A Lady Never Lies by Juliana Gray

Lady Alexandra Morley, along with her sister and cousin, travel to a remote castle in Tuscany in an attempt to find a solution to her new found money problems.   They are all a bit startled when three gentleman also seem to have let the same castle but since it is large enough to be in separate wings, they agree to carry on.  What especially captures Alexandra's attention is one ginger-haired man, Phineas Burke along with his dedication to finding a way to run a horseless carriage.  Since her money is now tied up in a similar business, she hopes to gain some knowledge that she can pass on and earn her money back and get back to her life as she knows it.  What she does not expect is the growing attraction blooming between herself and Finn.  With a nosy duke and his lovestruck brother, along with her too-smart sister and too-quiet cousin, this group is sure to have lots of fun, heartbreak and hopefully triumph.

This was another wonderful debut I have read this year!  The writing is smooth and flawless and peppered with lots of British words that I love--rubbish, jolly, sodding and bloody hell.  I loved that this book is set in 1890 and we get a fresh perspective on the rise of the automobile.  I feel like there are not enough books set in this time period so I am so happy to have found another author setting her stories here!  Finn is a delightful scientist.  First, he is ginger haired--love, but he is also intelligent with a dash of nerdiness, passionate and thorough (in more areas than one).  Alexandra comes off a bit bossy at first and I wasn't sure about her but as time passes her true nature emerges.  She is still a bit bossy but she is also fun and adventurous, bold and stubborn and wary of tying herself to another man after the death of her husband.  Together, Finn and Alexandra explode but also bond over Finn's work with his battery for the automobile.  But Alexandra is still holding out her secret and it may end up costing her in the end...and if that doesn't, her stubbornness will.  Overall, I really adored this book.  The setting, the characters, the dialogue, passion, intrigue--all of it was done so well, it is hard to believe this is a historical debut.  The next two books will take place at the same time as this one and while that is usually not a favorite of mine, there were just enough snippets of the other couples that I think it is going to work out well.  Plus, there is not major mystery linking the stories so I don't think there will be much rehashing.  Juliana Gray has made it onto my auto-buy list with this debut and is an author all historical romance readers should read!  4 1/2 stars

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