Rating: 4/5
Gemma Parks is known throughout high society as G. M. Parker, a columnist renowned for her commentary on the cream of society. Behind the scenes, she uses her talent to aid the Imposters in their investigations by gathering intel at events and providing alibis for the elite firm's members through her columns. Yet her clandestine work would be more exhilarating if it weren't for the constant presence of the gentleman who broke her heart.
Graham Wharton has never had eyes for anyone but Gemma, and she left his soul in tatters when she walked away from him. When the Imposters take on a new job to recover a kidnapped boy mistaken for his aristocratic cousin, Graham is determined to use the time with Gemma not only to restore the missing boy, but also to win back the only woman he's ever loved. As they trace the clues laid out before them, Graham must devise a noble scheme to save the boy's life and heal their hearts.
I received a free copy of A Noble Scheme through Austenprose PR for a book tour. Thank you so much for this opportunity!
A quick look at the synopsis, and I was immediately hooked. I love a good historical fiction mixed with a cozy mystery. And this did not disappoint!
Though I’ll admit, the beginning was rough once I started. I hadn’t read the predecessor, A Beautiful Disguise. And while after reading this, I don’t think it was necessary to have read that first, this does well as a standalone, the initial premise of this “private investigation firm marketed to the elite . . . to spy on the elite” was hard to wrap my head around at first as its a bit rushed through the details of this in the beginning of this second novel. But the further I read into this, I quickly connected the dots and enjoyed this book! It was such a fun mystery to read.
The premise around the private investigators for the society was so enjoyable to read, something I hadn’t really seen before in this manner. The closest I had seen was in To Spark a Match by Jen Turano where one of our main characters is a spy, an equally fun read!
I flowed through it fairly easily, I loved the idea of this cozy mystery. Gemma and Graham, once lovers, are thrown back together to help find this missing boy who was kidnapped. As we bounce back and forth between their perspectives, we discover the reason for their heartbreaks and why Graham is insistent on trying to win her back. I loved Graham’s thought process of taking advantage of Gemma’s disguise of being her “G.M. Parker” counterpart, where she has no reason to avoid Graham so he uses it to try and woo her all over again. It truly pulls at the heartstrings and is such a romantic second-chance romance!
This cozy mystery reminded me of To Capture His Heart by Nancy Campbell Allen, which has a similar premise regarding how our two main characters go to a house party to solve a mystery but upon arrival pretend that they don’t truly know each other when they first arrive. And how within both, the close proximity changes their feelings easily into something more despite some resistance.
Another detail that caught me by surprise within this one was the religious undertones our characters have. I’ve seen within historical fiction novels little ties of religion throughout the story, but this one was definitely more prevalent than I’ve seen before and I felt worth noting. Mostly with Graham who is struggling with his religion in what he believes after the fallout from his romance with Gemma. I found myself relating to Graham in how he felt about his beliefs, a constant inner battle with himself. Some of his thoughts ran deep with what I’ve felt about my own beliefs. It was something I didn’t expect but also enjoyed seeing.
I highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys historical fiction and cozy mysteries in Christian fiction! This was such a fun enjoyable read!