Violet and James seemed to have one of the great love matches among their peers, but after one year of marriage they had The Argument. The next four years were spent in almost complete silence. When Violet receives a note informing her that James has had a horse accident and may not survive, she rushes to her side only time find him alive and well. Wanting revenge for her humiliation, she concocts a scheme to give James a taste of his own medicine.

Overall this was a super delightful read. From the beginning you could see the connection and spark between James and Violet. The tension between them kept building throughout all of their oneupmanship and was a well-executed slow burn. At times, especially in the beginning, parts felt a little repetitive and like they were moving a little slow, particularly to when Violet finally gets going on her hoax. Despite this, I thought it was sharp and witty and the supporting cast of characters were super strong. I'm very hopeful for more from Violet's friends, Diana and Emily.

4/5 stars

Thank you to the publisher for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Cute banter but I found myself skimming a lot of it. A four year rift?! Come on. Nobody is THAT stubborn. I liked the setting and the characters.

2.5

Like many current Regency romances, the characters, the language, and the social customs (or lack thereof) have about as much authenticity as a Hollywood backdrop. I'm fine with that if there is more humor and wit. Waters does present some fun scenes, but for me, at least, there was not nearly enough banter to cover the fact that the central plot hinges on my least favorite conflict: the hero and heroine refusing to sit down and talk like adults for five minutes. That sense of how long the lack of communication could be dragged on caused me to skim and skip.

Lots of potential in the subsidiary characters gives hopes for more lively plots in future entries in what seems headed for a series.

This is a really fun book, and Martha Waters is a fun new voice in historical romance. This is a story of a married couple who has allowed their love match to fall apart for a variety of reasons, the greatest of which are youth, stubbornness, and pride. It sounds tragic, but it’s actually a lot of fun. And it has a fun play on a quote from Friends, of all things.

The secondary characters are phenomenal, introduced just enough to get our interest for their own stories - and I so hope that happens!

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

Funny romantic entertaining a throw back to Jane Austen a rom com of fun..Great characters a smashing debut A book that I enjoyed had me laughing totally involved.#netgalley#atriabooks

This was a cute, funny historical romance. I loved both Violet and James and getting to see their love story play out. I though the prologue at the beginning was a good touch. I loved knowing how they first met and got engaged. The rest of the book was fun and cute, but the games started to get a little annoying. I just felt like it was taken too far for too long. I would have liked there to be some other conflict other than miscommunication and their playing games on each other back and forth. Along with that, the reason for them not talking for four years seemed really silly to me. I understand going through rough patches in a marriage, and I see how this definitely could have caused an argument. However, I found it hard to believe that this led to them not really speaking for FOUR years! I would have liked for this book to have a little bit more substance in that regard. I did like the way they reconnected at the end, and thought it was a cute story.

3.5 stars
I received this book for free in return for an honest review.

Right now the only thing I can read is historical everything else feels like a struggle. This book has so much potential but it felt flat for me. I love marriage in crisis books but I just felt that so much of the issue was miscommunication. I wished that the characters can talk to each other. i wish there was more banter, more rom com.

3.5 stars

I don't often read historical romances (so I have no idea how accurate things were), but I was pleasantly surprised by this one. I have been having a hard time focusing on books with everything going on in the world, so this was a wonderful story to get lost in. To Have and to Hoax features some of my favorite tropes (second chance, enemies to lovers) and I am impressed that this is Martha Waters's debut. I enjoyed that this was a romance featuring a marriage in crisis and don't feel that there are enough of those available.

The playful banter and barbs from James and Violet were my favorite and I was rooting for these two to figure out their issues from the very start. I think the drama and misunderstandings were drawn out a bit too much though and I have a hard time believing that this miscommunication lasted 4 years. The characters were pretty immature for people in their 20's, but given their histories and insecurities, it was somewhat understandable. They did grow and start to take responsibility for their actions, but by that point the drama felt over the top and drama just for drama's sake.

The secondary characters were a lot of fun and I'm definitely intrigued and hopeful that we will see stories for Diana, Jeremy, Emily, Julian, West, and Sophie. Overall, an entertaining read and I look forward to reading more by Martha Waters in the future.

