I loved Casies last series featuring Sommer by the sea and this is a form of revisit. Lady Anna is an event planner who loves to organise, her cousin is entering politics and asks her for help to host an event. Unfortunately her cousin also needs to marry money to finance his career and Anna is in his sights.
Frazer is an old childhood friend who, on returning from the war, finds himself inheriting his family estate. Both men have their eye on the lady, who will she choose? It is a bit of a no-brainer but does make for an entertaining story. I love this author, she has a gift for making her characters very real and believable. I am looking forward to book 2 in this series. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC of The Lady and the Barrister.

This is the first book in the series Return to Ladies of Sommer by the Sea, and it is off to a delightful start. After having two unsuccessful seasons, Lady Anna is pretty much resigned to the idea that she will remain a spinster. She takes comfort in the fact that she is quite successful at being a hostess and organizer, despite being inwardly shy. Fraser is a longtime friend of Anna's, and just recently learning he has inherited a dukedom, he returns to Sommer by the Sea and runs into her. They commiserate on the fact that the marriage mart only sees the value of their purse strings rather than for who they are as people. Anna tries to help him by presenting him with lists of eligible ladies, but none of them seem to interest him. He is only interested in one particular lady, and she doesn't seem to have a clue.
Reginald is vying to be the next member of parliament. He needs a wealthy wife to support his political plans, and his sights settle on Anna. He goes to her under the guise of needing help with planning a campaign event, but has ulterior motives. Now, with both Reginald and Fraser vying for her attention, who will Anna choose?
An entertaining and well-crafted story with interesting characters made for an enjoyable read. A great start to the series, and I'm looking forward to reading more!

I found the story to be very timid. The motivations from the characters has entertainment for those readers who love debating among lawyers and friends who work in the political field. The plot moved with characters. I thought that the plot was logical. The story fits well with the time period. The romance was sweet and very innocent.
I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

From the first page to the last you will spellbound by the Lady and the Barrister. Ruth A. Casie has filled it with great cast of characters that come off the pages and pull you into this romance that reunite childhood friends that will keep you reading until the very end, with deception, witty dialogue and with a plot full of suspense that leaves you eagerly wanting more.

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily reviewing it.

Lady Anna Ravenscroft knows exactly what she wants from her life. Having gone through
two Seasons she knows the horrors of scheming Mamas, bankrupt barons, and prefers a quiet
life till she meets or does not meet the man of her dreams. She is an accomplished
hostess and is much in demand arranging receptions and soirees and she enjoys helping out.
Dragged into helping out a distant relation, against her better judgement for him to
make a political debut, she is unwittingly dragged into a scheming maelstrom where
her future will be compromised and where her fortune will be taken over by an undeserving
man. Her old friend who has been a confirmed, very eligible bachelor has begun to
realise his developing feelings for Anna and can see clearly how her loyalty to helping
a cousin, is going to drag her into a greater mess.

How Anna with the help of her friends unravels herself from the impending mess is a nicely
told happy ever after.

I really enjoyed the plot of the book, but found the writing to be incredibly disjointed. Nothing flowed easily and scenes would cut away and jump to new days and locations with zero transition. A tough read in the end,

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC.

Thank you NetGalley for an excellent read. Lady Anna is quite independent and the the new Duke Willbury who has known her most of her life just wants to protect her. They have some difference of opinions in that area. She thinks she can handle her cousin but being a man who wants what he wants maybe she should leave this up to the duke. In the end they find that the truth and always the whole truth is the best way to handle most things between them. A little suspense and some romance turns into what might be a reading in one sitting.

Gentle ,historical romance with a dashing hero and a spirited heroine. Throw in a bit of a mystery and you have an enjoyable read.

