The Trouble with Virtue: A Comfortable Wife/A Lady By Day

by Stephanie Laurens, Alison DeLaine

#1 New York Times bestselling author Stephanie Laurens and rising star Alison DeLaine bring you two tales of passionate temptation…and decorum overthrown.

A Comfortable Wife

Miss Antonia Mannering has made plans that include her long-ago friend Lord Philip Ruthven. She knows Philip is popular with the ladies, but he has never married. Might he now be ready for a wife? If she could only prove that she could run his home, not disgrace him in Society and be a comfortable wife, surely he would propose to her. But when love enters the equation, Antonia might be getting more than she bargained for….

A Lady by Day

Recovering from scandal, Josephine, Countess of Mareck, has secured a second chance at respectability. And she certainly will not risk it for Sir Noah Rutledge, who's returned to London from the Mediterranean to secure a new business venture. But when Noah confronts Josephine and puts her secrets at risk, he stirs a most unexpected desire. With the ton watching closely, she must be careful not to fall for an unsuitable man. Unless love proves stronger than Society….

Genres: Romance, Historical Romance, Historical, Regency, Historical Fiction, Anthologies, Ebooks

496 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published November 26, 2013

About the author

Stephanie Laurens was born in Sri Lanka, which was at the time the British colony of Ceylon. When she was 5, her family moved to Melbourne, Australia, where she was raised. After continuing through school and earning a Ph.D. in Biochemistry in Australia, Stephanie and her husband moved to Great Britain, taking one of the last true overland journeys from Katmandu to London.

Once in London, Stephanie and her husband both began work as research scientists in Kent. They lived in an area surrounded by history. Their own cottage was built in the 16th century, while next door were the protected ruins of an early Roman villa, and nearby was a 14th century castle.

After four years in England, Stephanie and her husband returned to Australia, where she continued to work in cancer research, eventually heading her own research laboratory. One evening Stephanie realized that she did not have any more of her favorite romance novels to read. After years of thinking about writing her own novel, during nights and weekends for the next several months, she began crafting her own story. That manuscript, Tangled Reins, was the first of her books to be published. After achieving a level of success with her novels, Stephanie "retired" from scientific research and became a full-time novelist. Her novels are primarily historical romances set in the Regency time period.

Stephanie and her husband live on peaceful acreage on the outskirts of Melbourne. If she isn't writing, she's reading, and if she's not reading, she's tending her garden.

Reviews

[eyes.2c · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic Laurens and Delightful DeLaine!

I have to say that these two stories make for a rewarding read.
A Comfortable Wife is an enjoyable addition to my readings by Laurens. I adore her works and have read them all. Each new offering is like a national treasure.
A Lady by Day won me over completely. An unusual storyline, great lead characters, guilty secrets, restrained emotion hiding volatile feelings. Not quite a regency pirate novel, although it does fit alongside that milieu, harkening as it does to places of stunning sunsets, balmy winds and hot climates, even though the story takes place in London.
Josephine, Countess of Mareck and Sir Noah Rutledge's story is all one could wish for. So swoon worthy!
I now have to find out more about the author Alison DeLaine and explore her other works, which also seem to reflect a love of Mediterranean climates and tall ships.
Definitely a writer to follow!

[Ilze · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Trouble With Virtue (2-fer) Stephanie Laurens' contribution, a reprint of an early book of hers called "The Comfortable WIfe", was written in the style of a "traditional Regency", but the characters and setting were so boring that I couldn't finish it.  Alison Delaine's contribution, called "A Lady By Day" was practically unreadable, besides being pure wallpaper, as in "wallpaper historical". 

[Madenna U · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is two stories in one. The first shows such promise to start and then hurries into nothing. I skimmed most of the end to get to the second book. It was only slightly better. I would have given it two stars if it stood alone. At least it had some interesting steamy scenes and a rather unique storyline.

[Neeuqdrazil · Rating 3 out of 5]

Silly cheesy romance.

