Maria is working on getting the Wallner Hotel back to its former glory. Eli gets sent to Vienna on an undercover assignment by the U.S. government and suspects Maria is the culprit, all while he is staying at the Wallner Hotel. He starts to fall for Maria and Maria for him, while a death plot unravels in the background with Maria at the center of it. It was an intriguing read and highly enjoyable.

I fell in love with Diana Biller's first two books and was so excited to sink my teeth into her latest, Hotel of Secrets. It's a stand-alone historical romance filled with history, intrigue, steam and plenty of wit. I didn't think her latest could possibly surpass her prior stories, but she managed to do just that. I'm in awe of her storytelling.

Maria Wallner wants nothing more in life than to return her family's hotel in Vienna, the Wallner Hotel, to the glory of its heyday. It's not easy trying to bring that to fruition, having to deal with her histrionic mother's 30 year affair with her father (who's married to someone else), random attacks by would-be assassins, and a stern yet handsome American agent who saved her life twice already. Maria especially doesn't have time to deal with that man...if only he didn't have such a beautiful mouth! Eli Whittaker was reluctantly sent to Vienna to discover who is selling secret American codes across Europe. He just wants it done quickly so he can return to his quiet home in Washington, D.C. His only lead is a letter sent by the culprit from the Hotel Wallner. Eli is unwillingly drawn into a miasma of balls, waltzing, spies, and a beautiful hotelkeeper who can't seem to avoid danger. But he can't help himself from being sucked into Maria's world!

First, a little housekeeping: a trigger warning of familial abuse. Now that the warning is out of the way, I can tell you all about this captivating story! It was special that the setting was Vienna, a beautiful place I've been to twice. It helps makes the story come to vivid life. And now I have two of my favorite characters ever in Maria Wallner and Eli Whittaker. Maria is the current hotel manager; she's trying her best to help return her family's hotel to its former grandeur, which was diminished by a market collapse and her mother's inept stint as manager. When a rival hotel is unable to carry through with hosting the annual Hotelkeepers Ball, the Hotel Wallner is given the opportunity to take over the event; finally Maria has her chance to shine. She is very self-sufficient, often choosing to do everything by herself. She's a warm and caring woman with a wonderful sense of humor. She doesn't plan to ever marry; she will just take temporary lovers when she wants companionship. Maria has absolutely no idea why someone would want to harm her. Then there's Eli, my newest book boyfriend and one of my all-time favorites! He's in Vienna under duress; he wants to see a case at home to its completion, but his superiors send him anyway to suss out who is selling secret codes. Eli wants nothing to do with waltzes, balls, strangers who want to be friends, but most of all he wants to avoid the beautiful woman who keeps finding herself in trouble. Or so he tries to tell himself! But he cannot resist Maria, a woman who reminds him of the night sky. ~Sigh~ It's beautiful to see this stern man with a horrible secret bloom thanks to Maria. Eli and Maria have remarkable chemistry; their sexual.encounters are steamy yet fun and sweet. There are some really fantastic supporting characters such as Hannah (the hotel chef and Maria's friend), Mac (Maria's half-brother) and her grandmother Josephine (who seems to have a dangerous past). My favorite, however, is Claude, a French spy. He lit up the page every time he appeared! I loved how Mac and Claude would treat Eli like he was "one of the boys" when he just wanted to be left alone; they were so amusing. The identity of Maria's would-be assassin and that of the code stealer totally shocked me. It's the beautiful romance, however, that has put Diana Biller in my group of top favorite authors. I eagerly await her next story.

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley. I received no compensation for my review, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Terrific historical fiction . Utterly readable and delightful with characters that are so well defined and articulated. Great settings.

This book was so good, I couldn’t put it down!

The setting, the characters, and the linen closet kept me reading until late into the night.

It is hard to pinpoint what I liked the most about the book, but I think it was the well plotted mystery combined with an excellent romance threaded throughout.

I urge you to give this five star book a try!

Hotel of Secrets by Diana Biller

Maria Wallner is working hard to put her family hotel; Hotel Wallner is back on the map just in time for Ball Season. She has to dodge scandals, and random attacks against her and her hotel as well as the mysterious Eli Whittaker on a spy placement for stolen codes to ensure her family’s success.

First, I would like to explain that this book is first and foremost a romance and then historical fiction. Vienna was a very romantic backdrop for this novel. Despite being mid – 1800’s I have to say I love that most of the characters in this novel are progressive. Maria is a strong-willed, independent woman from a long line of strong-willed independent woman. I enjoyed reading her story and the regal Hotel Wallner.

