My rating: ⭐️⭐️½⭐️ (2.5 stars)

I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m a sucker for beautiful book covers. The first thing that drew me to this title was the gorgeous – and I mean gorgeous – cover art. And after reading the synopsis I was even more intrigued! The Innkeeper’s Daughter boasts of having it all – historical romance, suspense, mystery… As a fan of both period romances and mystery/thrillers, you can bet how excited I was to pick this novel up.

The mix of genres aside, from what I can see, The Innkeeper’s Daughter is first and foremost advertised as a romance between Eliza, the daughter of a deceased innkeeper on the lam from her abusive fiancé and step-father, and Henry, a known playboy and secret agent of the crown … something I found unfortunate, because the romantic aspects of the plot were my least favorite.

Between the insta-love, the constant reminders of their notable age gap, and the uncomfortable power dynamics – not only was Eliza noticeably less experienced than Henry, but she spent almost the entire narrative feeling indebted to him for saving her life, and, being poor, had only her virginity to give him in thanks (cue: eye-roll) – this relationship just didn’t do it for me.

When it comes to period romances, I’m typically a little more forgiving than this, but just the combination of all these factors together made this one in particular feel like there was too much to overlook.

Another thing worth mentioning, is that while Eliza is the titular character, the aforementioned innkeeper’s daughter, Henry was the actual main character of the novel. So this story ended up being less about a badass woman teaming up with her man to take down a seedy, unground crime organization (like I had hoped it would be) as it was about a man being a secret agent, teaming up with his war buddies, and bedding his mistress along the way…

Eliza’s portrayal throughout this story was probably my biggest let down. The narration kept saying how intelligent she was… but it didn’t really feel that way with her constantly being coddled and rescued. Honestly, the way women were portrayed in this novel in general wasn’t my cup of tea. I just felt like they were too often the victims of sexual violence and… rarely anything else.

Overall, I gave this novel two and a half stars, because my previously mentioned complaints aside, the “case” part of the plot itself wasn’t half bad. Full of suspense, it kept me engaged until the very end, and paved the way for a promising premise in the next instalment. Plus, this book had lots of beautiful gown descriptions throughout, which I have to admit I’m biased towards.

Thank you to the publisher, Central Avenue Publishing, and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC of this book. All thoughts are my own.

The Innkeeper’s Daughter was a very quick read for me. The book started off with vulgar language and violence, which was hard to read, but I knew this was setting up Eliza’s need to run away and meet Sir Henry, so I continued on. However, the romance didn’t really do it for me. The meeting was great, but it became insta-love as soon as Eliza recovered from her injuries. I would have loved some more “will they, won’t they” or some yearning. Their scenes were definitely cute, but I wasn’t too invested.

What I really enjoyed was the mystery aspect and the mission within the story. Henry is a spy who is trying to take down a sex trafficking ring and Eliza has information which can help him. I flew through the pages. I did get quite invested by the end, so I will most likely pick up the sequel.

Please check trigger warnings before reading. I went in blind and was pretty shocked. This was an advanced copy, so I couldn’t have known. I believe you will enjoy this if you are able to handle these topics.

Thank you Netgalley and Central Avenue Publishing for the arc! This title was released January 12, 2021.

Review goes live on blog and social media by 8am PST on 1/21/21. Will update with links.

Thank you for the opportunity to read The Innkeeper’s Daughter.

The story is about a young girl who first lost her father & then her mother. She was then left with the vile human her mother was with just before she died, a horrid & abusive man. The Innkeeper’s Daughter, Eliza barely escaped the abuse and as luck would have it, as she was escaping she ran into the arms of a good man.

It’s not a mushy love story, more along the lines of Bridgerton but with a focus on the sex trade/human trafficking. Sort of a mix between Bridgerton and Harlots.

The story is paced well, the characters likable and the ending was wrapped up neatly in a bow, but at the same time had me intrigued enough to want to see where the next book with go. Is great as a stand alone novel or a series. I’m excited to see where this storyline goes next.

