Sarah M. Eden does it again with The Lady and the Highwayman! Fans of this beloved Proper Romance author will devour the latest in one sitting. This is only my second title from Eden, but I'm definitely smitten!


Elizabeth Black is the headmistress of a girls’ school and a well-respected author of “silver-fork” novels, stories written both for and about the upper-class ladies of Victorian society. But by night, she writes very different kinds of stories—the Penny Dreadfuls that are all the rage among the working-class men. Under the pseudonym Mr. King, Elizabeth has written about dashing heroes fighting supernatural threats and dangerous outlaws romancing helpless women. They contain all the adventure and mystery that her real life lacks.

Fletcher Walker began life as a street urchin, but is now the most successful author in the Penny Dreadful market, that is until Mr. King started taking all of his readers--and his profits. No one knows who King is, including Fletcher’s fellow members of the Dread Penny Society, a fraternity of authors dedicated to secretly fighting for the rights of the less-fortunate.

Determined to find the elusive Mr. King, Fletcher approaches Miss Black. As a fellow-author, she is well-known among the high-class writers; perhaps she could be persuaded to make some inquiries as to Mr. King’s whereabouts? Elizabeth agrees to help Fletcher, if only to insure her secret identity is never discovered.

For the first time, Elizabeth experiences the thrill of a cat-and-mouse adventure reminiscent of one of her own novels as she tries to throw Fletcher off her scent. But the more time they spend together, the more she loses her heart. Its upper-class against working-class, author against author where readers, reputations, and romance are all on the line.




As always, a copy of this book was provided by the publisher or author in exchange for my honest review. This does not effect my opinion in any way.

I've become very attached to the way that Sarah M. Eden tells a love story. The way she writes feels undeniably like a classic romance to me. If you are a fan of classic romance, and historical romance, then Sarah M. Eden is the author for you. The Lady and the Highwayman is like a warm embrace; all cozy, warm and fuzzy, and to the heart.

As with any good story, readers are compelled nearly instantly with The Lady and the Highwayman. I knew I'd be interested in it from the synopsis alone--I adore novels that incorporate different genres and that center around characters who are authors themselves. As always, Eden's prose is smooth and full of sparks of life.

With the dual POV, we get a fairly good assessment of who the main characters are and what they feel. I think that most reader's will have a favourite character and POV fairly early on--for me, it was Elizabeth's--and there are plenty of standout moments in between time. Elizabeth's story is, by far, the high point of The Lady and the Highwayman.

Most importantly: we get a lot of good banter and a slow-burn relationship.

If you know me, you know that I love a good banter session between love interests. I love even more when romance is of the slow burn variety and it takes time to get to the big kiss. It gives us a great big wink through the prose when it comes to the character's romantic chemistry.

Not only do the character's relationships seem to be in wait, we're captivated and on the edge of our seat waiting, too. And I love that! All and all, there is a lot of good development to The Lady and the Highwayman that makes it fun, mysterious and romantic. It is the perfect novel to curl up with a cup of coffee and a blanket this autumn!