The Lady and the Highwayman ~ Review

The Lady and the Highwayman

The Dread Penny Society #1

By Sarah M. Eden

Read by Justine Eyre

The Dread Penny Society has a problem - a new author has overtaken Fletcher Walker in sales. Without his profits, Fletcher and the Society are concerned that their philanthropic endeavors may be hurt. Endeavors to aid the less fortunate and especially the young children at the mercy of those who would use them for nefarious purposes.

Who is Mr. King? This is the question that Fletcher needs to be answered. If Mr. King would aid them in their endeavors all the better. But if he will hinder them and his sales eat into the profits of the other Dreadfuls then they will need to work to topple him from his sales throne. They just need to identify Mr. King, whom no one seems to know. 

When an encounter with Miss Elizabeth Black presents itself, Fletcher appeals to her to help him identify Mr. King. Though Elizabeth is a writer of "silver-fork" novels, something of Mr. King's style leads Fletcher to assume he may be an author of the upper-class writing under a pseudonym to protect his identity. Little did Fletcher realize just how close to the truth he truly was. 

More than a little amused at Fletcher's request, Elizabeth agrees to aid him in his search for the elusive Mr. King. Not to mention she was more than a little intrigued by Mr. Fletcher Walker himself. With a reputation to uphold and a school to run Elizabeth really shouldn't associate with Mr. Walker, but she does enjoy a stimulating conversation and Fletcher Walker provides that.

The Lady and the Highwayman is a delightful read - there are 3 stories within this book as the stories that both Fletcher and "Mr. King" are working on are presented too. It is a wonderful blending that presents itself well and keeps the reader's attention from beginning to end. I especially enjoyed Elizabeth's subterfuge in hiding Mr. King's identity and Fletcher's dogged determination to find him. But as they work towards a common goal they soon realize that they are well on their way to friendship and perhaps something more. But can the social gap between the two be overcome? Only time will tell...

I enjoyed the audio version of this book and it was well-presented. The pacing worked well for me and I really enjoyed the three different stories alternated between. Elizabeth and Fletcher's story style was definitely different but it worked well in bringing the story as a whole together. If you want clean-reading with a Victorian flair you have to give this book a try. 

About the Book:

Elizabeth Black is the headmistress of a girls’ school and a well-respected author of “silver-fork” novels, stories written both for and about the upper-class ladies of Victorian society. But by night, she writes very different kinds of stories—the Penny Dreadfuls that are all the rage among the working-class men. Under the pseudonym Mr. King, Elizabeth has written about dashing heroes fighting supernatural threats and dangerous outlaws romancing helpless women. They contain all the adventure and mystery that her real-life lacks.
 
Fletcher Walker began life as a street urchin, but is now the most successful author in the Penny Dreadful market, that is until Mr. King started taking all of his readers--and his profits. No one knows who King is, including Fletcher’s fellow members of the Dread Penny Society, a fraternity of authors dedicated to secretly fighting for the rights of the less-fortunate.
 
Determined to find the elusive Mr. King, Fletcher approaches Miss Black. As a fellow-author, she is well-known among the high-class writers; perhaps she could be persuaded to make some inquiries as to Mr. King’s whereabouts? Elizabeth agrees to help Fletcher, if only to insure her secret identity is never discovered. 
 
For the first time, Elizabeth experiences the thrill of a cat-and-mouse adventure reminiscent of one of her own novels as she tries to throw Fletcher off her scent. But the more time they spend together, the more she loses her heart. Its upper-class against working-class, author against author where readers, reputations, and romance are all on the line.