A Rogue's Company is the third book in the Sparks & Bainbridge mystery series. It follows two women, Gwen and Iris, who run the Right Sort Marriage Bureau in 1940s London. They always seem to find themselves in the middle of a mystery while trying to match up couples for marriage. This mystery begins to unravel when an unexpected kidnapping happens that causes Iris to further dig into hers and Gwen's past.

I liked this novel more than previous novels since there is more character and plot development that delves into Iris and Gwen's past and present personal lives. I would recommend it for anyone who enjoys the series.

This is such a fun series, and I love the dialogue. The banter between Sparks and Gwen (and Sparks and Archie!) is fantastic.

I personally get a bit bored of the storyline of Gwen’s father in law and fighting over her son. Since this book focuses more on that plot point, it wasn’t my favorite of the series. Ideally, I want more space devoted to Archie and his comrades and less to the Bainbridges.

I also didn’t see as many of the matchmaking clients in this book and that’s a shame, because it’s such a fun element of the series. I love reading more about client interviews and matches. I hope those will be more incorporated in the next book.

This is definitely still a series I will happily read the next book of, and I still love Sparks and Gwen, and I’m hopeful the next book will go back in more of the direction of the first book.

Thank you so much to Minotaur and Netgalley for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.

Activities at the Right Sort Marriage Bureau take a back seat to widowed Gwen's family issues in the third installment of this series. Her father in law has just returned from Africa and reasserted control over Gwen's young son. Coincidentally the marriage bureau had just accepted it's first African client and a man is murdered at the African explorers club frequented by Gwen's father in law.

Of course none of this turns out to be coincidental. Gwen survives an accidental kidnapping with the help of her business partner Iris and her underworld boyfriend, uncovers illegal activities at her father in law's mining company, and finally discovers a most unexpected relative and connection to the African client. There are happy endings all around, but they rely too much on coincidence and unbelievably open minded attitudes from Gwen's in-laws.

This is not a strong entry in the series, but hopefully Gwen will be able to put her family issues behind her and use her upper class connections to solve a real mystery in the next installment.

This is such a good series, and this is the best installment yet. We find Iris and Gwen sprucing up their newly added office space, Gwen learning self defense and The Right Sort acquiring an interesting new client. Gwen’s father-in-law returns causing a myriad of problems and more determined than ever to send Ronnie Jr. to boarding school. Iris continues her developing relationship with Archie. Sally is around to save the day while harboring a bit so secret crush on Gwen. There is an unexpected turn of events that will change everything Gwen and Iris know. I highly recommend this book. If you have been reading the series, this is a must read full of surprising twists and turns. Thank you Net Galley for the ARC of this book.

A Rogue's Company is just excellent - the Sparks and Bainbridge series gets better with each book! Gwen and Iris are fascinating characters and I love how they seem to bring out the best in each other, more so in each new book. The plot is so well done - the various mysteries converging into one sad and somewhat bitter ending. Watching Gwen regain her grip on her life and her son while Iris faces some of her vulnerabilities is compelling. The relationship with Archie and both women is also engaging. I look forward to the next Sparks and Bainbridge adventure! Thank you to #NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of #ARogue'sCompany.

This one may be my favorite of the three Sparks and Bainbridge books (and I hope there will be more to come). By now I feel I really know Gwen and Iris, and some of the supporting characters like Carolyne Bainbridge as well. I love how the plot of each book builds on the previous books (you must start at the beginning of the series). The characters are incredibly well developed, complex, messy, and fascinating. The story is intriguing and fast-paced and the mystery very tightly written. The writing is great and the book is a page turner. I flew through it in a night. The books are also smart and feminist. Can’t wait for the next one.