I would absolutely recommend this book.



#netgalley #theinnkeepersdaughter

First time reading a book by this author and I was pleasantly surprised! I love historical fiction and the plot was interesting enough to hold my attention. The author's writing was great and the world building was such a treat. I am looking forward to future books by her.

3 stars
A historical tale that had the undercurrent of nods to sexual situations currently talked/written about currently. It had research and flavor of the past but some of the dialogue leaned more current.

The synopsis of this sounded AMAZING and I was so excited to read it! It opens on a pretty harsh scene of our young heroine being beaten up by her step father, but when she was rescued by a literal knight, I thought - oh yes, this'll be a great story.

But it got creepy realllll quick. Mr Fancy Pants is like 30, and the poor abused girl he takes under his wing is 17. He should be looking at her like a daughter, if anything - especially given he does in fact have a daughter only a few years younger. But it's pretty clear right away that he's attracted to this abused teenager and I just couldn't get that to sit right with me. Then we get to the scene where he's all turned on from some other woman grinding on him and he makes moves on the 17 year old - sorry but what the FORK am I reading?? Then the girl starts thinking about how she owes him for saving her. EW! The author seems to be totally okay with this huge power imbalance and age gap - which, given the story apparently moves into preventing sex trafficking, seems pretty bloody ironic.

I can't make it past Chapter 7. I'm sorry. I have absolutely no interest in reading what are essentially romanticized paedophillic sex scenes. Noooooo thank you, that's weird. This book needs to be marketed differently.

Eliza, “The InnKeeper’s Daughter” having been badly beaten by her stepfather, is saved by Sir Henry and taken to his home to recover. She soon finds herself surrounded by another world, filled with art and literature. However, her past soon catches up with her and Henry, a secret agent to the Crown, does all that he can to save her from her stepfather and the pimp, who had plans for her. Eliza and Henry, find themselves thrust into the dark sadistic world of sex trafficking and Henry uncovers the identity of the traitor responsible for selling military secrets to the French, causing the death of thousands.

This is a book full of action alongside a romance between Eliza and Henry. There are some very confronting scenes of rape and violence but at the same time, there is the subtle nature of romance between the two lead characters. I found this an entertaining read, with detail given to each of the characters. Whilst not always an easy read, it is definitely one packed full of emotion.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I had high expectations for The Innkeeper's Daughter because of the potential it had. It was focused a lot more on the romantic aspects and had "insta-love" which I typically don't enjoy. It was enjoyable to read but I had a lot of issues with it.

I really wish I would have liked this book more. It sounded so interesting. A historical romantic suspense? Sounds so cool. I’m going to try to keep this as spoiler free as possible.

The story opens on a scene where our heroine is being beaten. It is pretty graphic and I could see it turning off some people at the jump. However, if this scene bothers you, there are more in the rest of the book that are worse. Our heroine, Eliza, is found by our Hero, Henry. As expected, they are our romantic couple. This isn’t a spoiler as it is in the synopsis. Their relationship had no push or pull. They got together a third of the way through the book and that’s it. They were just together after that. No angst, no tension. Which would be fine if this wasn’t marketed more as a romance and if the suspense aspects were in the forefront. There is a whole human trafficking ring that is brought up in the beginning, pretty much dropped in the middle for the romance, and then suddenly brought back up near the end to complete the mystery/suspense part of the story.

I thought the mystery part was interesting, but could have done with a bit more development. The romance was really lacking for me. There is like a 12 or 13 year age difference between our couple which is not something that normally bothers me EXCEPT she is barely 18 and he’s like 30 and it keeps getting brought up during the book. Soooo kinda grossed me out just a bit. No shame to people who like that sort of thing in books but it just felt a bit yikes to me. Plus there is something with there relationship that really truly pissed me off but I can’t say what it is because it is a spoiler. All I’ll say is check the synopsis for book 2.

