REVIEW: While You Were Spying by Shana Galen

In While You Were Spying by Shana Galen, Francesca Dashing has never quite been able to rid herself of her infatuation with the handsome but scandalous Ethan Caxton. He may be the Marquess of Winterbourne, but the way he treated her at a society ball a few years ago was anything but gentlemanly. When their paths cross again, danger is lurking nearby, unbeknownst to Francesca. Ethan comes to her rescue, making the decision to protect her without her say. She wonders if she can hide her feelings from a man she believes may be fragile of heart, but strong of sheer will and intellect.

‘Was he a hero who secretly served his country with no need for recognition? Or was he simply a callous rogue — unfeeling, uncaring, and embittered by the betrayal of a former lover.’

Ethan Caxton admittedly doesn’t remember Miss Dashing when he finds her at the very farm where he has been investigating a man thought to be part of a band of smugglers. When he does realize who she is, Ethan is charmed to his core by her plucky nature and her beauty. He hopes protecting Francesca will partly make up for the uncouth way he treated her that evening. But as his investigation becomes entangled with threats against Francesca, Ethan finds himself also falling for her. Will he be able to save the woman who has come to mean so much to him while shielding his heart in the process?

“The most handsome man in England just moved in with me, and he asks what’s wrong.” Her voice was groggy, but Ethan froze at her words.
This was something new. She thought him the most handsome man in England?
“What’s wrong?” She pointed a limp but accusatory finger at him. “You’re bad!”
“But handsome.” He grinned.

While You Were Spying was an engaging and quick witted Regency romance with, you guessed it, spies in the midst of the English countryside. But don’t be alarmed. Although there were villains about, the spies were actually the good guys here.

I am pretty new to Shana Galen’s writing so I don’t have her previous books with which to compare this new romance. However, as an avid reader, it is abundantly clear that Ms. Galen’s style is intelligent, fun, and perfectly detailed. The pacing of this particular story felt natural, without the scenes dragging on, or being too fast. I will admit that the reason I didn’t give this five stars, is that I was able to guess each plot twist and what would happen, but the wonderful characters and fresh dialogue completely made up for that.

And speaking of the characters! They were so delicately crafted and each had their own special place in the plotline. While I might not have been a fan of Francesca’s melodramatic mother or her mean-spirited ex-fiance Roxbury, they both played very important roles in what happened. The story just wouldn’t have been the same without that friction they caused. So it goes without saying that the secondary characters were just as well developed as Ethan and Francesca were, which to me, made the story that much more rich and full.

Of course my favorites were our protagonists, Francesca and Ethan. I thought they were a great pair, managing to build up the confidence in each other and being quite supportive in their own way. And I adored that Francesca had a ‘hospital’ and treated injured animals. She was obviously a very caring individual, and that was exactly what Ethan needed in his life. They both had been hurt in one way or another previously making it difficult to trust again. The struggles they went through together seemed believable and were both touching and heartbreaking in equal measures.

Ethan and Francesca may have had a rocky start, but their dramatic HEA will be sure to please the many historical romance lovers out there. I highly recommend this charming and emotional story.

Book Info:

Published April 7th 2015 by BMLA Digital

The latest addition to the REGENCY SPIES series, WHILE YOU WERE SPYING is the highly anticipated prequel to WHEN DASHING MET DANGER and PRIDE AND PETTICOATS .

Francesca Dashing would like to forget that Ethan Caxton, the Marquess of Winterbourne, exists. He humiliated her in front of all of London Society—and he doesn’t even remember it! But when Ethan shows up in her sleepy Hampshire town, he’s hard to overlook, and his presence stirs up long-buried feelings. Francesca tries to keep her distance…until her life is threatened and the mysterious and handsome marquess comes to her rescue, in more ways than she ever thought possible.

Winterbourne has traveled to Hampshire on orders from the Foreign Office—he’s investigating an arms smuggling ring and is determined to find its leader. Miss Dashing stumbles into his way—literally—and derails both Ethan’s assignment and his ordered country life. Ethan knows he needs to ignore the distraction, but when Francesca is the victim of a vicious attack, he’s compelled to put aside his mission to protect her. Guarding the viscount’s daughter is work, nothing more, and Ethan has no plans to let down his guard…until Francesca’s chocolate-brown eyes and endless compassion melt the ice in his heart and lay siege to his defenses.