Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Readability: 📖📖📖
Feels: 🦋🦋🦋
Emotional Depth: 💔💔💔
Tension: ⚡⚡⚡
Romance: 💞💞💞
Sensuality: 💋💋💋
Intimate Scene Length: 🍑🍑🍑
Steam Scale (Number of Scenes): 🔥
Humor: A bit
Perspective: Third person from both hero and heroine
Cliffhanger: No
Epilogue: Yes – the second to last chapter takes place 2 months after and the labeled ‘epilogue’ is about Rockwell and Farah who get their own story next
Format: voluntarily read an advanced reader copy that is now 10 months old because I let it languish on my kindle forever

Should I read in order?
This is the first in the Sisterhood of Scandal series.

Basic plot:
Tiffany will only marry for love, but she soon finds herself in wager with her guardian’s best friend, Wolf, who requests the right to court her.

Give this a try if you want:
- Georgian (1808)
- heroine is good with numbers and investing
- almost a brother’s best friend feel, except it’s the heroine and her guardian’s best friend
- artist, Marquess hero
- hero pursues
- hero paints the heroine
- bargain
- low steam – 1 full scene (I could have missed something??)

Ages:
- heroine is 23, didn’t catch hero but I think a touch older than her

My thoughts:
After a decent start, this book sadly fell flat for me.

I loved the beginning scenes. The guardian’s best friend vibes, hero pursues – I love that stuff. I enjoyed the heroine being an investor. That was interesting and not a career I’ve read much, especially for historical. I enjoyed their playfulness with each other.

But then as the book went on, it was a bit high on the drama and low on the romance and feels for me. I kept finding myself wishing the mains were together more often. It felt like they were separated a lot of the book, each with their own circles of friends. Perhaps it’s the first in a series syndrome where it’s trying to set up multiple character’s personalities and themes for the series. When they were together I was liking it!

The steam was also a big disappointment. I have read one other by Evans, years ago and I thought I remembered it being steamy, but this one was pretty tame for me. It had a decent amount of kisses though!

I love a bluestocking heroine in a regency novel. If you do too, this one is likely for you! Tiffany's life has been anything but easy. Her parents were killed by highwaymen, and the man she adored since she was young (the Marquess of Wolfarth) gets engaged to someone he adores. Desiring to rely on herself and not the generosity of family members, she begins investing. Soon, she has amassed a large sum and begins helping other women in the Scandalous Sisterhood work towards independence as well. That is where the Marquess of Wolfarth renters the story. His fiance was killed, and he own investment journey was fraught with challenges. Tiffany could help if she was his wife. Being an investment partner is not enough for her though. Can he see that his HEA will have to include love, or will he lose Tiffany forever?

I have missed Bronwen Evans historical romances. I was captivated from beginning to end; and loved every second of it. This is brimming with romance, intrigue, wit and passion. Well done.

THE REVIEW
Wolf immediately begins courting Tiffany, much to the surprise their friends and the ton, and, slowly, the stakes become higher as they find themselves falling in love. When the some investments go bad and the danger increases, Wolf is forced to admit that he loves Tiffany and is willing to let her into his heart.
This was a very sweet first book of a new series; the development of the other characters made me so excited to read their HEA stories! Tiffany was a self-conscious and didn’t understand why someone like Wolf would be interested in her, but it wasn’t annoying. She is independent enough to be mindful and let it ruin the storyline. Wolf was so sweet and genuine towards Tiffany and again, although I saw his struggles, it wasn’t over the top annoying. Ms. Evans did a great job building the story without overpowering the narrative. There was steam, not as much as I like, but the fire between these two was palpable! I am very eager to read the next in the series!

Tiffany Deveraux’s parents were murdered by highwaymen and she went to live with her cousins. She is very smart and good with investing so after her parents death, she continues working with her fathers stockjobber hoping to make enough money to take care of herself and never be forced to marry as she would only marry for love.

Lord Slade Ware, Marquess of Wolfarth lost his first love when, after being raped during a robbery, she killed herself on their wedding day. He has blamed himself for her death ever since.

