Immersed in a captivating and tender narrative, Selina finds herself adopting the guise of a fortune teller to support both herself and Beatrix, her chosen sister. Harry, a determined Bow Street Runner, pursues leads on a past fire and investigates a fortune teller accused of exploiting his mother. Their paths intersect when Selina disrupts Harry's pursuit of a child pickpocket, and upon discovering Harry's quest for her brother's arsonist, she has ample reason to stay close. As Selina's feelings for Harry deepen, she becomes disenchanted with her chosen life. Despite both denying interest in marriage, they start envisioning a shared future. Unraveling shocking revelations about the past and discovering the truth behind each crime, Harry emerges as a dedicated, fair, and kind gentleman, while Selina proves herself to be a resilient, independent, and compassionate woman. The supporting characters add an intriguing dimension to this tale of love and discovery.

Harry Sheffield, constable for Bow Street takes his job seriously. Harry goes to a shop on Drury Lane to check out the mysterious fortune teller-Madame Sybila, who he believes is a fraud. Harry has a plan though for Sybila to read his future. Sybila adamantly denies that she can read anyone’s future and also, she never sees male clients either. Harry then asks a question, that his family would like him to marry which Sybila remains quite cryptic and makes him leave. Ms. Selina Blackwell is in truth, Madame Sybila and hides her true identity well. When Selina throws herself in Harry’s path to prevent a child and thief from getting away. Harry is first and foremost a gentleman because not only is he a constable, but his father is the Earl of Aylesbury. Harry can’t help but be intrigued by Selina or rather Lady Gresham. Selina as Lady Gresham has one goal to give her “so-called sister” Beatrix a season. Selina does keep an eye on Harry, making it all the more difficult to avoid him. As Selina keeps tabs on Harry, it also puts her in dangerously close proximity to him too. Harry isn’t all he seems, well neither is Selina. That pretty soon love could ruin the perfect pretend life Selina has created.
What a fun adventuresome Regency historical that is definitely not short of romance or mystery combined! Some of the Regency mores aren’t strictly followed, but this is also a pleasantly charming book that still managed to transport me to a nice place. The story luckily isn’t really difficult to understand even with some many things happening at once. With everything going on some background would have made the tale a bit smoother as opposed to being a bit of a mess. The writing though has very little errors so that makes up for it. Harry the gentlemanly righteous hero is definitely a contradiction in terms. That at times it was just hard to imagine him, good thing the book cover did have an auburn-haired guy so that helped keep the focus. Selina the mysterious identity crisis heroine played so many parts that yes, it was hard to keep up with all her personalities. Still, the book is pretty enjoyable and some light fluff that is a lovely read!

I enjoyed this historical romance by Darcy Burke (one of my favorite historical romance authors. This book follows the characters Selina and Harry. Selina comes from a life on the streets of London and Harry is a Bow Street Runner. Not exactly a match in real life, but perfect for a romance novel!

This story was good and had a lot of action through the book. I also like that Ms Burke throws in some humor with her characters as well. Really enjoyed the book.

Thank you NetGalley for an advance copy.

This book was outside of my usual genre, regardless I enjoyed the historic feel and I do think the plot lines are believable.

The growing attraction between the characters was palpable and you know it will not end well!

Good start to the series.

I enjoyed this historical romance story with all of the characters. The two main characters were Selina Blackwell and Harry Sheffield.

Selina Blackwell has had a hard life in the street of East End of London for most of her life. She has found a way to blend in to her surroundings. Her recent disguises are a fortune teller and also a married lady of the ton. So that she can help provide a season for her sister. But when a Bow Street Runner come to check up on her fortune teller business might not go so well for her.

Harry Sheffield is a Bow Street Runner and a second son to an Earl. When his father asks him to look into a fortune teller that his mother has been going to.

This was a fun story to read it had adventure and action throughout it that keep my attention. It also had a few laughs along the way.