[Αἰκατερίνη · Rating 2 out of 5]

The rating and shelves are a reflection of "A Lady By Day" because the book doesn't exist by itself on goodreads.com and I rated A Comfortable Wife on its page.

[Wordsworth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This title is hard to rate because it contains two very different novellas. I say pick it up and read the second one only (about 31% of the entire book), as it was light years better than the first.

A Comfortable Wife was one of the dullest stories I've read lately, with awkward, repressed, stubborn characters who eventually get together after subjecting the readers to some stultifying balls and parties. 2 stars because at least it was grammatical.

A Lady By Day, on the other hand, takes that repression motif and turns it 180°, using it to power some steamy sexual tension. Here the characters are sympathetic and interesting. 4 stars. This story is rather sexually explicit, in surprising contrast to the first. In fact, there seems to be no reason to publish them together except that perhaps they weren't long enough to be standalone books.

[MasterSal · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a bind up of two novels / novellas which were fine but not great. The first one by Stephanie Laurens was actually a disappointment as it was pretty dull. The relationship was quite bland and the heroine came across as more of a twit than I liked. The relationship between the leads was not convincing and the while I intellectually understood the lack of confidence that the heroine suffered from, the conflict dragged on for much longer than palatable.

The second novella was better and the reason why I gave this book 3 stars in the end. The relationship was much more convincing but the plot was on the short side so not much happened. Read this bind up for the 2nd book but otherwise not recommended.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A COMFORTABLE WIFE was a reread for me, and yet as I read it nothing was familiar. Still, while I thought Laurens drew things out too long and sometimes the characters’ motivations murky, I enjoyed story and the story of Lord Ruthven meeting his match. 4 stars

A LADY BY DAY touched me deeply as DeLaine explored the conflicts of fears, dreams and loves that Josephine, Lady Marek, and Sir Noah Rutledge must navigate to finally surrender to each other. At first I found Sir Noah too brash and careless, but that made it all the more powerful when he realized how he’d behaved and what was truly important to him. I more than once was moved to the edge of tears, and was very sad to see only four titles listed for DeLaine and nothing since 2014. 5 Stars

[BonnieL · Rating 1 out of 5]

Stephanie Laurens story is vaguely part of the Lester family saga - by vaguely I mean that Jack and Harry are mentioned a few times. The rest is boring, not up to the standards of her earlier books and one needs to force oneself to read through the misunderstandings, miscommunication and general silliness. The second title "A Lady by Day" is terrible, unreadable and has no redeeming values.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed both of these period romances. I like that the authors try and make the ladies as strong as possible in times where they were mostly decorum. A Comfortable Wife was light and fun while A Lady by Day was a little heavier with illness and family issues.

[Grace Hill · Rating 2 out of 5]

Stephanie Laurens was her normal self, but I kept getting discombobulated with "A Lady By Day". Regency characters simply don't say "Whatever" or "Fine."

[Coucher de soleil · Rating 3 out of 5]

**The rating is for the second book, by Alison DeLaine (I rated the first book by Stephanie Laurens separately).**

[Mary Shreffler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Phillip and Antonio meet and work through problems to find happiness

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway in exchange for my honest opinion. Since there are actually two stories in this book written by two different authors, I will review each story individually.

