I so enjoy Joanna Barker's work. This was my first read of her work, and it was fulfilling-- vividly sketched characters, believable plot, and just enough description to paint the scene for readers.

I love historical novels! And friends to lovers.

Nora is a sweetheart who loves her friend James. But James has left and her father wants her to get married. So entering the Season Nora's father wants her to marry someone wealthy. James comes back but Nora has found herself the object of two different gentlemen's affections.

Will Nora accept one of these gentlemen or will James and Nora find themselves working it out?

A fairly standard regency story. Friends coming to love each other. I find it sad that in history so many were pushed or made to marry simply because that was the option open to young women.

A sweet romance reminiscent of the Bridgerton show minus the spice. I enjoy spice in my romance, but still this was a nice read.

Usually I am not a fan of historical romance fiction, but Secrets and Suitors has made me a believer. The writing was lovely. I enjoyed the plot points and the fully fleshed out characters. What better review can I write than this: The novel grabbed my attention from the beginning and managed to keep it!

I really enjoyed this book. It had a similar vibe to “Bridgerton”. It was enjoyable to read about the whole family. I loved the friendship between Nora & James. Fun read.

Painfully shy Nora has loved her childhood best friend, James, for so long. She declared her love to him and he went away. Years later, he's back. But she's made a promise to her father to marry another. It's not a love match but she figures if she can't have the one she wants, she'll make do with the one who has asked for her hand.

There's a big problem though. Her intended hardly can look her in the eye and they have never talked much. Nora wants what her parents married for... love. Even though they may have fallen a bit out of that, Nora soon learns the secret as to why.

I loved James. He's so sweet and attentive and always can draw out the things that Nora wants to say. I felt for Nora because I often feel the same way she did. This is a great Regency story!

I rather enjoyed this! It's unusual to have Regency romance written in the first person, but it worked well to show Nora's feelings and conflicting emotions, and allowed a greater flexibility in removing the hero from much of the plot, rather than him needing to have alternate chapters. There's a stronger focus on family and self-awareness than in many romances, perhaps because although there is a love story, it's a slow burn between childhood friends where neither is aware that the other is in love with them, so there isn't so much work to put in in terms of getting to know each other. There is the cliched 'revelation of a pregnancy' epilogue, which always puts me off a book.

I didn't realise when requesting this that this was from a Mormon publisher; there is no religious content but the book is a 'sweet' romance without steamier scenes. I prefer a romance that contains sex scenes as I see no need to excise a large part of a relationship unless the characters are explicitly asexual, but if this is where your tastes lie then this is an enjoyable example. Three and a half stars.

I really enjoyed Secrets and Suitors. I thought the story was intriguing. I am giving this story four stars. I look forward to more by this author in the future.

As with most books I read I tend to gravitate to the books with good blurbs (back of book summary) and when I read about this book, I knew I had to read it. I stayed up late reading this book as I couldn’t put it down. I loved the interactions between James and Nora. Their friendship from childhood took on a twist when James left for Jamaica to see his father’s plantation there. He left Nora behind with a broken heart, but he held his own secrets. I did notice the glances and jealousy from James but would have hoped for a little more interaction between the two. A few moments where Nora would really start to question the relationship would have been nice. It didn’t take away from the book, but it would have given me a better insight into the two characters and their dynamics. As for the character Mr. Weston the interactions between him and Nora also seemed to lack a little substance, so he seemed more of an extra character instead of one of the main characters. I would have liked to get to know him better and why he was pursuing Nora. Lord Worthington seemed to hold a higher focus than Mr. Weston and I do believe his character was well developed and the interactions with him were well thought out. I do wish there had been more of a hint into his role as a rake because I almost felt he suddenly went from someone nice and interested to this jerk. All the characters and interactions were great, but they did lack something, so I was slightly disappointed in the story.
I did love how the plot was pulled together to make the ending seamless and I suppose if it had been a touch more dramatic of an ending, I would have had a better experience. However, I would and will recommend this book to others because it is a good romantic novel and has a great plot barring the small details that I wish were added to flesh out the characters.
Overall, I enjoyed this book and it is most likely more of my personal taste in wishing it had more details regarding the characters.
**Note: The views and opinions in this review are my own and not a reflection of the author or the publisher in any way.**

This is a sweet, clean historical romance that I’m going to place in the Regency time period, although the book never actually indicates this is actually that time period. I enjoyed everything about this story. Nora is a shy, intelligent, and caring young woman who has been out for three seasons. Her father is insistent that she marry Mr. Weston, as he can give her the status and security that all the young women of that time period were seeking. But Nora has been in love most of her life with the boy next door, James, whom she thinks sees her only as a friend. As Nora moves among society, she begins to wonder if she should accept the marriage proposal.

This story has so much heart to it as Nora seeks to find her own path in life. Her family dynamics undergo a change, and the side story of her parents’ relationship adds depth to this book. The ending book is very satisfying, as it ties together the storylines in the book in a wonderful way.
This is the second book I’ve read by Joanna Barker, and I am impressed with the way she can tell a story.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions are my own.

