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

I have read quite a few books by Virginia Heath, and enjoyed them all. But this was my favorite by far of all of them. Heath's writing gets better and better with each book!

“All's Fair in Love and War” by Virginia Heath
Oh, my what a FUN adventure ! !
I was completely captured by this story. I felt the pulls and pushes that had brought all the characters to be the people they were at the beginning of this story. Then I lived through the turmoil aka adventure as their lives are buffeted twixt: what they think they know, what they have experienced, and what they learn. Happy Reading ! !
Note: This review expresses my honest opinion.

What a wonderful start to a new series! The setting and characters were dreamy and the story was so charming. I loved Georgie and Harry and the children were the perfect additions to this cast. There was some redundancy to the internal dialogue that got to me a bit, but it didn’t impact the overall all enjoyment at all. Fans of regency romance, grab this ASAP!

I enjoyed this story very much. I loved Georgie and all her modern ideals. Harry was a proper gentleman and did his best to resist his attraction to Georgie. I found the juxtaposition of his reservations about relationships and Georgie’s interesting. This one is definitely a slow burn, but not in a bad way for me. It made sense within the context of their power dynamic, station and economic situations for the time period it took place in. Harry’s nieces and nephew and the dogs added a playfulness to the story. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series, assuming it will be about one of Georgie’s other governess friends.

***Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Griffin and Virginia Heath. I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions are my own.***

Virginia Heath has written a beautifully romantic story about a unique governess, Miss Georgina Rowe, the children she is in charge of and their stickler for rules Uncle Harry, Captain Kincaid. I was extremely fortunate to receive an ARC of All's Fair In Love and War from Netgalley. I was enthralled with the witty dialog, the children's antics, and most especially the uniqueness, stamina and persistence of Georgie for standing up for her methodology of teaching attributes. The love story develops from a budding relationship into a blooming coming together of two souls who look at life with opposing viewpoints but complement each other with their antagonism. An absolutely wonderful book.

Honest review ahead:

This was a hard read for me, and I ended up DNFing at 52%. I've read other books by Virginia Heath and enjoyed them, and while the premise for this book was good, the pacing and plotting felt painful.

Georgie has been trained to be an excellent governess, despite her radical views that children learn more through play than by sitting in a classroom. Strict naval captain Henry has the opposite view when it comes to his unexpected acquisition of his nephew and nieces. Henry has every minute of his every day planned and structured, and expects Georgie and the children to adhere to a strict schedule as well. What he couldn't have planned was his attraction to Georgie's delectable figure and out-of-control hair.

Being honest, by 50% of the way through this book the two main characters had really only had one interaction together where they weren't strictly discussing the education of the children. After this one moment of intimacy the MMC decides it's been too long since he's "sowed any oats" and that he needs some "shore leave". There is much internal discussion about how eager he is to find a willing woman, and multiple paragraphs describing how he's gained some weight and needs to wear his newer, larger pants because they're less constricting for his nether regions. This is just one example of what felt like lots of filler that I read without any real character development or any indications that the two main characters were attracted beyond the physical at all. I can appreciate a slow burn, but there has to be some kind of fire lit to begin with, some kind of spark to start the process, and this book was lacking that.

I'm interested in reading more from Virginia Heath, despite this book being not for me. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC!

4.5 stars
Whew this was definitely an eye opening experience and read! Thoroughly enjoyed this one more than some others! My father is a Vietnam era Navy man!
Harry Aka Henry aka darling has made the Navy and ships his mistress and wife! He’s the fun uncle doting too! He’s suddenly left with a nephew and 2 nieces ad his sister and husband gallivant across the world!
Enter Georgie from Miss Prentice’ school for girls! Georgie had been the longest running pupil without an ever actually getting a position as a governess! She is very opinionated and this has not set well with any prospective employer!
Captain Henry aka Harry Kincaid is desperate! His flighty sister Flora had left 3 offspring with him and flown the coup to Egypt!
This is Georgie opportunity to finally get and keep a position!
These two have chemistry off the charts and can’t agree on anything!
He’s a pompous idiot and Georgie is. Siren that Harry can not afford to get involved besides the fact she is in his employment! Sparks fly and there are several laugh out loud moments!
Find out how two people completely different but yet share similar painful childhood can ever be?
Between a ship’s deadline and an attraction that is actually catching fire to the pages is there any hope?
Read this in public and laugh out loud at your own risk!
This one stays with you long after the last page! Bravo
I received an ARC copy for my unbiased review!

