Roseanna M White is one of my go-to authors when it comes to historical fiction and I readily devour everything she releases. Since the beginning of The Imposters series, I've been not-so-patiently awaiting Yates's story and it did not disappoint! When a seemingly simple "missing persons" case becomes something much more sinister, The Imposters recruit some additional help to get a positive resolution. Bringing in some of my favorite characters from prior book series as well, this one had ALL of the things going for it. Here's a bit about the book:
As the leader of elite private investigative firm the Imposters, Lord Yates Fairfax has made an art of concealing his identity. But when his newest client, the beautiful Lady Alethia Barremore, is shot while leaving their meeting, he throws caution to the wind and rushes to her aid. Though Lady Alethia thought she was only looking for her missing former nanny, she has clearly stumbled upon dangerous secrets.
Lady Lavinia Hemming suspects there's more to her oldest friends than they're willing to admit, and when she stumbles upon the truth that they're the Imposters, she recruits herself into the firm. Happy as she is for the distraction of an investigation, Lavinia's own family secrets continue to haunt her. And the one thing to bring laughter back into her life--her friendship with Yates--lands her squarely on the bad side of her best friend, his sister.
Tormented by a past that she doesn't dare to voice aloud, Lady Alethia does what she can to help her handsome host, her new friends, and the investigators. But as clues lead them deeper into the darkest of society's secrets, Alethia, Yates, and Lavinia soon learn anew that the gentry isn't always noble . . . and truth isn't always honorable.
As part of the author's launch team, I had the opportunity to ask some additional questions. Here's how that went:
1. What was the inspiration for this story?
Several years ago, a reader friend sent me a link to an
article about the Ayah Home in London, and how it had sprung into being out of
a huge need to minister to and provide for the many Indian nannies (ayahs) who
were hired to care for children during the trip from India to London, only to
be dismissed once they reached England, which left them abandoned and without a
way to return home. The crisis was real, and I was intrigued enough to dig
deeper and learn more about what happened to these many women. By the time my
story is set, the Ayah Home and other charities like it had become the place
where the ayahs knew to go, and where families traveling to India also
knew to go to seek out their services. I was fascinated to learn, however, that
a few of these women ended up in unusual places throughout England…and it made
the questions start churning in my mind. I knew I wanted to work an ayah into
one of the Imposters stories, and that her charge, now grown up, would be the
client—trying to find her missing friend.
2. This one felt a bit heavier than most of your other
stories (though you have never shied away from difficult subjects). Though you
touched on it in your author's note in the back, can you explain why you
tackled such a difficult subject matter in this one?
I honestly didn’t know the story was going to veer so firmly
into this subject matter at the start. I knew part of it, as it concerns my
missing ayah, Samira…but the rest was a surprise to me. When I started writing
Alethia’s first point-of-view scene, out came all these hints of secrets, dark
and painful. I was honestly afraid that this story she insisted on telling
would be too dark…yet it was the story that needed to be told, and my
editors agreed with me on that. I prayed as I wrote it that it would be exactly
what my characters determine to be—a light in the darkness. Because closing our
eyes to sin can never fix it—only shining the Lord’s light on it can do that.
3. This book had a bit of a love triangle going on. Was
there a lady you were particularly rooting for, for Yates?
LOL. I blame this love triangle 100% on my editor, Jen. ;-)
In her notes on book 1, A Beautiful Disguise, she devoted a paragraph to
her thoughts on Marigold’s best friend, Lady Lavinia, who played a minor-ish
role in that one. “I can’t wait to see Lavinia again when she takes center
stage in book three!” she said, and went on to say why.
Cue my mouth hanging open. I had not intended for Lavinia to
really even be in book three. I had fully intended Alethia, searching
for her missing ayah, to be the heroine. But as soon as I read my editor’s
questions about how Lavinia would handle the upheaval she was thrown into at
the conclusion of book 1, I knew I had to answer those questions.
