A Lady in Training
Everything a Lady is Not is an interesting, dramatic, very fast paced romance. Lady Margaret Huntington aka. Lucy Locket, and Henry Beaumont are both born into unfortunate situations. They first meet as children, both outcasts in their own families, like their favorite book Robinson Crusoe. Lucy and Henry meet again in a less auspicious way, as they trade salty insults. I can say it is the first time I have read bone box used as a synonym for a dirty mouth. Henry is cold, and often sarcastic toward Lucy’s predicament. It takes Lucy sharing her questionable kidnapping, to earn Henry’s sympathy. Lucy does assume a little too early that Henry respects and values her, which is a blow to her already lagging confidence. Though, Lucy is at first petulant, she does have a backbone when it comes to the inequality of gender roles, and Henry has the decency to agree with her. Together they overcome the hypocrisy of society, to learn they are best suited for each other. There are a few historical errors mainly with historical clothing. Overall, this book is a good start in writing historical romance.

4.5 Stars!

Born the second son from a second wife, Henry Beaumont is cast out from his home as soon as his older brother takes on the family title. Thankfully, his older sister is more than happy to raise Henry alongside her own children. On one occasion, a girl comes to visit his sister’s home with her father. The brief connection over Robinson Crusoe left a lasting impression. Over a decade later, Henry meets the girl again, except this time everything has changed.

Mr. North brings forth a brilliant plot in the first book in his new Bow Street Beau’s series. He gives us a Pygmalion-type story wherein the lost granddaughter of a duchess needs his expert help to become a lady. Lucy is a fantastically refreshing character in that she sees how hypocritical the rules of the upper ten thousand are. There is a whole conversation where she points all of this out. I was actually cheering her on aloud as I read. I love it when I can get that involved in a story!

While the love story of Henry and Lucy is a slow burn, there is more than enough intrigue to keep you flipping the pages. Plus, since this is the first in the series, we are introduced to a host of secondary characters. While there are two other Bow Street Beaus, there is also The Dowager Duchess of Ramsbury. She is an absolute firecracker as Lucy’s grandmother. While she is only related to Lucy, I hope Mr. North will include her in upcoming stories.

I highly recommend Everything a Lady is Not and can’t wait for more of this series. If you want to check out more of Mr. North’s historical romance, give Fair Weather Enemies a read.

I received Everything a Lady is Not for free. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Henry Beaumont, former soldier and Bow Street Runner, captures Lucy Locket carrying coins from a robbery. A long ago connection over the book Robinson Crusoe and recognition of the crest on her locket, he returns her to her grandmother. Long thought dead, her grandmother reveals the terms of her inheritance. Following those terms, she must be accepted by society and marry a titled British gentleman. So the work begins with Henry as her instructor. But her past maybe her downfall, and Henry's as well. Love may not be enough to save them. There has got to be a way for them to be together. A different twist for an HEA. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book.

A Romance novel by a man? That I enjoyed? For real? Yes, unicorns exist! 🦄

This a delightful novella about Henry and Lucy. Henry is the 2nd son (i.e.the Spare) of an Earl, turned family outcast, war hero, Bow Street investigator. Lucy is the granddaughter of a Duke who was thought to be dead for 10 years, but has actually been living with highway bandits. They meet as children, and 10 years later as cop & robber in the forest after a lengthy persuit.

The banter between Henry and Lucy is adorable and funny. I will never tire of the feisty heroine who is forever turning questions on our hero. When she asks him if he needs help mounting his horse (after he asks her) I laughed out loud.

Henry agrees to help teach Lucy how to "society" as she gets aquainted with her aristocratic grandmother. For such a short book, a lot of stuff happens... At times a bit too much, but this is a pygmalion, forced proximity, ememies-to-lovers, return from the dead, Robin hood story. I'm sure I forgot a few, but I don't want to give out spoilers.

I truly enjoyed the development of characters as well as their arcs, both individually and together as a couple. The dialogue and interplay between characters was great, but kinda modern for an historical at times.

Overall, a sweet romance which I would recommend. Thanks to Netgally for this ARC.



#EverythingaLadyisNot #NetGalley

This is my fair and honest review, voluntarily given and in my own words, for this ARC. In the vein of my fair lady-esque, well written story. Some language that might put a few people off but otherwise sweet story of redemption and finding that perfect person.

This is my first Sawyer North book and I loved his spin on a time-honored romance. Although similar to My Fair Lady and other romances like it, the addition of the duchess grandmother, the huge inheritance and the horrible brother come together to make it a charming romance. Henry’s surprise at the end took me by surprise. Yes, we know they are going to have a sweet HEA, but the fun is in getting there!

The original meeting between Lucy and Henry as children is sweet and adds to their relationship in a special way with Friday and Crusoe references throughout the book. Their relationship developed quickly with Henry’s tutelage in haute ton manners. He seemed to know that Lucy could handle anything yet appeared unsure at times.

Lucy was not educated in the traditional sense but had a great education just the same. She never forgot from where she came pre-kidnapping and post-kidnapping. She took it all in stride. Even Henry’s childhood was difficult and troubled as well, but he turned out to be stronger than he knew.

I loved the secondary characters both good, Charlotte and the duchess, and bad, James and other suitors. Cute insert of a former friend in the end! Missed seeing a continued connection with the duchess, though. Enjoyed this enough that I will look for more from Sawyer North.

