Going into this book I was excited. The description and premise of the story was very enticing and I was excited. From the start you’re thrown in to the action… and not in the best way. There were so many new character straight off the bat, all with their own history and connections. It was rather confusing and it felt as though I was starting in the middle of their story rather than at the start. And while I appreciate that the point is they have history and complex backgrounds I feel as though they could have been presented more slowly and spaced out.

Small thoughts:

- I do appreciate Cressida as a strong female lead. It’s rarer to find them in regency romance’s so I was happy to find her.

- The time period this book takes place in seems to have been well researched.

- The cover of the book is gorgeous and I’m a huge fan of it.

- I enjoyed the shorter chapters and it helped with the pacing.

Final thoughts… I tried so hard to like this book however it just ended up not being my cup of tea. There will probably be other readers who love this book though.

Thank you to Katy Moran, Aria and Aries publisher and NetGalley for the ARC copy in exchange for an honest review of this book.

First of all, thank you to Katy Moran, Aria and Aries publisher and NetGalley for the eARC and letting me give my honest review of this book.

I do love regency romance. Throw in some mystery and thriller, that would be even perfect. First and foremost, what I do love about this book is the storyline and Cressida's strong female character. It is uncommon to see character like Cressida to be portrayed in regency romance's novel.

However, I had quite a rough time trying to read this book. Early on this book, I feel like I've been fed too much on characters introduction; the alternate usage between their titles and their true name made me so confused. I thought I was imagining 2 different person but in fact, it was actually the same person.

This starting of this book felt like I've jumped into a book at 30% read. Along the stories there are some back story given here and there, but an elaborated prologue would've been appreciated in other to have a trunk to branch all the stories unfold as the stories move along.

I'm reading this with the thought of it will have the same writing style as Jude Deveraux and Judith McNaught. It is definitely different.

I want to love this book so bad, it has such a promising storyline. I am sad I had to give this 2 stars.

The Regency period is not really my favorite time in history but I truly enjoyed this book.
I’ll admit though that something about the writing did make it a bit hard, at least at the beginning, to follow what was going on.
Nonetheless, I’d love to read a sequel as I think the finale opens itself up to so many possibilities.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book and provide honest feedback.

A 3 star book for me. Whist it was interesting to read a historical fiction novel from this time period the story was hard to follow at times. The main characters were interesting enough but the ending did seem flat.

dnfed at about 65%. i think i lost interest way before that point but its just because i don't like to dnf books that i was trying to power thru it but boy did i fail. Quite honestly I don't take dnfing books lightly and definitely not when it comes to arcs but this one is just plain awful like the plot was everywhere and i waited for things to come together but they never did. All in all it was too confusing to even push through it. just not worth it.

Upon delving into My Lady's Secrets, I embarked on a reading journey with uncertain expectations. While elements of the novel, such as the protagonist Cressida's resilience and determination in intense situations, provided moments of enjoyment, the overall reading experience was hindered by the writing style. The narrative, laden with strategizing and politics, felt tedious and akin to reading a textbook rather than a captivating novel. The author's attempt at historical and feminist fiction fell short due to the lack of direct explanations for certain events and an excess of lengthy strategy chapters. The initial intense moments lacked context until clues were gradually revealed throughout the story. Although the potential for a more engaging experience exists with sharper writing and trimmed strategy chapters, fans of historical fiction might still find elements to appreciate in My Lady's Secrets.

The positives:
* A well-researched setting and time period made this book quite immersive and intriguing
* The characters had interesting backstories and relationships
* Writing style was good and seemed appropriate for the time period
* I learnt some history from reading this book, which I love. It got me interested in Lord Byron

The negatives:
* The plot seemed muddled to me -- I wasn't sure what was going on at times
* So many characters it was hard to keep track of them, which made it hard to connect with them
* Constant emphasis on backstory which, while it made sense, made me think it was more important than any of what was going on in the story itself
* Due to all this, the ending fell flat for me

I think this book would have benefited from being part of a series, or perhaps following the characters' backstory instead. I did enjoy reading it, but I would have enjoyed it much more if I could follow the characters a little longer, and be introduced to them more slowly.

Thank you kindly for the ARC!

This book was a lukewarm read for me. I appreciated the tenacity of our FMC, Cressida and some of the historical aspects surrounding the role of women in wartime during the regency era, but it just wasn’t wholly what I needed it to be.

