she tugged her skirt over the sill with the other. “Actually, she wouldn’t care about the height. A lady being astride anything would be horrifying enough.”

This is a tale with a little bit of everything - mystery, intrigue, action, romance and a barrel of laughs. Spend some time with Tuppence Templeton and you cannot help but smile at her ‘impertinence’!

“...he’d never consider her his equal—no woman was—and she was far better off alone than diminishing herself to fit inside his pocket.”


This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.

The fifth entry in a solid series, this novel encompasses every that makes the series and Miss Messina worthy of your attention. Not only are her characters dynamic, there is always a little some extra to her leads that make them special. All her female leads tend to be strong and talented in their own way, with each being endearing and lovable. Though flawed and frustrating, Miss Messina’s heroes are equally as lovable especially when they fall prey to the heroine’s unassuming charm. Not to mention, she brings back previously adored characters which feels like visiting an old friend.

The stories she weaves are entertaining as well. If her characters bring something new to the table, Messina’s story brings even more. They are well fleshed out and always concern more than just nobility being nobility. There is heart and soul there that make for a humorous and engaging tale.

Though the series started off strong, it just keeps getting better and better with each new installment.

The Impertinent Miss Templeton is a great read, full of fun and memorable characters. It is the story of Tuppence Templeton a very bright, and daring woman, and Nicholas Perceval, Earl of Gage. Nicholas is known in the ton for being a prickly person, and having had a run in with him once before, Tuppence has no wish to go through it again. However when asked by the The Harlow Hoyden to help her sister and herself with a rather delicate problem Tuppence will have to go up against him once more. Only this time she finds that she somewhat likes sparing with the Earl. It is a great story of opposites attracting and I would definitely recommend it.

The Impertinent Miss Templeton by Lynn MessinaIt's 3 o'clock in the morning. Tuppence Templeton is bemused to find the Harlow Hoyden and her twin sister in Tuppence's bedroom. It seems that they need her help. It's a little far-fetched but leads to a delightful story of the very plain Tuppence finding her way back into the realm of the Earl of Gage. Although, it's not as if he even remembers her from their first meeting.

Nicholas Perceval doesn't remember her. He knows that someone interfered with his sister and a fortune hunger but he straightened out that miss in no time. He knows what he knows and what he knows is always, always correct. Yet, dealing with Tuppence Templeton is teaching him exactly how wrong he can be; about the way that inventions work, what women can do, how well he can run off a fortune hunter, and exactly how plain Tuppence is.

The story was a little thin but the writing is as entertaining as always. Ms. Messina writes the type of romance novel that helped me get nearly perfect on my SAT reading scores.

Four stars
This book came out August 30
ARC kindly provided by NetGalley

The Impertinent Miss Templeton is such a sweet novel. I found myself chuckling throughout! The characters in this book are all so well developed in their own right. The author is so clever in her ability to develop such great dialogue between all the characters. By the end of the story, I had so many favourites!

This was a romance between two characters, Miss Templeton and the Earl of Gage, who battle largely through the dialogue. This is a clean romance with a great plot and plenty of action.

I received an advanced review copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Review excerpted from my blog post over at FanSciHist (https://fanscihist.wordpress.com/2018/08/28/the-impertinent-miss-templeton-by-lynn-messina/)

My Rating: 3.5 stars

Library recommendation: Recommended for public library Romance collections. 

Warning: Hereafter, you chance spoilers. I will try never to reveal major plot points, but to review any book, you must reveal some parts of the story. 


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Number of titles I have read by this author: 3

Love story speed: Slow burn

Relationship dynamics: The Tenacious, Articulate Spinster (h); The Quasi-Misanthropic, Arrogant, Titled Gentleman (H)

Sexual content: None. There is some 2nd base action and fairly mild description of sexual fantasy.

Triggers: Assholes (by today's standards). Lots of them (this frequently includes the H).

Grammar/Editing: A fair few grammatical/spelling errors. Only a couple of errors that are bad enough to cause some confusion.