Set in Vienna in 1877, this latest book by Diana Biller had much of what I have come to expect from the author - richly described setting, with captivating characters and plot. However, it also defied some of my expectations. Having enjoyed Biller’s first two books, I picked this up without investigating what it would be about. I expected it would be a third installment in the Moore series, but it is separate from that. I also thought it would be a paranormal historical romance, but it is not. There were superstitions among some of the characters to ward off perceived curses, but that a small aspect to an overall problem.

The primary setting for this book is the Hotel Wallner, ran by the very capable Maria Wallner. Maria is the fourth generation of Wallner women who own and operate the hotel. Her mother had not been interested in managing the hotel and had let not maintained it well. Maria’s goal is to restore the hotel to its former glory.

Eli is an American working for the Treasury department. He is sent to Vienna on a hush hush mission to investigate a leak at the embassy. However, when he arrives, it seems to be common knowledge who he is and what he is doing there. Instead, it becomes his top priority to protect Maria from suspicious accidents.

I very much enjoyed the characters and setting in this story. The setting was vivid and unusual for your standard HR. The characters were interesting, compelling and treated with care by the author. The leads had good chemistry and the romance was hard won. I look forward to Biller’s next offering.

<I>Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a chance to read and review this book. Views are my own.

4.5
As I began reading Hotel of Secrets, I anticipated a historical fiction that focused mainly on a mystery or spy plot with a bit of romance tossed in, but as I read, I realized it was actually a steamy historical romance with a bit of humor, mystery and spying woven into the story. The hotel's manager, Maria, is following in the footsteps of her mother, grandmother and great-grandmother as she takes the reins of the business to return the hotel to its former glory as a prestige hotel, restaurant and ballroom. The readers gain a glimpse into the hotel's past through excerpts from each of the women's journals that they keep while helming the hotel. Maria meets Eli, an American working undercover for the US Treasury department, as he is staying in the hotel on official business. Their blossoming relationship opens their hearts and minds to new future possibilities as neither of then had ever imagined ever having a life partner and each thought they would be solo in life, only trusting in themselves for safety and security. They have an enthusiastically consensual passion that opens their eyes to who they truly want to be instead of who they always thought they should be or had to be based on past experiences or what others thought of them. The story is delightfully detailed with descriptions of elaborate balls and gowns, delectable dishes and desserts, and intricate family secrets and ancestries. I truly enjoyed reading this book and look forward to reading more of this author's work. This would make a fantastic streaming series!

In 1870s Vienna, it's ball season. Jugglers and violinists perform in the streets, and the music and gaiety pour out from every ballroom. Soon, Maria's ancestral hotel will feature the premier ball of the season and launch its comeback...if she can only concentrate on that and not the handsome American investigator. Eli is in Vienna to find out who stole secret codes from his government, and he's staying in Maria's hotel. After a dynamic meet-cute, the two of them keep running into each other, and after he rescues her from several assassination attempts, Maria, sexually experienced, takes Eli, improbably a virgin, under her wing. This book is filled with compelling characters and settings, the sex is hot and the romance believable. I enjoyed it from start to finish.

Hotel of Secrets kept me entertained and guessing from start to finish. It was a perfect mix of mystery, thriller and romance. I can’t wait to read more from Diana.

The background and backstory in this historical romance is so well written, I have a vivid picture of WWII Vienna and the many characters that populate the hotel and the surrounding areas. Diana Biller built the story with so many layers and such detail that I found myself talking to the characters. An excellent reading experience that ended way too soon.

Family secrets, assassins, secret romps, and love all in the back drop of extraordinary Vienna in the 1870's

Maria may be the illegitimate child of a Baron, but that doesn't stop her from running her family hotel and bringing it back to its former glory after some hard times. Eli is a visiting American on the hunt for answers after secrets have been shared and sold to other European nations and he is determined to find those responsible and report back home. After multiple suspicious attempts are made on Maria's life with Eli coming in to save her, both their stories intertwine in the most fascinating of ways, and keeping Maria safe may lead to him finding more than just answers, but maybe someone who finally accepts and understands him for who he is.

Was this historically accurate in any way? Absolutely not. The female characters were so kick ass and independent it was so refreshing. This was over the top and fun in the best way and I had to the most wonderful time following along with all the shenanigans within the pages of this story. This was fun, flirty, and sexy in all the right ways.

