This is a wonderful book. It was so good that I read it in one setting. I want to read more from this author.

This was one of my favorite books in the Gilded Promises series. A new take on the Prodigal Son, but with some new twists.

The author Renee Ryan, let's just say I already bought 2 of her books. Sally who in reality is Gigi, one of the main characters in the book. Sophie is Gigi's employer as her lady's maid. And lets no forget Fitz, a previous a person from her past that has found her again, but only to retrieve something that she took when she left home, well he keeps telling himself that's the reason he needs to find her.
While reading this story you can experience many emotions, brave, unsure, fighter, concern, and secrets You almost know what the character is thinking and maybe even relate to one or more of them in different parts of the story.

Once an Heiress by Renee Ryan.
This is an inspiring story of a spoiled heiress who makes a huge mistake in judgment and her struggles to survive on her own and her determination to make amends to her family, even if she herself is forever ruined. This love story takes you through winding emotions, secrets, lies, and the hope of redemption while she hides with a new name and station in life until she can pay for her mistakes. I enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone who enjoys a well written inspirational story with some religious scripture notations. The love story was full of feeling and tension, with only kissing involved between the main characters.

This was the first story I read by this author so I wasn't sure what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised. We first meet Gigi who we learn is from a wealthy family but is working as a maid and who is hiding a secret. Fitz arrives on the scene and he clearly has some history with Gigi. The author does a very good job presenting their backstory in a slow reveal manner that kept me reading and wondering what happened. The secrets are finally revealed, but the author did not end the twists with this reveal. The angst continues has Gigi cannot forgive herself for her past and Fitz pushes her to reconcile with her family. The couple finally gets to their HEA, but the road travelled was interesting and heart warming. Overall, the writing was very well done and I look forward to reading more from this author. My only small comment is that Gigi's self-imposed guilt seemed to go on just a touch too long, but this was most likely my impatience to get to the HEA.

I voluntarily received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review..

This was such a fabulous book! I really wished I could have read it in one sitting but for some reason, my husband wanted to eat and I had to sleep! It was really a fantastic book! Sometimes you just connect with characters and they become so real to you that you feel you are actually watching them in their real life. This is how I felt while reading this book. I felt they were real people and I was reading their life story. I kept cheering Gigi on. She used to be a spoiled, rich girl in Boston who lived with her family and wanted for nothing. She met a guy who turned her head and who her Father hated so she defied her Father and ran away. She thought she knew everything! Of course, because she knew nothing of the world and had been sheltered, she didn't know that this guy was a charlatan - he took her to New York City, checked into a fancy hotel and then took all her money and left! Gigi was destitute but she had too much pride to go back home so she had to work off the hotel bill and then find a job. Her strength and character were amazing to me. She had taken a precious family heirloom when she ran off and then pawned it for money but she had to buy it back before she could return home. This becomes the focus of the story! Now we see Christopher "Fitz" Fitzpatrick come into the scene. He was a childhood friend and more to Gigi's family. He has a lot of family issues going on but he goes to New York City to find Gigi after she's been gone almost a year. When he starts spending time with her, he can hardly believe the changes in her! She is not the spoiled rich girl he once knew anymore. This girl is caring and sweet and kind. Ms. Ryan paints and wonderful story of these two, including other characters that help them along their path. All the things that happen in this book make it one of my top favorite books of the year! I definitely recommend it!

If a reader is looking to be swept away in a beautiful story, they won't have to look past this book. It was beautiful and breathtaking to read. Each chapter held a glimmer of gold to it as you were taken back in time and given a gown or dinner coat. I was enchanted reading this story.

From the eye-catching earth tones in the captivating cover art, to the intriguing story contained within, Once an Heiress, by Renee Ryan, captured my attention and kept me continuously enthralled. Though it happens to be the third book in the Gilded Promises series, it can be read quite well as a stand-alone novel. Even though I have not yet read the first two books in the series, I was able to enjoy this book with pleasurable ease, because this novel combines elements of history, mystery, intrigue, faith, and romance that effortlessly meld together to create a uniquely satisfying story.

The well-crafted elements of plot, characterization, and setting come together artfully to create an alluring reading experience. The entertaining plot of this novel is extremely clever and character-driven. There are also moments of mystery sprinkled throughout the story that are entirely satisfying and engaging. The characters are well-developed and experience remarkable growth as the story unfolds. The early twentieth century setting adds depth and history to the story as the characters interact backstage in a theater, visit in the drawing rooms of friends, and stroll along the sidewalks of New York City. Page after page, there is certainly much to enjoy about this novel.

