In the series' second book, we spent our time rooting for the hero and heroine – as we should have. However, I think most of us gave little thought to the man to whom the heroine was betrothed before she got her HEA with the hero. Did any of us wonder how broken his heart might have been? Did we care how much he might have loved the heroine? We all liked him, but did we wonder where his life would go? Probably not. This book, however, turns all of that on its head and shows us Nathan’s journey to finding love again. It is an exciting, well-written, engrossing story that will have you holding your breath, wringing your hands, frowning in exasperation, and smiling at the HEA.

Nathan Dunbridge spent months on the continent trying to mend his broken heart after his broken betrothal. He had truly loved Annabeth, but he knew he had to give her the freedom to marry the man she loved. Is his heart mended? Well, he can at least tolerate being in the same room with Annabeth and her husband for a while. He’s back into his role in society and living his normal life – until – a man marches up to him, proclaims himself to be his brother, and asserts he is their father’s rightful heir. Oh! My! Nathan doesn’t believe a word of it, but the man is quite adamant and Nathan knows the scandal would ruin them whether it was true or not – and it would break his sweet, caring mother’s heart. Nathan knows he has to get to the bottom of it, true or not, and he knows just the person to help.

Verity Cole has run a very discreet detective agency for the last couple of years. Before that, she was a very successful spy for the Crown. Verity has many secrets and never lets anyone get too close to her. Her life is one role after another, to the point where she’s not sure where the role ends and she begins. That all begins to change when Nathan asks her to help solve the mystery of his ‘brother’. Can she open up enough to let someone else into her life, her heart?

Verity and Nathan work together to solve the mystery of his brother and a few others as well. They work very well together but are opposites in most ways. Will that be a detriment or an asset? You’ll just have to read this fast-paced, exciting, romantic adventure to see how it all comes out. You’ll find betrayals, kidnappings, attempted murders, murders, past secrets, and longings for things that cannot be. The storyline will reach out and pull you in, and the characters will hold you till the end.

This was a thoroughly enjoyable read and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

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

Tropes: opposites attract; MFC with a dark history; cinnamon roll MMC; MC's team up to solve mysteries; Big Secrets
Steam level:3
Part of a series, and best if previous entries read first.

I jumped into the series with this book, after having enjoyed books by this author in the past. One of the things I feel that Candace Camp does well is create believable emotional bonds between her MC's, and that's the case here. I liked the "push-pull" dynamic between Verity and Nathan, and their chemistry worked for me, with a nice dose of steam and genuinely humorous banter. Verity was fairly well fleshed out character-wise, even if the idea of her being a detective would have worked better for a more modern setting. I ended up liking Nathan more than I expected; there's more to him than just "golden retriever" energy.

I have to note that one reason that I don't recommend this as a standalone is that the reader is brought into the action and mutual attraction between the MC's immediately, with little exposition. I don't consider it "instalust" if a relationship was established previously, but If you prefer not to play catch up, it's probably better to start with the previous book.

Plotwise, there are actually three storylines going on at the same time. First, the return of a piece of jewelry to a client who was a victim of blackmail, which starts off the book, as the MC's wonder if they're being targeted by the blackmailer. Then there is a subplot regarding a man who claims to be the rightful heir to Nathan's estate. Finally, a situation pops up involving a traumatic situation in Verity's past. I felt that the author juggled each thread fairly well to a point, with a few creative twists. But, creativity can be tough to pull off in the HR genre. By the end, one storyline wraps up on a rather predictable note, another ends up being a bit of a MacGuffin, another is rather convoluted.

A couple other caveats: while I bought Verity as a tough, chameleon-like character, there were things that she should have known or at least looked into as an actual detective. Also, I had difficulty with her posing as an available widow for a period of time, with men of the Ton interested in her, yet no one had seemingly asked around about her identity or background. I get that she had some protection by Nathan's family, but still.

Overall: I would give the mystery aspect of this 3.5 stars and the romantic angle 4.5 stars, for an average of 4 stars.

