A review by cakt1991
How I Met My Countess by Elizabeth Boyle

3.5

 One of my goals as I rediscovered my love for historical romance was to pick up certain books and authors I’d loved before, and see if I still enjoyed them. Elizabeth Boyle was near the top of the list, as I’d stopped her Bachelor Chronicles on what is arguably a fan-favorite, although there were more books in the series. How I Met My Countess is a bit of step down from what I remember about the prior book, but I respect it for making some bold choices, even if I had somewhat mixed feelings about the execution. 

Lucy is a delightful heroine, and the daughter of a formidable spymaster at that. I felt for her as she fell for Justin, in spite of knowing what being a spy involved, and admired her courage in carrying on in his absence. Justin was also a solid hero.He didn’t make a massive impression, in either past or present, but I was invested in his spy activities.  

It’s also fun to see her with the other ladies in the “present.” It’s such a chaotic family situation, what with various members of the family who held the courtesy title of Marquess of Standen having died after marrying, leaving three widowed marchionesses, especially when Felicity Langley, Duchess of Holindrake (from Love Letters from a Duke) gets tired of their shenanigans. 

The structure of this book was really interesting, with a part of the book being an extended flashback, following the initial romance between Lucy and Justin, before picking up again in the present. The “past” romance was much more interesting, with Justin and his brother being trained by Lucy’s father, and that serving as a backdrop for their initial spark of romance. They get off on the wrong foot initially, but their feelings grow, and I love how Lucy was so torn about losing Justin, but helped him to become the best spy possible nonetheless. 

The “present” timeline was much more lackluster in the romance department, with them having much less page time, not to mention the flashback had already taken up so much of the book. I respect the choices made here, even if they didn’t work quite as well as they did in the prior book. 

While not the best of the series, there’s still a lot I enjoyed here, especially returning to the series after enjoying the first several books. While I wouldn’t recommend this as your first entry into the series or Elizabeth Boyle’s oeuvre overall, I would recommend it in the context of the larger narrative of the Bachelor Chronicles.