I can easily recommend this book to readers of historical fiction who also enjoy a bit of mystery and appreciate a dash of romance as well. Renee Ryan has certainly created a compelling novel that is well worth the reader’s time and attention.

An advantage of reading books in a series is the author has an opportunity to develop characters who are regarded as minor at the start of the series and readers get to experience once again that everyone has a story. This is the case with "Once An Heiress", the third book in the 'Gilded Promises' series. While this book is part of a series, it may also be read as a standalone novel.

"Once An Heiress" is the story of Sally Smith, a character in the first two books in the series, who is maid/confidante to the main female characters of those books. In the third book, we learn that 'Sally' is really Georgina 'Gigi' Wentworth, a disgraced heiress from Boston. While there was a slight discrepancy with the character ‘Sally’ between the first and second books, I believe it was because the character became more real to the author as she progressed with the series. By the time ‘Sally’ is developed in the third novel, we learn the reason for the “mystery” the character presented in the first two novels. I must admit that while I read and enjoyed the previous two books, I fell in love with the character ‘Sally/Gigi’. I became so engaged with this character's story that I reread the previous two books in the series and then read the third book again.

Intertwined into this story is the character of ‘Fitz’, the man Gigi left behind when she ran away to New York City with another man who ended up deserting her. Since her father had threatened to disown her if she continued a relationship with the other man, Gigi is left to fend for herself and ends up becoming a maid to survive. Along with survival, however, is Gigi’s need for redemption. Gigi’s efforts toward achieving redemption also provides thoughts for the reader to reflect on. I particularly loved the way the author wove the parable of the Prodigal Son into Gigi’s story.

While we read of Gigi’s issues with achieving redemption, we also learn of the soul-searching and struggles occurring in Fitz. Fitz arrives in New York City after a detective he hired has located Gigi. While Fitz states he has been searching for Gigi for one reason, we learn there is another underlying reason for his search. Before this story ends, both main characters will have learned much about forgiveness, redemption and restoration. Suffice it to say, this story is one that will keep you engrossed to the end.

I voluntarily received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. However, the thoughts and opinions given in this review are my own.

What a great book! I have not previously read any books by this author, but now I am ready to find as many as I can to read them!

While this book is the third in the series, it does stand alone. In reading the story I could tell that there were books that preceded it, but did not feel that I missed out on the story in not knowing more about the secondary characters from this book. That said, I do plan on going back and reading the first two books of this series, but mostly because I enjoyed this story so much and am curious to learn more about the others.

The characters were very well developed and the plot moved along very well. The story gripped me from the very beginning as Gigi attempted to redeem her family heirloom necklace in hopes of atoning for her sins in leaving her family as she did.

The conflict between Fitz and Gigi (or Sally, as she is known to her employers) was very well crafted and quite believable. The feelings of being beyond redemption that Gigi experienced were also explained in such a way as to be compelling. I really appreciated the way that not all the problems in the book were perfectly resolved – it was much more realistic and as in real life, sin has consequences despite the fact that we are forgiven.

This is a beautiful story of redemption with the theme of the Prodigal Son.

I totally love Renee Ryan's books. I have read many of them and the previous books in this series...and I do not like to waste my time reading books I do not enjoy. This book has a wonderful character "Sally" who has been led away from her family and now forced to live as a "prodigal child" by the customs and mores of her time. I love the way that show redemption and forgiveness. I also enjoyed finding out about the lives of the women in the other "Gilded Promises" series. I totally recommended this book to anyone who likes books which includes faith in God as well as showing how God works in people's lives. Sometimes that is easier to view through a fictionally character - I know it is for me. I voluntarily received an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Once a Heiress is the third book in the Gilded promise series but can be read as a stand alone. I have loved each of the books and encourage you to read them all. This one was a fabulous addition to the series. Renee Ryan has a wonderful writing style that is both captivating and intriguing. Her characters come alive in the pages of her novels and grab your attention and don't let go. If I could have I would have devoured this book in one sitting. I really enjoyed how the story unfolded and the characters evolved. This is a prodigal story that tugged on my heart because it touched the deepest part that we all share in ...making mistakes and hurting the ones we love and feeling like we can never be forgiven. So this is a story for everyone, a story that will touch you deeply and share with you God's unconditional love and that no sin is unforgivable. If you have ever felt like you can't be forgiven or you can't forgive yourself this story will lead you to a place of hope and joy.