EXCITING READ!! I would give it 10 stars if I could! WOW!!!

I like how another reviewer said, "Mix Downton Abbey, the Greatest Showman, and Enola Holmes and you get a taste of what is in store in this book". I might add Behind the Mask as well.

I have long felt that Roseanna White's writing is elevated and you need to be able to keep up with a fast-paced writing style. It causes me to carefully choose who I pass her books along to. If you prefer a simple, easy-to-digest without much effort story, her books are probably not for you. Those who can handle more depth to a story, mixed with intrigue, historical facts, a large cast of characters, and exciting backdrops should definitely seek out her works.

I think this new theme is my favorite to date!

Marigold is a fantastical enigma. Her brother Yates, is such a strong character, lending expertise and understanding. Leonides 🦁 is so sweet and yet, exactly what you hope for! The ending was unexpected and I cannot wait for book two, featuring Gemma & Graham, next Spring.

Quotable: Lady Marigold Fairfax might have wiggled her toes in ecstasy if that wouldn't have meant losing her purchase and sending herself plummeting eight feet down to the street below.

Also, look up an Aukouphone - trust me.

I received an eVersion from the publisher and NetGalley. All opinions are mine alone without expectation or compensation.

𝓑𝓸𝓸𝓴 33 𝓖𝓸𝓸𝓭𝓡𝓮𝓪𝓭𝓼 𝓡𝓮𝓪𝓭𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓵𝓵𝓮𝓷𝓰𝓮 📚 2023

- Available August 23, 2023

Posted to my blog: BlueJeansAndTeacups.blogspot.com & GoodReads & B&N. I will post to AMZN upon release.

I have read many novels by ROSEANNA M WHITE, with great enjoyment, but A BEAUTIFUL DISGUISE is now my absolute favurite, with the wonderful parade of characters, both human and animal, the intrigue, the setting in Edwardian England with the gossip and prejudice of the”ton”, and the cleverness and vibrancy of the members of The Imposters Ltd, who hold many secrets about the aristocracy. Things are most definitely not as they seem.
The strong Christian message really pleases me, especially as the author speaks of being led by God’s Holy Spirit and of being drawn to people of a like mind. The camaraderie amongst the Imposter “family” is delightful and I cannot wait for the next book in the series. There is humour, even as serious issues are brought into the story.
Lady Marigold Fairfax, who hides her real self behind outlandish fashion and feathers, is amazed when Sir Merritt Livingstone sees through her disguises…..
I am not going to tell you any more for fear of spoiling things for you.
I cannot recommend A Beautiful Disguise highly enough to anyone who enjoys this genre.
I was given a free copy of the book by NetGalley from Bethany House Publishers. The opinions in this review are completely my own.

Delightful fun!!! Reading this book was like a breath of fresh air. My heart felt lighter and I smiled and laughed a little. What a crazy idea but White makes it work marvelously!

Marigold Fairfax and her brother Yates had an unusual childhood for English nobility. After their father dies and leaves the estate in ruins, they turn their experiences into the way they keep the estate afloat.

The siblings are so close. I loved their interactions. I also loved how they interacted with those around them. They are clever and warm-hearted and humble. I can't wait to see more of the circus and the Romani in the forthcoming books!!!

Even though the mystery was a serious matter, it didn't make the book seem dark. Part of that is probably due to the unusual way that The Imposters go about getting their information. I enjoyed the descriptions of their antics. I NEVER saw the twists coming... the things people can do never cease to astonish me.

The only thing that detracted at all was that it seemed like there were too many people at times, or at least too similar of names. I'm so glad that Gemma and Graham's story is next because that drama was killing me! I need to know what's going on!

Some highlights were:
- Yates in the club
- Merritt talking to Yates
- Anytime Yates is being Yates :)
- Leonidas acting on his training!!!!
- A brief mention of my favorite White heroine and her SIL

I have to mention somewhere that this cover is GORGEOUS! I'm just in love. It's so perfectly matched to the story!

Underneath all the fun and intrigue is the theme of learning to see people for who they are. Seeing beyond the masks and disguises we all wear to learn who someone truly is. And if we can do that, both parties are the richer for it.

This is such a charming start to a new series and I can't wait to see where Roseanna takes things from here! You'll definitely want to add this to your summer TBR list!

