This story unfolds slowly at first, as the H is overwhelmed with grief at the loss of his grandfather and his own inheritance of his title and dukedom.. He escapes to the country. We then meet our h, who is in the country, escaping her own situation, which seems like a scandal, but really isn’t, and eventually is revealed to be health issues which result in her having been shunned and kept safe at home by her family. Her family is very caring, and she was well loved, just kept safe. She longs for just a touch of passion and seizes the opportunity our H presents when he appears unannounced at the home of her sister and BIL, where she is staying. Initially I had some misgivings, I’ve read several books which were aimed at making disabilities too trite in stories. This book was not just a story built around that theme. It was a delightful romance where the h has learned to live with her health issues, and eventually to share herself fully with a wonderful man, who sees her as the wonderful person she is. Very interesting and entertaining book!

A Scandal by Any Other Name holds up to its promise as second in the series of the Bishop sisters. It definitely can be a stand alone, although I appreciated reading Nicholas and Amelia’s story in the first book, The Importance of Being Scandalous. Ms. Bell’s interweaving of the characters from both books works well with the relationship between Jasper and Julia and Nicholas and Amelia. She reconfirms the strong relationship of Julia and Amelia. Julia, who had thought to never marry, planned to be the spinster in Nicholas and Amelia’s home. But, who rides by – Jasper. He thinks he is going to save the beauty on the run away horse.

Julia and Jasper make that instant connection we love in our romance stories. Julia strives to keep her disability from Jasper as they are falling in love. Jasper, the reprobate who is running from the grief of losing his grandfather, as he is having to step into his grandfather’s place as the Duke of Albermarle. These two are made for each other. Julia has been kept out of sight by her mother due to what we know as a form of spina bifida. Jasper is constantly in the public eye as twelfth in line to the throne and as a horrible rake.

We find Julia unpredictable and outspoken, ready to take on life and live it to its fullest. Jasper just want to find out if can fill his grandfather’s shoes and fulfill his role as the new duke. I loved the ending of the dinner scene where Julia really did step out of her normal routine. All in all, this is a delightful, light-hearted romance with a female with a disability in the lead. Ms. Bell handled it well and gave it the sincere care and kindness that is deserved.

Really great and quite a different romance story. Two likeable and interesting characters, good set up around how they met and the relationship developed. Her disability made for quite an intriguing story. I felt the research for her illness was well reaserched and overall there was a good element of historical accuracy.

It started well, however by before halfway it increasingly became laborious to read. It just wasn't enjoyable to read, it took forever to tell any small part of the story. The style didn't improve but got worse as it moved on.

Such a shame as it should have been brilliant

A Scandal by Any Other Name is a lovely story about a reforming rake and woman who has remained hidden. Julia has a limp and a spinal injury/deformity that she has lived with all of her life. She has been forced to stay out of society and hidden by her mother. Julia thought to never marry, being a third-wheel in her sister's household and facing this possibility she is shocked when she meets a man who wants her.
Jasper is running away from his inheritance. After his grandfather died, Jasper isn't ready to step into his shoes and decides to hide for a bit. When he meets Julia, he is instantly smitten by the beauty, never realizing she is his best friend's sister-in-law.
The romance between Julia and Jasper is very sweet. Julia decides to take control of her life and take a lover - believing she will never have another chance. Jasper is looking for something more permanent with Julia. He is falling for her and believes he is ready to change, drop the rakish persona and become a constant man for the woman he loves.
There are obstacles - of course - but Julia and Jasper are two people who really deserve their happy ending. There are some semi-steamy love scenes which served to add spice and realism to the story. Recommended for romance readers who enjoy a sweet story with added spice.

Julia and Jasper are perfect for one another. Their story wad so easy to fall in love with because there is sick a special connection between them. This author is becoming one of my "must reads".

