After a series of murder and mystery, this was the reading required.

A new vicar with secrets and revenge on his mind. The young Countess being embezzled by her steward. Holding on just to get Adam her young stepbrother into university, she is prepared to sacrifice anything.
Falling in love with the Reverend was not on the cards. For the Reverend his feelings of wanting to protect the young mistress of the Castle was surprising and messed up his real plans for his future.

A mix of a love story and shades of a mystery which needed to be solved, aided by young people, greedy, grasping employees and a society which would not give any woman a place of authority or power, this was a light but cautionary story.

Unfortunately this was not for me. I DNF'd around 30% of the way through. Writing felt disjointed and I still didn't understand what in the world was going on with the characters.

Thank you for the ARC!

Synopsis: Summoned to the Earl of Trenton's estate to educate his nephew, Reverend Jonah Sinclair's real mission is to discover more about the Earl's hand in Jonah's father's death. There he meets Faith, the Countess of Rochford, who's drowning in debt and is desperate to keep the secret behind her husband's disappearance from the church who stand to inherit upon his passing. Will the spark of feelings between them threaten their explosive secrets?

Review: I really enjoyed this twist on a literary classic. The hot romance, devilish characters, and constant action was fun to follow along, and I liked that we saw things from both main character's POV to really understand their emotions and motivations. However, the time jumps were jarring and I wish we'd seen more of the actual tutoring between Jonah and Adam, and perhaps Jonah and Faith living side by side then too.

With thanks to NetGalley and the Publishers for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I am very grateful to NetGalley for this ARC. Unfortunately, I was unable to finish this book.
It was much heavier on the mystery than romance and the plot was too difficult to follow while also not being interesting enough to make me want to push through. I tried very hard to finish it. Unfortunately, I just had to put it down when I realized I couldn’t stop zoning out. I wish this author the best of luck. This book just was not for me. I’m sure there will be plenty of people it will work for!

Reverend Jonah Sinclair is determined to bring his father's killer to justice, and he will do it even if he has to risk everything he values in the process. When the notorious Earl of Rochford offers him a position as tutor to his young ward, Jonah accepts, believing the mysterious Ravenglass Hall could lead him to the murderer. Yet he soon finds himself drawn to the earl’s abandoned countess, Faith Trenton, Countess of Rochford. Faith is struggling to defend her crumbling estate from an embezzling steward. She ends up disguising herself as a man until Jonah's arrival threatens to expose her perilous secrets. Despite their irresistible chemistry, she must push him away to keep her home and her family safe. Yet after several attacks, Faith finds herself placing her trust in Jonah.
An interesting story, which at times tended to be a bit disjointed. I did enjoy both characters, who I felt held my attention through the chapters, once I was one-third into the book. I would have liked to have believed more in the romance between the two characters, but I felt that the connection between them was lacking.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

3.5 rounded up

Moody, mysterious, and filled with potential, Keeping the Countess delivers a gothic-tinged historical romance with strong intrigue vibes and a side of “naughty priest” temptation (yes, please). Reverend Jonah is an endearing, layered hero, and his bond with young Adam is one of the book’s emotional bright spots. The crumbling estate, secret identities, and murder mystery setup are deliciously atmospheric.

That said, the plot often feels overstuffed, and key relationships—especially the central romance—don’t get the breathing room they need. Some story threads fray at the edges, leaving you with that “wait, did I miss something?” feeling.

Still, this is a creative and compelling debut with real heart. Lille Moore clearly has stories to tell, and I’m curious to see how her next one unfolds with a tighter narrative focus.

If you like your historicals with danger, disguises, and divine complications, this one's worth a look.

lol happened upon a wild phenomenon where I kinda enjoyed reading this but also ultimately always knew it was going to be fighting between a 2 and a 2.5 (and I’m still not sure what the answer is ngl) and got about 95% in and just couldnt bring myself to read those last two chapters bc I didn’t really care anymore and kinda confirmed there was in fact nothing to what I had been hoping mightve been a more compelling story?

I really just felt like despite really enjoying the *bones* of the story, something about the writing forever kept me longing for just a little bit More of everything (description, character depth, mystery even at parts bc I kinda lowkey wish something else entirely happened to the Earl) but it was ultimately just enough to constitute an easy read, and I do agree with some reviews I saw that it improved a bit towards the middle but yeah unfortunately not a solid landing

Also almost gave extra pts for Adam and Lawless bc I wish we spent more time with both of them, especially Adam when Jonah was being “the father that stepped up”

like I can’t not mention that there was no real distinction between the chronology of the story so not only did we not see much of Jonah and Adam alone but I genuinely didn’t even realize weeks had passed at certain points (??)