I have read one other book by this author and enjoyed it. This is the 3rd book of the series, and I am reading it as a standalone. The book starts off with a fun scene where Verity is a PI and Nathan runs into her working on a case. Nathan himself soon needs help and Verity is there for him. A well written Regency Romance/Mystery for the reader who wants to spend a weekend with a cozy book. A few twists that I didn't see coming makes this a 3.5*. Since it was the 3rd in the series, I did miss some of the back stories. Also, it is hard to write a book where the hero is a "nice guy" as Nathan is and Camp has done it.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Book 3 of the series can be read as a standalone, but I recommend reading one and two. Nathan is featured in both and Verity is introduced in 2.

Nathan is a pretty amazing guy. Staunchly loyal, protective and just nice. With his heart broken at the start of this book, another wrench is thrown in his life when his title is challenged. He engages Verity (a kick a** ex spy) to help solve the mystery.

More of a mystery with romance thrown in the book was well written, with its twists and turns. Felicity past life drama is resolved and the hea was nicely done as well.

A great series. #netgalley #ascandalatstonecliffe

My thanks for the ARC goes to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing, Canary Street Press. I'm voluntarily leaving a review.

Genre: Historical Romance, Romance, Historical Thriller
Spice Level: Sex on the page (too much for me)

*A SCANDAL AT STONECLIFFE* is a fun ride of a Regency Thriller, spy novel. Verity has worked as a spy and is still disguising herself within the ton. Nathan met Verity in less elite circumstances years ago.

This novel is part romance, part thriller, part mystery.

There were twists that I DID NOT see coming! I enjoyed that aspect of the novel immensely.

Spicy romance readers who love a bit of mystery and historical setting are going to eat up this book.

Happy reading!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Genre: 🔎💞Mystery-Romance Hybrid
Violence: 🔪
Spice: 🔥🔥

Synopsis: Book 3 in Regency-set series. Nathan turns to Verity—former spy & lady detective—to unmask an impostor trying to steal his inheritance. When the pair is attacked, it is unclear if their investigation has ruffled feathers or if Verity is being targeted by a former adversary.

Thoughts: If I threw all my favorites into a pot—mystery + period fiction + romance + spice—& stirred, a book like A Scandal at Stonecliffe would emerge. This novel uniquely gives the mystery & romance equal billing, rather than one dominating the storyline, & there are tropes aplenty from both genres to 💖. Long-lost brother or impostor? ☑ Protective MMC? ☑ Threat from the past? ☑ Friends-to-lovers? ☑ I could go on. The story upends typical gender dynamics: Nathan is inexperienced & perhaps a bit staid while Verity is the bold & adventurous one with an exciting past. After a slower start while characters are developed, the seemingly simple mystery grows more twisty. Threats from Verity’s youth further complicate matters: is the danger they face from a past foe or a result of their present investigation? While A Scandal at Stonecliffe—out Aug 20th—can be read as a stand-alone novel, you’ll definitely want to scoop of the first two: An Affair at Stonecliffe & A Rogue at Stonecliffe.

Thank you to @harlequinbooks and @netgalley for the #gifted copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

In book 3 of the Stonecliffe trilogy, two acquaintances from book 2 encounter each other at a London party. Mix a mystery, secrets from the past, and a slow-burning romance and you have the makings of a good regency novel.

One of the first scenes is a “pretend you’re making out with me” as Verity avoids being caught sneaking around and their attraction felt unearned. It never built in a believable way for me. The romance element was flat and forgettable, and the historical setting hardly regency. I nearly shut the book when they mentioned a couple leaving Scotland to elope to London. Nathan refers to matryoshka dolls but they came out in the 1890s. And when they never thought to check the church records I thought they were all idiots. YMMV

Loved this one! Great and fun read. Highly recommend.
Many thanks to the publisher, Netgalley, and the author for my ARC.

This was fine. The mystery plot was actually interesting and I wanted to figure out who did it and why. The romance wasn’t my favorite, and I felt like that portion of the plot was slow. This was an arc so I’ll keep that in mind when I say that there were formatting issues that made this very difficult to read. I hope those are corrected when the book is published.

I love Candance Camp's way of giving you a beautiful historical romance along with an intriguing mystery. Seeing a relationship develop during the course of an investigation is always interesting to me and makes a book "unputdownable" for me.