Roseanna M White is generally a good author to read and very interesting, but I found I couldn't drum up the interest in this novel. First of all, it's been done before. Second there are so many characters populating the plot, it is hard to keep up with them all. Last, there are so many tangents that are polluting what could be a charming book. This is not to say the book has no redeeming values. Her descriptions of the settings and the machinations of the Imposters are fun to behold.

I've enjoyed other books by Roseanna, but not this one. That is not to mean it is a bad book. It means my head wasn't in the right space for this novel. I'll give it four stars, because I know there are people who will enjoy it immensely and not be daunted by the crowded populace of characters.

Bethany House provided the copy I read for this review. All opinions expressed are solely my own.

Roseanna White is on a roll. This is one of my favorite of her books. I love the characters. I love the premise of The Impostors. I love the added whimsy. I love the set up for following books in the series. If you like historical romance that is sweet, you won't go wrong with this one. There is some prayer and some religious speaking but it isn't preachy. I look forward to the rest of the series. I almost wish I had waited until they were all written. However, it was just what I wanted at the time. I was able to have an ARC of this from the publisher and NetGalley. I appreciate that.

When their father died, leaving them nothing, Yates and Marigold Fairfax had to find creative means to keep themselves, their estate, their retired circus performers, and their menagerie from starving. They turned to clandestine investigations within society, and called themselves The Imposters. With the combination of their status and their less-than-conventional upbringing in the circus world, they were able to move freely within the upper class and draw upon their athleticism to draw out information unobtrusively from the unlikeliest of places, drawing no notice to themselves. Now, they find themselves investigating their neighbors and families of some of their childhood friends, upon the request of multiple clients. Can they prove their innocence, or are there nefarious characters within their close circles?

I really enjoyed this cast of characters, and I look forward to seeing more interactions between them as this series continues to develop. The self-inspection that Yate and Marigold must undergo as they look to deepen relationships lends a personal depth to what could have been simply a spy and intrigue pre-war novel. But they must determine how much of their true selves to reveal, facing the fear of rejection balanced against the possibility of never being truly known, or loved, for themselves.

While the mystery was a bit convoluted, and there were a lot of moving characters to keep track of along the way, at the core, I'm excited to follow this group of characters as they come to know themselves, and face the decisions of whom to let into their group and their lives.

I received a digital copy of this book, via NetGalley, in exchange for my honest review.

A Beautiful Disguise by Roseanna M. White is an excellent historical fiction that is the first in a new series : The Impostors.

This is such a cute and fun novel. There are unique and quirky characters, fresh dialogue, banter, history, action, romance, and a great storyline.

Merritt and Marigold are great main characters and work well together, playing off of one another. The backdrop of early 20th century London makes for a perfect location and worked well with the historical details the author weaved into the story.

I really enjoyed the light romance, the positive threads of faith, love, family, and the ending left me feeling sunny.

Great book.

5/5 stars

Thank you NG and Bethany House Publishers for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication on 8/22/23.

A Beautiful Disguise by Roseanna M. White is an interesting story filled with unique characters. Right from the start I loved the brother sister duo, Marigold and Yates really had each other's backs. They are spies investigating the rich which leads to a mystery that must be solved. This story has a little bit of everything like romance, adventure, healing, friendship, and even intrigue. The twists and turns kept me on the edge of my seat and the beautiful writing kept me engaged. Although the part with the mystery was serious, the lighter aspects of the book help balance it all out. Overall, a delightful story that kept me wanting more and certainly kept me turning the page to see what would happen next.

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced readers copy of A Beautiful Disguise in exchange for my honest review.

This was such an interesting storyline and the author throws the reader into a highly unusual situation from page one that I really wasn't expecting. It took me a bit to figure out what was going on but it was intriguing.

Really there was nothing expected about this story. The characters are unusual. How they live is unusual. A circus is unusual. The villain is unusual. I think the only part of this story I expected was the happily ever after. But I had no idea what path it would take to get there.

I'd almost say that the main characters are quirky but that isn't really it. They choose to appear as what society sees - or doesn't see - in them. And their skill set is pretty awesome.

Along with the romance there is an underlying mystery to be solved and it is a good one. I had no idea who the villain was. It was a big surprise. The villain is ruthless and I felt sorry for the villain's family in the aftermath. And sorry for the victims' families as well.