A Comfortable Wife: 3 Stars

I really thought that this book started off great. I haven't read any of the books in the series on which this book is based, but it didn't really seem to affect my understanding of the story in any way. So if you're in the same boat as I, just go ahead and jump on into this book. The story centers around Philip, a thirty-four year old who recognizes he should probably get around to his responsibilities, namely, that of getting a wife. How handy that his stepmother's niece, Antonia, is visiting his household. She arrived with the intent of becoming Philip's wife. Philip, at first, seems determined that this will not be the case. Romantic tension builds up nicely. The couple philander about the house and grounds. A plan is hatched for Antonia to go to London and experience her first season. There were so many possibilities for this story, but I feel like the crucial incident, a proposal, came too quickly. Smack in the middle of the story, in fact. After that, it didn't seem to matter what happened, which was nothing much, by the way. Antonia doesn't get into any real escapades while in London. The plot kind of hinges on another girl Antonia meets who is headed toward an arranged (almost) marriage that she wants nothing to do with. Antonia's younger brother hangs around in this story as just a convenient pair of hands. He plays piano and assists with the arranged marriage plot, but really, his presence doesn't add much to the story. And then the crucial (or so I would suppose) scene where Antonia finds Philip in a compromising position involves a woman with a reputation among the ton for having affairs with married men. She may have featured largely in the rest of the series, but I feel like her character existed only in the five pages in which she threw everything off in Philip and Antonia's relationship. It would have been nice to have this character around sparking jealousy from the time the couple arrived in London. I feel like that scene was too hastily done. And like I said, since the proposal happened early on in the story, the rest of the events didn't seem to matter because it seemed kind of obvious how things would end. However, not a bad read. It certainly kept me entertained.

A Lady by Day: 4 Stars

I really, really liked Josephine in this story. She seemed so real. Right away the reader learns that Josephine has had some scandal in her life. She has spent many years overcoming this scandal, her late husband's uncle playing a large role in her recovery. She is so close to her husband's uncle that, owing to his declining health, she helps him in business matters. This is how Josephine came to meet Noah Rutledge. Rutledge is a man of the sea who has sailed in to convince Uncle Elias to jump ship from London and come with him to the Mediterranean. Josephine has no desire for this to happen, so she has hidden all of Sir Noah's correspondence regarding the matter from Uncle Elias. When Josephine and Sir Noah meet, there is antagonism and romantic tension and it is really nicely done. As the story continues to unfold, the reader gets to see just how strong Josephine is. She is certainly a match for Sir Noah, who spends a lot of his time being frustrated that he doesn't get what he wants. This story was a lot of fun to read. I kind of wish it had been longer.

[May Mostly Romance · Rating 1 out of 5]

เล่มนี้รวมหนังสือ 2 เรื่องไว้ด้วยกัน แต่รีวิวที่เขียนเป็นของเรื่อง A Lady by Day ของ Alison DeLaine

เรานึกอยากให้ตัวเองอ่านเล่มนี้เร็วกว่านี้นะคะ เพราะหลังจากอ่านเรื่องนี้จบลงไป เรารู้สึกเสียดายเงินอย่างยิ่งที่ซื้อหนังสือของนักเขียนคนนี้มาตุนไว้ตั้งสามเล่ม แต่คิดในทางที่ดี งานเขียนของเธออาจจะพัฒนาขึ้นมา และถ้าเราไม่ซื้อสามเล่มถัดจากเล่มนี้มาเก็บไว้ เราก็อาจจะไม่ค้นพบเธอก็ได้ แต่ที่แน่ ๆ ก็คือ คงอีกพักใหญ่เลยล่ะค่ะ กว่าเราจะหยิบงานของนักเขียนคนนี้มาอ่านอีกครั้ง

เราเคยบอกไปหลายครั้งนะคะว่า สิ่งที่เลวร้ายยิ่งกว่าหนังสือไม่สนุก ก็คือหนังสือที่น่าเบื่อ และเรื่องนี้ก็เข้าข่ายนั้น ไม่รู้ว่าเป็นเพราะเป็นเรื่องสั้น (ขนาดยาว) หรือว่า คนแต่งไม่มีเวลาเตรียมตัวเขียน หรือหาข้อมูลดีพอ (เพราะเรื่องนี้เป็นเรื่องสั้นที่ถูกจับเอามารวมกับหนังสือของสเตฟานี ลอว์เรนส์ เพื่อเป็นการโปรโมตนักเขียน เป็นเรื่องที่เขียนทีหลังหนังสือเล่มยาว แต่ออกวางขายก่อน) ทำให้เรื่องนี้เป็นขอไปที ตัวละครดูไม่มีที่มาที่ไป มูลเหตุจูงใจในการตัดสินใจทำอะไรสักอย่างของพวกเขาดูสับสน แถมภูมิหลังที่ควรจะทำให้เราเข้าใจตัวละครดีขึ้นกลับลางเลือน