I felt that the author waited a little too long to provide context to the actions of the characters in the first few chapters, so it was slightly confusing when we began to read the clues we needed to piece it all together. I also felt the romance between Cressida and Greville to be somewhat frustrating and contrived.

Thank you to NetGalley and Aria publishers for access to this eARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Be warned of those who claim this is a 4-5 star read. Thank goodness I'm not alone in feeling wildly confused about the entire story. It had a great premise, but it was completely butchered. There were so many characters and plotlines, not to mention plot holes. I was okay with being thrown into the action from the beginning, but it was so poorly developed!

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

I have mixed feelings about this book… I love the concept and the story but the way it’s written and the word choices made it so hard to get into the plot. I loved the whole ‘spy’ plotline and the romance was good to but the writing style just felt a little off for me.

This was an excellent read. I loved the main character, Cressida, a forthright, capable and determined heroine, but one suffering from a lack of confidence at times due to perceived flaws. The romance is an unlikely one, and it takes a whole before Cressida can even think to like him, let alone love him. The plot has plenty of twists and turns and involves plenty of intrigue as the war in the peninsula proceeds. It was nice to see an acknowledgment of the social troubles in the regency period as so many novels are merely interested in the Ton and ignore the wider social context. Thought provoking stuff

This was an interesting story. I enjoyed the idea of it but at times found myself re-reading certain parts. I think I loved Cressida’s character. She’s bold intelligent and fearless.

This book is terribly confusing. I had no idea what was going on, the plot was all over the place, and the characters made no sense. I was 10% in, and I literally had to read the description again to figure out what happened....and that SHOULD NOT be the case when reading. I totally understand when a fantasy needs some time to develop, but a historical romance? No.

This review was made possible via an ARC through NetGalley

My Lady’s Secrets by Katy Moran is a fast-paced steamy Regency era spy story about Cressida Cowler and her estranged husband Greville and the famous historical figure Lord Byron.

Cressida is a revolutionary who ruined her own reputation to get back at her husband, Greville. When her peers learn what she has done, she leaves England and travels with soldiers as a spy, learning their skills and finding freedom from the constraints of the Ton.

When Cressida returns to London society, she is not greeted with open arms by her in-laws or society as a whole. Several men make passes at her, her past is brought up by others, and it’s clear she is not viewed as a proper lady by some of the people around her. Her husband, Greville, however, can’t seem to completely let her go no matter how betrayed he feels by her actions.

A lot of names for the same person are used, which feels accurate for the time period as the title and the actual given or family names could be different in courtly life.

I would recommend this to readers looking for a steamy Regency book that is heavy on the romance but isn’t Romance genre.

Many thanks to Katy Morgan, Aria and Aries publisher and NetGalley for letting me give my honest review of this book.
Rating- 1 Stars
(E-ARC)

Unfornately I had to DNF this book 35% in. This book was quite confusing and I could not keep up with the amount of names and was getting confused and thought there was more characters when they just was the same ones. At the start of the book, you were completely put into the action without it being explained which also throwed me.

I would have loved to enjoy this book as the cover is absolutely gorgeous and the description made me super excited to read this book. However, I was unable to get into this book.

Perfection.
I loved the vibe of the book, the characters are very well-written. This is the kind of story that sucks you in and you forget what is going on around you.
P.S. The cover is also beautiful.
A detailed review is coming.

Thank you very much to the publisher but sadly I have to DNF this at 25%.
I haven't been reading for 2 days because I don't want to pick up that book at all..

I sadly couldn't get in. I was extremely confused, had to look out if this book wasn't a book 2 : you go straight into action with multiple names thrown at you and you just get extremely confused because you don't understand what's happening, what they're talking about, and what's everyone's relationship.
It's really confusing and there's also everyone talking about everyone and you kind of forget who's talking and who's who due to the lack of "X said" or "Y explained".

I still don't know what would be the plot here, and I just couldn't force myself continuing the book to know if the plot gives in or not.

Huge thanks to the author and publisher for the ARC, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I adored My Lady’s Secrets, it’s smart, sexy, suspenseful and witty all in one. Five stars from me.

If you like historical fiction you might want to check this book out by Katy Moran. Cressida and Lord Greville are a bitter husband/wife duo who will do anything to pin one against another. But sometimes second chance love breaks all heartache and honestly, will they survive with or without one another?
Quick and enjoyable read.

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read this book.

I enjoyed this story about Regency England. It was during the Pennisula War. There were times I got a little lost because I was not familiar with that era. I learned and really did like it.