This was a beautiful historical romance set in Vienna with amazing characters that I couldn't help but fall for!

Maria Wallner is the owner of Hotel Wallner and is hoping to restore it to its former glory while taking her first steps towards this goal during the hotel season. If only someone wasn't intent on attacking her. And in comes Eli - an American agent who is investigating some leaked codes. Except neither were the codes a secret nor was his undercover status kept hidden for long 😂 lol. He manages to save her multiple times and goes from suspecting her to helping her 😆 Despite all of this Maria is determined to host the Hotelkeeper's Ball though they haven't found out who is behind her attacks.

Maria and Eli are quite different from each other as Maria is confident, charming and more experienced while Eli is quieter, more stoic and protective(& celibate 😆) but I loved how they connected with each other. They're both very dedicated when it comes to their job and the people they love. They're used to taking care of everyone around them while forgetting to take care of themselves, so I loved it when they took care of the other person while encouraging each other to do their best! There's no deception here because they never hide anything from each other! And Eli is so sweet because not only does he rescue Maria from danger but he's observant enough to see when she's tired or hurt and helps her get away when needed. As if that wasn't enough he even does his 'research' to make sure Maria is *ahem* happier. Gosh, I can't stop gushing about him.

There's also a intergenerational story with the Wallner women and as we get to meet Maria's mother and grandmother we learn more about them and Maria's great grandmother too in snippets from their journals at the beginning of every chapter too. This was done so well and I loved how different they were but with a hidden strength that they all shared. I wasn't a fan of Maria's mom at first but she did surprise me by the end! The setting with the undercurrent of the political and historical events that shaped their lives was also described beautifully! The mystery plot runs parallel to the romance but I'd say that the romance is the main focus here!

I don't have much to complain about here except for the lack of epilogue, because who doesn't love a good epilogue?😆 But, anyway if you're in the mood for a beautiful historical romance set in vibrant Vienna with amazing characters and a little bit of mystery, you'll love this one!❣️✨

Diana Biller's Hotel of Secrets is chock full of banter-filled shenanigans, must-have-you kisses, and romance certain to light a fire in the hearts of readers everywhere.
It’s ball season in Vienna, and Maria Wallner only wants one thing: to restore her family’s hotel, the Hotel Wallner, to its former glory. She’s not going to let anything get in her way - not her parents’ three-decade-long affair; not seemingly-random attacks by masked assassins; and especially not the broad-shouldered American foreign agent who’s saved her life two times already. No matter how luscious his mouth is.

#NetGalley #HotelOfSecrets #DianaBiller #SMPRomance

My sincere thanks to St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This historical romance/mystery takes place in 1878 Vienna with Maria, a fourth generation hotel manager taking care of her hotel, family and guests. While struggling to restore the hotel to it's former charm and glory, she finds herself involved in political intrigue, assassination attempts and tall handsome American, Eli Whittaker. Eli is an uncompromising Treasury agent sent to Vienna against his will and determined to solve his case and go home while having no fun... until he gets entagled in the chaos that is the guests and owner of the Hotel Wallner. There are some epistolary elements in the form of diary entries form the previous generations of the Wallner women and their experiences managing the hotel. These add context, history and drama. Each Wallner woman could use their own book.

Maria and Eli are wonderful characters, but the supporting cast of guests and family are just as exciting to read about. They are funny, ridiculous yet developed enough to feel real and important to the story rather than caricatures. The cast of characters have to save the hotel by throwing a huge party, but Maria keeps finding herself in mortal peril, and needing Eli's rescue. The relationship that develops between the two MCs seems fated, but there is a connection forged in their similarity of self-reliance. They achieve this very differently with Maria being a chaos machine, and his through careful study. They begin to take care of each other and through that fall in love, solve a mystery, HEA, etc.

I have read and loved Diana Biller's other books, and loved this one too. She has a wonderful way of weaving history into her stories that make me nostalgic for 1870s Vienna. Witchcraft? Possibly. As with other DB stories, fairly white, but a little more gay. Unlike the other DB books, there are no ghostly elements.

TLDR it's wonderful, read it.

This historical romance has so many unique elements that make it fun and refreshing. It’s set in Vienna, Austria in the 1870’s. The FMC, Maria is a 3rd generation manager of a hotel, passed down through the females of the family. The MMC Eli Whittaker has already been claimed by many as a book boyfriend, but you can join the fan club. He is a seemingly starchy, uptight undercover agent for the US Dept. of the Treasury staying at the hotel to investigate some code that has been leaked.

