This is the first book in the series that I have read but I did not think that interfered with my ability to enjoy the story. The author does a great job of informing the reader what happened in the previous books without it feeling like she was retelling the plots from those novels - which works great for you (if like me) you want to go back and read the previous books or if you have already read books 1 and 2 and do not need the reminders of what happened in them. I liked Fanny's independent streak and commitment to her family, she was tough without being overbearing. I absolutely loved Eli right from the beginning and found it frustrating that Fanny couldn't see what a great guy he was earlier than she did. He is the kind of understated hero we could use more of in romance novels. The mystery surrounding Fanny's attempted abduction added an extra level of intrigue to the story without taking over the entire thing. My only complaint about the book is that I really wanted to know the plots of the books Fanny wrote.

Fanny and her half siblings are struggling after her stepfather drives their drapery business into the ground and dies leaving them with nothing but debts. Fanny is determined that her natural father owes it to her to help them but on travelling to his estate discovers that he is long dead and as she was not mentioned in his Will the estate owes her nothing. The new Earl however feels a moral obligation to help Fanny but as his father impoverished him, leaves it to his steward (fixer extraordinaire) to advise on a way forward. From the start Eli Benson is attracted to Fanny but knows he is not the hero she dreams of and with the the Earl’s acceptance of her as his half sister feels she is out of his reach. The story was enlivened by a human trafficking angle along with kidnap attempts, shootouts and frantic escapes. I can verify that this can be read as a standalone as I haven’t read the previous two books in this series.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Miss Frances Hancock was busy running the family drapery business, while caring for her younger brother and sister until her stepfather passed leaving behind a mountain of debt, having mortgaged the Drapery to pay for his extravagance. Poor and destitute with little choices, she goes in search of her father. An earl she never knew about, but whom she’s determined will have to help. Instead of a negligent father, what she finds is a capable steward, a fixer, Eli Benson. Through helping her, she eventually meets the earl (not her father, but his son who inherited the title when his father passed). She learns that though her father named all of his illegitimate children, he failed to remember her. Fortunately, the faithful steward will make sure he is cared for.
The adventure that ensues is fraught with danger, intrigue and of course, romance. I enjoyed watching the bond between his unlikely family of legitimate and illegitimate children alike. The fact that the Earl accepts and even cares for his fathers by-blows is a testament to his character and I look forward to reading his own story.
Fanny and Eli have such wonderful chemistry throughout the story. I loved that she never backed down, despite a new found abundance of men determined to see he ‘cared’ for, she was quick to set them in their place. To make them understand that it was her life, and she would not sit by the side like a good society girl. Eli’s doubts were understandable considering the relationships around him. He needed to be able to see himself through the eyes of others, to see that he was the indispensable one. Indeed, Mr.Benson would see to everything, and never failed to deliver.

I have been thoroughly enjoying this series. Eli has been my very favorite supporting character from the beginning, so I have been waiting – not very patiently – for his story, and it is finally here with the absolutely perfect match for him. You can totally read this as a standalone, but I have absolutely no idea why you’d want to. If you don’t know the ‘backstory’ to the series, it is definitely a unique one. The previous Earl of Clarion was a real piece of work – in the most unflattering ways. He was cruel, overbearing, abusive, uncaring, and he left a plethora of illegitimate children scattered across the countryside. Those children share something other than a father – they ALL have the red hair and green eyes for which the Caulfield ancestors have been famous. When his legitimate children both challenged him – in different ways – he changed his will to spite them. Since he couldn’t keep his son from inheriting the title or the entailed properties, he paupered the earldom by leaving all of the unentailed property, monies, and valuables to his illegitimate children – and he left absolutely nothing to his legitimate daughter. However, it seems there was one illegitimate child about which he didn’t know, and she is our female lead in this story. You will adore her – she is strong, smart, loyal, practical, loving, and nobody’s fool. She might be a tiny little thing, but she is a warrior at heart.

Frances Hancock has certainly been treated shoddily by the men in her life – but she is neither resentful nor bitter about it. She is, however, determined that her natural father provides her with help in some way. If he doesn’t, she and her two half-siblings will be out of food and a home without a farthing to help them recover. She cannot allow that to happen and she determines to travel from Manchester to Ashmead to confront the man who sired her and then ignored both her and her mother. When she arrives, tired and bedraggled from travel, she learns that the earl who fathered her has died and the estate doesn’t have any obligation to assist her in any way. Oh! No! All is not lost because the new earl is as good and the old one was bad. He’ll help if he can, but he has little with which to offer that help.

Eli Benson has been in each of the books and I’ve loved him in each. Eli is everybody’s go-to person. Whatever the problem or issue – the answer is – Mr. Benson will fix it. Yes, he is definitely a fixer. Eli isn’t the typical hero of which young girls dream. No, he’s ordinary looking, not overly tall, with regular brown hair and eyes, not gifted with athletic prowess. Eli is just the most amazing man. While he isn’t the typical hero-type – I’m betting he is the type of man we all end up choosing for ourselves in the end. He’s loyal, steadfast, highly intelligent, compassionate, loving – well – you name it and Eli is all of those good things. So, when a lovely young woman with Caulfield hair and eyes shows up on the earl’s doorstep, he is all empathy. He knows, however, that the estate absolutely cannot afford any financial gifts to the young lady. He also knows the earl will probably want to do something and it will be up to him to figure out what and how.