I really think this book could have done with some additional editing of the story and maybe put the romance in the backseat and bringing the mystery to the forefront. This book could definitely be triggering for some people due to the content. Please be aware of the trigger warnings.

CW/TW: physical abuse, domestic abuse, sexual abuse, description of rape off page, sexual sadism (to unwilling participants), pedophilia, murder. I think that’s all but I could have missed some. This is a very dark book in spots.

It was definitely gritty and definitely steamy and definitely romance-cy but it wasn't particularly historical-ly. I love me a good Regency thriller (a la Captain Lacey and Sebastian St. Cyr), but this one didn't really deliver on the evoking Regency England front. That said, I enjoyed it. It kept the pages turning. I'll definitely be picking up the next volume in the series!

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC copy for my review.

Wow, this book was not what I expected! Since I never read the synopsis, I thought this would be a historical romance, and it turned out to be so much more. Suddenly it was more of a mystery and I loved it! There are some very hot sex scenes between the main character's, but this is also a dark story about sex trafficking and there is some harsh language, so beware of that.

In the beginning we meet Eliza, who lives at the Inn that her parents owned before they died. Even though it's her Inn now, her stepfather considers it his. Since he doesn't care about Eliza, he sells her to one of his friends. When she opposes this, he brutally beats her and locks her in the basement. She manages to break free, and on the road she meets a gentleman, sir Henry, who helps her escape to London.

He lets her stay at his house to recover and during this time they get to know each other. Henry shows Eliza his library and they connect over books. A relationship starts to blossom but also a partnership. Henry, who's a spy, wants to help Eliza break free from her stepfather and the cruel man who thinks he bought her, and in doing so they discover that there is so much more going on than they first thought.

I really liked this book. The characters were so well developed and I loved both Eliza and Henry. Eliza is a strong and educated woman, and Henry is the perfect gentleman and so sweet. I thought it was a nice touch to mention classics like Pride & Prejudice and One Thousand and One Nights.
The writing was beautiful, and I fully enjoyed that the author wrote in the dialect that some of the character's talked.
You could really tell that the author did her research, everything was very well described and I could easily picture it in front of me. Read this if you like historical fiction with a mystery twist.

This was a most entertaining read. Eliza was a strong and brave woman. When escaping from her dire circumstances, she met Sir Henry March. Sir Henry was a brave and honourable man, who was involved in discovering a traitor. He had two loyal friends who helped him, as well as a number of ex soldiers. This story moved along at a good pace and had dangerous events, a burgeoning love and people trafficking. I’m looking forward to reading the next in the series. I received a copy and have voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Innkeeper's Daughter's description was quite intriguing and for the most part, the novel did not disappoint. We meet an 18 year old Eliza as she is getting a beating from her stepfather. He has sold her to a pimp. Eliza manages to escape the basement via a coal chute and makes it to the road where she is rescued by Sir Henry. Sir Henry takes her home and has his staff help Eliza mend from her rather serious wounds. As Sir Henry introduces Eliza to a wide world of books and high society, they form an attachment. A sweet romance ensues that we know is probably not going to last forever, due to the differences in their social rank. We gradually learn that Sir Henry is a spy and a case unravels that involves both Eliza and Sir Henry. The case kept me guessing until the end. A great deal of suspense was built in the last few chapters. The novel did end with a cliffhanger, so we will need to read the next book to find out if the bad guys really do get caught.

"In the twilight of a November evening, Sir Henry March, a man of wealth and charm - and a secret agent for the Crown - comes across a badly beaten Eliza Broad, desperate to escape her cruel stepfather. Knowing she has nowhere to go, Sir Henry takes her to his home to recover, and introduces her to a world of culture, art, and literature she never knew existed. But Eliza's brutal world follows her to London, where elite aristocratic salons coexist with the back alleys of the criminal underworld.

As romance blossoms between them, Eliza unearths an old secret that leads them into the dark, sadistic world of sex trafficking, and allows Henry to finally identify a traitor responsible for selling military secrets and causing the death of thousands.

