I loved the plot for this story and found it to be very interesting. The romance did not take center stage and the spiritual content played into the story and had depth.
Many thanks to Waterfall Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thanks for the review copy. I was not able to read this one, so I did not leave a review on social media.

A Regency spy novel.
Accomplished, but poor young lady has only two choices in life - to marry or to become a governess. Or can she try to be a bit more open with her feelings? And can she even have a bit of adventure, when the fate of her homeland is threaten by someone close to her?

The best I have read from Melanie Dickerson yet! I usually find her novels being a bit naive (and this one is a bit naive, too), but this one is more mature, more Jane Austen´s Emma than the retelling of fairytales (and I like this shift). The novel sheds a welcome light on the poor life of the less fortunate in the Regency times (poor children, unwed mothers, governesses).
Also the Regency mood is my forever penchant :)

Way to go!

During England’s Regency era, manners and elegance reign in public life, but behind closed doors treason and tawdriness thrive. After suffering a battlefield injury, Nicholas Langdon, the wealthy, well-connected British officer, returns home to heal and to fulfill a dying soldier’s last wish by delivering his coded diary. At the home of , one of England’s most powerful families, the Wilherns, Nicholas Langdon attends a lavish ball and meets their beautiful and intelligent ward, Julia Grey. Determined to maintain propriety, he keeps his distance. Then the diary is stolen and all clues lead to Julia’s guardian. Tracing an evil plot that could be the nation’s undoing, he grows ever more intrigued by the lovely young woman. Julia realizes that England and the man she is falling in love with needs her help. She finds herself caught in the fray. Will the two succumb to their attraction while fighting to save their country?

About this book:

“In England’s Regency era, manners and elegance reign in public life—but behind closed doors treason and tawdriness thrive. Nicholas Langdon is no stranger to reserved civility or bloody barbarity. After suffering a battlefield injury, the wealthy, well-connected British officer returns home to heal—and to fulfill a dying soldier’s last wish by delivering his coded diary.
At the home of the Wilherns, one of England’s most powerful families, Langdon attends a lavish ball where he meets their beautiful and intelligent ward, Julia Grey. Determined to maintain propriety, he keeps his distance—until the diary is stolen and all clues lead to Julia’s guardian. As Langdon traces an evil plot that could be the nation’s undoing, he grows ever more intrigued by the lovely young woman. And when Julia realizes that England—and the man she is falling in love with—need her help, she finds herself caught in the fray. Will the two succumb to their attraction while fighting to save their country?”


Series: Book #1 in “The Regency Spies of London” series.


Spiritual Content- Many prayers; Talks about God, His plans & ways, Providence, and pleasing Him; (Most) ‘H’s are capital when referring to God; Julia says she rarely prays expect in church (which I don’t believe as she prays many times in this novel); Nicholas had thought to be a clergyman (but his father disapproved); A mention of a(n old) man not being a strong believer in God; A couple mentions of Bible reading & God’s Word; Mentions of an iron cross, Bibles & a book of prayers; Mentions of prayers; Mentions of church & sermons; Mentions of Christians; Mentions of angels & miracles;
*Note: A mention of “the hell hounds”; Regency sayings such as “pray tell”, etc.


Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a form of ‘shut up’, and two forms of ‘stupid’; Lots of Pain, Blood, Bruises, being shot & attacked, along with thinking you’re dying (semi-detailed); Fighting, Knives & causing pain (up to semi-detailed); Threats of death & stabbing someone; Remembering pain (up to semi-detailed); Remembering a horse being beaten (semi-detailed); Many mentions of war & injuries (and deaths) it caused (up to semi-detailed); Many mentions of drinking, drunks & brandy; Many mentions of treason, betrayal, & hangings; Mentions of assassins, murders, shooting & enemies; Mentions of gambling, debts & betting; Mentions of cigars & tobacco; A couple mentions of hunting.


Sexual Content- six hand/wrist kisses, three forehead kisses, four not-detailed kisses, a barely-above-not-detailed kiss & four semi-detailed kisses; Thinking about kissing & Staring at lips (barely-about-not-detailed); Mentions of kisses & kissing; Touches, Nearness & Dancing (up to semi-detailed); Noticing; Flirting; Many mentions of flirting; Many mentions of reputations & compromising situations; Mentions of mean leering at women & having ungentlemanly thoughts; Many mentions of men ruining governesses & taking advantage of the ladies; Mentions of a young woman who was seduced, abandoned & now carries his child; Mentions of an older man being overly friendly with Julia (when he tries to touch her, she steps on his foot and gets away); A few mentions of jealousy; A few mentions of betrayal over a broken engagement; A mention of Julia possibly being attacked or molested in an unsafe area; Love, falling in love & the emotions.

