I wish I could be glow-y about this book, but it just didn’t work for me. The information about the real life art exhibition was interesting. The author is clearly a big art fan. But Rosanna’s willingness to put up with the casual touching and kissing and baby names from uber creep Anton was annoying, as was her ability to self-delude. Martin’s overreaction when Rosanna made a confession about what was happening in the exhibition was out of character. The bad guy was literally a moustache-twirling Victorian villain, and a big climactic scene on multiple trains was wholly unbelievable. I hope for better next time from the author.

I read an advance reader copy from Netgalley.

Rosanna is an artist who reproduces masterpieces. She meets Martin, the inspector, and becomes friends while at the museum. They both seem to fall for each other quite quickly. I think the first half of this book seemed pretty slow, but was intrigued the second half of the book with all the action. Their relationship was sweet but seemed to just move so quickly in the first few chapters ( in my own opinion). This was a clean and fun read. There were just kisses and some innuendo in it.

*Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book and an opportunity to post an honest review.

The story serves as a part period romance and a hunt. Majorly focuses on the aesthetics and beauty of the surroundings in that time. For that the book really tried its best to take us to the century and it works for most of the time.

Unfortunately, this book was not for me. I DNF at about 25%. There was nothing wrong with the content, I just wasn't drawn to the characters and personally had a hard time connecting with the writing style. I might have to give it a try at a later date, since it could also be a simple case of good book at the wrong time.

Thank you to NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishers for the ARC.

A unique plot with sweet characters at its heart.

This is such a lovely proper romance! The main characters fall in love so slowly, going through a lot to get there, and I truly enjoyed it. They are both beautiful, as a couple and individually.
The mystery at the heart of the story was intriguing and fresh. It kept me turning the page well into the night!
Highly recommend this one!

Star Rating: 4/5

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars.
Summary: Rosanna, a phenomenal artist with a creative mind is constrained to imitating other great artists. Martin, an inspector with a strict moral code is trying to get out from the shadow of his tainted family. An art exhibition brings them together but their differing opinions of right and wrong threaten to tear them apart. When an art heist further complicates matters, their independent courses to stop a thief just might bring them together in an unexpected way.

I’m a bit conflicted on this one. The premise of this story had my name written all over it. Art, Victorian romance, mystery—sign me up! The execution, however, was a bit different than what I expected.

What I liked:
I do feel like the author showed creativity and uniqueness with the plot and aspects of the characters. She flipped the stereotypical gender roles making our heroine more bold and outspoken while the hero is more on the demure side.

Little bits of dialogue and description scattered through the book I found witty and humorous. Things like: “Finally, the man approached, his graying ginger hair combed back from the peak of his forehead, side-whiskers partly concealing his somewhat pointy ears. Martin had the fleeting feeling he was speaking to a fox in the process of becoming human.” While not essential to the plot, they added to my enjoyment as I read.

Things really picked up in the second part of the book. The added danger, action, and excitement the art heist portion brought was fun and not something I’ve seen a lot of in the other proper romance books I’ve read.

The exploration of creating and enjoying art set a nice background for the story.

I know the whole “don’t judge a book by its cover” thing, but seriously, this book cover is beautiful.

What I didn’t love:

My biggest qualm is that the relationship moved too fast to have any real depth. While I wouldn’t call this insta-love (a trope I hate) the relationship between the two characters felt more like infatuation. The time between them is spent either flirting with each other or thinking about the person in their absence. We only see the beginning of their relationship, as most of the story happens in the span of a few weeks. Then, the last chapter jumps ahead several months to the happy ending (which I admit was very sweet and sigh-worthy.)But those in between months where their relationship could be explored and the reader could watch it deepen we don’t get to see, we are simply told and then we jump to the ending.

The conflict between them seemed a bit exaggerated and then resolved too quickly. I would’ve liked to have seen things drawn out a bit more and resolved more gradually.

