How To Fall for a Scoundrel

The second in Bateman’s Regency spy series, following Second Duke’s The Charm, focuses on another member of the King & Co. investigative agency, Eleanor Law, the quiet wallflower of the all-women trio who clandestinely run the agency and pretend that the fictional Charles King is their boss. When a charming criminal currently using the name Henri Bonheur claims he is King, he forces the women to parlay—he will lend his skills to their cases if they help him. Ellie is swept away by his charisma, even as she keeps a firm eye on his ethics, and her partners, Tess and Daisy, are delighted that Ellie is challenged—and, clearly, tumbling head over heels. From one case, involving a plot to aid Napoleon, to another, retrieving a missing jewel, Ellie and Henri skillfully investigate and learn each other’s characters and desires, which helps them navigate the last case of the novel—the one involving Henri.