Giselle Barrington, living in London in 1812, has just witnessed her father's murder. Forced to go into hiding to uncover the killer, she disguises herself as a chef in Lord Aldridge's, a man who also wants to solve the murder, house. As the two individually work to figure the mystery out, sparks fly between them, and they will have to realize that only working together will get them the answers they want.

BANQUET OF LIES by Michelle Diener is full of delicious plot twists and heated romance. Much like Diener's other works, this story has intrigue all throughout, and you never know until the very end how things will turn out. Giselle is such a fun main character, a heroine with spunk, attitude, and a desperation to bring justice to her father's death. I love the chemistry between her and Jonathan, Lord Aldridge. They complement each other extremely well, and I really like where the characters end up by the conclusion of the story.

The secondary characters are remarkable in BANQUET OF LIES. From Iris to Georges, they each have different and distinct personalities that range from comical to precious. I do wish things with Edgars tied up a little better, but his character is wonderfully complex. It also would have been nice to have gotten a better background on Giselle's father's killer, but it definitely keeps the mystery alive not knowing much about him.

If you enjoy great historical mysteries with fabulous doses of romance and clever dialogue, Michelle Diener's BANQUET OF LIES is an awesome pick. It reads quickly thanks to the suspense making you flip the pages faster and faster, and it's an incredible story line overall.

Book Summary

A young noblewoman flees to London and poses as a servant to evade a murderer in this richly detailed and “compelling” (Publishers Weekly) historical novel.

Frightened for her life after her father, a British spy, is murdered, Giselle Barrington flees with the secret document her father gave her for safekeeping. Needing to hide from those now chasing her, and knowing that no one would look for a wealthy young society lady in a kitchen, she takes a job as a cook for a nobleman, determined to use her anonymity to uncover the murderer. Life below stairs gives her a new perspective on the hard realities of servants’ lives, even though she’s a highly paid one. And when her employer is drawn not only into her investigations, but also to her, they find themselves faced with the power imbalance between servant and master.