Another overall delightful entry in this series. Technically could work as a standalone, but I would recommend reading all 3 in order. Sparks & Bainbridge are still at their screwball banter best. The situations may be less than realistic, but the characters' emotional responses feel real, grounded, and well drawn. Also of note, this installment does touch on race relations, when Gwen & Iris discuss taking on a Black client in their matchmaking business, in ways that seem more nuanced than you might expect of the time period in which it's set, and yet not nuanced enough for ours. I appreciate the attempt not to ignore the fact that London has always been made up of a diverse population, but the character ultimately doesn't get fully fleshed out, nor do Gwen & Iris's attitudes and actions.

Yes, I love this series! Sparks and Bainbridge, the lady owners of the Right Sort Marriage bureau once again find themselves caught up in something more than they bargained for. This time, the mystery involves Bainrbidge's odious father in-law, Lord Bainbridge, who returns from an extended trip to Africa to terrorize everyone in his household.
I love the main characters, Sparks, who ruthlessly worked in intelligence during the war and is working through the trauma associated with that, and Bainbridge, who is working through the trauma of losing her husband during the war and now losing custody of her son, are very likable and you just want to root for them. Fabulous supporting characters include Sally, the gentle (yet deadly) giant friend of Sparks and Archie. Sparks also sets Bainbridge up with self-defense lessons in this books which she takes to most impressively.
Anyway, I highly recommend this series for the historical mystery lovers out there.

What a wonderful book; I thoroughly enjoyed it. A Rogue's Company is the third book in the series centered around two unlikely business partners of the Right Sort Marriage Bureau. The books take place in London after WWII when so many women were coming to terms with their new found freedom to pursue jobs outside the home. Add in the loss of so many young men during the war and the idea of a marriage arranging business was born. There is a mystery in each book and the private lives of the main characters become an important part of the books. I particularly liked the mystery in this third book of the series. I highly recommend you start with the first book in the series “The Right Sort of Man”.

This is a very entertaining and fun historical mystery whodunit. It’s my first from this author, but I quickly caught on to the different characters and their backstories. I immensely enjoyed the dialogue between the two main characters. It was both witty and at times comical. The mystery itself is expertly written and woven throughout the novel keeping the reader guessing until the very end. I highly recommend this novel and look forward to reading more from this author.

Things are looking up for Gwen and Iris in "A Rogue's Company," the latest Sparks and Bainbridge mystery by Allison Montclair. They've just expanded their marriage bureau and hired a new employee. Gwen feels she's close to regaining custody of her son, and her relationship with her mother-in-law has become, if not close, at least no longer adversarial.

The unexpected, and very unwelcome, arrival of Gwen's father-in-law upsets them both, as it leads to trouble for Gwen, two kidnappings, and the making of some deals which may have long-term repercussions. Amidst this, Gwen and the her family are forced to reexamine the way their class views those of other cultures, and the way the British have treated their colonies.

While I love Gwen and Iris, Sally is my favorite character, and I was very glad to see him as an active character in this book. True, it's still a case of him coming whenever either Iris or Gwen calls, but he seems content to hang on the periphery of their world, at least for now.

Iris is sassy, as always, but we do see a bit of a vulnerable side, as she faces what she had to do, and give up, during the war when she worked as a spy. She also interacts more with Gwen's son, Ronnie, and we see that maybe she's not the "tough broad" she makes out to be.

Readers may guess what's behind the kidnappings before Gwen and Iris do, but the writing crackles, and the characters are so wonderful, that the mystery isn't as important as the connections between them all.

Highly recommended, along with the rest of the series.

I received an advance copy from St. Martin's Press Minotaur Books and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I was delighted to be given the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book as I had read and enjoyed the previous two in the series. I also enjoyed this one. It was good, escapist reading. Some of the events in the book seemed a bit far-fetched to me, but it was fun and exciting, so I didn't mind. I'm not sure how historically accurate the racial aspects of the book were, but I'm sure that's difficult to do authentically without being offensive. I thought it was brave of the author to even address the racial issues the story raised. I'm sure readers of the previous books will enjoy this one as well, and I highly recommend the series.