A natural at the spy game, Eliza proves herself a worthy partner in the fight for truth and justice. But with time running out, and the fate of one girl hanging in the balance, Henry and Eliza must find a way to outwit a nasty pimp and eliminate a dangerous enemy agent."

I'm a sucker for a romance with a spy angle.

The Innkeeper's Daughter - Bianca M. Schwarz

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for a fair review thanks to Central Avenue Publishing and Netgalley

In the twilight of a November evening, Sir Henry, a man of wealth and charm, comes across a badly beaten Eliza, desperate to escape her cruel stepfather. Realizing she has nowhere to go, Sir Henry takes her to his home in Mayfair.

There, as she recovers, Henry introduces the lovely Eliza to a world of art and literature she never knew existed. But Eliza's brutal world follows her to London, where the salons of the aristocratic elite co-exist with the back alleys of the criminal underworld.

Thankfully, Henry, a secret agent to the crown, is able and willing to deal with the man Eliza's stepfather had sold her to, and the pimp who plans to enslave her.

I struggled to read this book, in the beginning there is a lot of drama which quickly disappears and the book mainly becomes about sex. I found that some of the language that was used in the book made it seem like a modern book, and not a book set in the early 19th century.

Rating 3/5

The only reason I have given this book 3 stars, is because the first 20% had me hooked.

The Innkeepers Daughter - 3.5 Stars

I'm the type of reader who shamefully loves picking novels by their covers, and this one caught me. I didn't expect to read what I did with a cover like this.

This book is a whole trigger warning and graphic about things that most people will not talk about, like rape. Normally I wouldn't push through a book with this type of storyline, but it's a historical mystery romance; it couldn't be that much, right? It wasn't; I would put it in the same category as Outlander in terms of triggering events. A romance with a dark twist with history sprinkled in. This book was not what I would expect and made me put the book down in disgust a couple of times. The writing was immeasurable enough to shake me; I haven't felt like that since I read Handmaid's tale, to feel sick with reading physically.

This won't be the story for everyone. Eliza is sold to a man after her mother dies, but her stepfather is still alive; why did he sell her? After she escapes, she meets Henry; the story continues with the following in love and more twists and turns on how they put themselves in danger while trying to catch De Sade Anglais. This story makes you question what you would do if you were in Eliza's situation and made me have some uncomfortable conversations with my family and friends about how realistic this story could actually be.

I was provided this book for my honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this book.

WARNING SPOILERS BELOW:

Eliza is sold off to a man named Wilkins by her stepfather after her mother dies. Eliza, of course, fights back and almost gets beaten to death. She escapes and is found by Sir Henry, a man of wealth and a secret agent for the crown. Eliza recovers with Henry and is introduced to the high life of art and culture. During the healing process, their friendship becomes more, and Elisa starts to become the person she should be. Unfortunately, Wilkins follows them to London. Wilkins is a pimp who wants to enslave her into a sex trafficking scene. With the help of Henry, Eliza is a natural spy and fights for what is right, helping stop the deaths of thousands. The romance is SPICYYYYY.

Thank you to Central Avenue Publishing for providing an eARC via @NetGalley for review.

Eliza Broad is badly beaten and trying to escape her stepfather when Sir Henry March finds her on the side of the road. He invites her into his home to recover, and in doing so invites her into his world of aristocracy and spycraft. Romance builds as they work to bring down a sex trafficker and political traitor.

Where to start. I'm usually a fan of historical romance but this was difficult to get into. The premise had a lot of potential—the synopsis and use of the names Eliza and Henry set up the expectation that this would be a sort of a dark mystery take on My Fair Lady—but the execution had me putting the book aside more often than not.

The dialogue often feels choppy, which prevented me from investing in Henry and Eliza as a couple, perhaps because they don’t feel like they will last. But the heavy use of pet names (which more often than not come across as condescending) and frequent thanks and apologies that Eliza gives to Henry pulled me out of the story over and over again. The clear power dynamic between them with Eliza feeling beholden to Henry for saving her made for uncomfortable reading.

