{Historical Romance Review} A Lady Would Know Better by Emma Theriault

A Lady Would Know Better by Emma Theriault
Published by Entangled: Amara on January 28th, 2025
Genres: Fiction, Romance, Historical
Pages: 298
Source: Netgalley
Buy on Amazon, Amazon UK, Amazon Canada, Amazon Australia, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Storygraph, BookBub
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Get ready to swoon for this dreamy, forget-me-not romance that’s filled with the delightful tartness of Jane Austen and the sweeping, unputdownable drama of Bridgerton.

There are many things an English lord might encounter on the grounds of his wintry estate. Trees. Birds. Perhaps a wandering gamekeeper. Instead, the Earl of Belhaven finds a woman in the snow, unconscious and nearly frozen to death. Then her luminous gray eyes open just long enough for her to plead, “Don’t let them get me.”

Now Jasper Maycott has his hands full with a woman who has absolutely no memory of who she is or where she came from—to say nothing of her name! Just a gold ring, some fine clothes, and a penchant for pert conversation. But while “Jane” dresses and speaks quite like a lady, Jasper can’t make any assumptions. After all, she could be a crafty fortune hunter...albeit a charming and unutterably beautiful one.

Only there’s no room for romantic love in the Earl of Belhaven’s world. There is just grim duty, a lingering sense of loss, and the knowledge that love—in any form—can only bring heartbreak in its wake.

But while a lady should know better, the heart heeds no rules...even if its every beat portends the danger she was running from.

I received A Lady Would Know Better for free. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Jasper Maycott, Earl of Belhaven, is a broken man. A bout of scarlet fever took both his parents, elder brother, and fiancé in one foul swoop. As the spare, Jasper jumps into a role he never imagined he would take on. His three sisters and two brothers grieve with him, but Jasper puts his grief aside and gets on with life. All the Maycott’s lives are tossed into chaos again when they find a bloodied woman in the snow on a frigid winter night.

Once the young woman regains consciousness, they all realize she can’t remember her life before the moment she woke. The Maycott’s agree to call the woman Jane and agree to help her recover in any way they can. Under the roof of Mulgrave Hall, Jane goes through several tests to see how much she knows in what a lady would be educated in. Some things she is useless at, yet other more unique talents are discovered. Things about her slowly come back as she and Jasper become much closer than they should. They discover their love of literature is something they have in common besides their instinctual physical attraction. While Jasper fights it with every bit of his being, he can’t help himself. Love finds him and takes a hold of him, body and soul.

This is only the second book published by Emma Theriault and it has made me a fan for life. I love her third person writing style which you don’t see much in romance novels these days. Yet, this type of writing style still gets you deep into each character’s mind and heart. The authenticity of Jane’s struggle to remember her past while contemplating what a future with Jasper could be was incredibly imaginative. I really felt the progression of Jane’s memories coming back in small stages was a brilliant strategy. Jasper’s journey in this story was an epic arc. Jasper, as well as Jane, learned holding too tight to the past could bring more heartache in the future.

While I don’t know at this time if this is a series, there are plenty of Maycotts who also need to find love. The character I would like to see most would be Jasper’s widowed sister, Helena. I know I won’t be the only one who will want to enjoy more stories in this world Theriault has created.