All's Fair in Love and War features a well-trodden historical romance tale of a main male character overrun by children who finds himself in need of a governess. The two subsequently fall in love. The question is: Are the characters and path memorable? In this case, I can say, kind of. I read it over a month ago and honestly could not really remember it. A quick look at the summary and I recalled that it was an opposites attract story, with the governess an outspoken graduate of a school run by Miss Prentice. Georgina was essentially abandoned there by her stepfather, but was luckily able to bond with three other ladies training there (cue future novels in the series). All of the other ladies are able to be employed, except for Georgie who cannot keep her piehole shut long enough to placate her employers during her interviews. She subscribes to what we would think of as modern childrearing as opposed to say, spare the rod, spoil the child. Guess who is more in favor of the latter? And there, dear reader is the conflict. The children were tolerable, the hero adequate, and they all kind of grew on me as I read along.

4 stars

An ARC was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review. All opinions are my own.

Georgie Rowe has had a tough life, but things turn up when she's sent to a school to learn to become a governess. She excels at the job in theory, but always stumbles in the interview, unable to hold her tongue long enough to be hired. Harry Kinkaid's sister leaves her three children at his house while she and her husband head off to Egypt. Too busy with the navy to care for them himself, and, frankly, overwhelmed by their energy, he seeks a temporary governor, hiring the first person he interviews. The pair clash on their ideas of what it means to care for the children, but Harry's busy work schedule gives Georgie pretty much free rein. Despite being attracted to the governess, Harry knows there's no room in his career for a woman, at least not until he secures his promotion. Having grown up in the military, Georgie has no desire to return to that lifestyle as a wife. Yet, their mutual attraction may cause them both to waver in their determination to keep things strickly professional. A very fun regency romance with spice and swoon.

A new series by Virginia Heath is always reason to celebrate.

All's Fair in Love and War is the first in Miss Prentice's Protegees. Miss Prentice run's a school for governesses and she hand picks the students that will be trained there. All's Fair in Love and War is Georgina Rowe's story. Georgie is sent to the school by her indifferent and regimented stepfather. While she is at Miss Prentice's school she makes friends with three very different young ladies, who each have their own interests. Horse crazy Lottie, Portia the resident bluestocking and Kitty who is easily lost to daydreams. I would have loved to read about their training, but that would have to be a different series. There is a time jump to the present, May 1820, when the young ladies are either getting their jobs or have jobs as governesses. Three out of the four young ladies are able to get jobs, but Georgie's personality and opinions stand in her way of finding employment. She is stubborn and has a hard time getting through the interviews with prospective employers because she speaks her mind and believes in a more open system of learning. Georgie ends up teaching at the school until one fateful day Harry arrives in desperate need for a governess for his sister's children.

Sparks fly at once between Georgie and Harry but instead of sparks of attraction they are sparks of annoyance. The physical attraction is immediate and mutual, but their personalities are incompatible. Their attraction builds slowly, and it goes against what either one of them wants for themselves. Georgie is resigned to her life in service and a loveless life without a family of her own. Harry is resigned to his life in the navy and does not want entanglement. Both characters are chained to the past and it takes the present-day chaos to shake things up.

All's Fair in Love and War is filled with charming characters, fun situations and witty dialogue that is Virginia Heath's trademark. The author infuses a sense of history in the world that the characters live in, and it gives the book a lovely cinematic quality. I loved the slow burn romance between Georgie and Harry. The children were fun and individual in their pursuits and dog lovers will enjoy Norbert the children's furry companion.

