I really like Susanna Craig's writing, true I haven't read her books for a looooong time, and this has been unfortunately sitting on my Kindle for way too long, but hey better late then never, right?
Who's That Earl is a fun, light-heart romp with a sweet second chance romance and an interesting plot, it's an easy book to read and flows gently from one scene to another. I liked the romance between Jane and Thomas, though I felt that something was missing in their romance of the overall story - I'm not sure, but something was missing, it was lacking that Susanna Craig magic which I instantly fell in love with years ago.
I will certainly read more from this series, it's perfect if you just want something easy and fun to while away the afternoon.

This was fun! I enjoy a spy romance, a la Pink Carnation series and this delivers a mystery and intrigue style romance. I don't know that I would prioritize reading the rest of the series because it just didn't sizzle and pop the way I wanted it to, with wit jumping off the page. But depending on reviews I might try another!

I don't normally like second-chance romances, but this one was very enjoyable. I think it helped that the couple's initial separation had more to do with circumstances beyond their control than individual actions. I was also very surprised by this book; I think because the cover is so misleading. Who's That Earl is a highland romance with a gothic novelist heroine and a former spy hero. I think the cover sets the completely wrong tone.

I recommend this novel for historical romance readers who like Scottish heroes and cozy winter settings.

I don't know why but I'm not able to finish it, I liked both main characters and I think the plot it's interesting enough but it's lacking that "Je-ne-sais-quoi"

I found it so refreshing that, though both halves of the main couple were keeping secrets, they could see through each other right away! I thought our pair was cute enough but the spy plotline itself was the least interesting bit to me. I may continue on in the series but it's not a priority for me.

Who's That Earl is an historical romance between Jane and Thomas. He was in the army while she wrote novels under a pen name. They had a short romance before he left for the army and that romance is going to be rekindled. Second chances romances aren't usually my favorite plot but I was interested to see how this one would end up.

Historical romances can be one of my favorite romances however I love it when there is a lot of tension between the main characters. Something that I didn't feel here in this one unfortunately. The plot kind of lost my interest as well even though overall, this was still an enjoyable read.

(Thank you for letting me read and review an ARC via Netgalley)

I'm currently clearing out all of the books that were published in 2019-20 from my title feedback view!

The start of a new series with the heroine a writer of gothic novels. I love when an author writes about an author and how it all plays out.

She has taken refuge in an old Scottish Castle, which would make a great setting for one of her gothic stories. Also writing under a pen name makes her feel safe from the letters she has been receiving with death threats. What she never expected was he long ago love showing up!

He could not believe he was being pulled out of his spying for the British and sent to London. Finding out he was now the Earl of a crumbling manor in Scotland, he does not know whether to take a role or go back to his job. What he cannot believe is who the novelist is that is inhabiting his castle!

A second chance at love with a few twists and turns. Great start to new series.

I wish I had have picked this one up when it was published and not let it sit on my TBR for so long. It was the right kind of story for me right now though. I needed an independent heroine and a reluctant Earl.
I enjoyed the second chance romance story between Jane and Thomas, it worked well for me. The 3rd act conflict wasn’t annoying, it wasn’t the usual lack of communication that we usually get in romance.
Pick this one up if you are looking for something in the same vein as Tessa Dare’s “Romancing the Duke”.

Thanks to NetGalley and The publisher for an eArc of this book.

Who’s That Earl (Love and Let Spy #1). By Susanna Craig. 2020. Kensington Books (ARC eBook).

Who’s That Earl is the first book that I have read by Susanna Craig and I found the story well-written and overall enjoyable. Author Jayne Quayle and military intelligence officer Thomas Sutherland are keeping secretes from each other but can’t ignore the pull between them that was briefly, but genuinely explored years ago. The two were likable characters and their second-chance romance also had a bit of a mystery and dash of danger. I look forward to the next book in the series.

Okay, this books lies under the category of good prose but with a weak storyline.
From the beginning to the last quarter there wasn't much happening, like, at all, it was just them flirting, which got pretty boring to read after the second time, i think the author wanted to put some tension between the two characters, but it didn't do it for me.
The characters weren't... remarkable, they weren't the kind of characters you feel intrigued by, they didn't make me feel invested in theirs love story throughout the book, i think the problem was that they were mainly cliches, the independent female who thinks love can't go hand in hand with independence, and the charming highlander who has a cute accent with more deep layers to his person because of his work as a spy, see? Total cliche.
After the first third, completing the book felt more like a chore, but if you get to read the last 4 or 3 chapters, you would finally find some stuff happening, other than the steamy scenes, which the author put two of them( an attempt to salvage the damage??).
Honestly, i don't recommend it.
*I received an ARC of this book in exchange of an honest review via netgalley and the publisher*

I'm not sure what.this boon was trying to do, but it didn't get there for me. I DNF'd this one. I wish that I could say more about it.... but it wasn't interesting enough to even flip through.

A very entertaining historical romance, I like it enough that I bought the second instalment in the series as soon as it was available. Highly recommended.

From page one the reader is in the midst of a secret operation with Thomas. The action surrounds him. His commander from the home office has called him home. Somehow someway he is now the Earl of Magnus. All the years away from England he never forgot the young woman who touched his heart, Jane. Now seven years later destiny brings them together again under mysterious circumstances at his newly inherited castle in Scotland. Secrets keep Jane from trusting Thomas and Thomas' secrets keep him from telling her he is the new earl along with his past. Danger falls at Jane's feet and she is threatened and nearly killed by the least likely person. When Jane left the castle and Thomas behind, he intercepted a message from her brother. Apparently, her father found out she had money and wanted his share. He was a mean B@#t@rd and Thomas feared for her. He and his good friend from the village set out to find her and by a stroke of good luck he did. Jane and Thomas stopped fighting their attraction to each other. The next day her father comes banging on her door. Thomas swiftly took him down and held him on the ground when Jane appeared. Now was her chance to be free emotionally and mentally from the horrid man. She told him off but good. The next thing you know the whole village comes into view and all the villagers and tenants were there to greet them. Jane was confused and happy. Thomas took her to the anvil for an old fashion Scottish wedding binding their lives together at long last. I loved, loved, loved this story. It is never boring and definitely not a disappointment. This is a great romance amidst danger and secrets. A must read. I highly recommend it.