When Wolf stumbles upon Tiffany alone visiting her investor, he threatens to reveal her activities to her cousin who is also Wolf’s best friend. Tiffany decides to distract him with a wager; at the end of the month, whoever has the most return on their investments wins. If Tiffany wins, Wolf will continue to keep her secret, but if Wold wins, Tiffany will marry him!

TROPES
Historical Romance, Georgian Era, Artist Hero, Widowed Hero, Orphan Heroine, Childhood Crush, Bluestocking Heroine, Best Friend’s Sibling, Unrequited Love, Dare or Bet, Virgin Heroine, Damaged/Tortured Hero, Gamma Hero, Titled Hero, First Cut is the Deepest, I Can't Believe a Guy Like You Would Notice Me, Abduction/Kidnapped, Four Star, Two Flame

The book was a good read. I found moments where the romance was sweet and engaging. The story moved pretty easy. The dialogue among the characters was witty and humorous. The book is entertaining. I enjoyed reading the fresh romance of two lonely souls brought together.

Friends to lovers with a mystery thrown in, this is an intriguing start to a new series.

What a fun little book! It's a quick read with some really excellent characters. As a small side note, I also loved that it opened with a chart of all the cast! I'm excited for more in the series.

Star Rating: 2.75/5
Tropes: Friends to lovers, intelligent bluestocking
CW: Violence, death of a parent

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very good story that somehow managed to do love at first sight and enemies to lovers all in one book. It was delightful. The heroine is smart and resourceful. It’s the first book in a series and so it does tend to suffer from your typical first book issues which is that it spends a good amount of time introducing the characters that will eventually feature in future books. But I enjoyed it overall and I’m looking forward to the rest of the series.

2.75 stars

This series starter is okay, sometimes a hair above three stars, but often a hair below. Its premise is one I usually really like: Shy-but-clever and terminally overlooked bluestocking captures handsome rake's eye. But too many critical pieces of the trope are missing for me to rate it much above an "a'ight."

So Tiffany is supposedly a secret investment guru, and she clearly has a nose for a good opportunity, but mostly we see her make a could-be-catastrophic error out of naivete. (Not with a stock per se, but I'll leave my description there to avoid spoilers.) The idea behind her character is that she's going to make her own way financially so that she doesn't have to depend on a man to be responsible for her. All that is well and good except that she kind of does need a man to be responsible for her. I needed to see more of her so-called genius with money to buy into the idea that she's financial genius.

And then there's Wolf. The book's blurb tells us that he is perceived to be a financial guru but is really skirting by on luck alone. We're told that he begins to court Tiffany because he needs her expertise, and yet nothing really ever happens there beyond one simple wager between the two of them. Yes, he has an uncle who is an unapologetic gambler, but the marquisette doesn't appear to be on the edge of financial ruin. Really, it's just one moment where he barely knows she exists, and then after running into each other while visiting their respective stockbrokers, he's suddenly determined to marry her. For her investment skill. That she doesn't even appear to really use or he to really need.

Now, while I love a story where a previously overlooked young woman is suddenly seen for who she really is, I just don't understand why Wolf finally saw her that way after years of feeling nothing for her. In fact, although he's definitely respectful towards her intelligence, it also seems like he thinks she should be grateful for his attention. Now that by itself is not uncommon in this type of trope, but it usually results in the hero realizing that HE'S the one who should be grateful. I'm not certain that Wolf ever arrives to that conclusion.

In fact, a second trope is thrown in at us in the form of him having been madly in love with the fiance who died on it their wedding day years earlier. It takes a little bit of time for the full story of her death to come out, but when it does, the way his former fiancee is written comes out really insensitively (not just by Wolf but by the author... See trigger warning at the very end of this review). But the whole "I'm in mourning and can never love again" hero trope just doesn't play out convincingly.

Finally, can we talk about the secondary characters? It's pretty clear that Tiffany's large group of friends are going to be matched up with Wolf's. And that's fine. It's just that's so far, the guys are not really coming off well. One or two might be okay, but the rest of them are either boorish, man 'hos, or just plain domineering, and not in a good way. There better be some pretty good back stories for some of these guys to redeem themselves.