This is the first story I've read from Sawyer North. I enjoyed the development of the characters, both Lucy and Henry. I'm still not sure why Henry's brother hated him so much, but he did. The story starts when these two are children. So much happens to both of them - most of it not so great - but they grow into very interesting and kind people. I never write a spoiler, but you will feel such empathy for Lucy and probably want to kick Henry in the pants on occasion!

Enjoy this story, I did. I received a complimentary copy via netgallery in exchange for an honest review. This is a very honest review.

I received an arc from the publisher via netgalley . All thoughts and opinions are my own.
For me the book was plain boring, the idea wasn't original and the characters weren't lovable enough for my taste.
For the record, the writing style was actually decent, the author has his way with words, so it deserves only 2 stars

This is the second book I've read by Mr. North and this one did not disappoint. Lady Margaret, also known as Lucy by her father, had her life upended when highwaymen attacked their carriage and the 9 year old was swept away in the river. Her father believing her dead soon died himself when his ship to Italy capsized. Margaret was rescued by one of the highwaymen who raised her and protected her like a daughter. When a simple robbery goes wrong, Lucy finds herself being pursued by Henry Beaumont, a Bow Street Runner. When he catches her, he realizes who she is and torn between returning her to the duchess or turning her in the magistrate. When the duchess offers him a deal to teach Lucy the finer points of being a lady of the ton, Henry is reluctant. Can he turn this brash and rough young lady into a genteel lady of the ton in a matter of weeks?

One of the aspects of the author's books I really enjoy is the witty banter between the H and h. Henry was such a noble character and I loved how over the course of several weeks his feelings toward Lucy changed when he got to know her true character. Lucy was definitely a work in progress and her training and transformation into the regal granddaughter of the duchess was inventive, relying on her skills she learned in her youth to help her understand the rules of Society. The story moved along at a good pace and I was delighted with the way the obstacles in their path to true love was resolved. One minor criticism is I wished the author had mentioned the duchess in the epilogue. How did she fare after all? This is another solid effort by this author and I'm looking forward to reading his future books.

I voluntarily read the advanced reader copy and all opinions are my own.

This is a charming story of a heroine, lost in her youth due to a highway man's kidnap. The heroine has met the hero as children, and when the hero received news that the heroine had passed away in a carriage accident, he was saddened. Now, eleven years later they meet up at another highway man hold up. She runs in fear and he gives chase. They meet and she is able to convince him to assist her. I really enjoyed the plot of the book. The story line was solid and didn't need any strange plot twist to make the end make sense. But I just felt the characters were not as developed as they could have been. With a little more insight and more conversation, it would have been a little better. The conversations were very stilted and limited to what was being said. There was no emoting or descriptions of emotions, except for the very basic. If there could have been more introspection maybe? Since I am not an author, I only have a basic grasp of what could be added, but I know that something was missing. I give this book 4 stars, because I really enjoyed the story line.

I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.

When she was 9, Lady Margaret Huntingdon, also known as Lucy, was lost/kidnapped following a carriage accident that dumped her in the Thames. Since then, she's been a part of the infamous highwayman, Steadman's, crew, and forgot all about the fact she is the granddaughter of a Duke. When Steadman plans another heist, and it all goes wrong, Lucy finds herself being caught by one of the Bow Street Runners, Henry Beaumont, who remembers Lucy from an encounter 11 years ago, and realises that her grandmother would be thrilled with her return. Once Lucy is restored to her place in society, it's revealed that she has only three months to prove herself to be a proper society Lady, and marry someone with a royally bestowed title, or else her inheritance will be lost forever. The Dowagers hires Henry to act as Lucy's guide and teacher in the ways of the Ton, and together they need to counteract the entire 11 years of Lucy's life to make her someone the society would embrace. To say it was difficult would be an understatement, and as both Lucy and Henry work together, it's obvious their attraction is undeniable. If only Henry had a title, and wasn't the second son, all would be right.

From the minute I started this book, I was hooked, and didn't put it down until I was finished a few hours later. Lucy was a wonderful main character, who experienced so much growth and change throughout the course of the book. Her history was fantastic, and I loved seeing how her life as a criminal had moulded her into the person she now was, and helped her - in a way - to become the proper Lady she needed to be. Yes, she had struggles, but this showed her as a real person, and made it much more believable. Her relationship with her grandmother was sweet too, especially when you consider that in the space of losing her granddaughter 11 years ago, her two sons and husband tied within a year, so she's been alone for a long time. Henry was really sweet underneath his hard exterior, and when you hear more about his childhood and the way his elder brother treated him, you really understand him much better. He and Lucy were perfect in every way, and the banter and chemistry between them was one of the best I have seen in a romance recently. I needed them to be together but didn't know how they would overcome the ironclad dowry agreement, but I'm happy to say the solution to all their problems was perfect, and the ending was beautiful! Definitely a favourite of mine!

I've always been a fan of Regency romance, but sadly, this is a lukewarm read for me. It is not good nor bad; it's just okay. I would have wanted more sizzle, more spark, but it fell short to my taste.

After a decade of living with criminals and scoundrels, Lucy Locket found her way back to her old life as an heiress. The long-lost granddaughter of a duchess, she is suddenly pressured to marry within three months in order to inherit or she forfeits the fortune. Enter Henry Beaumont, who was suddenly given the task to educate her on how to behave like a high society lady. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Despite Lucy and Henry being likeable characters, I found it hard to connect to them. I didn't feel any chemistry, perhaps because I found the dialogues stilted. Still, I admire Lucy's determination to learn how to act what is expected of an heiress without compromising who she is. I also admire Henry's patience in showing Lucy what she is meant to be.

Overall, if you like a light romantic read, then this is for you.