This book has some mystery, intrigue, and action. Lots of family drama. And of course a delicious slow burn as a relationship grows between Maria and Eli. And THE LINEN CLOSET scene alone makes it worth the read.

The only issue I took was with the ending of the book. Some plot points got resolved almost a little too quickly and easily for me, and the late in the book miscommunication that was quickly smoothed over, just felt like a plot device versus what realistically would have happened between these mature likable characters.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an E-ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Hotel of Secrets is a captivating debut novel that blends chemistry and a touch of the supernatural to create a spellbinding gothic romance. This book is perfect for readers who enjoy a thrilling mystery with a hint of ghostly intrigue.

A FREAKING MASTERPIECE. I absolutely adored this book.

It’s the perfect blend of steam and secrets and suspense.

I loved the dynamic that unfolded between Maria and Eli. Especially the way they unburdened their hearts and the easy flow of confession and intimacy between them.

ELI. You darling stern cinnamon roll full attention on the task at hand I did my research on how to please you and I will always throw myself in front of bullets and carriages for you.

Highly highly highly recommend!

Four and a half Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭒
Hotel of Secrets by Diana Biller is a sexy historical romance set in Vienna during the late 1800s. The book has romance, spies, mystery, assassins, and excitement

Story Recap:
Maria Wallner is the manager of what used to be one of the most notorious hotels in Vienna. She wants to bring it back from irrelevance and disrepair to turn it to its former glory as the place to be seen around Vienna.

Eli Whittaker stays at Maria’s hotel to flush out the person selling American secret codes across Europe. The only clue he has is the person sent a letter from Maria’s hotel. Eli doesn’t expect to have to save Maria from an assassin and other threats to her while he is staying at her hotel.

My Thoughts:
I enjoyed so many things about this book. The setting in Vienna was very well described as were the beautiful descriptions of the grand Hotel Wallner. I loved that the author chose Vienna, as it gave a beautiful and festive background to the story.

Maria and Eli are terrific characters. Maria is a modern woman for her time and I loved her independent spirit and her love of her family. Eli is more reserved and quiet, but it’s because of his painful past, and this makes him keep everyone at arm's length. Their chemistry was fantastic, and I loved how their love grew over time as they each battled with their own individual issues as well as physical threats.

I loved this story, the characters, the setting, the dialogue, the plot, and everything in between. Hotel of Secrets has a steamy romance, exciting mystery, witty banter, and a gorgeous setting.

Recommendation:
I highly recommend Hotel of Secrets to anyone who enjoys historical romantic suspense. I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

At the start of another ball season in Vienna, Maria Wallner is determined to see her family’s hotel, which she manages, restored to the prestige it once held. She won’t let anything stand in her way, despite facing plenty of obstacles: her parents’ embarrassing thirty-year affair, apparently random attacks by assassins, and a disturbingly handsome American agent to whom she already owes her life twice now.

Eli Whittaker just wants to reveal the source of a leak of US secret codes, arrest them, and return to his well-ordered life in Washington, DC. His one lead is a letter sent from the Hotel Wallner, but when he checks in, he finds him swept into sheer madness awash with balls, spies, and a beautiful hotel manager in the middle of everything, one who just happens to keep finding herself in danger. Eli is prepared to disapprove heartily of all this frivolity and chaos, but he’s soon swept away by it all as his attraction to her grows.

Eli was just the sort of strong, quiet, somewhat broody hero I love, and it didn’t hurt that he was utterly competent and also happened to be a virgin. The intimacy that developed between him and Maria was incredibly well drawn and I was thoroughly convinced that they had indeed fallen completely in love and established a trusting bond despite the relative shortness of their acquaintance. Maria struggled to accept help, having never truly been able to rely on anyone before, but Eli showed her what was truly possible when it comes to relying on another person and in turn she showed him how to trust someone else with his heart and vice versa. In fact, Maria challenged Eli’s views and assumptions about everything, showing him just how much more he could truly have. I loved the give and take of their relationship, as well as Maria’s courage in revealing her feelings and the sheer maturity demonstrated by the openness of their communication. There was also plenty of intrigue and court secrets floating around to keep my interest peaked, though I would still say this was a very character-driven story. Even the supporting characters felt fleshed out and the narrator did a great job of making them come alive. I’ve never read anything from this author, nor have I read a romance set in Vienna, but I loved this one and it won’t be my last.