Review: The story is spritely and engaging; the writing style is quirky and fun. You could almost call it a Wilde-esque folly. I found, however, that there was a bit too much prose between responses in dialogue. I often couldn't remember what one character had said or asked before the other character responded due to the sheer volume of prose interjected. Having read other books in this series, I can say that this is a common occurrence throughout the series.

I really liked Tuppence as a heroine. She was interesting, intelligent and, as the title suggests, impertinent. I wasn't as enamored of Nicholas/the Earl of Gage/Prickly Perceval, however, until later in the book when his misanthropy was toned down somewhat. I didn't enjoy his character when he was being an ass for the sake of being an ass. A number of the supporting characters are also really unpleasant to Tuppence, which I didn't enjoy. That being said, the characters (main and supporting) did evoke a lot of emotion for me - I was invested in the story, although there are some elements of The Unreliable Narrator written into the story, so I didn't always know whose version of events we should believe. 

As an installment in the Love Takes Root series, this can be read as a stand alone. When previous events are mentioned, they are explained. Characters from previous books are sufficiently fleshed out for readers who are new to the series. However, the reading experience will be richer if the reader has read the previous books in the series before reading this one.

Corrupted cliché version: You catch more impertinent misses with misanthropy than with gentlemanly behaviour. 



Full disclosure: I received a free advance review copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Tuppence Templeton, spinster, enjoys plotting to set things right - and does it so well and thoroughly, though unobtrusively, that her plans always succeed. When she saves the sister of the Earl of Gage from being forced into marriage with a scoundrel, she has hopes of a smile from the unapproachable 'Prickly Perceval', but at least expects thanks. The verbal annihilation she receives instead make her resolve never to speak to him again - until two new friends present a new wrong that needs setting right, which needs her help, but also requires her to deal with the earl again. Curiously, though, they get along rather better this time, as he seems to gradually start to accept her as a human being rather than a mere female. But when his sister is again threatened, Tuppence is forced to decide whether to rely on the earl to solve the problem and lose her self-respect for ever, or to do it herself - and lose not only his friendship but also whatever more might be developing between them...

With plots galore and a range of interesting characters, good and bad, major and minor, this book is great for anyone wanting an escape from serious life into a humorous (if not too realistic) past. Anyone looking for more serious Regency books should probably look elsewhere, but this is great for those wanting something lighter and more amusing - though there are some more serious parts as well. The writing is generally good, though occasionally a bit 'over the top' - perhaps 'florid' would be a good word? Prepare to suspend disbelief for a time and come on an enjoyable ride into the past...

Note that although this is part of a series, it can be read as a stand-alone story - while I gather that some characters appear in previous books, I have not read them and didn't feel that I was missing any critical information.

Characters: Amusing and reasonably well drawn. I'd like to see more of them...
Storyline: Not too predictable, with plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader engaged and interested. Some things did require some suspension of disbelief, but I found that I mostly noticed them when thinking about the book afterwards, because it held my attention so well as I read.
Content and language: Language good, no sex either on-stage or off-stage, but a couple of kisses that were rather more descriptive than I like, and occasional sexual innuendo that I could have done without. Generally clean, though, and probably only the most fussy (like me!) would complain.

Note that I received a complimentary copy of the book from NetGalley. I was not required to write a positive review and this is my considered opinion of the book.

The Impertinent Miss Templeton is the fifth book in A Regency Romance series but can be read as a standalone.

This is the first book in the series for me and I was hooked from the first moment.
It is true that Miss Templeton is great at solving problems for others, it is true she is smart and daring to complete all of her schemes but it is also true that she is scared of Earl of Gage. And no matter how much Duchess of Trent needs her help in getting her invention patented. She will not get involved with him again.
Until she does and all hell brakes loose after he realizes that she has used him after previously meddling into his family business.
Smart, funny and thoroughly entertaining this is the perfect blend of regency romance and dare.
Female characters are strong willed, brave and ingenious and they wreck havoc wherever they go and whatever they do.
A true delight to read. I wasn't able to put it down.