VERITY'S LIE by Grace Elliot is a fantastic cautionary tale for parents who think protecting their children means keeping them ignorant of the dangers of life and sheltered from all harm. I give it four stars.
In VERITY'S LIE, Miss Verity Verrinder becomes a protectee of Her Majesty's government when her father travels to Austria and Prussia on diplomatic assignment. Charles Huntley, Lord Ryevale, is the chosen protector, which some of his acquaintances describe as letting the wolf guard the lamb. Ryevale does his best to guard Verity without her knowledge, but inadvertently puts himself in a position where he falls in love with her. Ryevale's conscience pricks him, and he tries to be honest with Verity about his assignment and how he feels about her.
Ryevale's plan backfires because he left out the main piece of the story--that he is a spy for the government--and Verity decides to give Ryevale a taste of his own medicine by lying to him about her feelings and plans. Unfortunately for her, the French use the opportunity that Verity's lie creates to abduct her. His rescue leads Ryevale to propose to Verity, but she absolutely does not trust him. Drama ensues.
Overall, I enjoyed VERITY'S LIE. Even though Verity succumbs to the stereotypical romance novel drama and refuses to marry Ryevale, her refusal is supported by Ryevale's botched attempts to be honest with her. So her refusal of Ryevale goes beyond her not wanting to marry someone out of social obligation; she actually has a reason not to trust him.
The development of Verity and Ryevale's relationship was well done, illustrating the various opportunities for conversation and getting to know each other. So the romance was supported by substance, not just physical attraction. There was quite a bit of physical attraction, though, and graphic descriptions of their physical relationship, making this novel suitable for adults only.
On the technical side, the plot unfolded at a comfortable pace and provided just enough mystery to keep the reader guessing at whether there was actually a threat to Verity. Aside from some blatant editing issues, there was also some great word play. One of my favorite phrases is the description of the quiet of the workhouse as "the blanketing silence of despair." Another describes the worn workhouse floor as "a testament to the teaming throng of misery that had shuffled along th[e] passage."
I would definitely recommend this novel to any reader who loves Regency romance or spy novels.
*Review originally written for The Romance Reviews.com at http://www.theromancereviews.com/viewbooks.php?bookid=10970.
