Review: Playing the Part

Playing the Part by Jen Turano

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Lucetta Plum is an actress on the rise in New York City, but is forced to abandon her starring role when a fan's interest turns threatening. Lucinda's widowed friend, Abigail Hart, is delighted at the opportunity to meddle in Lucetta's life and promptly whisks her away to her grandson's estate to hide out.

Bram Haverstein may appear to simply be a somewhat eccentric gentleman of means, but a mysterious career and a secret fascination with a certain actress mean there's much more to him than society knows.

Lucetta, who has no interest in Abigail's matchmaking machinations, has the best intentions of remaining cordial but coolly distant to Bram. But when she can't ignore the strange and mysterious things going on in his house, it'll take more than good intentions to keep her from trying to discover who Bram is behind the part he plays.

Jen Turano is one of my favorite authors and she does not disappoint in this book.   This is book 3 in the series A Class of Their Own, but it can be read as a stand-alone.  However, if you read the first two you'll get a more in depth idea of who Lucetta is.

I loved the setting of this book.  A "haunted", foreboding, Gothic looking castle with a real life moat.  What could be a better setting for an actress who needs to hide away for her safety and a mysterious, somewhat eccentric gentleman of means and his motley staff who are reformed thieves and down-and-outers?  LOL  What ensues is mysteriously fun and laugh out loud situations that will keep you glued to the pages.

I enjoyed the developing relationship between Bram and Lucetta.  Bram has preconceived ideas about Lucetta and is delightfully shocked when she proves him wrong from the time she steps foot on his property.  Lucetta is drawn to Bram right away but is reluctant to give up the control she believes she has to maintain over her emotions and life as a result of her occupation and her many admirers.

If you've read the first two books, you'll also enjoy the appearances of Abigail Hart & Archibald Addleshaw as well as mentions of Lucetta's dear friends, Harriet & Millie.

All in all, this book will keep you enthralled as you unravel the mystery, wait for the danger to pass, and enjoy the sweet romances.

*Thanks to Bethany House & NetGalley for a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes. I was not required to write a positive review and all opinions stated are my own.*

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Jen Turano is a graduate of the University of Akron with a degree in Clothing and Textiles. She pursued a career in management for nine years before switching to full-time motherhood after the birth of her son. When she's not writing, Jen can be found watching her teenage son participate in various activities, taking long walks with her husband and dog, socializing with friends, or delving into a good book. She lives in suburban Denver, Colorado. Learn more at www.jenturano.com.