Book Review, Tour & Giveaway: ‘The Gentleman Spy’ by Erica Vetsch

He only wanted a duchess for a day–but she’s determined to make it a marriage for life

When his father and older brother suddenly pass away, the new Duke of Haverly is saddled with a title he never expected to bear. To thwart the plans of his scheming family, the duke impulsively marries a wallflower. After all, she’s meek and mild; it should be easy to sequester her in the country and get on with his life–as a secret agent for the Crown.

But his bride has other ideas. She’s determined to take her place not only as his duchess but as his wife. As a duchess, she can use her position to help the lowest of society–the women forced into prostitution because they have no skills or hope. Her endeavors are not met favorably in society, nor by her husband who wishes she’d remain in the background as he ordered.

Can the duke succeed in relegating her to the sidelines of his life? When his secrets are threatened with exposure, will his new wife be an asset or a liability?

Erica Vetsch is a New York Times best-selling and ACFW Carol Award–winning author. She is a transplanted Kansan now living in Minnesota with her husband, who she claims is both her total opposite and soul mate.

Vetsch loves Jesus, history, romance, and sports. When she’s not writing fiction, she’s planning her next trip to a history museum and cheering on her Kansas Jayhawks and New Zealand All Blacks.

A self-described history geek, she has been planning her first research trip to England.

Learn more about Erica Vetsch and her books at www.ericavetsch.com. She can also be found on Facebook (@EricaVetschAuthor), Instagram (@EricaVetsch) and Pinterest (Erica Vetsch).

‘Life would be so much easier if God would stay confined to Sunday worship and evening prayers.’

I’ve read Erica Vetsch a long time, but last year when she wrote her first Regency and book in this series, I was completely certain that she had found her niche. She wrote the best Regency! And now she has done it again with the second book in the series.

Marcus quite unexpectedly finds himself the new Duke of Haverly after the sudden death of his father and older brother. Being a duke does quite interfere with his job as a spy for the Crown. His mother insists on him marrying and begins parading a long line of simpering females in front of him. Unable to bear it any longer, Marcus ups and marries a debutante his mother quite disapproves of. After all, Marcus needs to have a wife to manage his home while he’s off spying, and he believes Charlotte Tiptree is just the one to do it. However, he does not reckon on Charlotte being an independent thinker and reader. She decides she is going to help the lowly in society and fulfill God’s call on her life. No husband will banish her to the sidelines.

‘I should have known better. God doesn’t give someone like me good gifts.’

Truly, Erica Vetsch is a masterful story teller in this genre. Rich historical details combine with a swoony hero, seriously heart pounding romance and that danger belonging to spies, Vetsch has another stunning Regency that will reside on my keeper shelf for always. I can’t wait for the next book in the series1 Highly recommended.

*My thanks to Kregel Publications for a copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.