I had just finished reading “The Importance of being Scandalous” which I had purchased when I had the opportunity to read “A Scandal by any other Name” so I was thrilled. The second book, which can be read independently of the first, follows Jasper De Vere who has fled his presentation to the queen as the new Duke. He goes to the country estate of his friends Nicholas and Amelia (book 1), where he meets Amelia’s sister Julia, who pretends to be a family cousin, known as Juniper. Her reason for doing so is so that Jasper does not realise that she has spina bifida, which he would know if she had been introduced as Amelia’s sister. Before Nicholas and Amelia can return, Julia and Jasper begin a romance that will have significant consequences.
Both characters faced their battles in different ways; Jasper had tended to hide his behind a façade of recklessness whilst Julia wanted to face her challenges head on. It is when the two come together that they both had to face the reality of their relationship and whether they could overcome the barriers that they had put in place to prevent others from getting closer. It is this aspect that makes this novel interesting as do the secondary characters of Nicholas and Amelia.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I love this story. Obstacles galore! Julia is a delightful big sister who has been crippled from a spinal disease. She does not let it keep her from doing everything, except a future as a wife and mother. Jasper is a rogue who is lost after the death of his beloved grandfather. No spoilers here, you need to sit back and enjoy this tale. I've never read this author before, but this story has such good character development and a wondrous plot, that I'm looking forward to my next story from her.

I received a copy of this story in exchange for an honest review.

*3.5 stars*

I enjoyed this gutsy, unique romance from new-to-me author, Kimberly Bell. Though I think the book struggled with some pacing and plotting issues, it was an interesting, worthwhile reads for everyone who loves bold heroines and atypical MCs.

When I read that this was a romance with a female main character with spina bifida, I couldn't pass it up. I can count on maybe one hand the number of romances I've read with a female MCs with any type of disability or affliction, and I was positively gleeful that we might see some representation of spina bifida in romance.

First of all, from a medical perspective, everything seemed on the up and up. I have only a passing familiarity with spina bifida, but it seems like the author did her research and tried to be as true as possible to the issues of someone with spina bifida occulta would have. Sure, Kimberly Bell probably had to stretch things as surviving any type of medical affliction back in the setting of the book would have been unusual, but it felt very honest and not sugar-coating things.

I loved the trickery in the beginning of the story, and I was gearing up for the book to really wow me with some twists and turns. However, after the male MC, Jasper, a rakish newly appointed Duke, finds out that Julia is indeed permanently afflicted, I started to have issues.

First of all, I thought that Jasper took Julia's condition and her fooling him way too well. It was like he wasn't at all concerned that she had, as Julia called it, an "exposed spine condition," which I found to be unrealistic. In that day and age, it would have been a highly unusual thing, and so I thought Jasper would have been more curious, more cautious. I also thought he would have been a bit more peeved to be kept in the dark for as long as he was.

I also found that the pacing dropped off at that point. It felt a little meandering, like the author was just buying time until she could wrap up the loose ends, and the plot didn't have the same tension as before. I found myself putting the book down more often at that point, even starting another story in the interim.

However, despite my issue with the plotting, I kept coming back to the story because of the spunky, outspoken female MC. Julia is bold and brave, not letting people's opinion of her and her affliction stand in her way. She is smart and sensual, and I loved that she just really defied and rose above people's expectations of her. I was happy that Jasper appreciated all that she was, and it was refreshing to have such an independent female MC, though I don't know how historically accurate the details of the story actually were.

All in all, this was a worthwhile, interesting story, with characters not usually found in romance, though category-romance is getting more and more inclusive every day. I think Kimberly Bell is on the right track.

*Copy provided in exchange for an honest review*

What a brilliantly written historical romance. Superb all around.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review. A Scandal By Any Other Name is the second book in Kimberly Bell’s A Tale of Two Sisters series. They are quite steamy romances set in the early Victorian era. The first book is The Importance Of Being Scandalous. Kimberly Bell is a new to me author so I had not read the first one ... but I immediately purchased it upon finishing this book because I was not ready to say goodbye to the characters. Currently the first book is on sale for $0.99. In addition to a quite lovely romance there is a wonderful relationship between the two sisters and lots of engaging dialog between the characters. Jasper DeVerre has runaway from being invested as the Duke of Albemarle, he is still mourning his grandfather, overwhelmed by the idea that he is now the Duke, he retreats to the country home of his closest friend. He meets our intrepid heroine when he mistakenly assumes that she is in trouble and attempts to rescue her but ends up knocking her off of her horse. Julia Bishop has spina bifida and has led a very sheltered life as a consequence. When she realizes that Jasper thinks her limp is caused by the fall she pretends to be someone else because she fears that he wouldn’t flirt with her as herself and she is determined to grab every moment of adventure that she can and boldly propositions Jasper. I highly recommend this book and look forward to reading the rest of the books Kimberly Bell has written. Publishing Date January 30, 2018.

