A Con-artist and a Lawyer Solve a Mystery in 1920s New York

Elizabeth learned her grifter ways from her father. Now she’s fallen in love with Gideon Bates, a straight-laced lawyer. Planning to marry Gideon, Elizabeth must learn to navigate upper class society in New York in the 1920s. She has an able mentor in Gideon's mother, but she isn’t finding it easy.

The only friend she’s found is Priscilla Knight, a young widow. In fact, Priscilla has recently been widowed for the second time. Her beloved first husband left her with two young daughters and a sizable fortune. When a distraught widow, her pastor encouraged her to wed a fellow parishioner, Endicott Knight. Although Priscilla thought Endicott was wealthy, she has learned since his death that she is penniless.

Elizabeth and Gideon both want to help the young widow, but each thinks their talents are the best choice to see justice done. Gideon wants to use the law, but Elizabeth thinks her grifter skills will be more effective.

I love historical romances with a mystery. This one is well researched. The author makes the 1920s come to life. The characters are perfect for the story. I enjoyed the way Elizabeth and Gideon interacted. It wasn’t clear that their romance would survive their diverse approaches to Priscilla’s problem, but that made for fascinating reading.

If you like romance and mystery in a historical setting, this is a good read.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

What a great book, I loved all the historical settings and the mystery was very well planned and laid out perfectly for the reader. If you love history and mystery you will live this book

I am a huge Victoria Thompson fan, this is no secret! I even had the honor of meeting her a few months back (and I was a bit star struck and fangirly - see my blog for photos!). I adore the Gaslight Mystery series (highly recommend if you enjoy a good mystery) and was so excited to begin reading the second book in her latest series.

Victoria Thompson is a sure thing when you’re looking for some witty and delicious historical fiction. Her characters are authentic and strong, and she always has some tough leading ladies who can hold their own. And I loved the ode to Downton Abbey with a few of the characters names.

Thompson takes a turn from her usual whodunnit scenario in the Counterfeit Lady series, and leads us into the world of the “grifter” or the con artist. I loved the character of Elizabeth, and her witty dialogue. Along with Sarah Brandt from the Gaslight mysteries, she is another strong female lead in a time when women were still considered the “weaker” sex. Love me some tough, take no prisoners protagonists, thank you very much!

An enjoyable story with a satisfying ending!

This was a @6bookbesties group read and I’m so glad my fellow book friends got to experience this author for the first time! Thank you to Berkley for our advance copies. This book is now available!

Secrets and blackmale and lies...oh my!

A compelling and engaging story from first page to last... this was a well-crafted perfectly paced story set in 1920s New York.... This is the second book in the Counterfeit Lady series, I did not read the first and I was not lost at all, can definitely be read as a standalone... although I might go back and read the first to get some of the backstory on these marvelous characters....

The strength of the story I felt was in these captivating, charming, and quirky characters.... Elizabeth and Gideon’s seemingly completely opposite personalities added such a rich layer to the story.... what happens when a con artist and a straight laced lawyer fall in love? Well I’m not sure what will ultimately happened with Elizabeth and Gideon‘s romance, but I can tell you it does make for one compulsive read! Not sure how I would classify this book I wouldn’t necessarily call it a mystery, what it was though was a book that fully immersed me in the lives of these characters.... a story filled with delicious scheming, conniving, and trickery... Loved how Elizabeth and Gideon Sought justice in very different ways.... also loved how the women in this story were the brains of the operation!

Viktoria Thompson definitely has a way with words... The historical aspects of the story were well researched, really made me want to read more books that take place in the 20s.... the writing was stellar, making for an effortless Reid... this is my first book from Miss Thompson, but I can guarantee it will not be my last! It is always a delight to discover a new to you author....

Absolutely recommend to anyone who enjoys a well written historical story with a cozy 20s gangster vibe...

*** A big thanks to Berkley for my copy of this book ***

Do two wrongs make a right? Is the rule of law always the way to right a wrong? Those are the questions that Elizabeth Miles and her fiancee Gideon must face and answer. Elizabeth wants to do what ever it takes to help a friend. Gideon wants to use the force of law to help. The issue looks like it will tear them apart as Elizabeth does what she thinks is right and Gideon objects. A well plotted mystery that had plenty of twists and turns. Set just before women got the right to vote the politics add interest to the story line.

