This author writes a good book, really! I finished in a few hours, because it was almost impossible to put it down. Flora's dream is to have her own stud farm. She needs to learn from the best, and the best is the Marquess of Armstead. Armstead Gardens is noted for their race horses and Flora decides to go in disguise as a lad. Hired as a trainer, Flora is in her element, until she's recognized. Armstead's reputation is only the line. Will she agree to marry the Marquess?
Great read. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book.

We meet Flora who is a the daughter of a duke and loves horses but as a woman she can not work with them so she decides to disguise herself as a man and get a job in a stable that she knows is known for horses. Then we have Christan who wants to rebuild the stables glory by winning races and he can not do that with any scandals. Then he realizes that one of his men is not a man and he needs to get rid of her and that is when the story really begins.

This book was really fun! Along with the great romance, it was clear the author either knew a lot about horses or did some really good research. I always love stories that have women going in disguise as a boy, and this one didn't disappoint. I loved watching Flora and Christian fall in love with each other, even if Christian could be a bit boneheaded at times.

Can a woman risk everything to aim her lifelong goal...

Flora is an awesome woman, she is strong and resilient, able to adapt to many situations, at time I loved her but also disliked her.
She knows what she does around horses and has every right to be angry at Christian when learning she was a woman he tries to clip her wings. But she is also wrong, she put her reputation at stake, and not only hers, so she had no right to reject so harshly Christian, even if they would have had a lot to adjust between them.
I loved her independence and will to forge her own path, by refusing society’s dictats but it is not the XIX st century, she lives during a period where women were mere possession, so she was already lucky to be granted the freedom she has. She acts quite thoughtlessly and when discovered runs away like a coward, letting the others clean the mess behind.
Christian is far from flawless, even very imperfect. But during their time together, he does a lot of growing up.
He had a upbringing of a heir of a Marquess, so sure he has his expectations and haughty confidence, but when shown the right path, he is willing to change even if it means swallowing his pride.
He tried even to curb is own protective behavior to allow Flora to continue her dream.
And by the end, what he did for her is just an awesome proof of how much he changed and the depth of his feelings.

I have one big reservation, Flora does not arrive in Christian’s bed as a Virgin, it doesn’t in itself bother me, but it is the reason that didn’t sit well with the era, she has been intimate with other men because she wanted to be free and act like a man, not because she has been in love, which it is simply dangerous and foolish. She might be a bit fickle to not see how acutely inane it is, first she is a duke’s daughter so the disgrace would be enormous, second risking a pregnancy is rather reckless, close to stupid for this time period. The society was unforgivable for fallen women, so jeopardize her future and those sharing her name because she wants to be equal to men, was bold but foolhardy due to the possible consequences. As at any moment protection against pregnancy was discussed.
I like my heroines strong and ready to fight society’s conventions but not by taking inconsiderate and priceless risks.

In all, I rooted for their romance, both have their failing, and seing them evolve from boss-employee to friends then lovers was entertaining. Their relationship is one of mutual trust, until Flora by her silence betrayed it and jeopardized it. I do think a bit of groveling on her side would have been nice, because Christian was the one wronged, and still he apologized, for being a man of his time under duress, with the biggest gesture possible.
4 stars

I was granted an advance copy through Netgalley by the publisher Entangled, I also preordered my own.
Here is my true and unbiased opinion.

Christian Andrews, the Marquess of Amstead, struggles to keep his family's stud farm from slipping into ruin and painstakingly rebuilds the program. When I started reading I couldn't put it down.Liana De la Rosa is magnifysent and amazing writer.I cannot wait to read more of there books.Keep up the great work.You should definitely read this book.Can't wait for the next book.

Lady Flora Campbell chafes at the restrictions put on her sex by society. She only feels like her true self when she training and riding horses. She devices a plan to learn from the best horse trainer in England, Lord Amstead, but to gain a position she must disguise herself as a man. Christian, Marquess of Amstead is single-minded in his goal to rebuild his horse stud farm and he's impressed with the skill of his newest hire, assistant trainer William Grant. When Christian discovers Flora's deception, he's drawn to the young woman and doesn't dismiss her immediately. Knowing that they are flirting with dire consequences if anyone should find out about Flora, they are still unprepared when Flora's identity is found out. Can Christian convince Flora their only option is to marry?

This was a delightful story of two very different, but determined people. Ms. DeLaRosa teases out the personalities of the hero and heroine, keeping the reader thoroughly engaged in the story. Both Christian and Flora have an all consuming passion for horses, but Flora was risking everything with her deception. Instead of realizing that Flora would not want to be managed as a cosseted female, Christian demands that if they marry, she will not be mucking out stalls and involved in the horse training at Amstead Gardens. It was exactly the wrong thing to say. I was routing for these two to finally realize that they loved each other--everything about each other including their flaws.

The story moves along at a good pace and I was entranced to read about the antics of the horses. They made the book come alive. I can't wait to read the next book in the series.

Okay, first fo all, this was a new to me historical author so I didn’t know what to expect.

Flora is a duke’s daughter who loves horses. She loves horses but her status means she isn’t really in a position to work with them so to learn more about that she applies for a job in Amstead’s stables. Disguised as a man she gets to know the trainings, the horses and also their owner, Christian.

Christian wants to rebuild the stables’ glory by winning the race with one of his prized horses. He wants to bring investors to the stables so the scandal is the last thing he needs. When he realizes one of the trainers is actually a woman, his perspective about everything changes.

Flora wants to be equal in any relationship so for Christian to think of her as a lady, a delicate lady who belongs at the balls is unacceptable. What follows is a battle of wills, a friendship but also a forbidden relationship. Flora’s full identity is for him still a mystery.

One thing I noticed is that the way Christian found out Flora is actually a woman is very similar to the book I have read on Wattpad that was also a historical romance novel and where a woman also disguised as a man.

That was the only similarity to that book, by the way.

I was surprised how quickly he discovered but at the same time I loved that their relationship first began as boss-trainer than to woman-man, friends and at last lovers. I also couldn’t believe Christian never noticed that under all those clothes, with her feminine figure, voice, hair, is hidden a woman.

While I love the story and how well written it was, my issues with this book is that it put too much focus on training and horses and not their relationship. I mean, I felt like they didn’t really have any relationship up until 50 %. I wish it put more focus on the romance part.

I have still many questions about Flora, mainly about her past and previous relationship. But since this is a little too spoilerish, I am gonna put my thoughts on Goodreads and you decide if you want to know more about them or not.

4 stars.

Flora is the daughter of a Duke and the one who oversees all her brother's dinners and social functions, as well as a dreamer who wishes to train racehorses. Unbeknownst to her brother, Flora takes a job at the prestigious Amstead Gardens working under Christian, known for his success entraining racehorses. The catch...she disguises herself as a male, Willian Grant. Her skill and patience with the horses earns her the respect of the head trainer and Christian himself. But what will happen when her true identity is found out? Will the scandal that follows ruin all that Christian has worked to build at Amstead Gardens, and what of her brother's political career?
I enjoyed this story because it was not a typical love story. It was about growing and adjusting one's beliefs, as well as love and friendship.
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.