*I voluntarily read an advance review copy of this book*

3.5

A new voice in Regency romance in the lighthearted comic vein makes her mark with this amusing story of a love match gone wildly astray. At eighteen, curious Violet allowed herself to be lured out on a balcony during a ball. Twenty-three year-old James Audley, the second son of an English duke, comes to her rescue, and finds himself both smitten and, when her mother and his father catch them together alone, engaged.

Jump ahead five years. Volatile Violet (who has a "mind built for dabbling") and quiet James enjoyed one year of wedded bliss before an apparent lie by Violet, and an overdeveloped sense of duty by James lead to an argument. And then, to an estrangement. One that has lasted for four years.

The story opens with Violet receiving a note from a friend of James', report that he's taken a fall from a horse and now lies unconscious. A concerned Violet rushes off to see for herself, only to find James in fine form. Incensed at being taken in (not really, but Violet isn't one to stop and listen), Violet concocts a ruse of her own, a ruse that James and Violet keep escalating, to humorous madcap effect. But are the ruses meant to punish—or are they a way to fight for one another's love?

As the narrator tells us, "But then, James always wished to kiss her. The kissing had never been the problem. It was the talking that seemed to give them trouble" (Kindle Loc 504). On one level, James and Violet's estrangement seems, when we finally are told the reasons for it, a simple matter of taking the time to talk things out. But Waters, who has a deft hand with character, shows how her couple's disagreement stems not just from not being able to listen to the other, but from the way each unwittingly pushes the others' buttons: buttons about trust, and love, about fighting for what you want and about being valued.

The hijinks go on a bit too long; even Violet at one point thinks so: "Violet reviewed her actions fo the past fortnight. And, all at once, everything that had seemed calculated and clever suddenly seemed foolish and desperate" [kindle Loc 3238]). But Waters' strong comic voice and intriguing characters make this debut worth the time.

Looking forward to reading the stories of Violet's two best friends: Diana ("all she wanted was freedom, and she had seized it by marrying a man thirty years her senior, who had left her a widow at age of twenty-one); and Emily ("whose father's debts meant that he had no choice but to allow x's unwelcome attentions toward his daughter until he could scrape together the funds he owed").

I can’t remember the last time a book made me laugh this much. To Have and To Hoax is the utterly delightful story of an estranged husband and wife feigning accidents and other things in order to get attention from the other.

This regency romance was the perfect book for right now. The constant back and forth between Violet and Audley was so enjoyable, particularly when everything started to get complicated and they realized how deep they were in for it. The part where Violet “developed” a terminal illness was a bit of a turn-off but I appreciated that the author didn’t leave Audley actually believing that his wife was ill.

Other than that, To Have and To Hoax was a quick, enjoyable, light-hearted read!

*Disclaimer: I received an advanced digital copy of this book for free from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I struggled with this one. I think it is probably a case of me, not the book; however, it seemed unnecessarily drawn out. Historical romance isn't normally my cup of tea anyway, but the blurb had caught my attention, so I thought I'd try it. Writing wise, it was solid, the characters were fun and I did enjoy them, it was just too slow of a burn and too much of a back and forth , I found myself skimming and skipping ahead a bit. I appreciate the opportunity that NetGalley had given me to read this ARC, but this one just wasn't for me.

To Have and to Hoax by Martha Waters


A common source of conflict in the plot of a romance novel is a Big Misunderstanding that drives the couple apart. What makes this book rather unique in that regard is that the misunderstanding has already taken place years before the story begins—and the two protagonists never reconciled.

Despite this acrimony, when Violet finds out that her husband James has been injured, she rushes to the country house to be by his side—only to run into him at an inn, in perfect health and annoyed by her concern for his well-being.

This incident sets off a series of light-hearted revenge as Violet and James try to out-do each other: Violet pretends to be ill so that James will know how she felt when she thought he was sick, so James invites Violet’s mother to tend to her. As their actions escalate, James and Violet (separately) reflect on the incident that drove them apart and the infuriating characteristics that they see in each other begin to soften.