(3.75 STARS)

This was an enjoyable read. I wish however that Jasper's character was more fleshed out. In my opinion, it is hard to find the "key" moments of where and why he no longer fears the dukedom and its responsibilities and why he now accepts the dukedom while flaunting convention His greatest fear was not being able to fill his grandfather's shoes and yet he decides to forego the "Royal Marriages Act" knowing what this would mean for Julia and their future. I also believe that this belies the trepidation of disappointing his grand-father. It is understood that he loves her and wants to be with her however, without knowing exactly what motivated this change, it makes the transition between Jasper of old and the new Jasper a little abrupt and unbelievable.

This having been said, I loved the dichotomy that was Julia. She was bold, wild and outspoken but at the very same time, she was reticent to speak of anything of her disability much less the scars it invoked. She was not shy to tell people what she thought nor did she care for their approval. However, due to the remarks and stares of her peers, she dreads showing herself completely to anyone. The dialogue was sexy and well written and the chemistry between these two characters was almost palpable.

Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing LLC for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
💋💋💋
What a wonderful , lighthearted, romance .
This book has some brilliant characters, all interacting in the best way , humour , love and Witty one liners .
The chemistry , not just between the H and h , but with all the principals is a joy to read .
I loved Julia , a woman who wants so much but is not bright low by her disabilities.
And Jasper who loves her on site and will have her for his life partner , not caring , even if the queen and country are against him .
An inspiring story that I loved beginning to end and highly recommend.

I received an Arc copy of this book from Netgalley, and I chose to submit a review .

5 Stars!! I LOVED this book!! I walk with a limp and have a lot of scars & I felt like I understood where the main character, Julia, was coming from with her fears & insecurities! I feel the same way! I connected with Julia and I really enjoyed her story! I haven’t read Amelia & Nicholas’s story yet but I think I might have to now! This book can be read as a standalone. I can’t say enough how much I loved this story! I definitely recommend this book! Amelia & Julia had me smiling while reading this book. The way they joke around reminds me a lot of how my Mom & I joke around! I loved the ending too! Such a good ending!!
*I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own!*

Too far fetched even for this genre. I can appreciate trying to include heroins with disabilities, but spinal bifida in that time period is way to out of the realm, then considering her feats throughout the novel.. This whole novel was way too much.

I really enjoyed the romance between Jasper and Julia. I was intrigued by Julia's condition and wished more was revealed about it in the story (the author does include an afterward about her condition, but I felt it would have been more helpful while reading the story). They have a steamy romance where you can feel the chemistry immediately between the characters. I like the bond that Julia has with her sister and brother-in-law. Their relationships added a warmth to story and some humor as well. I liked this read so much that I looked up Amelia's story, book 1, and am looking forward to reading. This was a read I'd recommend!

Great historical romance. I really liked the courtship between Julia and Jasper. Very sweet. This was my first book from this author and I will definitely check out her other selections.
This was an ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange of an honest review that is all mine.

Julia Bishop is one of my all time favorite heroines. I absolutely loved her in Amelias story and I am thrilled she has her own. Strong, feisty, straightforward, courageous and so much more are the words i would use to describe her. Even though she was born with a spinal defect, she still has dreams, wants and needs. She knows her limitations and must stick to a strict schedule but she still longs for love and adventure.

Jasper DeVere is heir to the a Royal Duchy bu5 he has had so much trauma and sadness in his life. He use his scandalous behavior to cover his pain and avoid his duties. When his grandfather dies he runs away just as he did when his parents died. He is mischievous but with a heart of gold. His fears keep running but eventually he will have to face reality.

Superbly written plot lines, excellently detailed characters. A joy to read any time of day. The author draws you in and holds you tight with every word she writes. She takes you on an adventure through disabilities, fears, secrets and so much more.

Can't wait for Lady Ruby's story ;)