I don’t mind introspection of the characters but at times it seemed repetitive.

I liked the characters well enough but wasn’t really invested in them. They tease and banter, which is fine, but I felt like they could’ve used a bit more substance.

I didn’t really understand Rosanna’s relationship with her employer, Anton. I felt that a few things that happened on the train wouldn’t have happened the way they did considering all the other passengers onboard (which seems almost forgot about at first.) But these were minor, and didn’t take away from the overall story.

Bottom line: I enjoyed the story well enough but it fell a little flat for me and contained tropes I personally don’t love. So whether or not you should read this really depends on what you’re looking for. If you’re looking for a slow burn or a deep connection between the H and h, this probably isn’t for you. But if you don’t mind a whirlwind romance, you’re looking for a light read that’s a little different, or if you can’t decide between action and romance, you might like this book.

Content— Romance: Clean. Kisses only. Mild innuendo when one of the characters is trying to deceive another.
Language: None.
Violence: Present, but not graphic. A man strikes and threatens a woman. Mild danger and peril.

Thanks to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for the ARC. I am voluntarily leaving a review with my honest opinion.

There is nothing so uplifting as a good love story wrapped in a “light” crime story accompanied by the story of a woman figuring out who she really is. I found this book entertaining and it captured my attention. Will the love story come to completion? Will the characters stick to their “moral” structures? Will the truth of the crime be found? A good, solid read that was enticing and easy to read. There are some good gifts although many are around art supplies so that might be a limitation. Here are my favorites.

The world of fine art has always fascinated me, so I was excited to see a Proper Romance book about art! Overall, I enjoyed the characters and the story. Rosanna was both traditional, yet independent. It was a good mix. Martin was a solid, good man with a romantic heart under his tough detective exterior.

I enjoyed the story, but there were some inconsistencies that were a bit frustrating. It's best to just read and enjoy the adventure! The Victorian Era is one of my favorites so I enjoyed the little details about that time period.

Thank you to NetGalley, Shadow Mountain Publishing, and the author for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest opinions.

The Art of Love and Lies is the perfect blend of a cozy mystery and historical romance. Although this book has a bit of a slow start, I found myself soon caught up in the story. The climatic train scene at the end had me on the edge of my seat and reminded me of a Victorian version of "Ocean's Eleven." Overall, this was a very satisfying story. Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

If you enjoy a romance/ mystery novel, art, a little bit of danger and intrigue, daring, lovable main characters as well as some pretty creepy bad ones. This book is so for you!!
The story starts off a little slow, but super sweet and allows us to get to know the main characters as their lives cross paths.
Rosanna Hawkins is an exceptionally talented artist. Her forte? Reproductions, imitations, copies, forgeries, whatever one chooses to see her work as, she can make an identical piece to match great masterpieces. As such she spends a great deal of time at one of the largest exhibitions in Manchester, observing all facets of art and masterpieces.
Detective Martin Harrison is head of security for the exhibition. Upon meeting, Rosanna and Martin are quickly swept into a friendship and blooming romance while roaming the exhibition halls.
Both have such intriguing lives and pasts, but the real action is in their current lives, where there are art thefts, threats, kidnapping, chasing trains, it’s all there!
If you read the synopsis, I definitely paints a clearer picture, but if I’m being honest, I didn’t read it. I saw Proper Romance on the cover and dove right in. And I am so glad I did! The element of surprise in a book with more mystery is, for me, essential! But even if you do read the blurb, there is plenty of twists along the way to keep you in the edge of your seat! And plenty of sweet romance along the way to keep it interesting in both areas!

I will say, the beginning is a bit slower, and then it really picks up with the action, romance, all of it! But the things I learnt about art, especially great art, I left this look feeling like I read a beautiful story and learned something! Which I love! (And be sure to read the authors note to learn more of the behind the scenes that inspired it all)

My conclusion? This book is beautiful, it has this elegance that will sweep you in from the beginning with that stunning cover, and the pages within match it, with a touch of mystery added to really make this story a masterpiece! It is definitely a book to add to your shelves!

