Rebecca, Lady Cornish goes to the Maida Pleasure Gardens to surround herself with company, whilst never talking to anyone, until Ludovic Dunne refuses to accept her silent treatment. Having been widowed twice by the age of two-and-twenty, Rebecca is now called “The Black Widow” and shunned by family and society. When she asks Ludovic to help, in his role as solicitor, she is hurt when he refuses. However, Ludovic must first separate himself from Rebecca’s uncles who are determined to take her son away from her. Soon Ludovic cannot stay away and is resolute in solving all of her problems.
The third book in the series ‘Pleasure Gardens’, has a similar intensity as that of Book 1, which I loved. Two very captivating characters with Ludovic’s quiet, intense and honourable nature being the one thing that Rebecca has missed in her life. Rebecca’s strength is apparent but the hardship she has faced, means that her façade hides her determination to care for her son, in the manner that she believes will be best for him. The attraction and love that follows for Rebecca and Ludovic are well deserved and drawn out beautifully. I thoroughly enjoyed the intensity of the story. I look forward to reading more in this great series.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Twice widowed by the age of two-and-twenty, Rebecca, Lady Cornish is shunned by the ton and reviled as “The Black Widow”, convicted by rumour of murdering her husbands. She endures her isolation but refuses to give up her son Tom to hostile family. Solicitor Ludovic Dunne, is already on a mission to find evidence against her. Haunted by the past, he will never let his heart interfere with justice. By the time he proves the sin is not Rebecca’s, he has lost her trust. But that will not stop him from helping her, even if she never knows.
This is the third book in the series & is easily read on its own. I found this to be a well written book with strong characters & it flowed effortlessly in fact so well that I read it in a sitting & it was turned 3am when I finished it. I loved both Ludovic & Rebecca & was totally invested in their journey to a HEA. Whilst they were attracted to each other from their first meeting it wasn't insta love & I how loved how they gradually became friends & grew to trust whilst falling in love. I also thoroughly enjoyed the uncles getting their comeuppances plus a villain from Ludovic’s past made an appearance. I also loved catching up with some characters from a previous series.
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

Sometimes when you finish reading a book you mentally question the title as it seems to have no relevance to the plot whatsoever. This was not the case here. We have theft, treason and attempted murder underlying a delightful love story. Recommended read.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I don’t know what’s happening with my reading lately. But every historical romance I’ve read this month has been very disappointing and this was sadly one of them. I did not care for the characters and I did not really understand who the villains were or why they did what they did. I was confused during the whole book.

An engaging regency romance with intriguing characters and a well plotted story. I enjoyed the romance that built between Rebecca and Ludovic. There was also some danger and mystery which added to the story and ended with a satisfying happily ever after.

MY REVIEW:

Rebecca or Lady Cornish is a woman that has been through a lot in her young years. She has been married and widowed twice and both by men who were not worth it.

The family that she married into is cruel and horrible, spreading rumors about her and her taking it in silence as to not upset her son. She is shunned by everyone and is extremely lonely with no friends or family in her corner.

Ludovic Dunne is a solicitor that was hired to find evidence against Rebecca so that evil people can prove her to be what the rumors say she is.

But Ludovic is not a complete idiot and he searches for the truth not false information to make people look bad. When he finally realizes that Rebecca may not be the cruel heartless person that people make her out to be, he quickly tried to right his wrongs.

But it is not that easy Rebecca see what he was doing and wants nothing to do with him.

I do like Rebecca's courage and strength to not let things get her down, or not to show people that things affect her. She also showed up to events even when she was shunned and held her head up high.

Ludovic for all his faults, turned out to be an honest man really fighting for justice and not someone that would work for money.

Ludovic was also kind to Rebecca's son which was really nice to see especially in the times that this story took place.

Rebecca and Ludovic start to uncover the truth and why she was being slandered the way she was and start to finally take charge. Rebecca started to take her life back and not live in fear anymore.

She also stopped letting people take advantage of her, she stood up for herself.

WOULD I RECOMMEND:

3.5 stars for this book. I would recommend this book but it did take some time and patience to get through. It was extremely slow-paced and there was just so much back and forth in the characters minds.

I would have like to see the characters interacting more than having all of these thoughts in their heads. They could have talked things out.

After a while I had to start skimming to get through the book. I would definitely not mind the details but they didn’t keep me interested to keep reading.

The story itself about Rebecca and Ludovic was good, I enjoyed these two characters and their personalities. And how they took charge and did what was necessary.

Rebecca stood up for herself and Ludovic allowed her to do it without treating her like some mindless woman. I really liked reading about both of these characters.

