An earl in the streets, a rogue in the sheets . . . Leopold Graham, Lord Hampton, was never a man to let propriety stand in the way of his pursuit of pleasure. Hedonism is his only desire in life—until his father’s death saddles him with debts that threaten to bankrupt the entire family. Now the only thing that stands between him and utter ruin is marriage to a proper, and preferably wealthy, … proper, and preferably wealthy, young lady.
Ivy Leighton is no sweet English rose. Perhaps it’s her gypsy roots, but she would rather make a spectacle of her independent spirit than sit quietly on the sidelines. If that means that the only place she’ll ever have in society is firmly on the shelf, then so be it. But when Ivy runs into the handsome, rakish Leo who’s looking for a respectable, well-bred wife, she can’t stop thinking about the troubles they can get into. Now she just has to convince him that a life with her is really what he needs.
35,000 wordsmore
This was such a fun and drama free novella that I truly enjoyed reading. The childhood friendship between Ivy & Leo was an older brother, younger situation & then Ivy’s mother died & her father took her away – that was sixteen years ago & now Leo’s mother has arranged for Ivy to come to their house for a weekend party & to attend a local suffragette meeting. Ivy & Leo’s mother secretly plan this & Leo doesn’t have any idea that Ivy is his best friend from sixteen years ago. The discovery of who she is & the love between was very romantic & I loved the surprise ending from Ivy’s father & Leo’s mother. I highly recommend this quick & entertaining standalone book!
This book is sweet, but very short (novella length). I enjoyed reading about Ivy Leighton and her desire to better women’s position in society. She was strong and independent until she meets Leo Graham once again. She has loved him her entire life, but hadn’t seen him for 16 years since she was a child. Would he even remember her?
I enjoyed the story, but I thought Ivy was too quick to fall for Leo’s seduction. She’s says throughout the story that she’s an independent woman who wants to change the strict lives women must live, and yet, the moment Leo kisses her, everything she dreams of doing flies out of her mind. Perhaps, if the story was longer and the relationship between Ivy and Leo were allowed to blossom more fully, I would have rated it higher. Ms. Smith is a talented author who weaves a good story. It just needs to be longer for it to be believable for me.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
A Delightful Book.
I truly enjoyed reading this Book.
Ivy & Leo’s journey to HEA was Absolutely Adorable.
Leopold Graham, Lord Hampton, was never a man to let propriety stand in the way of his pursuit of pleasure. Hedonism is his only desire in life, until his father’s dies in his mistress’ bed & saddles him with debts that threaten to bankrupt the entire family. Now the only thing that stands between him and utter ruin is marriage to a proper, and preferably wealthy, young lady & he decides Mildred Pepperwirth (love the name) fits the bill.
Ivy Leighton is no sweet English rose, she’s the daughter of a newspaper owner & a lady’s maid, but she would rather make a spectacle of her independent spirit than sit quietly on the sidelines. If that means that the only place she’ll ever have in society is firmly on the shelf, then so be it. Then Ivy is invited to a house party at the house she grew up in. Lady Hampton thinks her former maid’s daughter Ivy would be ideal for her son Leo & plans to have them thrown together.
I’m a fan of the author & her books are a must read for me, this is the first in a new series & set at the start of the twentieth century in the reign of George V just prior to WWI, whilst this book falls between a novella & full length book the author builds a very clear picture of life in the early part of the century, the characters have depth & are so well portrayed, the star of the book was Mina, I loved the witty dowager who is learning to live life to the full. The pace of the book is very good & I read it in two sessions. With a new series set in a different era I wondered if I would enjoy as much as the author’s Regency novels, I needn’t have feared as it exceeded my expectations. A well written riveting novel that had plenty of humour as well as romance, I can’t wait for the next in the series
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read
I like the overall concept storyline of childhood friends who grew up together then separated by sixteen years, reunite and fall in love. The story felt rushed. The scenes did not smoothly segue from one to another. Everything happened so fast it was inconceivable to imagine it being realistic. I did like the introduction of the women’s suffrage movement and the heroine’s steadfast convictions of what women deserve. To be treated as equals. The passion and chemistry between the H/h were great. I think this novella can be improved on and taken to a new level as a novel. An epilogue would not have been remiss. I received an Advanced Readers Copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I’ve read several of Lauren Smith’s Regency period romances which I’ve greatly enjoyed. An Earl by Any Other Name, set during the late Edwardian period, in the early 1900s, was just as entertaining as the Regency period works. It is the first in the Sin and Scandals series being offered by Lauren. I loved Ivy and Leo who are such engaging characters. There was great chemistry between them, some delightful humor, and what a nice, spicy romance. Just perfect.
You can never go wrong with a Lauren Smith book. This one was so great. I highly recommend it.
Delightfully sweet and happy tale that takes place at the end of the Edwardian era (1910),
Leopold Graham, Earl of Hampton had always been a free spirited, happy, loving man – until his father dies in his mistress’ bed. Then, he found that the estate was in debt and the scandal his father created has denied him entry to investments and lines of credit. Now, he is serious and rigid and determined to marry an heiress.
Ivy Leighton is the half-Romani half-English child who lived on the Hampton estate until she was eight. She and Leo were fast friends even though they were eight years apart in age. Ivy has grown up to be a suffragette and feels she’ll have to forgo love and marriage in order to continue in her work for women’s rights because no man of that time would allow his wife to work for or support those causes.
When Leo’s interfering mother cajoles him into having a house party, she invites Ivy and her father to attend. You’ll just have to read the story to see how things go at the house party, but you can assume that Leo is a changed man before all is said and done.
“I requested and received this book at no cost to me and volunteered to read it; my review is my honest opinion and given without any influence by the author or publisher.”