I received a complimentary copy via Netgalley. This is my honest unbiased opinions.

This was the perfect historical romance. I love a story with a secret identity, and I enjoy romances featuring the bow street runners. It was romantic and fun to read.

Great book. Story of love and redemption. Darcy always pulls you into the book and keeps you there for the duration. Great read !

All felt very jumbled, and I went in expecting an historical romance but it quickly turned into a mystery with a procedural feel to it, and then the added layer of deceit and deception by the heroine which turned out to be not very likable at all at some points... Maybe it was because I was expecting something else, but this one missed the mark for me, sadly

A SECRET SURRENDER is the first book in the Pretenders series. Though set in the world of The Untouchables, it is not necessary to have read that series. On the other hand, I would recommend reading The Pretenders in the order of release since we are following Selina and her siblings.

I love Harry Sheffield. He is a second son to Earl the Aylesbury, but instead of taking a commission with the army or a position with the clergy he chose to become a barrister. When that didn’t suit him, he chose to become a constable working with the Bow Street Runners. He’s a workaholic with a quick mind, a compassionate heart, and a forward-thinking ideology.

Selina has had a tough life from the time she was toddler. Luckily, she had an older brother and a family “uncle” who helped her reach maturity, but then she was truly on her own. Living by her wits in an age when women weren’t much more than chattel requires her to live beyond what most of us would consider to be our conscience. She’s a complex character with a complicated background that built my admiration.

I didn’t know how Selina was going to ever get Harry to trust her with all that lies that had to be told. How could she reveal the truth? How could he forgive her? I couldn’t put this book down until I knew how this was all resolved and I loved ever twist, turn, and fraud.

Note: While I received this book as a gifted ARC via NetGalley, my opinions are my own and are given freely.

Title: A SECRET SURRENDER
Series: The Untouchables: The Pretenders #1
Category /Genre: Historical Romance
Recommended for: 18+ due to sexual content
Grammar/editing: A – near perfect
Received from: Darcy Burke (as an ARC gifted copy)

After I finished this, I bought the whole series. Such a fun, swashbuckling tale! Highly recommend.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

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

For Selina Blackwell, life has been tough. Raised by an 'uncle' alongside her brother in the East End of London, she was sent to school at 11 to avoid facing a life of prostitution. At school, she was wholly alone, and ridiculed, except for her friend, and pseudo-sister, Beatrix. Since they left school, they've had to survive in whatever way they could, lying and stealing their way to find a foothold in London society, to allow Beatrix the opportunity to have a season, and meet her father again after being abandoned as a child as the illegitimate daughter of a duke. Selina has taken on the persona as both Lady Gresham, a widow caring for her sister, and as Madam Sybila, a fortune teller adored by society. As Lady Sybila, she risks the scorn of others, and especially Harry Sheffield, son of the Earl of Aylesbury, and a Bow Street Runner. He's adamant that Madam Sybila is a fraud, swindling his mother, and sets out to prove it. Thinking that Lady Gresham may be a way for him to discover more, he enlists her help, not knowing that the woman he's been looking for has been in front of him the entire time.

I really enjoyed Darcy's Spitfire Society series when I read it last year, and seeing that these books would be in the same world, I knew I needed to read the series, and I binged them all in a few days. For the first book, it was such a solid start, setting the scene and introducing the main players, and making us fall in love with Selina, Beatrix, and Rafe. I loved Selina from the first page. She was strong, and knew what it was to struggle, but would do anything she could to help those she cared for, and get revenge for those she thought she had lost. Harry is completely straitlaced - as a second son, he wasn't expected to go into the law, and then into Bow Street, but he cared about righting wrongs, and making those pay who deserved it. Fraud and people being hoodwinked was an evil to him, so he wanted to bring down Sybila at whatever cost, especially when his own family was involved. Meeting Selina, as Lady Gresham, was as if a moment of fate, and from the first meeting, they were both lost. I felt their chemistry, and feelings for each other, strongly, and it was clear that they both wanted to be with each other, even if there were many struggles to overcome. Beatrix and Rafe were perfect side characters here - definitely setting them up for their own stories, and the inclusion of past characters was a joy too. A wonderful start to the series!