I think a lot of people will like this story, but it just really wasn't one for me. I'm not certain that I would pick up more in the series.

I received an ARC of this book for free from the publisher and Netgalley. I'm writing this review voluntarily, and it reflects my honest opinion. Thanks!

Trigger warnings: (All in the past and not of the main or secondary characters) Rape, depression, suicide, murder

Gaaahhhhh! This series!! I've enjoyed each book in this series so much. Tiffany has a good run on the stockmarket only to have someone try and take it from her. Wolf finds out about it and tries to help her handle her money. Can Wolf help her or will he only make the situation worse? There is heartache and laughter throughout this book. Read it!! You'll enjoy it!!

I absolutely adored this book! The chemistry between Wolf and Tiffany is off the charts. The pace is perfect.

The only downside is that there are so many characters which, I guess, is to set up the series.

The unique storyline is great. It grabbed me from page 1 and I was sorry to see it end. I will be looking forward to book 2!


I received a review copy via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

A good story with two fascinating characters that kept the plot and romance pushing along in a quick read. I liked Tiffany's character a lot and I liked that Wolf never tried to change her. I felt that the plot lines all moved along well and were balanced well.

There are a few issues: There is such a large cast - I assume to set foundations for future books, but there were just so many (and then when you add in their titles) I just couldn't keep track and kept having to refer back to the chart.
A personal pet peeve, but I hate when once the characters are in love they demand everyone they know be paired off to be happy. Especially in this book the FMC spends so much of the book saying that she would rather be single and the author forced the many many friendships into the storyline, and then not soon after Tiffany gets a HAE she is "Woe my cousin who may end up a spinster and that would just be the worst thing that could ever happen to her, she must find romantic love asap to be happy". I don't like this narrative and it felt particularly against the character that we just spent a whole book defending her right to decide her own future

These aren't deal breakers, I will be reading more of this spunky and well written series.

Terrific start to the new series. The book opens as seventeen-year-old Tiffany, who has lost her parents in a brutal murder, arrives at her guardian's home after days of travel. Visitor Slade Ware, aka Wolf, assists by carrying the exhausted girl to her room. Tiffany is immediately smitten by the handsome young man. Six years later, her feelings for him haven't changed, but she may as well be invisible to him.

Tiffany has plans for her future. Resigned to the fact that she is unlikely to marry, Tiffany has used her father's stock market training and her affinity for numbers to set herself up with enough money to live independently. She wants to marry for love, if she marries at all, and not be forced to marry for security. She has done well enough for herself that her friends, who call themselves the Sisterhood, have also invested through her to fund their dreams and projects. Their investments are a secret because it isn't done for a lady to be involved in trading, and their reputations would be ruined if discovered. Unfortunately for Tiffany, on a rare visit to her stockjobber, she is seen by Wolf, who is horrified by the potential scandal.

Wolf is at the Exchange to see his stockjobber, hoping for good news about his investments. He has a reputation as a knowledgeable investor but feels he has mostly been lucky. With estates to run, a family to support, and an uncle rapidly running up gambling debts, Wolf constantly worries about his financial health. When he learns Tiffany's secret, he decides that marrying her would solve all his problems. He's stunned to discover that Tiffany disagrees and, in desperation, enters into a wager with her. At the end of a month, whichever one of them profits the most from their investments wins. If Tiffany wins, Wolf will keep her secret, while if Wolf wins, Tiffany will marry him. He decides to hedge his bets by making her fall in love with him.