This is one of the funniest historical romances that I have read in a long time. The tone is very light and the quips are non-stop as Violet and James try to trick each other. But at the same time, there’s a sense of gravity as they begin to process the feelings surrounding that initial misunderstanding. There are so many hurt feelings and it’s easy to suspect the worst when it comes to other people’s intentions.

Violet and James have wonderful chemistry together. Even when they are sniping at each other, its’ clear to see that they care for each other deeply. After all, despite a whirlwind courtship, they were a love match—before that aforementioned misunderstanding drove them apart.

The two protagonists are supported by a delightful cast of secondary characters of friends and relations. I am not sure what Waters’ intentions are, but it is my fervent hope that we might receive sequels featuring these secondary characters paired together in their own starring roles.

I would absolutely recommend To Have and to Hoax. Waters brings Regency England to life and I loved the consistent pace of the cat-and-mouse game. I never knew what was going to happen next—Violet and James certainly outdid themselves over and over again. I am already looking forward to Waters’ next book.

Violet faking illness leads to all sorts of problems!

To Have and to Hoax by Martha Waters is the book for you if you like historical romance with some comedy with how Lady Violet and Lord James try to get even with each other.

Violet and James had been in love when they married but it turned cold with time but Violet cared enough to rush and check on James when she was notified that he had fallen off a horse but when she found him in good health, she decided to give him a taste of his own medicine by faking being sick.

Violet’s faking being sick leads to all sorts of problems when James finds out she is faking, he tries to teach her a lesson and maybe learn lesson of his own.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

What was once a love match between Lady Violet and Lord James Aubrey has become four years of polite conversation at breakfast and sleepless nights in separate bedrooms. Yet, when Violet receives word that her husband is unconscious after falling from a horse at their country estate she rushes to make sure he is well. When they meet up by accident at a country inn she realizes that he wouldn’t have told her he was well. She decides to get even in a scheme where she pretends to be ill just so he would know how he felt. When he catches on to her game he decides to see just how far she’ll take it.

When I read the synopsis I thought this sounded like a cute story. I like historical romances and an enemies to lover trope is always one of my favorites. To Have and To Hoax started off fun, but unlike Violet, I didn’t have to fake my approaching headache. Violet and James’s pettiness tried my patience pretty quickly.

To Have and To Hoax wasn’t all bad. The writing was very good, the side characters were really interesting, and the hero and heroine weren’t completely unlikeable. The game playing was just about 50 pages too long. I would’ve liked more chapters of the early days of their marriage so that I’d be more invested in them as a couple before they had their big argument. Unfortunately that was where the story started. It didn’t give me a lot of time to care and so I had little patience.

I tried very hard to not hold a fake illness against the author since this was written quite awhile before we got stuck in “quarantine” and took that into consideration in how this may have affected my enjoyment of this novel. I gave it a half star higher than I would’ve if I’d had the same feelings on a different day of reading this novel. ❤️❤️❤️❣️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for my honest review and it was honest!

It starts off slow and kind of dense, but once the action begins, it's hard to resist the story as it drives forward. It reads as a true epic, one that makes you feel the world really has been reshaped as you read it. Would recommend.

To Have and To Hoax is a charming, heartfelt romance and a stunning debut. I love reading stories that involve elaborate schemes, and Violet’s antics hit the spot. I laughed out loud at times, but also was rooting for James and Violet to repair their relationship as the problems in their marriage finally became apparent. Historical romance and rom-com fans will be excited to see this novel.

⭐⭐⭐⭐
4 STARS

I was so excited to read this book! Regency Era is one of my very favorites, and I couldn't wait to read this debut!

To Have and to Hoax is the story of Lady Violet Grey and Lord James Audley who met and fell in love 5 years previous. 1 year into their marriage however, they had a huge fight and have barely spoken to each other since. One day however, Violet receives a letter that James has been thrown from his horse and is unconscious, and being very alarmed, races to be with him. When she reaches their country estate, she discovers him at a tavern. He had woken and was completely fine and unaware of her concern. Violet, now extremely angry, decides to teach James a lesson and fakes her own illness. With the help of her friends, and an actor pretending to be her doctor, Violet feigns consumption, but James quickly sees through her game and decides to play along. Very quickly, the couple realizes that they may not hate each other as much as they thought, but they have to decide if 4 years of hate is too much to overcome.