So, if you enjoy fun banter, romance resistant couples, intrigue, spies, unexpected situations, unusual ways of gaining information, fun over the top dresses and hats, and an interesting mystery this could be the perfect book for you.

The only thing I can complain about is that some of the Christian lit elements were clunky. They stuck out instead of feeling like a natural part of the characters and the story. But I enjoyed everything else so much that I'm not taking anything off my rating.

An enjoyable read.

Sex: no
Language: no
Violence: yes
*I received a complimentary ARC through NetGalley and voluntarily chose to review it.

In 1909 Edwardian England, Marigold must always be a great actress. No one can know her true identity. In public, she blends in so well she is ultimately forgettable. Which is just the way she wants it. Marigold and her brother Yates are “The Imposters,” anonymous private investigators hired to spy on the most elite of society. Only a select few know what they really do, or their motivation for it. Their current case, however, hits too close to home. The father of Marigold’s best friend is suspected of being a traitor, consorting with the Germans as he maintains a high position at a government security office in London. And Marigold’s determination to avoid distractions is put to the test by her newest client, the very eligible Lieutenant Colonel Sir Merritt Livingstone. Marigold and Yates must temporarily put personal feelings aside to focus on the case, while learning it is okay to let the right people into their dual world.
I chose to review this book because I loved the premise, and I was not disappointed. It is very different and fresh, feeling old fashioned and modern all at the same time. It did take a few chapters to really get into the story because it starts off in the middle of all the action. But after I figured out a bit of what was going on it was a fun, intriguing read. Marigold is a wonderful character, a proper young lady in public, while no one knows she is secretly scaling buildings, taming lions, and taking in everything about everyone around her. She is easy to picture in my mind and very believable, whether as Marigold on her country estate, swinging from her trapeze, or as the fashionable Lady M, the envy of society girls throughout London. I thoroughly enjoyed this clean Christian read and look forward to what the author comes up with next for Marigold, Yates, and Merritt and their friends. Mix Downton Abbey, the Greatest Showman, and Enola Holmes and you get a taste of what is in store in this book. Roseanna White is a new to me author and I look forward to checking out her other series as well.
*I received a complimentary copy of this e-book from NetGalley and Bethany House Publishers. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I’ve never had my opinion of a book chance so dramatically as when I read A Beautiful Disguise by Roseanne M. White. What started as, to me, a strangely implausible farce with impoverished aristocrat acrobats with a secret investigation bureau became a fantastic romp with political intrigue and a sweet romance. While the pace wasn’t consistent, the writing was engaging.

The Fairfax siblings were left penniless by a father who loved entertainment. By catering his estate to traveling performers, he gave the siblings, Yates and Marigold, a childhood full of circus lessons and exotic animals. When he died and they found out there was no money to live on, they started using their skills (and those of a few relatives and the small band of Romani who winter on their property) to embark on discrete investigations. This work lands then in the middle of a spy plot during the prior before WWI.

By midway through the book, my doubts were gone and I embraced the eclectic, idiosyncratic cast. With 100 pages to go, I couldn’t stop reading.

There are a few areas where the religious content felt shoehorned in. Two segments on the first third jumped out as not serving the plot or character development. I wonder if they were added during editing? The use of the Boxer Rebellion without context makes sense for the day - some Christians in 1909 England probably wouldn’t object to the consequences of British imperialism (though most educated people were aware of the impact).

I was provided an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my review.

Oh my, Roseanna White has done it again – she’s written the start of a new series full of wonderful characters I wish really lived so we could be friends; plot twists that kept me turning pages and wondering what was going to happen next; deep insights into dealing with grief, truth and lies, pretending vs real life, love and friendship; and overall a book I had a very hard time putting down! Don’t get me started on the animals!

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher and was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own.  #ABeautifulDisguise #NetGalley

In this novel, the heroine is an Imposter, part of a band of peers who also investigates the rich and famous in 1909 England. There was so much that I loved about this novel. The sweeping action. The unique backgrounds of the Imposters. The twisty mystery and plot. The sweet, developing romance between Marigold and Merrick. The way the brother and sister are there for each other and for their friends. The way the plot pulls from real historical trends. And the richness of the way the heroine journeys to discover who she really is. I loved every page and am eager to inhale the next book in the Imposter series. A delightful Gilded Age story with just a taste of the Greatest Showman.