Monthly Keyword 26: Ruin
Official plot summary (because I read this in February):
On the outskirts of London sits a seemingly innocuous institution with a secretive aim—train young women to distract, disrupt, and discredit the patriarchy. Outraged by a powerful politician’s systematic attack on women’s rights, the Academy summons its brightest—and most bitter—pupil to infiltrate the odious man’s inner circle. A deal is bring down the viscount, and Miss Euphemia Flite will finally earn her freedom.
But betting shop owner Gabriel Royce has other plans. The viscount is the perfect pawn to insulate Gabriel’s underworld empire from government interference. He’s not about to let some crinoline-clad miss destroy his carefully constructed enterprise—no matter how captivating he finds her threats.
From the rookeries of St. Giles to the ballrooms of Mayfair, Euphemia and Gabriel engage in a battle of wits and wills that’s complicated by a blossoming desire. Soon Euphemia realizes it’s not the broken promises to her Academy sisters she should fear. . . . It’s the danger to her heart.
Euphemia “Effie” Flite doesn’t have any grand plans for her life, but she wants her independence and enough money to settle down in the country, away from the intrigues and stresses of London. Yet Miss Corvus, the headmistress of the unorthodox school where Effie was raised, has one last mission for her before she will allow Effie her freedom. Miss Corvus needs Effie to pose as a debutante and befriend the daughter of a prominent viscount, so she can find incriminating evidence against him and ruin his reputation.
However, Effie has to contend with the imposing Gabriel Royce, a betting shop owner from London’s East End, who needs the viscount’s wealth and contacts to help him source money to make improvements to the slums of St. Giles. He quickly realises that Miss Flite isn’t the innocent miss she pretends to be, especially after she keeps shaking off the people he sends to tail her. However, he can’t figure out what her motives are, and he can’t let her meddling interfere with his plans.
Full review on my blog.