But I wanted it to be a complete question as to who Yates
would choose. So I had to make both young ladies lovable and deep and worthy of
the heart that is Yates’s best feature. And I had SO much fun writing their
story! I did know going in what his decision would be…but I’m not telling what
it is! If asked, I will reply, every time, “He ends up with Penelope the
monkey, of course.”
4. Yates has easily been my favorite character throughout
this series. Who was your favorite character to write and why?
I don’t pick favorites, per se, but Yates has definitely been one of the most
fun characters to write throughout this series! He’s so fun…and witty…and good…and
kindhearted. And the fact that he’s had a POV in the other two books meant that
I already knew him so well going into this one that he continued to be an
absolute delight.
5. Did anything surprise you in the story as you were
writing? Or did anything happen during the writing to change the trajectory of
the story?
I already mentioned the big surprise of Alethia’s secrets,
which she started whispering to me from page one of her first scene. But
another big surprise came later. I needed a young girl character for Yates to
help, preferably of Indian descent…and when I did the math, I realized I
already had a character who would fit the bill…Lucy, from the Shadows
Over England series. In those book, set in 1914-1915, Lucie is an older
teen…but in this book, set in 1911, she would have been only twelve. PERFECT! I
literally laughed maniacally when I realized that Lucy could introduce the
Imposters to Barclay and the rest of the clan from the Shadows series…and that
Mr. V—the mastermind of that first series—could even make an appearance. I was
giddy beyond belief.
6. It made me so happy to see Barclay and some others from
his "family" included in this story and see a bit of their origin
story and was wondering what prompted you to add them to this series? (btw, I
want MORE!!)
It’s been in the back of my mind from the start of this
series that the Imposters and the “crew” would likely have crossed paths at
some point, but I hadn’t had a clear way to bring them together until now. But
when Lucy popped onto the page, all the pieces snapped into place, and I loved
that Yates could then be part of the family’s origin story. I absolutely adore
how the worlds meshed together!
7. What are you hoping readers will glean from this story?
My hope is that readers will feel to their souls what my
ladies learn—that we are not defined by what has happened to us, either good or
bad. That we are all chosen by God. We are all worthy of love. We are all
beautiful is His sight and the beloved of our Father. I think all too often we
define ourselves by our families, our circumstances, our situations, our
jobs…but ultimately, all of that will fall away. In the end, when we stand
before Him, only one thing remains: whether or not we have embraced our
identity as His children.
8. Is there any other fun "behind the scenes"
trivia you'd be willing to share with my readers?
I got to research lots of fun facts about theater in that
day and age, specifically in terms of what technology they used for special
effects at the time. They made ample use of things like trap doors,
smoke-and-steam machines to make fog, spotlights, etc…all of which come into
play in my climax, which is truly a Grand Finale to the series.
I also enjoyed learning more about the Romani (who are the
retired circus performers living on the estate in this series) and using their
heritage—they originally came from India—to be something familiar to Alethia
when she needed it most, having grown up on the subcontinent.
9. What are you working on next and when can we expect it?
Next summer will be full of releases! I’ll have a beach read
called The Island Bookshop releasing from Guideposts in May—the majority
is contemporary, but it does have a historical thread as well.
Then comes my first romantasy (fantasy romance) from
WhiteCrown, Awakened, about a powerful sea king who can control water, a
mer kingdom broiling in civil war, and a new gift from heaven promised to save
the day.
Then comes my next historical in July—The Collector of
Burned Books, from Tyndale House. This will be my first book set entirely
in World War II, set in Paris. All about the power of words and how books and
freedom are so closely linked. With, of course, a bookish heroine determined to
feed information to the Allies, a German professor with secrets that could get
him killed, and a library full of all the books that Nazi Germany had burned
and banned.
This book releases November 19,2024 wherever books are sold. You will want to be sure to check it out!
Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary. You can learn more about her and her stories at www.RoseannaMWhite.com.
For additional information, check out the following links:
Roseanna M. White's website: https://www.roseannamwhite.com/
Roseanna M. White's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/RoseannaMWhite
My full 5-star review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6343610387
Purchase link for signed book: https://www.roseannamwhite.com/product/an-honorable-deception-the-imposters-book-3
