While I was eager to embrace this book, it ultimately fell short for various reasons. The concept intrigued me, especially the portrayal of Jack as a trans character in a historical period when such identities were not acknowledged. However, the execution left me wanting. Jack's character lacked the depth or resonance that I anticipated, and the writing style and overall narrative failed to captivate my interest. Despite the promising premise, the book didn't strike the right chords for me, leaving me yearning for a more engaging exploration of its compelling themes.

A historical romance with a non-binary MC? Yes please! I loved this book - Agnes and Jack are so different from the MCs you'd normally find in the historical romances, and they were done so well. It's rare to find LGBTQIA+ representation in historical romances, and I thought Cay did an excellent job of bringing both setting and characters to life in a way that transports the reader into the story. Agnes and Jack were clearly meant to be together - despite the trying circumstances they find themselves in. I won't give any spoilers, but this will tug at your heartstrings, and you'll find it hard to put down once you start. I'll definitely be checking out other books by Cay!

I wanted to love this one - but for a lot of reasons it just didn't hit the right chords for me. I loved the concept of it - but Jack just didn't hit the right spot characterwise. I loved the fact that he was trans in a time that trans was definitely NOT a thing - but the writing style and story just wasn't enough to keep me interested.

I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the ebook. An interesting novel. Love the cover.

Thank you Netgalley and BooksGoSocial for this arc.


I was looking forward to this book after reading “The Boxer and the Blacksmith.” In its own way, it was as challenging to read in terms of CW – actually I think this one was worse. But unfortunately, I didn’t care for this one as much. Perhaps this is because so much more of this book was tied to the past events and characters of the first book “A Lady’s Revenge.” This one can be read on its own, but barely.

Lady Agnes Somerset had planned to spend her life with her friend Miss Mary Franklin until Mary announces her engagement then drives the knife in a bit deeper by telling Agnes that Agnes lives a “small life.” To some extent that is true. Agnes’s older sister Lydia experienced a horrific trauma while only a child which has added a sharper edge to Lydia’s naturally caustic temperament. While the family was focusing on Lydia’s needs, Agnes grew up to be the quiet, dependable daughter.

Stunned at the change in her future, Agnes barely notices the errand boy who follows her from the Franklin home back to her own. But Jack About Town, the man who will – for a price – find things (as he did in “The Boxer and the Blacksmith”) has noticed Agnes for a long time. After a confusing amount of bizarre behaviors from many characters, Jack begins to dream that Agnes might be the rara avis he’s never thought to find – someone who will see and accept him for who he is.

But in order to earn enough money to help set himself up and also to protect the found family he has at the molly-house where Jack lives and works, he’s got to find something for a slimy man that might be in the possession of a relative of Agnes’s. The attempt to get the item and the fall out from what it is, could either make or break the future for Agnes and Jack.

The beginning of this book was quite confusing to me. And a few things annoyed me, too. In the sections from Jack’s POV, his thoughts are often presented as ‘Fact: She recognized him.’ Fact: Fact: Fact: this means of conveying Jack’s thoughts and feelings got old after the third time. Too bad it didn’t stop at that point.

Lady Agnes doesn’t fit in with Society and the Ton very well but as the daughter of an Earl, as her mother reminds her, they are of a certain social class and different from working/merchant classes. I can see Agnes joining with middle class women to do Good Works (their sewing and mending for a charity house) or taking on “Miss Townsend” as a project to get the “girl” a better marriage but socializing with them? Going to a Cit ball? Letting a merchant’s daughter claim friendship? I’m surprised that Agnes’s mother didn’t call a halt to this even if Agnes got bamboozled and swept along. Their family might have gone through some scandals but they’re still aristocracy.

A lot of what motivates as well as hinders Agnes, familiarly and socially, goes back to what happened to her sister which is the focus of the first book in the series which I haven’t read. Lydia was caustic to endure in book two with a hair-trigger temper and tendency to snort her disdain for what others might be saying or doing. Now she seems to be suffering from postpartum depression as well as some physical consequences of childbirth. Nod to Agnes for being determined to discover what is wrong with her usually fiery sister, even if Lydia does go off in a rage at the drop of a hat, and work to fix it.