I received a free copy of the book in return for an honest review.

This relatively new series from Victoria Thompson has many of the qualities that have worked successfully in the Gaslight Series. Intriguing mysteries, fascinating historical setting, strong characters with different life experiences, a teamwork component to crime-solving and a happy ending. I still need to read the first installment of the Counterfeit Lady series, but from what I have learned in Book 2 it will be an entertaining read.

Thank you to Berkley Prime Crime and NetGalley for a digital ARC of this new mystery in exchange for an honest review.

We are always on the search for new Historical Fiction and enticing novels for our patrons to love and read. City of Secrets had it all, drama mixed with politics is a extravagant reading combination. Each chapter is a new twist and turn as Elizabeth takes on the journey of getting her life in order even if it means defying all the political rules and challenging them to have some justice. Elizabeth will stop at nothing to get what she wants even if it means putting her past at risk and exposing herself to society.

Thank you Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. We will definitely consider this title for our Historical Fiction collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

Disclaimer: I received a free ARC (Thanks, Netgalley!), which doesn't sway my opinion, & etc.

I've been meaning to read Victoria Thompson for ages; I recommend her Gaslight all the time for historical fiction mystery readers at work, despite never having read her myself, and when I read the premise for the Counterfeit Lady series, I perked up immediately. Cons? Suffragettes? 1920s New York? Con <i>ladies</i>? Sharp lawyers? So many of my favorite things!

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34286537-city-of-lies">Book #1</a> charmed me thoroughly. I literally finished the book, put down my Kindle, and grabbed my phone on my way to take the dog outside to see about acquiring the second one, because I wasn't sure if I'd be in the window for getting the ARC. Thankfully, I did and Netgalley provided. (Allll the hearts.)

That being said, #2 was lovely and wonderful and the charm still holds, but it's playing the long game—because of that, I think some of the charisma of the Book #1 isn't as potent here. Yet it's a totally necessary character study for the series to propel forward, especially when you're talking about a Beguiling but Reformed Con Woman and a The Most Honorable and Adores Her Lawyer.

<b>Pros</b>: Excellent plot, the CONS!, still an amazing concept, more side characters, interesting character growth.

<b>Cons</b>: Series builder-y, less atmosphere and magnetism than the first.

<b>tl;dr</b>: When does #3 come out?

I enjoyed reading this. I think it might be part of another series, as I remember reading a similar book by this author a while back.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkeley Publishing Group for an advance reader copy in exchange for my honest opinion. Book to be released on Nov. 6, 2018.

City of Secrets is the second book in the Counterfeit Lady series. Grifting, blackmail, murder, and brothels make for an interesting historical fiction novel. Elizabeth is a reformed grifter, while her betrothed, Gideon, is a by the law attorney, who sees things as simply black and white. Will their opposing perspectives be the end of their engagement as they seek answers to Priscilla Jenks Knight's sudden misfortune? The stories within the story begin to unravel when the pastor's wife is revealed to be a former madam, and the pastor has a questionable appetite for a man of the cloth. Elizabeth seeks to get Priscilla's monies back, but first she has to prove that the Pastor and his wife are behind the blackmail scheme.

With the help of her grifting family, an unlikely ally in the mix, and Gideon's legal advice, Elizabeth is determined to reveal some dirty secrets and get justice.

I look forward to reading more by Victoria Thompson.

This is the first book I have read in the Counterfeit Lady series. If you are expecting a story light the Gas House Mysteries you will be disappointed. This story is more like a very good novel with romance and a mystery. The book started slowly as I place the characters but it changed as I found it difficult to put down. The characters are well developed and held my attention. I am looking forward to the next book
Elizabeth Miles is learning the correct behavior high in Society. She secretly engaged Gideon Bates. She has become friends with Priscilla Knight who was recently widows of the second time. Elizabeth is dismayed when she learns Priscilla has been left penniless as her second husband used her money to play a blackmailer. With the aid of her family, a con was set up to get Priscilla's money back. Will the con be successful and what will happen to the blackmailers? I highly recommend this book.

Disclosure: Many thanks to Berkley Publishing Group for a review copy.The opinions expressed are my own.