-Julia Grey
-Nicholas Langdon
P.O.V. switches between them
Set in 1811
322 pages

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Pre Teens- One Star
New Teens- One Star (and a half)
Early High School Teens- Two Stars
Older High School Teens- Four Stars
My personal Rating- Three Stars (and a half)
Hmmm! While very different from all the author's other novels, I enjoyed “A Spy’s Devotion”. I admit I kept checking the title page to see if this was really written by Melanie Dickerson since it was so different...no Fairy-tale element and set in Regency era. It started out slow and wasn't till about half way in that the plot picked up and my interest started. Julia was very sweet and I liked Nicholas. I didn't like Phoebe or her parents or Mr. Edgerton at all. I really liked Leorah and hope she'll have a story in this series, as she made me laugh. ;)
Julia had to learn about following God’s ways instead of society's ways, which I thought was a neat element in a regency book. “What if she followed her heart and concentrated only on obeying God’s rules, instead of society’s rules?”


*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.
*I received this book for free from the Author for this honest review.

If I were only allowed to sum up A Spy’s Devotion in one word, ”charming” would be the word. And that’s because that’s exactly what it was, in the sweetest sense of the word.

My first read from the talented author that is Melanie Dickerson, A Spy’s Devotion was a wonderful introduction into what I can look forward to by reading from this author: Adventure. Compelling story. And great characters.

I grew up loving regency themed literature, so anytime I get the chance to read such I’m all grabs. Because it was my first time reading from this author, I didn’t know what to expect. I rarely venture out into the YA genre (not for dislike, only for lack of keeping up with my TBR pile!), but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to dive into Regency England, and discover what sounded like a grand reading experience.

And grand it was. In truth, reading this novel was like reading a fairy tale. Which was fantastic! I loved the simple excitement of the story, the feeling of not quite knowing where the story was going – not to mention the characters. I found myself on edge as I was hoping that the leading characters would get themselves through the hoops and loops of the story and get their happy ending. And to my great relief, it all ironed out to be one very nice (and charming) book.

Told with a writing style reminiscent of Jane Austen – with just a sprinkle of Charles Dickens – and a vibe that speaks Regency elegance, A Spy’s Devotion is a story well delivered. I look forward to reading more from this author!

Award-winning author Melanie Dickerson ventures into a new historical era -- Regency -- after penning numerous award-winning medieval fairy tale retellings.

In A Spy’s Devotion, wealthy British officer Nicholas Langdon returns home to heal from a war injury. He tries to fulfill a dying soldier’s request to deliver his coded diary to a friend.

While at a ball, he meets Julia Grey, who is living with her aunt, uncle, and cousin. Lacking a dowry and knowing her cousin has her sights set on Nicolas, she tries to keep her distance. However, shortly after the ball, the diary is stolen and Julia’s uncle appears to be behind the theft. Fortunately Nicholas made a copy before it was stolen, and was able to get that copy to its intended recipient. Langdon grows more attracted to Julia as he tries to help uncover those behind the theft and those it threatens.

Secret passages, overheard conversations, and coded messages contribute to the intrigue, mystery, and adventure in this story. Can they uncover the plot’s mastermind in time to avert the disaster? Can Julia avoid being forced to marry a man of her uncle’s choosing?

A Spy’s Devotion is filled with a clear (but not preachy) faith element, a carefully crafted plot, richly drawn characters, and historical details. As with her earlier works, Dickerson's stories include well-written narratives and wholesome relationships while still building a strong attraction between the main characters, making this a good choice for teen and adult readers.

This is a Great book 📚 and a great author. Every book I have read from her is great.

Once I picked up this book, I couldn't put it down! Thankfully, I read it during a big snowstorm, so I didn't have to! Melanie did a beauti!ful job of crafting interesting and very real characters. And of course, who doesn't love a good Regency story! I'm so excited to read the next book in the series

A Spy's Devotion was really good. I should have written this review closer to when I read it, but somehow it just slipped my mind and I'm only now getting to it. O.o

I remember being very engaged with the story and liking the spy elements. I also enjoyed this story more than a couple other recent Melanie Dickerson novels I read (I just found those kind of cheesy, I guess, and this one wasn't like that). :))

All in all, a good read from what I remember and I am looking forward to the next book in the series.

*I received a complimentary eBook copy of this book from NetGalley for my honest review. As always, all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.*