That being said, it wasn’t bad at all for a debut, just very “debut-like” i’m afraid

thank you so much to netgalley and wildflower press for this arc to review!

This was a fantastic romance story!!! Gave me a mix of bridgerton and sherlock holmes’ vibe. I fell in love with the FMC and MMC, who were both unique holding traditions and burning with love that would be considered forbidden. The yearning! Love love love the book.

I was enthralled with Keeping the Countess, a wonderful piece of historical fiction by Lille Moore. Ms. Moore draws the reader into her story with a plot of twists and turns and very compelling characters.

The heroine of the book is Faith Trenton, the Countess of Rochford who is, seemingly, alone in trying to unravel her husband’s misdeeds and save the family’s estate, Ravenglass Hall. Unbeknownst to the Countess, Reverend Jonah Sinclair appears to serve as a tutor retained by her elusive husband, the Earl of Rochford, for his ward, Adam. Both Faith and Jonah have secrets and ulterior motives which appear to be at odds with each other, complicated by their attraction to one another. The Countess and the Reverend battle individual adversity and societal expectations but together they learn to trust one another and work together to overcome their overlapping interests.

I thought this novel was sophisticated and masterful storytelling at its best and admit that I was hooked after the first chapter. In her novel, Lille Moore examines the various segments of English society, from the lowest ranks to the those of the upper crust. She delves into the inequalities suffered by women of the time. I was particularly interested in the concept of coverture, an antiquated legal edict which essentially meant that a married woman's property passed into the husband's control and ownership upon marriage.

Many thanks to thank Wildflower Press and NetGalley for the chance to preview Lille Moore’s novel and anxiously await book two of the Damsels in Disguise series.

*** My review is being made without fear or favor to any individual, company or NetGalley ***

I appreciate the premise of this book. I like the personalities of the FMC and the MMC. The gothic, eerie vibes were great. I love a book that makes me question whether there will be ghosts or not.

Unfortunately, I found myself confused too often. I think there were too many details unknown to the reader at one time, so it made it hard to follow. I do like having the characters know things that aren't told to the reader right away, but I was often lost. There were times where I felt like pieces of the story were missing. I'm not sure if that was an editing mishap?

This author does show potential. Her ideas, descriptions, and characters (like Adam!) are great. Maybe the book needed another round of developmental edits or beta readings. I'll give the author another shot as she moves forward in her career!

3.5 Stars rounded up to 4

This book was a really interesting and captivating mystery. I imagine I would have enjoyed this book greatly if I wasn't incredibly confused for at least half of the book. It was really difficult for me to figure out who each character was, and I kept thinking a character was someone they weren't. However, that could fully be my own fault!

I really enjoyed the mystery of this book and enjoyed the plot! I also really loved Faith as a strong, independent woman who held her own.

an exiting and enticing read all in one brilliant book. i was s invested in our determined characters. i loved how they both came to the table with force behind them. they new what they wanted but both our male and female characters were strong fighters in their own way, and were there with their own fight determined to get the win. but their lives cross. and could they both threaten each others end goal? well, especially when that end goal might be either threatened by who they are and what they've come to achieve or because the end goals are changing because of how they start to see and feel for each other.
what will our pair do if they get in each others way?
can love or emotions really be stopped? because they certainly dont play by the rules here.
i was hooked. i wanted to know both our characters stories and then how they interacted with eachother just got me deeper all the time.i wanted them both to see their wishes come true but also wanted them to becomes their own happy ending.

I absolutely devoured this book. The writing is rich and evocative, with that delicious gothic undertone that makes you feel the cold walls of Ravenglass and the danger lurking in every shadow. And through it all is this aching, forbidden romance that just won’t let go. I loved the balance of danger and desire, the way justice and love come crashing into each other. It’s a story about loyalty, sacrifice, and what it costs to stand in the truth. It had my heart racing and aching in equal measure. I adored every word.

This interesting arc tells the story of two peaceful souls who prefer to seek justice in their own way despite the fact everyone says they will fail. I for one thought this story was very intriguing because these two characters weren't afraid to get their hands dirty and they knew what they wanted with each passing situation. I have a feeling other readers will be impressed with this novel.
It follows the story of Reverend Jonah Sinclair who is trying to avenge the death of his father. He eventually gets a position in the household of a lord for a tutor for his young son. Jonah believes that this opportunity will lead him to the answers that he seeks.
However the lady of the house Faith has problems of her own. She has disguised herself as a man since her husband is nowhere to be found and she knows that someone in her household is trying to betray her. She finds herself drawn to Jonah but knows because of his position they can never be together. Overall this mysterious story is very exciting.
I received an arc copy from Netgalley and all opinions are of my own.