Thank you NetGalley for the digital ARC. I loved these two characters! i loved even more that Nora was so shy as I am also. It was such a cute romance novel. thank you

Reading Secrets & Suitors was an absolute delight! I love period romances and greatly enjoy the strategic use of the mandated, restrictive propriety of the time which greatly elevates a flirty comment whispered close to a ladies ear, a lingering hold of a hand, or a brooding gaze to a heated and thrilling moment which I find to be much more exciting and enjoyable than an explicit sex scene. I liked the characters in Secrets & Suitors and the depth that each of their past experiences brought to the overall plot. I appreciated that everyone had solid, realistic motivations for their responses to a given situation. My only reservation was that our heroine seems to undervalue herself a good deal too much for my liking and I did wish there were fewer moments of internal dialogue of her telling herself she was boring and dim and that she wasn’t worthy of friendship or romantic attention and that she didn’t deserve happiness. I did appreciate that she had a quiet strength despite her sense of social awkwardness. I was happy to learn that she evolved and became a bit braver and that she felt more deserving of achieving her dreams toward the conclusion of the story. I appreciate a strong, independent young woman who can blaze a trail as a wild, warrior woman, but I also very much enjoy a good display of the strength of a quiet and kind lady as well. I often think of Gone With The Wind when I consider these different types of strong womanly depictions- Scarlett was rash, bold and dangerously determined while Millie was gentle, reserved and kind and I love her quiet strength. I am very much looking forward to reading many more of Joanna Barkers’ novels!

Nora Hamilton has no desire to go back to London for her third season. Her heart was captured a long time ago, by her neighbor and best friend, James Allen. But when James set sail for the West Indies six months ago, he made it clear that he considered her nothing more than that--a friend. Her inflexible and distant father is pushing the suit of the stiff and proper Mr. Weston. Will Nora have to give in to her father's wishes and give up her dream of marrying for love?

This Regency romance had a lot more substance to it than many of the genre. Nora's home is full of secrets--secrets her parents have kept from her, secrets she has kept from them, secrets she must keep from her sister. The only person whom Nora can speak candidly with is the irrepressible James. But knowing that she feels more for him than he does for her, is it wise to continue to confide in him? A handsome and wealthy bachelor, Lord Worthington, begins to take an interest over the course of the season, but are his attentions truly sincere? Mr. Weston seems bland and colorless, but at least he is dependable? As Nora learns more about her parents' relationship and past, she gains the courage to make her own choices and choose the suitor who will make her heart sing.

I enjoyed the banter between James and Nora and the sensitivity with which he treated her. The romance in the story was heartfelt and believable and more important to the story than the period details. All in all, this was a good book to round out my hundred book reviews for 2019.

Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Secrets & Suitors by Johanna Barker tells the story of Nora Hamilton, a shy London debutante. As the London Season is starting up, her dearest friend returns from his travels abroad, her father insists she accept the suit of a wealthy man, and she finds herself falling for a dashing lord. Now if only she wasn't still also deeply in love with that dearest friend, James.

Secrets & Suitors is great for readers who love Pride & Prejudice variations. Nora is a sweet girl for a heroin, while shy, she still has her say within her family setting. While her father may command her to do as he says, she still finds ways to do it by her own terms. She's not quite an Elizabeth Bennett, but if she were, it likely wouldn't be as interesting a story. Nora's faults are up front for the reader to see and understand, and empathize with.

The angst level is relatively low, though certainly more than Jane Austen herself would have written. Throughout, you see hope for Nora to be happy no matter the outcome. That said, there are rogues and duels and visits to the Vauxhall pleasure gardens to keep things interesting.

Overall, it's a nice read, great for a short vacation from technology. It's not highly memorable or earth shattering, but if all my books were, I'd likely be too overwhelmed to read. Glad this one ended up in my rotation and I look forward to more from Johanna Barker.

Secrets & Suitors follows the main characters, Nora and James - best friends that are both attracted to each other but for their own reasons, keep their relationship from growing into a romance. This is a regency romance novel set in and around London. Nora's father commits her to marry a man of means, who is a virtual stranger to Nora. She puts off the engagement by promising to commit after her sister is presented to London society. During this time she meets another man of means that appears to be interested in her. As she juggles these two men, she still can't deny her feelings for James. She decides her parent's marriage was probably arraigned since there is no love lost between them. She sees her future in an arranged marriage to be just as unhappy.

As the plot moves forward and secrets revealed, Nora is forced to change these perceptions about all close to her. Nora and James were the most compelling characters and both were well developed. Some of the characters were more one-dimensional - more character development was warranted. Descriptions of different settings were well done. Thanks to NetGally and Covenant Communications for the opportunity to read and give an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this intriguing story. Secrets can complicate things, and sometimes taking a risk for love is scary. The story was well done and kept me turning the pages to find out what would happen and if love would win in the end!

Sweet romance between the girl next door and the boy she always has loved. I liked both Nora and James, although Nora’s insecurity got a little annoying at times. Overall, a good read that I’d recommend.

Secrets and Suitors is a romantic triangle with Nora sure of her feelings for James, but her father is ‘forcing’ her to marry Mr. Weston. Due to the separation James placed between Nora and himself, she tries to form a relationship with another man, the Earl of Worthington as a possible option. You realize James is in love with Nora but pushes her away continually.

Nora’s family seems quite dysfunctional with a domineering father, weak mother but loving siblings. You will find the changes that occur to the family as Nora grows into womanhood to be encouraging. She becomes a woman of strength as she develops and helps her family to find their future. Secrets is a clean, yet romantic tale.

Secrets & Suitors was an average read. Overall rating 2.5.-3. Nora Hamilton returns to London for her third season and manages to convience her father to allow her younger sister to come out with her if she marries the man her father has choosen. Nora is predictably in love with her childhood friend James Allen; who her father does not approve of. Family secrets keep James from confessing he true feelings for Nora. Overtime, Nora learns to fight for what she wants and demand she be allowed to marry as she sees fit. This was too predictable for me; with no mystery to how the story would end.