Deception

'A winner. The narrative is crisp, the characterisation revealing, the ending quite modern in its ambiguity.' The Lady Two very different, but physically identical, young ladies meet at a boarding school once attended by Jane Austen. Joan Aiken's engrossing regency novel is perfect for fans of the major Netflix romantic drama series, Bridgerton. Self-righteous Louisa wants to escape her grand family life in Northumberland and become a missionary in India. Imaginative and quiet Alvey has no family and only longs for peaceful independence to complete her novel. So when Louisa suggests swapping identities it seems like the perfect plan: Alvey will have a peaceful country manor in which to write her book and Louisa will be free to voyage across the globe. But when Alvey becomes a beloved and indispensible member of her extraordinary new family, how will they view the return of the horrible Louisa? Joan Aiken weaves a complicated plot of deception and identity, peopled with strong female characters, in this unique historical romance. Two contrasting young ladies are willing to lose their identities for the sake of independence in this remarkable historical romance.