โจเซฟีน เคาร์เตสแห่งเมอร์เร็ค ซึ่งปลอมตัวเขียนจดหมายติดต่อกับเซอร์โนอาห์ ผู้เป็นญาติของญาติผู้ใหญ่ (ฝั่งสามีที่ล่วงลับไปแล้ว) ของเธอมาเป็นเวลาหลายปี ในนามของโจเซฟ เธอปฏิเสธข้อเสนอที่โนอาห์ยื่นให้กับญาติของเขาเพื่อให้ไปร่วมกันทำธุรกิจท่าเรือในตุรกี แต่เมื่อโนอาห์เดินทางมาถึงอังกฤษ เขาก็รู้เกือบในทันทีว่า โจเซฟแท้จริงแล้วเป็นใคร

เราไม่ชอบสไตล์การเล่าเรื่องเลยค่ะ เรื่องบอกว่า โจเซฟีนพยายามทำตัวเป็นเลดี้ที่อยู่ในกรอบของสังคม เพราะในอดีตเธอเคยมีเรื่องอื้อฉาว หลังจากนั้นเรื่องก็จะเล่าถึงเหตุการณ์ในอดีตแบบกระจัดกระจาย เรารู้ว่า เธอมีความสัมพันธ์กับลูกเรือที่พาเธอเดินทางกลับมาอังกฤษ จากนั้นก็รู้ว่า เธอถูกบังคับให้แต่งงานกับขุนนางที่ทำให้เธอเสียชื่อ (คือมันอะไรกันแน่ แต่อาจจะเป็นเพราะเราเบื่อเรื่องนี้มากจนอ่านแบบข้าม ๆ ก็เลยอาจจับใจความได้ไม่ครบ) ประเด็นก็คือ ไม่มีใครรู้ถึงความสัมพันธ์กับลูกเรือ และแม้เธอจะเสียชื่อไปกับลูกขุนนาง แต่สุดท้ายเธอก็ได้แต่งงาน และกลายเป็นเคาท์เตสในที่สุด ตลอดเวลาในเรื่องก็ไม่มีก็ซุบซิบนินทาอดีตของเธอด้วยซ้ำ

ความสัมพันธ์ระหว่างโนอาห์และโจเซฟีนก็ไม่น่าสนใจ เหมือนถูกจับให้มาเป็นพระเอกนางเอก แล้วก็เลยจำใจต้องคู่กันตามที่คนแต่งต้องการ ไม่มีปฏิกริยาเคมี ไม่มีอะไรน่าสนใจ

ตัวละครเดียวที่เราสนใจก็คือญาติผู้ใหญ่ของโจเซฟีน (ทางการแต่งงาน) ที่ป่วยเป็นโรคประหลาด ทำให้เราอยากรู้ว่า เป็นโรคอะไรกันแน่ แต่ก็ไม่เฉลย แล้วจู่ ๆ ก็หายขาดซะงั้น

