Wednesday 5 August 2015

Blog Tour: Masquerade by Joanna Taylor (Historical, Romance, 10/10E)


 4th August 2015, Piatkus, 288 pages, Ebook, Review copy from NetGalley

Content: life as a street worker, some major peril, a bit of fighting, political intrigue, humour, moderate romance and some innuendo, tissue needed

Summary from Little, Brown
1786: Regency London. Everyone is hiding something. But someone is hiding everything.

Lizzy Ward never meant to end up working the streets of Piccadilly. So when a mysterious noble pursues her, it seems her luck is changing. But though Lord Hays offers to grow Lizzy's fortunes, his price is unexpected. She must masquerade in the sumptuous gowns and social mask of a true lady.

With the stakes so high, love is out of the question. But as Lizzy navigates the fashion and faux-pas of the London elite, she finds her tough facade failing her. Lord Hayes wants to show her that nobility is more than skin deep . . . and as the connection between them grows, it's no longer certain who's wearing the mask. As the street-girl and the lord collide, Regency London is poised for scandal . . .
  
Nayu's thoughts
I have to say that whenever I hear the word masquerade I think the music idol duo in the anime Aikatsu, who wear masks.
Not that I'm anime obsessed or anything!
While Hime & Miya are most definitely not in the regency era, Lizzy is. As much as I hate making comparisons, it is a regency version of the film Pretty Woman, where a lady of the night finds herself living in luxury for a while as part of her job. While not necessarily approving of Lizzy's occupation, I loved how she charmed those she met who did judge her for who she was, but who slowly grew friendlier and on occasion proved pivotal in helping her out of situations. There is a fair amount of danger, sometimes Lizzy's fault as she is too curious for her own good, sometimes just through circumstance. 

What I really liked was learning all the fine details of what being a lady entailed – exactly what happened when a lady makes herself ready (getting washed, dressed, having hair styled and makeup put on by maids), the places where ladies weren't allowed to go. As expected there are many who disapprove of Lizzy efore they get to know her simply because of her job (or what they guess her job to be), but I promise everything works out wonderfully in the end and has me hopeful of a book 2. 

Suggested read
Another historical adventure which had me on the edge of my seat is The Chateau On The Lake by Leah Betts (Historical, 10/10E, Romance)  
 

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