This story was delightful and captivating.
I found myself feeling rather sorry for Harry as he found himself struggling to find a real connection on his search for love. That soon changed though when he meets Selena.
Their romance was endearing, consuming and full of drama. I adored this story.

Poor Harry, he was a fool for love as the saying goes, or was it a fool in love, whatever, he was totally blindsided and well played by a couple of the best in the job, poor fella. The love that grew between Selena and Harry was consuming, delectable, sweet, and engrossing.

Cute sweet little romance. I really liked Thai book a lot and I’m glad I got to read it. Thanks Netgalley!!

Another Darcy Burke book that l enjoyed. There was plenty to keep me interested. The characters were all different and the story line was complicated but it was nice to see how it ended. I do recommend that you read this book.

I love a redemption story! (They’re almost as good as second chances, in my opinion.) I really liked the twist that in this book, it’s the heroine in need of redeeming. It gives the story a bit of a Cinderella feel. Selina is fiercely independent and while I liked that about her, I wasn’t as fond of all the lies she needed to tell Harry in order to keep all her secrets safe. Harry is pretty much everything good book boyfriends are made of. He’s noble, honorable, caring, and devoted to his family – who, let’s be honest, are quite the handful. There’s a lot going on in this book. I think it’s just the usual first-in-a-series syndrome where the groundwork for the following books needs to be laid. I didn’t have any troubles following all the different plot points, but I did find the pace a little frenetic at times. I loved getting a peak at the Spitfire society from a different angle and I’m looking forward to seeing what the author has in store for Selina’s siblings.
I received a complimentary advanced copy of this book through NetGalley.

Darcy Burke is one of my favorite authors but this book just wasn't for me. There was so much deception going on that I couldn't keep up with it all. I wanted to like Selina, but not sure that I could. I felt Harry was to good for her.

A con artist posing as a fortune teller. An earl's son working as a Bow Street Runner. A delicious forbidden romance!⁠ ⁠

As an orphan, Selina was forced to work for a crime lord, but she's now trying to start a new life. Harry is investigating her alter ego Madame Sybila, a veiled fortune teller who speaks with a French accent. If he discovers the truth, it could mean prison and the end to everything she's worked for. She walks a tightrope between two worlds, keeping him close in her identity as Lady Gresham so she can keep him as far as possible from Sybila and her crimes.⁠
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This story immediately pulled me in. It's suspenseful and engrossing. The characters are interesting, well-drawn, and charming.
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Overall, this was a very entertaining read. I recommend it to anyone who likes Regency romance. The author is an excellent storyteller. ⁠
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Thanks, Darcy Burke Publishing, for the Netgalley ARC.⁠

First book in a new series that can easily be read as a stand alone.
I love to read about unusual jobs or out of the norm heroes or heroines, and this book has it all in spades.
A pretender indeed, Lady Gresham is a survivor that has gone through a lot in her life and will stop at nothing to live the life she wants.
Harry, an earl that hates loosing and doesn’t care much about the society rules, sets his mind in finding out who is the illusive woman that makes her money from frivolous games and learned speeches.
Full of suspense and great banter, this novel is a great historical romance with two characters that will go head first to stand their ground, but that ground is coming apart when love and lust make an appearance in their heart.

I had to double check the author's name while I was reading because the difference between this book and the last Darcy Burke I read was astounding. I was hesitant at first, but honestly this book went far beyond my expectations. It was highly enjoyable, and the writing was far to superior to the only other Burke book I've read (A Duke Will Never Do). I did enjoy reading about the main characters, and their journey towards their 'HEA'. I also found Seline's past and her transformation to Madame Sybila interesting.

Lots of plot twists and turns; some tiring, some expected, some fun to read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.