I liked this story a lot more than I thought I would. It was more intriguing the more it went on.
This review may contain spoilers.
The heroine of this story is a 23-ish noble lady. When her childhood friend, the hero, returned from the war, he was a broken man. He and his twin had gone to the navy and were stationed on the same ship. His brother was a sharp shooter and they were standing near Nelson when he was shot. While the hero was helping Nelson down to his room, his twin had shot the assassin on the other ship, but the assassin managed to shoot before he was shot and the hero's twin was shot dead. He didnt even have time to hold him as he died. The hero was not advised until after the battle. The heroine and her friend had a charity for returning soldiers, but they did more than embroider and collect money. They actually worked with the injured soldiers and nursed them back to health and offered a sympathetic ear for the soldiers to process the horror they lived through. The heroine knew the hero would be suffering from some kind of survivors remorse and gifted him a spaniel. Then they didnt meet again for five years.
The heroine stays at her home in a little town by the ocean. She is an event planner and is known for her event planning skills for charities and friends parties. She doesn't get paid for it, because she is a lady, but she is in demand for the next few weeks. Her parents returned to London for the Season, but after two Seasons, the heroine refuses to return. She is looking for a man who supports her independence. She finds that most men are seeking a malleable, sweet wife who caters to their every need. That is not the heroine. She feels like she is failing at the marriage part and refuses to try to find a man who will meet her criteria. The hero has inherited the title of Duke, but doesn't want all hoopla that comes with it. He decided that he needs to settle down, but in the future. He is a sucessful barrister and is involved with politics. He holds his seat in the house of Lords. He comes back to the village because his aunt had passed away and he was going over her records. He found the estate was without cash, but there was nothing in the ledgers to explain why. As he was talking to an army friend, he sees the heroine and is taken by how lovely and elegant she is. He knows he needs to marry, but he feels his trauma from the war is not fair to burden on a future wife.
This book was much more than a child hood friend romance. I was surprised at the level of intrigue. I liked the main characters and the supporting characters. The story all made sense. I was able to immerse myself and I enjoyed this story very much. I give this story 5 stars and recommend reading.

3.5 Stars
Lady Marianna Ravencroft shines brightly as a much-admired organizer and hostess. In her mind it is the one thing at which she succeeds. Inwardly she is shy, retiring… a wallflower. Lord Fraser Castleton, a London barrister is shocked when he inherits a title and estate from his mother’s great aunt and becomes the 8th Duke of Willbury. He returns to Sommer-by-the-Sea to take up permanent residence. He crosses paths with his long time friend, Anna. He confides that he is the target of every mother with an unmarried daughter. She commiserates with him. Every eligible gentleman sees the Ravencroft purse rather than her. Together they decide to find a mate for each other. Anna presents him with a list of several eligible women. Castleton is receptive, but not enthusiastic. Reginald Younge wants to be the next Member of Parliament for his borough but he needs funds to finance the campaign himself so he needs a wealthy wife. He calls on Lady Anna for assistance with a campaign event but has an ulterior motive
A well written interesting read with likeable characters & a well paced story. I liked both Anna & Fraser & whilst there was some chemistry between them it didn’t sizzle & I felt the romance played second fiddle to the mystery. I did enjoy the book but didn’t love it but would read more in the series
My review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

2.5. I think this book was not for me. Although the plot was interesting (giving off persuasion vibes), I had a hard time going through the conversations in the book. I don’t feel like people actually conversed like that. Basically, the conversations felt like narrations.

This is Anna and Fraser's story. 1st in the new series Return to the Ladies of Sommer By the Sea by Ruth A Casie.

They were friends growing up before Fraser went off to war. When he cam back he had changed into a wounded hero and Anna a young debutante. Fraser then left for London to become a barrister and Anna had 2 disappointing seasons over the 5 years they were apart.
Fraser's Aunt passed and since she had no children herself named him as the Duke of her late husband's title. This is where he comes back to Sommer By the Sea and sees that his friend has grown into a wonderful woman and his heart slowly opens up to her. Unfortunately at the same time Anna's 4th cousin is trying to Wed her, but only for her money 💰.