In this third installment of the fantastic Stonecliffe series, we finally see Nathan, the good guy of the series, get his happily ever after. His partner in an investigation into his legitimacy is Verity, who joined the cast while posing as a maid in the previous book. Verity is a secret agent turned private investigator who has built a business in London since retiring from government work. She and Nathan were thrown together in the last book, but though knowing that story isn't essential to enjoying this one. There's a light grumpy vs. sunshine vibe to this one, with Nathan being a kind, affable society gentleman (though his estate isn't financially healthy) and Verity being the worldly, working woman who doesn't feel like she belongs in society unless she's undercover and playing a part. There's also a "he falls first" aspect to this one, which is understandable as Verity doesn't feel she can marry and assumes that Nathan would never have a woman below his rank as anything other than a mistress. The romantic part of the story manages to still be satisfying despite the class difference issue remaining unresolved for most of it..

The investigation in this story deals with the possibility that Nathan's father had a marriage prior to the one with Nathan's mother. A man claiming to be the rightful hair to the estate confronts Nathan and Verity on the street, but disappears soon after. They go on stakeouts and a long journey to the Scotland to discover the truth. There's a secondary storyline about Verity's past as well.

This book is chock full of intrigue and adventure along with the wonderful romance. What a delight! If you love a story with a little more to sink your teeth into than the average historical romance, this is for you.

Candace Camp gives us another installment in the Stonecliffe series with Nathan and Verity. Nathan enlists Verity's help in finding the truth behind a claim by a man stating that he is the rightful heir instead of Nathan. Not wanting to burden his mother with this, Nathan and Verity set off to solve this mystery which involves them spending a lot of time together. Will all this time spent in each other's company allow them to give in to their attraction, or will their differences be too much to conquer?

Candace Camp brings us two characters who could not be more different from each other. Nathan is the man who you could always depend on to be a gentleman. Verity is a woman of intrigue and mystery who was a former spy and therefore must constantly think on her feet. When these two work together, will they find that they each bring something to their investigation? Will their differences be too much for the other to accept? What happens when Verity's past keeps intruding into the present? Follow along with Nathan and Verity as we watch them try to unravel this mystery and their feelings for each other. Along the way, we get to catch up with past friends from the previous books. You want to see what these two do next and how each step in their investigation brings them one step closer to the truth and to them not needing to work together anymore. You keep wanting to turn the page until you realize that you are near the end and that is when you want the story to be just a bit longer. I enjoyed reading about Nathan and Verity and look forward to more from this author.

I have read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I would like to thank NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing | Canary Street Press for this privilege.

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins for the eARC. A Candace Camp HR can more often than not be described as a "delightful romp" and this novel is no exception. While it is not necessary to have read the first two books of the series to enjoy this third installment, I highly recommend that you do. Reading the first two books gives great back story to the prickliness of Nathan and Verity's relationship (particularly from Nathan's side.)

Solid 3.5/5 Read.

Nathan scandalized the society by breaking his engagement. He meets Verity, another scandalous person at the society event and becomes intrigued. He asks for her help to uncover the truth of his family's rightful heir...

A romance/mystery in the series. The characters are great. I enjoy both of them very much. Not much of a mystery to be honest but it is meant to be more of a historical romance. A fun read.

Thanks to the publisher for the arc.

I love a cozy mystery and on occasion a romance novel. In selecting this book, I was looking for a mystery with, maybe, a regency romance thread. Unfortunately, the book was much more a traditional romance novel than it was a mystery. I found the mystery engaging, the romance predictable, and because the latter took center stage in the middle 1/3 of the book, I grew uninterested in finishing the story and skimmed/speed read several chapters rather than reading closely. That, above all is why my rating is on the lower side. It just was not what I was expecting.

This was a lesson to me in really examining publishers, regardless of how they classify their books. Clearly this is romance first, not mystery first. If you are looking for regency romance with a side of mystery, this is the book for you.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

I loved the first two books in this series, and was excited for Nathan and Verity to get their own book. A Scandal at Stonecliffe was just as well written as the other books in the series, and the mystery led to some twists that I definitely didn’t see coming.

While I enjoyed the mystery aspect of the book, I found that I didn’t really like Nathan and Verity, especially since they seemed to create the majority of the hurdles in their relationship.