I thought the writing was simply fantastic. Especially for a debut novel, and so I really look forward to more from Martha Waters in the future. I loved the charming and witty characters, and the unique twist on the RomCom with an already married couple in Regency England. I found that Violet and James were both easy to like, but their friends were fantastic, and I hope that Waters makes this more of a series and we get to see the friends stories as well.

I personally enjoyed the pranks and immature choices that this couple made, but I know that these two things + the miscommunication from their fight could be things that others may have issue with.

The reasons that this wasn't a 5 star read for me? At times the dialogue seemed slightly too modern for what I prefer in a Regency. I also felt that the times that I knew were supposed to make me laugh-out-loud just didn't. I found myself smiling a lot, and there was one particular part that made me cry, but the humor fell slightly flat for me. I also felt that there were certain things said that were highly repetitive. So for me it may just be that my expectations were too high, or it could have been my headspace currently, but it just fell slightly flat in those areas, so I gave it 4 stars.

Overall though, I found this debut novel to be highly enjoyable, and I look forward to more from Waters in the future--especially if she comes out with stories for the side characters which were such a gem in this novel.

**Special Thanks to the Atria Books for providing me a review copy in exchange for my honest thoughts and review.**

A comical, historical romance about a husband and wife faking illness and playing games in hopes to win each other’s love back after four years of argument.
Set in the late 1800s, Lord James Audrey and Lady Violet Grey meet and fall in love. What happened between them to cause this tension over the last few years? Was it something serious or a string of little misunderstandings?
— —
While reading this book, I had mixed emotions. Some parts I felt were a bit too silly and others I found I was swooning in love. Now that I finished the book, I reconsider my reaction and realize that this may how courtship/marriage could have been like during that time period and not to be so critical about it. I would recommend this book as a light, breezy romance. I would also recommend this book towards a young-adult audience rather than to adults.

This is a lighthearted romance during the time when women obeyed their parents and then their husbands, and they absolutely were never to be found alone on a balcony at a ball.

I enjoyed both Violet and James. Their relationship started off with a bang and then fast forward five years and we learn that it also ended with one as well. With a beginning that was hot and steamy, filled with so much passion in and out of the bedroom, this couple now find themselves living in a cold place with very little interaction between them. When an event occurs that sets Violet down the path of wifely fury, the past four years show to be very pale indeed.


’He’d meant to needle her, annoy her, but always maintain the upper ground – and yet, when she was looking at him like that, really looking at him without any of the distance that had spread between them, it was all he could do to keep his hands at his sides, to resist the temptation to reach out, pull her to him, and kiss her senseless.’


Violet was the opposite of what society dictated. She’s forthright and outspoken and while she doesn’t scandalize society, if they could see the real her, she would surely be ostracized. James has seen the real her and he loved everything about her. The fact that he wanted no other woman made me love him.


’Before he had met Violet, he would have said that he enjoyed kissing, that it was a diverting stop on the road to greater pleasures. But with violet, kissing was not merely a stop along a well-trodden path. It was a destination all its own.’


This is filled with plenty of fun arguing and banter as well as other characters that added humor to the already ridiculous situation this couple had worked themselves into. The steam level is low and this is a very slow burn until James and Violet finally give in to their desires and then, holy heck, they proved this wasn’t my momma’s historical romance.

While I’m not an expert on what is true or not during the era this was written for, I found it to be very realistic. With plenty of descriptions and the inner thoughts of this hero and heroine, I found myself swept up into their time and place.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable read and while I did skim a bit of descriptions and inner-logue towards the end, and would have loved to have received an epilogue, I was quite satisfied at the end.

To Have and to Hoax is a historical romance about second chance love in the times and style of Jane Austen novels. The writing was terrific, and I felt fully immersed in Victorian England. The characters were also well fleshed out, not perfect, and relatable.

The book was overall fun and easy to read. However, I did find the plot rather dull and flat, and despite the fantastic writing, it felt a little bit like reading fan fiction.