This series just keeps getting better! Amidst treachery, libel, and embezzlement, a beautiful romance emerges between two people who are undoubtedly soul mates. Tasking with proving Lady Cornish's guilt at any price, Ludovic, solicitors, and private investigator, quickly comes to the realization that he has been seriously misled by her in-laws. However, as danger against her and Rebecca's young son is ramped up, Ludovic goes the extra mile in proving her innocence and in doing so falls irrevocably in love with her. Rebecca has been used and abused by her family and has learned to face society with a calm facade, but when her son is threatened she becomes a lioness and stands again anyone who would take him from her. However, when Ludovic's past and Rebecca's present collide, it takes careful planning to expose the plots afoot. This romance is well-written, fast-paced, and exciting and as it careens into an exciting conclusion, justice is served. I received a copy of this book as a gift through Dragonblade Publishing and NetGalley and this is my honest and voluntary review.

Thanks Netgalley for a arc copy of this book for a honest review..

I'm in love with this cover... Unmasking Sin is a 4 star read 🌟🌟🌟🌟 I feel bad for Rebecca she's had bad luck with husband they call her The Black Widow she winders if she can find ture love and keep him alive.



Happy Reading Lisa 📚

Unmasking Sin is another delightful romance from Mary Lancaster’s Maida Pleasure Gardens! First, Maida is the place to be – everything is possible there. Rebecca goes there to live vicariously watching others live their lives and hoping hers will improve someday. She is the black widow, having lost two husbands and still young. Every one shuns her, but she does not fold.

Then, there is Ludovic, who approaches her and receives a set down/dismissal from the lovely widow. Ludovic is the solicitor hired by her second deceased husband to ‘dig up the dirt’ on Rebecca.

The sins to be unmasked are neither Rebecca, nor Ludovic’s. Rebecca’s wariness of Ludovic is certainly understandable. Yet, her heart seems to ‘know’ she can trust him, but her head needs to be clear first. This is an adorable romance with a mother who just wants to protect her son and solicitor who desires to do what is right. This is a romance that will lighten your heart and let you know there is still love to be found.

Rebecca goes to the Pleasure Gardens because she is lonely. After both her first and second husband die, she is shunned by society and believed to have had something to do with the death of her second husband. Her late husband's family are having her investigated by Ludovic, but he finds the beautiful widow not guilty. As he starts to have feelings for her, they discover that her dead husband's brothers are stealing from her son's estate and trying to get custody of him.
There are many twists and turns in this book and I found it to be a thoroughly enjoyable 5 star read.
Mary Lancaster never disappoints.

Lady Rebecca Cornish has not had the best of luck with husbands. Having been widowed twice, scandal has named her The Black Widow and accuse her of killing them. She's friendless and lonely. When she meets Ludovic Dunne at the Maide Pleasure Gardens, she feels a stirring of desire until she realizes he's working for her son's uncles--the very men who have been trying to take her son away from her. Ludovic soon discovers he's working for the wrong party, but the damage is done and Rebecca no longer trusts him. Can he convince her that he's done working for the uncles and only wants to help her clear her name and keep her son?

I really enjoyed this book. I felt so bad for Rebecca and her situation was unfortunately not unique with women having no voice of their own. She has done nothing wrong, but rumor paints her as a murderess. I loved Ludovic and his fight for justice. He only wants to get at the truth, but the more involved he is with Rebecca's problems, the more he's attracted to her. Their love story takes most of the story to work toward a HEA. The author does a great job of letting their love blossom without any insta love. There's also a mystery that is resolved involving Ludovic's brother. I'm looking forward to reading the next story in the series.

First few pages I had a 'Will I like this' feel but as I continued reading, it became an interesting read.

Ludovic and Rebecca were strong characters and the story becomes more interesting as we read.

Overall a good read.

I received this book for free from Netgalley. That did not influence this review.

Mary Lancaster’s latest Regency Romance release is Book 3 in her Pleasure Garden series, Unmasking Sin.

This series is tied together by the somewhat scandalous attendance of the heroine of each novel at a masked evening of entertainment at the Maida Pleasure Gardens. It is a place for dancing and slightly risque fun for members of London Society, but it is also frequented by the lower classes and criminal elements and a good deal of drinking and carousing goes on. Each of the heroines has her own reasons for going there, which do not include finding a lover, but...

Lady Rebecca Cornish is this novel’s heroine. Although in her early twenties, she has already been widowed twice, earning her the title of Black Widow. Her reputation is further tarnished by accusations that she murdered her most recent husband (and probably first husband as well.) Rebecca is being besieged by her late husband’s uncles who are waging a campaign to see her prosecuted and to take away her son to be raised more respectably.