Eliza is reportedly referred to as smart, and yet her character does very little. Her lack of an accent is noted early on, juxtaposed with several characters with heavy dialects as though that is indicative of her intellect. Things seem to merely happen to her while Henry connects the dots and even then, we are more often told than shown what each character's motivations are. For some reason, the title had me expecting Eliza to play a more active role in the plot, but this is really and truly Henry March’s story.

The premise of this book was promising, and I can see it being an enjoyable read for some—just not for me. The narrative style didn't match the expectations I had going into the story, and I felt that the way that abuse and trafficking was described was very sensationalized without interrogating the historical abuse of women. I also expected there to be a bigger mystery, but the book read as more of a sting operation. That being said, there's quite a bit of smut, lovely clothing descriptions, and a fast-paced ending that introduces several new characters and the spy portion of the book, which I appreciated after the slow start.

Since her parent's death, Eliza has had a rather difficult time. Her stepfather is abusive and agreed to forcing her into a marriage with an even more abusive old man. After her stepfather tries to beat her into submission, she runs away and encounters Sir Henry on the street. He saves her life and brings her into his world of espionage and clandestine affairs.

I'll start with a trigger warning, this book contains depictions of sex trafficking that could be difficult for some people to read. This book also has a couple of spicier scenes, but I think they're written without being too overwhelming.

When I first started reading, I really was doubting that I would like it. I had a difficult time liking the characters considering the inevitability that I saw in the ending. I just couldn't help not liking them though, there was such a nice mutual respect built from such unlikely and unequal circumstances. I think that regency romances can tend to ignore the harsh realities of the time period in favor of the more fantastical approaches and the desire to display love's ability to conquer anything. Not saying that there are particularly harsh elements of this book or some kind of tragic romance, it just follows the natural progression of what could be expected from a relationship between two individuals of such disparate circumstances. Again though, the respect and consideration that they showed for one another is something very beautiful and unique that you won't see in many books labeled romances. Their relationship is sappy at points and over the top, but they aren't the kind of characters who abandon reality and their responsibilities.

Eliza is a strong heroine despite how horribly life has treated her. She rises above her circumstances, she isn't whiny about anything that happens to her, and she's insanely clever. I hope that the next book in the series continues to explore how much of an asset she would be to any kind of espionage, I'll love seeing how these characters all grow and progress from this first novel.

I would recommend it for people who like regency romance but want a darker twist. This isn't a fairy tale, it's not a tragedy but it has more of a real life twist to it that really enhances the experience. Special shout out to NetGalley and Central Ave. Publishing for providing me an ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review!

Historical mystery romance at its finest. I was pulled right into this. It had the perfect balance of mystery, suspense and romance.
I loved the chemistry between these two. And I was head over heels in love with Henry! He was perfect. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a H be both romantic and so caring. He met her needs so well, and it made me jealous. ((Sigh))
The story was well developed and had great secondary characters. This was a stand-alone but I do know that the author is working on a second book. I can’t wait!
Side note: My only wish was that Eliza was high born.
If you love historical, romancical, mysterious, suspense, then this might be for you. Happy Reading!
Thank you Central Avenue Publishing via Netgalley for this ARC. I’ve voluntarily given my honest review.

All right. I should have learned my lesson by now to ONLY request romance books from authors I already know and love because I've had quite a few duds.

This one I could tell almost from the first pages that it was absolutely not for me. It starts with a scene where a man is abusing a young woman. It was rough, but it was also full of oddly anachronistic lines (since it's supposed to be set in 1819. Lines such as "I told ya t' go pack yar crap" and "calling Wilkins 'Pig Face' was sure to get his goat" and "what the fuck's yar problem?" (all of which happen within the first few pages).

Reading some of the reviews, I see that those anachronisms continue, as does the focus on rough, brutal sex and abuse. Not my cup of tea.