There are a lot of consequences that still haunt the family because of what was done to Lydia. Lydia understandably still rages fifteen years on, their mother lives with the knowledge of what was done to her daughter, but Agnes has lived small to make up for Lydia needing so much attention and care from the rest of the family. I hated some of the things that are said to and about Agnes and often by her family. They’re the unthinking slights of familiarity and bully for Jack in calling some of these out and letting Agnes know he sees and loves her.

Jack is nonbinary but for the most part, his pronouns are male and he usually dresses in public as a man. I thought Agnes was a lesbian as it’s shown early on that she is sexually attracted to a female friend and states she has no interest in men at all. But then she starts showing interest in Jack in his male persona. Later Jack’s mother (who knows her child) confronts Jack with the fact that though Jack says he feels like both a man and a woman, or neither a man nor a woman, he has presented himself to Agnes’s family and society as a man and proposes to live as Agnes’s husband – thus not being true to how he’s said he wants to live.

This does spur Jack, along with Agnes and her family, to devise a way around this which … actually works for me. I can also see it working in reality given how imbalanced the male:female ratio was after 20+ years of Napoleonic wars.

For 2/3 of the book, it feels awkward. The scenes feel awkward to me, the things I mentioned above felt off to me and I struggled. I guess part of this is to show how uncomfortable queer people feel in a world that doesn’t know/acknowledge them as who they are. But the rest, the “class difference” things, remained off. After Agnes and Jack settle into their HEA that they’ve crafted, I have no problem believing that they will be happy and unbothered by society but yeah, quite a few of the scenes throughout the book were “off.”. I enjoyed reading another book showing a different view of Regency life than the standard Almacks but I didn’t like this one as much as the first book I read. C+

A book that shouldn’t be on my shelf, but I still tried to do justice to it. Sorry to say, I failed horribly, it was my type.

I yrie twice but couldn't get interested enough in tthe story dedpite itcraising a number of valid sociological points about that era and female roles.
Female boxers were indeed a thing then but the rigid class boundaries and expectations meant they were a very suspect part of society.
The style of storytelling was not engaging and lacked some humour. It took itself too seriously i thought for the points it was making.

I'm never disappointed by Edie Cay and A Lady's Finder is definitely my favorite of this series! I love the non-binary rep and the characters are wonderful. I was invested in Agnes and Jack's story and I felt their struggles throughout this book. I will continue to read Edie Cay and highly recommend this book.

Thanks NetGalley for a copy of this book!

It's always nice to get books with lots of queer rep. Nonbinary Jack was a great character, and I really enjoyed watching him find his place in Agnes' life. Agnes took a while to grow on me, because at the beginning she really didn't seem to have any kind of passions or joys in life. As she grew into herself, I did come to like her. This book was heavier/angstier than I personally prefer, with lots of homophobia/transphobia from side characters, including many of those close to the MCs. It felt a bit depressing at times, and I was furious at a lot of the side characters, including the heroine from the previous book. Maybe if I knew her better from her book that wouldn't happen. Overall, though, it was a good book with an excellent ending, and recommended reading if you can go into it knowing there are some uncomfortable moments for the MCs.

I have only had the opportunity to read one of the other books in the series, and I loved it, so I thought to give this a try. This is the third book in the series, When the Blood is Up, and it definitely did not disappoint! Lady Agnes is the dutiful daughter, however, thanks to her sister's marriage, she is tainted by scandal. Her family is confident that if she marries well, she could save their social standing. But she has no interest in marrying. She has always been shy and quiet and tends to fade into the background, but all she really wants is to be accepted and valued as she is. When Jack starts paying attention to her, she begins to hope that he truly sees her for who she really is. Jack is not without his own quirks and when Agnes accepts him for his whole self, that simply blows him away. This is definitely not your traditional regency, but it was certainly a well-written tale that I found both enjoyable and entertaining. The characters were well-developed and I enjoyed getting to know them. I would definitely like to read more from this author in the future.
I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

I received a free copy of the ebook from NetGalley and this is my freely given opinion.

I am definitely a fan of Edie Cay through her previous two books in this series, and the different perspectives of Regency England and romantic relationships. So if you are looking for a traditional romance - this may not be for you. But I would still say give it a try because you may still love the story that shines through regardless!