This is a wonderful story and a quick read 📚. The characters have such great chemistry that it's easy to fall in love with them. Great beginning to a new series.

4 stars

Lovely story. Marianne has been educated by Mrs Bainbridge, she's very practical, organised and self reliant. Her cousin, Richard asks her to host an event for him as he's standing for parliament. Previously she'd received a letter from his father. Fraser has returned home. His is now a Duke. Anna was friends with his grandmother. Unfortunately his Granny fell down the stairs and Fraser is also concerned that a previous steward was accused of theft and sent off to Oz. As a brarrister he thinks something is very off. He starts to realise that the prospective parliamentary candidate is dodgy and he becomes angry to think that Anna's involved. He doesn't trust that she's able to deal with everything herself. Fraser has been bombarded with mohers and debutantes eager to be his Duchess so he asks his old friend Anna to let hom court her in an effect to put a stop to these ladies.

Interesting story. Has encouraged me to read book 1 in this series.

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

The Lady and the Barrister
By Ruth A. Casie

Setting:
Somerset By the Sea, England 1814

Characters:
Marianna "Anna" Ravenscroft
Lord Fraser Castleton
Reginald Younge

Tropes:
Love Triangle
Wallflower
Possible Marriage of Convenience

Goodreads:
🌟 🌟 🌟. 5 rounded to 4

Spice:
None

Review:
I did really enjoy this story, and I greatly appreciated the characters of Anna and Fraser, but I just felt that this story needed a lot more romance and chemistry between the two. It read more like a historical fiction rather than the romance genre it is marketed as. I thought the writing wad good, and would pick up another work by this author.

A light fun romance with a touch of mystery and a bad guy in a lovely seaside setting what more could you ask for. A Clean romance with only kissing and a could pace which I read in one sitting. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This book has a great plot, riveting banter, steamy chemistry, ups and downs, all tied up with a HEA!.

2.5 stars, rounded up

This book was not for me. While I enjoyed the setting, and the premise was interesting, I found the characters to be very underdeveloped and shallow. The female main character, Anna, was one of the better characters in the book, but I couldn’t really connect with her; her actions were never really in touch with her thoughts. As for the male main characters/love interests, neither of them were all that great. Richard was supposed to be awful, so that worked out fine (he sucked), but Fraser was supposed to be the ‘good guy.’ He was annoying, but to be honest I don’t have a lot to back that up with, so I’m pretty sure that’s a me problem. I just wasn’t a fan of how he acted like he owned Anna when he was mad at her. Richard did that too, but he was the ‘bad’ guy…I didn’t want to see it from the ‘good’ guy too.
As for the romance, it was not at all believable. It was extremely underdeveloped. The characters went from being childhood friends who hadn’t talked for ten years, to professing their love for each other in like a matter of weeks. There also was no basis for the relationship, other than “wow we used to run around together and play when we were eight years old.” Then, they meet again and talk for the first time in ten years, it’s not awkward at all, everything is the exact same, and they’re in love? It just doesn't really make sense to me.
Now, on to the technicalities. The chapter endings were choppy and abrupt. Almost all of the chapters felt incomplete, and ended almost seemingly in the middle of a scene; it was a bit weird, and really interrupted the flow of the story. The dialogue was also unrealistic; the characters talked to each other in very stilted and overly descriptive ways, which really slowed down the pace of some of the scenes. I did like the flow of the story, though. The pacing was pretty good overall, and the author’s descriptions were enjoyable.
Overall, I didn't really like this book. I liked the premise, and the female main character was okay, but the other characters were not. The romance wasn’t very good, and the dialogue caused the story to slow down. I did, however, like the flow of the writing; the book was very easy to read, and the writing was very descriptive without being overwhelming or wordy, which was nice! The author also did a good job with panning out all of the character motives, which was helpful, and kept me from getting the characters confused with each other. While I didn’t enjoy this book, I can definitely see why others would!