To that end, they have hired solicitor/investigator Ludovic Dunne to find proof that she killed their nephew. Dunne has a solid reputation for this kind of work and he trails Lady Cornish to the Pleasure Gardens, expecting to find she has slipped out for an assignation.

Instead, he finds a composed, extremely beautiful woman, whose vulnerability and fear he senses. He continues to investigate, but shortly realizes he is on the wrong side of this investigation. He works to uncover the truth, which he is certain will exonerate her, but in the process loses her trust.

The plot centers on finding out who is behind the rumors and what they stand to gain from them, rehabilitating Lady Cornish’s reputation, and, at the same time, unearthing the reason for Dunne’s crusading efforts against injustice of all kinds. Along the way, they fall in love.

This is a fast-paced adventure with strong male and female leads. The good guys are very good. The bad guys are nasty villains. It’s a fun Romance for whiling away a few hours.

Twice widowed Lady Rebecca Cornish bravely faces the loneliness of being ostracized from society by donning a mask and sitting on the sidelines to watch others enjoying themselves.
Rumors have judged her guilty of being a black widow.
Ludovic Dunne is a solicitor known for uncovering the truth. Perhaps certain people should have thought a bit more about that before they hired him.
Society can be very cruel and also easily led by malicious gossip.
A very entertaining historical romance with fabulous characters. There is danger, excitment and a few giggles.
This is part of a series but each book can be read on it's own.
Good fun.

This is the first full novel from Mary Lancaster that I have read (I discovered her in the Dragonblade Halloween and Christmas anthologies) and it did not disappoint! It draws you in right from the first page and the pacing is perfect to keep you interested for the entire story. I really liked both Rebecca and Ludovic as individual characters and as a couple. Her anger with him when she finds out he was working for her uncles-in-law was justified - the scene where she gets him to offer his assistance just to turn him down was pretty great (maybe a little petty, but great). That being said, I was glad that she was willing to forgive him and let him use his resources to help her. I also really liked that the author keeps a balance to this relationship by having Rebecca help Ludovic with Dauncy. That way she was not just some damsel in need of rescuing, but a strong woman capable of pulling her own weight. The scene with the uncles-in-law was pretty great too - it's always good to see the villains get what they have coming to them. I'll definitely be searching for more novels by this author!

Rebecca is known as “The Black Widow” as she has had two husbands die on her. Her second husband’s family starts rumors that she killed him off and she is shunned by society. Ludovic, a solicitor, is sent to investigate. Not only does he find the beautiful and kind Rebecca not guilty, but he begins to have feelings for her. Together they fight to restore her good name. I received an ARC from NetGalley and Dragonblade Publishing for my honest review.

5 stars

I expect an excellent story from Mary Lancaster and again I'm not disappointed.

Rebecca has had poor marriages. The first to an elderly friend of her parents and then an impetuous marriage to a handsome rake. She's got a delightful son, Tom and some hideous Uncles in Law and Mother-in-law. The Uncles are spreading rumours and employ Ludovic, a solicitor, to dig up some dirt. He's annoyed at himself for not doing due diligence on these creeps but does the work and quickly produces a report so that he can then legitimately support Rebecca.

We see some characters from previous books which is delightful and enhances my enjoyment. The romance is just kisses until near the end but done tastefully so I'd think would be OK for those that prefer clean romances.

There are two sins to resolve, one involving Rebecca and a more difficult one involving Ludo.

I have no problems recommending this book and series and I now I shall re-read it!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Mystery, intrigue & love. All the markers of a truly great romance. Mary Lancaster has a way of writing characters that instantly makes them take root in your heart. Not only the hero and heroine but even secondary characters like Francisco and even servants like Simmie and Dawson, stand out in an endearing manner.
From the very start, you longed to see Rebecca find friendship in a society that had turned their backs on her. For Ludovic to understand that need and ask for assistance from the Duke of Dearham was such a touching and selfless act. His sisters stepping in and being won over by her kind and charming personality, show how mistaken people were in their esteem of her. I also really enjoyed getting another glimpse of Napper and his unyielding loyalty. He was one of my favourite characters in Dominic’s story. Like each of the Pleasure Garden series, I could not put this book down until I knew the end.

This book felt like your formulaic regency romance with not enough intrigue or spice to keep it interesting.

I was hoping for more from our masked heroine Rebecca, but it was only in the last 25% that her character started to shine through and the book quickly ended following that.

A good, quick read but could have had a little more to it!