I have to admit, it started a wee bit slow for me and I was thinking I would not enjoy it half as much as I would the previous two books... but after the first few chapters, I was drawn in.

Lady Agnes, the younger sister of Lydia, from A Lady's Revenge, seems to be the opposite of her sister. She is dutiful, quiet, and kind of fades into the background, overshadowed by her sister's more forceful personality. But in this story, we learn so much more about Agnes and she wants to be truly seen, loved, respected, valued, and accepted as she is. Is that not something we can all relate too - see me... love me... value me - warts and all. However, she is does not conform to what is expected by Society at the time, in that she is attracted to women, and chafes against some of the other expectations - such as dancing and dainty footwear. Initially, she thought she was in love with another female friend, and that they could plan a quiet life together in the country, but has her heart broken when this same friend decides to enter into a traditional marriage because she wants children.

We met Jack About Town earlier in the series. His gain to fame is his ability to find things and help those in need. He also has quite the crush on Lady Agnes, including her little quirks and differences - he sees them and he empathizes with them too. Jack also doesn't conform, and doesn't identify with traditional gender roles, and this has caused him to leave his family and live a very different lifestyle than members of his family tried to force him into before. He is also looking for someone to see and accept him truly as he is, and he thinks Agnes may be that person. But they have so many obstacles... social status, social expectations, his family, her family.

The build up of their relationship is sweet as Jack tries to show Agnes that he sees, understands and loves her differences, and tries to show her what his true self is, and see if she accepts and loves him. He tries the route of traditional courtship, including trying to reconcile with his family to gain acceptance with hers. It was rather heart wrenching some of the barriers they faced, and learning more about Jack's history and what caused him to leave home.

I loved this story and the creative path to the HEA. It was a bit of a rough ride for the two main characters, but I loved how the relationships were written. The sisterly conflict between Lydia and Agnes, but with the underlying love and support was lovely. It was a great contrast also between Jack and his brother. I liked that it was a romance, but not quite traditional, and with a gritty realism, including the continuation of the story of Corinthian John and Lydia, and the story of her trauma as well.

Keep at it Edie - I love your perspective and depth, and wonderfully diverse characters. The writing was at times quite poignant and touching; some lovely phrasing. I sincerely hope to hear more about James, Lord Andrepont, his history, and story as well.

4.5 stars out of 5.

Lady Agnes is a scandal thanks to her sister’s marriage to a prizefighter. Or rather, she should be, but as a charitable spinster-to-be, she remains firmly invisible, even to those she loves.
Always dutiful, Lady Agnes should be the toast of her family, but only if she marries well. Finding the prospect of wedding a man unpalatable, Lady Agnes cannot be the social savior of her sister.
Suddenly, receiving attentions from the unpredictable and surprisingly resourceful Mr. Jack Townsend, Lady Agnes finds herself believing he might love her and not her dowry. After being overlooked for so long, can she believe he cares for her, or is she a means to an end as her family insists?
Jack About Town is London’s best Finder of Lost Things. What few realize is that Jack transcends the spheres of men and women, existing as both, or perhaps neither, sex. True, his most lucrative finds are pornographic artifacts for rich toffs. But now he has found Lady Agnes, a meticulous, generous, knock-down incredible lady who wears men’s boots. Best of all, Lady Agnes accepts him in his entirety—a jewel so rare that even Jack is surprised he could find it.
When Jack is commissioned to steal from Lady Agnes’s cousin, can Jack find a way to prove his love and still earn the money he needs to protect himself and his home?
This book is funny and poignant. It seems like a huge problem in that there is nothing more that they can overcome.
Jack is actually a woman and Agnes is in love with her.
Edie Cay has written a good book.
I received this book from the publisher and NetGalley. This in no way affects my opinion of this book which I read and reviewed voluntarily.

An new author I put on my TBR list. Maybe I should have read the first two books first, but there is enough information in this book to understand the many relationships to Agnes and Jack.
Lady Agnes just had her heart broken by a young lady she thought would be her life companion. Jack Townsend has loved Agnes from afar. Known as The Finder and an honest person, he seizes his chance to woo Agnes after her heartbreak. But will she accept the person she will come to know or will it be total rejection? A very unusual book set in the Regency period, with a non-cookie cutter ending.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book.