This first in the series was a lot of fun. I don't generally enjoy romance stories where the main characters are lying to each other, but this hidden/secret identity story worked for me. Both the hero and heroine are keeping their full identities secret for different reasons, but it means there are bumps in the road as they learn to trust each other. I appreciated the way community was woven into the story to both challenge and support our characters and their preconceived expectations. Looking forward to the rest of the series.

Thomas Sutherland, a spy for the British Army, comes home to settle the matter of an inheritance. He has no real intention of leaving his position and wishes to return to the life he is used to as quickly as possible. That is until his superior officer makes it clear that he must do his domestic duties before he will be allowed to resume his place. As it turns out, Sutherland’s inheritance is that of the entirety of the Scottish village he spent his summers in as a child, including Dunnock Castle. His plan is to quickly set the place up, find someone who can properly run the land, and head back to the foreign lands he’s spent most of his life in. Luckily, it appears that a famous author has already taken up residence in the castle and may have a secretary who can do just that for him. However, when he appears on the doorstep of his new found seat, he discovers that the secretary he thought was a man is not only decided NOT male, but is also a widowed woman, and the one he fell in love with before he took his foreign commission! This may be harder than he thought…


Ms. Jayne Quayle has lived under the guise of widowed Mrs. Higginbotham for the past six years, acting as a amanuensis to the popular and reclusive gothic novelist, Robin Ratliff. Well, that’s what she wants people to think. She’s neither a widow, nor just a simple copy editor, but the author him-well, her-self. This precarious tower of deception has kept her hidden and independent for many years. That is, until the whole guise is threatened when a certain handsome soldier she once had feelings for turns up on the doorstep of Dunnock Castle where she has been living. However, when death threats against Mr. Ratliff start to show up in the mail, Thomas feels the need to protect Jayne, and Jayne feels a passion stirring in her that she hasn’t felt in years. At the risk of toppling everything they both have at stake, they band together to find out who is threatening Robin Ratliff, while trying to protect their secrets. Someone should have also reminded them to protect their hearts.

I really truly loved this book. I could practically see the setting in the misty, cold Scottish Highlands. The characters were well-rounded. The only thing that slightly bothered me was when the author described Thomas as slipping into a deep brogue and it felt a little forced and over used. However, I truly loved Jayne. I also loved seeing a smart and creative BBW in the lead role of a romance novel.

I’m a true sucker for regency era spy romances and this delivered in spades. The quaint town, all of the side characters, and even the secret underlying plot that encapsulates the series is a bit of a mysterious delight. I’m honestly excited for the next one. Plus, look at that cover and the title! So cute!

Thank you Kensington books and Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for a fair and honest review. Kensington always seems to deliver exactly what I need.

This was fun and breezy for most of it but there were quite a few moments where I wished the story had a bit more depth. Do feel like it's more of a case of 'it's more me than the book' and will recommend to others.

I keep saying how I don't enjoy mysteries in romances... and I keep accidentally choosing romances that feature mysteries. I will point out: when it's done well and it's compelling, I don't mind. I just read One Fine Duke by Lenora Bell yesterday and gave it four stars while overlooking outrageous plots.

This book was... okay. I actually enjoyed Susanna Craig's writing and her character descriptions. While I didn't jump into it from chapter 1, I appreciated the way she set the stage, revealed her characters, and revealed the previous ties they had to each other.

My biggest gripe with this book was the timing. There are 24 chapters in this book. In in chapter 10, it still felt as though we were still in the “introduction” or set up of the book. Shortly after, we got a spell-out-of-plot-and-secrets. So to me, the book felt like: the first 50% was the set up, the next 15% was "the reveal" of secrets, the next 15% was resolving one mystery, the next 15% was setting up and resolving a last minute problem, and the last 5% was resolution of the entire story.

I really wanted to like this book, but tragically it fell flat for me. I'm super sad about it and that sucks. But I thank you, Netgally, for being so wonderful and precious to me. YOU da real MVP.

I always love a Susanna Craig book, and I did really like this one, in terms of the cat and mouse game between the protagonists, but for some reason it didn't tug on my heart strings quite as much as Susanna's other work has.

So we have Jayne Quayle and Thomas Sutherland, they had a brief courtship before Thomas went off to spy for the British Army, when he asked her father for her hand, he disowned having a daughter.

Jayne is now an infamous author writing gothic tales under the pen name of Robin Ratliff, she is renting Dunnock Castle from the Earl of Magnus, to provide a safe hideaway and privacy for her to write.

Thomas is finally back from war, and has inherited the Earldom of Magnus. When he travels to castle to rind Mr Ratcliff and Jayne is there, he becomes suspicious, Jayne is also suspicious of Thomas in turn. Who is trying to unnerve Jayne/Robin, through a series of threatening letters, can they puzzle out each other's secrets, and give in to their mutual attraction. There was lots to like in this book, including man hating spaniels, a cat of eccentric characters and Jayne and Thomas themselves.

I'm looking forward to the other books in the series.

I voluntarily read and advance reader copy of this book and all opinions are my own.