I loved watching this relationship develop. Wolf is unaware that Tiffany already loves him, but she won't settle for anything less than his love. Several years earlier, Wolf lost his fiancée, and he has closed himself off to love ever since. He tells himself that he is intrigued by her wit, intelligence, and beauty, which is why he can't get her off his mind. I loved that he so quickly sees her inner and outer beauty while most people only see a plain Jane. Tiffany is puzzled by Wolf's pursuit; she doesn't know what he sees in her. When Tiffany receives disturbing news about her investments, she turns to Wolf for help. Tiffany's feelings for Wolf deepen in the time they spend together working to solve her troubles. Wolf begins to suspect that his feelings for her are deeper than he thought but isn't sure he's ready to risk his heart again. I loved seeing Tiffany break down the walls he built around his heart with her kindness, compassion, and refusal to accept anything less than all of him. Their chemistry is fantastic, and their banter is fun. They are perfect for each other.

A bit of mystery and danger is attached to Tiffany's stock trading as she discovers her stockjobber isn't who she thought he was. I loved Wolf's protectiveness as he uncovered links to his past and hers and his determination to keep her safe. I enjoyed the investigative process and seeing them work to recover Tiffany's funds. The final confrontation is intense and stirs up Wolf's greatest fears before everything is resolved. I loved Tiffany's understanding and refusal to allow Wolf to backslide into his old ways. The epilogue was terrific.

As the first in the series, there is a fair amount of time spent introducing all the characters. We have Tiffany, her cousins, Wolf's sisters, and several of their friends - eight young ladies in all. All of them are intelligent, and each suffers from male relatives who treat them like empty-headed children. I enjoyed their Sisterhood meetings and seeing their close friendships and support of each other. I laughed out loud at their plan to show the men up by placing an anonymous investing wager.

On the male side, we have Wolf, Tiffany's cousin Marlowe, and other brothers, cousins, etc. Tiffany's cousin Marlowe loves her and his sisters, but his general attitude toward women is appalling. I can't wait for his story, as I hope whichever lady ends up with him makes his life miserable as he learns his lesson. Wolf's brother, Rockwell, seems an okay guy but also has a few things to learn. I loved the guys' reactions to the challenge and their arrogant belief that they had nothing to worry about. I can't wait to see their responses when the challenge is over, and they lose (as I'm sure they will) to a bunch of women.

This is my first time reading this author and I am very pleased.
Spoiler alerts.
This is the first book of. a series about 8 young-ish ladies who are secretly trying to earn their financial freedom from marriages not based on love. They are all part of the aristocracy at some level and only want to marry for love. If they can't they are willing to live alone, but on their own terms and not on the generosity of their families. The women are all about 21 to 24, with various troubles, problems and responsibilities. They all have been investing their allowance money with our heroine. Her parents were in a devastating accident when she was 16 years old and she came to live with her uncle, the Earl of Marlowe. She meets her hero for the first time as he is tasked with carrying her into the house because she is still overcome with grief. Six years pass and her and her friends are not the popular group, but enjoy a friendship and support each other. They call their group "The Sisiterhood of Scandal", even though only one person has had a real scandal. But the all agree that love exists, and that is their goal or financial freedom, which ever they choose. The heroine was taught by her father how to work the stock exchange once he realized how much she had a head for mathematics. She also likes to read and calls herself a blue stocking. She is hoping for financial freedom with in the next year because the one she loves will never love her back. The hero is the Marquess of Wolfarth, and he experienced love when he was 22, and his carriage was attacked. He was injured, but his fiance was taken into the bushes and raped. They were able to get to safety and tried to recover, but two weeks later, she committed suicide. The hero thinks it is because he was recovering and only saw her a few times and he didn't push her to understand that he would always love her and that he supported her. He is the same age as many of the male characters, around 28 years old. Some are a few years younger and older. The male characters are a group of friends and relatives, same as the females. The women decided to challenge the men in an investment challenge, to prove that women have minds and are not frail. It seems as if each female has the idea of which man she likes, but things change.
I liked this story because it was pretty straight forward, and it dealt with problems of the time. One if the women run an orphanage and she is always having them help her raise money; this time they collected older pieces of clothing and sold it to the merchant class in the hall of a church. I really enjoyed this story because it was about women, who could have just sat around trying to get married, but instead were living a life. They are all independent women who have to depend on their families and they want to change that. The heroine is not wanting to get married even if her dream man becomes interested in her. She feels she is too plain and dull to attract a man. The male character is a typical aristocrat male, but once he decides to try to court the heroine, he places her feelings and actions first. He cancels his mistress, even though she acts like they are still together and tells the heroine's guardian that he will honor his vows and only be loyal to his wife. He expects fidelity and is willing to give it.
I really enjoyed this book and recommend reading with 5 stars.