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

I first discovered Diana Biller when her first novel, The Widow of Rose House, was released back in 2019. I absolutely loved it and thought Biller had an elegant prose that sucked me into the story right away. Plus the romance was sensual, sweet and a little spicy. It was a wonderful mix and I just recall how much that debut has stood out to me over the years. I often recommend it to friends and family, so naturally when I saw this new release, I had to jump on it!

This is Biller’s fourth novel and while I have missed the other two (though they are on my book shelf currently!) I didn’t want to miss this one! I loved the cover, it caught my eye and drew me in. It is colorful and really eye catching and while I hate judging a book by it’s cover, this one made it hard to resist! Knowing that Biller has written such quality historical romances before made me even more excited for this than the cover though. If you haven’t read her books, you are missing out!

Not only did the cover and the author appeal to me, but the description of this book spoke to me. I loved that this book promised to take us to the glittering world of Vienna and indeed a world of intrigue and spies. If you are looking for a historical romance to escape with this spring, that will leave you feeling like you read something ‘new’ and ‘different’ then I think this book fits the bill. It was a pleasure to read this book and another that I will be sharing with family and friends!

Summary
During ball season, anything can happen, even love.

It’s ball season in Vienna, and Maria Wallner only wants one thing: to restore her family’s hotel, the Hotel Wallner, to its former glory. She’s not going to let anything get in her way – not her parents’ three-decade-long affair; not seemingly-random attacks by masked assassins; and especially not the broad-shouldered American foreign agent who’s saved her life two times already. No matter how luscious his mouth is.

Eli Whittaker also only wants one thing: to find out who is selling American secret codes across Europe, arrest them, and go home to his sensible life in Washington, DC. He has one lead – a letter the culprit sent from a Viennese hotel. But when he arrives in Vienna, he is immediately swept up into a chaotic whirlwind of balls, spies, waltzes, and beautiful hotelkeepers who seem to constantly find themselves in danger. He disapproves of all of it! But his disapproval is tested as he slowly falls deeper into the chaos – and as his attraction to said hotelkeeper grows. (summary from Goodreads)

Review
It’s been so great to see Biller evolve as a writer. In her debut she had such a strong voice and style and seeing it continue to grow and take shape in this book was so wonderful as a fan and reader of her earlier works. One of the things that stood out to me in both her early work and this one, was her humor. It’s like a historical romance rom-com. The story has great humor and I found myself laughing out loud on many occasions. But don’t dismiss this book as rom-com fluff. It has a lot of substance to it as well. The humor for me was a bonus! This book literally had something for every reader. Humor for readers like me who enjoy smart dialogue and snappy characters, almost a women’s fiction element with a main character you can cheer for, spies, family secrets, espionage, suspense, and ROMANCE!!!

The saving of the hotel and Maria’s story really added substance to this story. That’s the part that makes it NOT fluff. Maria is so hardworking and resilient and I thought her character made the story shine and added a lot for female readers to admire and potentially discuss. I could see this book being something that books clubs could discuss and that isn’t very often said about romance novels. Maria and Eli’s characters in the book are incredibly developed and fully realized in the story, sometimes in romances the characters are less developed and strong in favor of developing the romantic parts. That was one of the things that makes Biller stand out to me as a solid romance writer. She understands the power of having developed characters that readers can invest in, while still having steamy sex and romance. I absolutely loved Eli and Maria and their love story was enjoyable and memorable.

This story for me seemed more unconventional when it came to the romance genre. It had a lot of substance and character development but kept things balanced with humor and steamy romantic scenes. I loved it and this book only confirms that Diana Biller is an auto buy author for me. She does an outstanding job crafting a well written story. Though I think the history element could have been more evident in the story, it wasn’t a deal breaker for me. The history doesn’t really play a role in the story beyond framing the time period and what’s going on with in that time. Some historical fiction fans might feel like this novel fell short in that realm but for me it didn’t impact the story as the characters really shine in this one. If you haven’t checked out Biller yet, I would say this book is probably her best. All her books are standlones so jump around wherever, but this is a solid representation of her ability as a writer!

Book Info and Rating
Format 416 pages, Paperback

Expected publication March 28, 2023 by St. Martin’s Griffin

ISBN 9781250809452 (ISBN10: 1250809452)

Free review copy provided by publisher, St Martin’s Griffin, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and in no way influenced.

Rating: 5 stars

Genre: historical fiction, historical romance, romance