Eli elects to travel back to Manchester with Fanny in order to try to sort out her most immediate problems – namely having her property foreclosed leaving her and her siblings destitute. Goodness – all fury breaks out from that point forward – we have kidnappings, rescues, highwaymen, debauched potentates, slave trade, human trafficking and so much more. There is plenty of action – and plenty of romance – and – dare I say it – jealousy.

I definitely recommend this book and this series. It is excellently written, the plot is interesting, the timing is perfect, and – well – I already told you the characters are absolutely perfect for each other. Read it – you won’t regret it.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

4.5 stars

Eli is the efficient steward to David, the Earl of Clarion. His father runs the local inn with his sister. It's a great series and we've seen Eli before in books one and two. In those books he was helping sort of David's fathers will. The will left behests for the old Earl's illegitimate children. Unfortunately Frances turns up and from her physical appearance it's obvious she's an illegitimate sibling of David but wasn't mentioned in the will. She's also penniless and looking after her half silings. Eli returns with Fran to Manchester to aid her in sorting out her step fathers estate and finds that villains are after kidnapping her. This means that Eli has to get the help of both his half siblng Rob (Hero from Book 1) and David to help solve the problem. Eli worries that he is not hero material and therefore Frances won't consider him but it works out well in the end,

A delightful cleanish read that I think you will enjoy. Now eagerly awaiting David's story.,

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

4 1/2*Stars*
After her mother's death, Fanny discovers her natural father is the Earl of Clarion. With creditors knocking on the door and two siblings to support, Fanny is not afraid to ask him for help. Eli Benson is the steward, solicitor, man of business, agent, bookkeeper and general factotum for the new Earl of Clarion. Not mentioned in the old Earl's will, Fanny's red hair and green eyes leave not doubt she is the old Earl's daughter. Determined to help, Eli works out a plan to take the burden off her shoulders. Meanwhile something sinister is going on. Someone keeps trying to kidnap Fanny. At first glance Eli may not look like a hero, but to Fanny he proves what a hero really is.
Eli is my favorite character in the book. He is the fixer.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book

Eli Benson, the overburdened man responsible for fixing the problems caused by the irresponsible late Earl of Clarion, is horrified to find a young lady standing on the doorstep with the same eyes and coloring as the rest of the Caulfield offspring. He quickly realizes that his work in solving the family's problems is far from over. Fanny Hancock is feisty and strong-willed, despite her petite appearance, and she will fight for her rights and those of her half-brother and sister. In the third book in this series, the hero appears to be unimposing and the heroine has no status, however, together they form a dynamic duo and win the love and respect of everyone in the family. The novel is more about detective work and finding solutions to the myriad of problems that face the beleaguered steward than romance, but ultimately Eli and Fanny find their way towards one another. Many of the characters from the previous books in the series appear in this novel, each with their part to play, drawing Fanny and “the ducklings” into their fold. Ultimately, the romance comes to a good conclusion with the perpetrators of crimes finding their just desserts, whilst Eli and Fanny find a place to call their own. I received a copy of this book as a gift from Dragonblade Publishing and NetGalley and this is my honest and voluntary review.

Will she be able to see past his knight without an armor’s appearance to discover the hero behind the books …

I have learned with the author to take my time while reading her stories, they are tale loaded with details, events, twists and turns and historical facts. So every moment is to savored as the clues add piece by piece to the puzzle this book offers.

Eli is my kind of hero, no alpha caveman sort of fellow, he faces problems and solves, with his analytic mind, he is at the right place righting the wrong done by his employer’s late father’s will. Yet he thought he was done until unknown progeny landed at their door. With one more new conundrum to sort out.
Eli might be the shadow behind the hero, the brain handing the informations to the brawn, without his interference, nothing would never be done.
If there is a problem, a need, ask Mr Benson.
Frances or Franny is at her wits end with no one to turn to except the man who sired her. Alas as she finds out quickly, he had passed and left her out of his will. So back to no option nor solutions until Mr Benson steps in and appoints himself as her knight with a quill and ledgers to assail the villains.
Like many, Fanny, the woman who writes epic novels, dismissed him as at best the hero’s best friend, only first seeing the man as a desk person. Yet as hints of this and that come to light, she releases there is much more to the fellow, made of layers of good will, tenacity, cleverness and kindness.
Why she get to change her idea of what makes a good hero, there is more to good looks and prowess in battles.

I adored this story, it is no linear tale as it sees Fanny and Eli often running to one place to another, for Eli to pile up evidence and pointer to help her but also offer her a better future while she explores her new feelings, shredding her girl’s dreams to real expectations.
5 stars

𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹 sweet foreplays scene

I have been granted an advance copy by the publisher Dragonblade Publishing, here is my true and unbiased opinion.

Destitute, Frances turns to her newly found relatives for help. Eli, steward and fixer of estate problems, attempts to help her. When someone tries to abduct Frances, Eli and the family must come to her rescue. Eli’s protectiveness turns to much more. I received an ARC from NetGalley and Dragonblade Publishing for my honest review.