Bronwen Evans writes historical romances that tug at the heart with her characters. The book cover lists this book as the first in a series called Sisterhood of Scandal. These novels focus on a group of young women and their brothers etc. The women band together to make money to help with their future. However, it is a secret they need to keep from their nearest and dearest or it will be a huge scandal!

A Lady Never Surrenders is about Miss Tiffany Deveraux and Lord Slade Ware, the Marquis of Wolfarth. Tiffany’s parents were killed in an accident and she was raised by her relatives. She knows she only has a small dowry and is dependent on her family for everything else. However, she has mad skills with investing money and is presently working with her friends to help earn them money.

Meanwhile Wolf needs or wants help to keep up the investing his father started. For Wolf marrying Tiffany for her investing prowess would be a great stop forward. Tiffany is less than impressed as she would like to marry for love. Then things become a bit more twisted when Wolf and Tiffany suspect her stock person is cheating her and maybe accidents happen when people question where their money is. It is time to keep everyone safe as they figure it all out.

Tiffany and Wolf need to depend on each other and just maybe fall in love? A Lady Never Surrenders by Bronwen Evans is a good read.

I recieved a free copy from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Tiffany has been investing her money so that she may become financially independent. No longer depending on the charity if her cousin after her parents death and not beening forced into a marriage.
Wolf needs to invest his money well to be able to provide for his family.
When Wolf sees Tiffany leaving her stock jabber, he sees her as a means to his ends. Marry her and she will help him invest wisely. While this plot point is a little weak, the story gets much more interesting now that we have a reason for Wolf's sudden interest in her.
The story kept my attention throughout. The only parts that bugged me were the above mentioned plot starter, the number of side characters of which their were to many, and the deal with Wolf's previous fiancé.
Overall I liked this book and I look forward to Rockwell and Farah's story next.

A Lady Never Surrenders is a well written story with attention paid to staying true to the period. The course of true love, naturally, does not run smoothly but the story leads to the happy-ever-after ending that you expect in a love story. Browen Evans delivers clean romance, some drama, and a little danger. Very satisfying and enjoyable!

This was my first book from the author and it was the synopsis that had initially intrigued me. And it did hold up to its premise. I really enjoyed Tiffany and Wolf's dynamic together. They had good chemistry but not explosive; while reading I felt like there was something more missing in their relationship, more passion, more emotional connection. All in all, it was enjoyable and I will definitely be looking up Bronwen Evans' other books in the future.

A Lady Never Surrenders is the story of Tiffany Deveraux and Slade Ware, Duke of Wolfarth. She has been in love with Wolf for almost six years, but she knows he is not right for her, so she sets out to make a living for herself. She secretly makes investments for herself and her group of friends. However, everything gets turned upside down when she realizes she put her trust in the wrong person.

Wolf has has tragedy in his past so he doesn't want anything to do with love. When he realizes what Tiffany is really like he is blindsided, confused, and determined to have her. I loved this book!!

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

Disappointing. At the beginning of the book I was really excited that the FMC was so intelligent with numbers. She had a plan to make money in investment opportunities so that she didn't have to marry. When she is caught unchaperoned at the stock exchange by Wolf, they make a bargain. I found the way the characters interacted with each other boring and stilted. I just couldn't connect with the story or the characters. I ended up skimming a good portion of the book just to see how it ended. The villain of the story is discovered quickly but it takes most of the book for them to do anything about it. At the end, it turns out the villain was responsible for every bad thing that had happened to all of the characters. It was just too far out there. I don't think I will be reading any more books in this series if there are any.

It was a great start of the series, the characters and the story work so well together, usually I don't like wallflower stories because they usually don't have a good reason for them to be a wallflower, but here it was so nice,.
Highly recommended.