Thank you NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for the complimentary e-arc of this book in exchange for a review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Content: clean with a little TW
Romance: kissing
Violence: mild; threats, kidnapping, a man slaps a woman. The bad guy in this could be a trigger for some, as he is nice until he’s not, and then he’s really not.
Language: none.

The book follows the story of Rosanna, a painter artist that tries to have a place between the guild of professional artist. She reproduces replications as good as the originals which are sold to the middle-class members in Manchester.
In the meantime, an art exhibition take places in Manchester and she dreams about sketchs the masterpieces from renowed authors, so she visited it.almost everyday. There she meets Detective Martin, who is in charge of the security staff. They spent many afternoons discussing art and feelings between them grows. One day she discovers that one of her paintings are displayed in the exhibition as an original, what means that someone are replacing them and stealing the originals.
The evidence signales her as responsible for the thefts, so she has to prove her innocence to Martin and to the rest , so she devises a plan in order to catch the thief. Will Rossana and Martin be able to stop the criminals from steal the most valuable piece of art in the exhibition and at the same time restore their relationship?
I have find this book very enjoyable, very well written and the mystery adds the perfect mix for a great story

BRIEF REVIEW
I thought the premise of the book sounded promising. I thought there were some beautiful moments in which we see what's going on in Rosanna's heart and soul as she creates. The relationship developments were not my ideal, and there were some details I didn't care for. The pacing of the book also didn't work for me. However, the second half of the book really picked up, and I was interested to see where it was going. PLEASE remember that just because this book wasn't MY complete ideal doesn't mean it isn't someone else's ideal! If you're interested in reading it, please do!

BRIEF CONTENT GUIDE
😘 Kisses only
🙊 No swearing (1 use of "damning" synonymous with "condemning")
🍷 No substance use that I recall
🤕 Mild violence

BOTTOM LINE
If you'd like (1) a character-driven story that leads to a more plot-driven/balanced storyline and (2) a unique Victorian setting involving art, you should give this one a go.

NOTE
I received a free digital ARC of this book via NetGalley in exchange for honest feedback. This did not affect my review.

I loved this book about Martin and Rosanna. Their chemistry was written perfectly and I loved their banter and wit.

The story of catching an art thief definitely kept me interested though it was somewhat easy to predict what was going to happen. There were some things time line was that didn't make sense but I was able to let those things go and just enjoy the novel. I loved the authors descriptions of the artwork and paintings. You could tell she put a lot of effort and thought to make it easy to picture and feel the love of the artwork the characters saw.

It was a sweet romance with quite a few sweet kisses, no language and a story that kept me turning page after page. I would love to see novels written about Rosanna's sisters as well to keep the series going.

Grateful to get an eARC version of the book from netgalley and Rebecca Anderson.

This was a fun story into the art world in the later 1800's, with a bit of intrigue and theft.

Rosanna is a painter, but not a painter of her own art, that was discouraged. Instead, she is a very good reproduction artist. She is so good that her art is wanted by people to put in their houses, or so she thought....

Inspector Hawkins is a man with a family whose past keeps following him. He has tried to outrun it, to be the opposite of his father, and has a very firm line of what is black and what is white.

As their friendship increases, so do darker forces behind the art exhibition.

I enjoyed the characters, I loved their banter and the humor in this story. Another win for Rebecca Anderson.

THE ART OF LOVE AND LIES-Rebecca Anderson

Shadow Mountain Publishing

ISBN: 978-1-63993-108-8

August 8, 2023

Historical Romance



Manchester, England-1857





Rosanna Hawkins will firmly tell you that she is a reproductionist and not a copier. When it comes to recreating the paintings of the masters, she is the best, at least that is what Anton Greystone tells her. He is the man that sells her reproductions to wealthy families who can’t get the real works of the masters they love. Rosanna makes a good living doing this.