I love this book! It's such a great new series. I'm huge fan of Victoria Thompson but I have to say that I really enjoy the con game for good and finding justice through the grift is a fantastic idea. Elizabeth and Gideon are fun characters and I look forward to seeing how their relationship grows and changes. My favorite parts may be where Elizabeth's past are explored and her family interact with Gideon's world. Is the story a bit convoluted? Yes but I had a great time reading it and that counts for a lot. Thompson manages to find great historical details to stick in there. I'm definitely going to be recommending this series to people who enjoy historical mysteries.

The review will be added after publication in the November 2018 issue of the Historical Novels Review magazine.

Writing: 3 Plot: 4 Characters: 3.5

A thoroughly enjoyable historical mystery by the author of the Gaslight series. The second in the Counterfeit Lady series (I seem to have missed the first), this series centers on Elizabeth Miles, a “reformed” grifter who is making her way in New York polite society in the 1920s. In this episode, she is moved to help a new friend who was twice widowed and found herself penniless — her second husband having managed to go through all of her money as well as his own in a short amount of time. The plot twists in fun and surprising ways, leveraging an eclectic set of characters including ministers who are not what they seem, society matrons, and Elizabeth’s slightly unsavory (but utterly charming and oddly moral) pals from her grifting days. Nice historical touches covering the suffragist movement (not suffragette which they find demeaning), the social rules of etiquette as extracted from Mrs. Edith B. Ordway’s The Etiquette of Today, and the origin of safe deposit boxes. Interesting discussions on the rules of law, the roots of civilization, and how to determine what is morally appropriate in a situation.

Great read!

I loved the gaslight series and now I'm looking forward to the next Counterfeit Lady book. Elizabeth Miles is a gifted con woman, now trying very hard to be a proper lady. She has a foot in both worlds as she tries to rescue her friend who has been deceived and is now a penniless widow. Also, Elizabeth is a 1920's suffragist.

I have enjoyed all of the author’s Gaslight Mysteries and now I am enjoying her Counterfeit Lady series. The confrontations between Lizzie, the con artist, and her finance were amusing. I found it fascinating how both families worked together to find a grift to help a friend and to be honest about it.

I have received an ARC of this book from Netgalley for a honest review.

This is a wonderful historical fiction mystery and romance. It is the second in a series. I haven't read the first, but loved this one.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a review copy. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

LOVE! LOVE! LOVE!

This series has become my new favorite of Thompson's. While I love the gaslight series, it was still very Victorians in it's feel. This book is a feminist breath of fresh air and I LIVE for it!

Even though she was a former con artist, Elizabeth Miles is trying to go legit. She has a proper lawyer boyfriend, and she is making her way in society with the help of his suffragette mother. When drawn into helping her friend Pricilla find out what happened to her money after two husbands die in mysterious circumstances. There is a shady clergyman and his wife, a little bit of introduction to the mob as well. It was a great addition to the series.

I love that Elizabeth still retains some of her independence in a time when a woman is expected to go quietly into marriage. Even though her lawyer would like her to be like other women, he realizes that part of the reason he loved her was her contrariness. She is a modern woman stuck in. a decidedly backward time. I love that she is a strong character with flaws....just like in real life.

Victoria Thompson is a terrific author. This is the second book in her new series. Well written with developed characters this is a historical mystery series.. Set in the 1920's the main character, Elizabeth, is a con artist is engaged to Gideon, a lawyer.

I received an eARC from Berkley via NetGaley for an honest review. - This is another terrific series by this author and is a must read.

I have been enjoying Victoria Thompson's novels for several years now, and she never fails to provide an exceptional piece of writing. In this series, we are introduced to a young woman, raised by her father who taught her the fine art of grifting. With the help of her fiance who is an upstanding gentleman that prides himself on his honesty must learn to make exceptions to solve the murder and theft of a widows lives savings. Victoria Thompson has developed good solid characters that are genuinely everyday heroes and some dastardly villains that deserve their final punishments. With her vast knowledge of the historical facts during the early 1900th century, she sets the scene with historical events. Always a pleasure to read her books.

“Because sometimes you have to do something bad to do something good.”

― Oscar Wilde, The Complete Fairy Tales