Sophia Elliot is madly in love with Anthony Blake, the Earl of Wilshire. The story opens in England but quickly moves to India after Anthony has secretly left England. The only thing Anthony leaves is a letter with a silly explanation of Sophia being a good friend and that he felt the need to move on with his life in Paris or other places unknown. The truth is that he loves Sophia with all his heart but must leave to help his employer with recovering some very important government documents that were stolen from his office. Because this job is one involving espionage, he felt that the real reason should be hidden from those he loved. Sophia is so distraught that she books passage on a ship to India. Once there, she not only has a new group of acquaintances but also runs into Anthony, still in pursuit of his quest. Add murder, intrigue and romance to this well-written historical novel and you will find hours of delightful reading to the very end. I highly recommend this book to all.

The Secret of the India Orchid by Nancy Campbell Allen will be available August 1, 2017 by Shadow Mountain Publishing. An egalley was made available by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for a honest opinion.