All's Fair in Love and War is another entertaining five-star read from Virginia Heath. If you love a slow burn romance with a dash of family chaos and memorable characters, then All’s Fair in Love and War is for you.

I can't wait for the next book in the series.

Reviewed by Gayle

Review ARC provided by St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin via Netgalley

Virginia Heath does it again. She is quickly becoming one of my absolute favorite historical romance writers. Her books always deliver tension, and chemistry along with a good grovel to get a delicious happy ending.

This debut in a new series Heath introduces us to Georgie Rowe, an orphaned young woman who finally purpose as a governess after years of emotional abuse and then abandonment. Trained under the esteemed Miss Prentice, Georgie's dream of becoming a governess hits a roadblock due to her unwavering and somewhat unique principles on child-rearing.

Meanwhile, Captain Harry Kincaid's orderly military life is turned upside down when he's left to care for his sister's unruly children. Desperate for help, he hires Georgie, sparking a tumultuous relationship marked by their opposing views, him being a stick-to-the-rules kind of guy and her believing in the power of spontaneity and creativity.

As Georgie and Harry navigate their differences, comedic chaos ensues with the mischievous children and their lovable but chaotic dog. Through witty banter and humorous mishaps, the two find themselves drawn to each other and despite their initial clashes, they find they actually have a lot more in common and a passion that lights up the pages.

These characters are super charming, and the dialogue is absolutely playful, and heartwarming that you can’t help but love “All is Fair in Love and War.” I’m really looking forward to the rest of the series.

Finally, I want to give a very big thank you to NetGalley and Avon HarperCollins for this ARC in exchange for my fair and honest review.

Virginia Heath doesn't miss! Such a fun cast of characters. I'm a glutton for a captain/governess situation, and felt like this really nailed the romcom aspects that is so sorely missing from histromance sometimes. A little slow in some parts, but an overall really good edition to a fun world. Always stoked to read Heath's work.

I thought that this was such a cute historical romcom. I have never really read one where the main characters weren’t lords and ladies but instead a governess and a captain so it was a fun change!

This was so cute. It was a fun story but felt a little long in some areas. The plot was fun and the kids were great and not annoying, which is usually the case. Recommend!

This book itself was a little slow for me, but I am a lover of of Heath's previous series and I was so excited to get back to her work. Very much looking forward to the rest of the books in this world coming out.

All’s Fair in Love and War is a charming Regency romance. The main characters are very likable and the children are amusing without being overly precious or annoying. It has a light, often humorous tone. The misattribution of quotations by famous men amused me a lot. I enjoyed this story and these characters.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, NetGalley and the author for the advance reader copy. All opinions are solely my own.

Sweet story following spirited Georgie as she takes on her first job as a governess to Harry Kincaid’s niece’s and nephew. Definitely a slow burn without too much angst. I did feel like their chemistry was a bit lacking but still enjoyed the story and looking forward to the other books in this series.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St Martins Press for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I think that the story could have been great, however, everytime I tried to get into the story it dragged in a lot more than anticipated. It was a good concept but it was excited in a way that made it slow and difficult to read.

I was in the mood for a slow-burn romance, and this one did not disappoint! I have been a fan of Virginia Heath since The Merriwell Sisters trilogy and was thrilled to have an opportunity to be an advanced reader for her new Miss Prentice's Protegees series. After Harry's older sister drops her three cherubs and easily excitable dog on his doorstep, he reaches out to Miss Prentice for help. Enter Georgie Rowe. What ensues is a delightful will-they-or-won't-they dance that kept me reading and wanting more. This was exactly what I looking for in a Regency-era love story. Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin Publishing for the chance to read this heartwarming tale. I can't wait to read the next book in the series!

Book 1 - Ms Prentice’s Protégés was a cute and funny romance . I laughed out loud a few times . Georgia and Harry were both wonderful characters . I can’t wait to read the rest in the series