She spends her days at The Art Treasures Exhibition, which has come to Manchester, England for a couple of weeks, to draw the works of famous painters. The exhibition houses some of the most famous works in the world, most notably art works by Michelangelo. While there one day she meets Inspector Martin Harrison who is there to protect the works of art hung up in the exhibition.



Martin is from Manchester but left after his father was found guilty of the crime of selling stolen goods and then was sent to Australia. Martin is a salt of the earth kind of man with a strong moral compass. When he meets Rosanna, he is instantly smitten. After that, he looks for her as he partakes his daily rounds around the exhibition. Over the coming weeks, Rosanna and Martin run into each other and Rosanna explains the works of art to Martin.



THE ART OF LOVE AND LIES is a sweet romance with a couple of twists I did not see coming. Rosanna comes from a wealthy family that allows her to have her independence for her and her sisters, Lottie and Ella. All three of them have endeavors into the arts. Rosanna rents a room in a boarding house and pays her own way while recreating famous painter’s work. She was not encouraged by her art teachers to produce works of her own and sometimes Rosanna has a desire to do so.



Anton Greystone reveals himself to be a villain and a scary one at that. When Martin finds out that Rosanna, as he puts it, is a forger, the would be couple, have a few bumps in the road before finding their happiness.



If you are the type of romance reader that likes a relatively clean romance(there are only two kisses in the story) that is well researched and with an heroine that can be annoying but interesting and a hero who blushes but who is strong and moral then THE ART OF LOVE AND LIES is for you.

This was a fun read. Rosanna is an interesting and flawed character. She is independent and also naive as a woman of her era would be growing up sheltered. Readers can't not help but love Rosanna because she is such a real character. Rosanna and Martin's relationship is enchanting from the beginning. Their conversation is witty and intelligent. The insight into the art world is also so interesting. The author has an appreciation for art and gives some wonderful perspectives to the art they view in the novel. I really enjoyed this book.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC. All opinions below are my own.

I loved this story! Another in the Proper Romance collection, it has delivered a fresh, sweet, adventurous, cosy read. The plot was pretty original. The banter between the MMC and FMC is top notch, and there is pretty much romantic tension from the start. I’m not sure how realistic the ‘security detail’ aspect of the story is, but it’s fun anyway! I hate seeing the FMC being used so terribly by her ‘boss’, but I loved seeing her artistic talent develop until she finally realised how good she is. Not to mention there’s a robbery, a counterfeit ring and a total visit thrown in. This is another great read and I’m looking forward to official release day.

This was a cute story. A lot of mystery and sleuthing. I struggled a bit with the main character. I don’t think I would have been the type of girl to allow a guy to touch me as much as much as Anton did.

I really liked martin. He was a good love interest. I felt like he had his hands full with Rosanna, she kept heading into situations head first.

I liked how you were on top of your toes. It was a fun resolution.

This book was enjoyable, but I was left wanting more: more details, more explanations, more depth of storyline. I thought the relationship between Rosanna and Martin was very cute and playful. I enjoyed her little art appreciation lessons and her fun, made-up stories about the artwork. Rosanna was a wonderful character and I liked watching her slowly come into her own and how she would start questioning and standing up to Anton a little more each time she saw him. It was an enjoyable read.

Thank you NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for this digital arc in exchange for my honest review which is not affiliated with any brand.

The Art of Love and Lies is a lighthearted book talking readers on a journey of romance, artistry, thievery and suspense. This book was clean and enjoyable to read and reminded me a bit of Michelle Griep’s book The Thief of Blackfriar’s Lane because of the solving-the-case events, witty banter, and lovable characters.

All in all, The Art of Love and Lies is a fun read! Thank you to NetGalley and the author for an eARC of The Art of Love and Lies. A positive review was not required, only my honest opinion. All thoughts are expressly my own.