[Jessi · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Comfortable Wife by Stephanie Laurends
Nominally related to the Lester family stories, this particular book has Lord Philip Ruthven returning home, escaping from the hordes of matchmaking mamas. He' thirty-four and is starting to think about settling down, but wants to (like most Regency heroes) do so on his own terms. He arrives at home to find his stepmother's niece, his childhood playmate, Miss Antonia Mannering has arrived with her young brother. Apparently, after her father died, Antonia was kept holed up in the house with her brother since her mother just retreated from the world. At twenty-five, she could be considered "on the shelf" but her assuredness and grace make her just perfect for Philip.
The Big Misunderstanding in this one irked me as it seemed so manufactured. Or maybe not well-developed. Antonia seems to fall in love with Philip and it's all fine until she's not. But then she is again, all so suddenly.
A Lady by Day Allison DeLaine
The back-cover-description of this book is a bit disingenuous. It makes it seem like Countess of Mareck, Josephine is actively trying to live down a scandal. But really, there's one old scandal no one knows about and the scandal of a swift marriage but it doesn't really seem like she's trying to live it down. She's established her life and nobody really brings it up except her sister. Anyway, she's been escorting her nieces through society and also corresponding with Sir Noah Rutledge for her ailing uncle-in-law. Who is Noah's actual uncle. Noah wants the man to move to Mediterranean while Josephine wants him to stay cloer to home.
It's a cute story but a bit heavy on the melodrama.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story itself was amusing in some regards. However, the blatant and obvious disregard for abstinence before marriage made the novel less appealing. It was premarital fun all around in both stories. Sadly, I cannot draw any moral from either of them. I scratched my head as a pondered what it could be; what the author is trying to convey. All I've gathered is that the author, perhaps, wished to confuse the reader with how the novel is worded. At times, I had to reread sections to catch what was being said.

Conclusion

I'm not reading this again. Quite frankly, I have no idea why I picked it up to begin with. It promotes ideas that are best left alone, for they are unhealthy. I can't recommend this nor give it much praise beyond the fact that it was almost five hundred pages.

[Maria Almaguer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read Stephanie Laurens’ “A Comfortable Wife" several years ago, so this review is only for the novella "A Lady by Day."

Josephine, a young widow, has happy memories of her brief time in the Mediterranean. She longs to live an unconventional life but is bound by society (as well as herself) to make amends for a youthful indiscretion. She is launching her two nieces into London society in the hopes that they will make better matches than she did.

Until Sir Noah Rutledge comes along, upsetting her very orderly and tightly-controlled existence, awakening passions and dreams she long thought lost forever.

For my full review on my historical romance & history blog: http://bit.ly/1wiUMSq

[Marie · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first few chapters between Phillip and Antonia are sweet and romantic. Phillip's attention to her is adorable. Then the last 2/3 of the book we get an annoying side story, a misunderstanding that is WAY over done, like way over, almost insulting for Laurens to have something so trite, and Phillip ends up being a puss. A lot of the misunderstanding would have been resolved if he wasn't such a wimp and acted like a true Alpha hero and took charge.

[Elke · Rating 5 out of 5]

must read..because it is by Stephanie Laurens
Stephanie Laurens is the first historical writer I read. then completely fell in love with . Each book I read I love. Some of the series are a bit on the same (exact) theme, but still the writing is jun, romantic and steamy when need be.
Perfection on paper.
Everything written by Stephanie Laurens is a must read.

[Harmony · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this in a goodreads giveaway. The first story, "A comfortable Wife" failed to impress me. It put me to sleep and I found none of the characters very likable. I would give that book a rating of 2 stars. The second story "A lady by Day" however, caught my attention. I loved the story line and the characters. I would give that one 4 stars, so I gave an overall rating of 3.

[Rosetta · Rating 3 out of 5]

2 stars for A Comfortable Wife by Stephanie Laurens which is really surprising because I usually enjoy her books. I just couldn't get into these two characters Philip and Antonia. I really enjoyed the second novel A Lady by Day by Alison Delaine. I love Noah and Josephine! I give this novel 4 stars!

[Janet Suarino · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Trouble with Virtue are 2 novels in one book. The Stephanie Lauren's book, A Comfortable Wife, was just OK. It's a reprint. Not one of her best. A bit boring.

The other novel by Alison DeLaine, a Lady By Day, was better.

Together I only gave them a 3 star rating.

[C.A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two Stories one by Stephanie Laurens and the other by Alison De Laine.

Always love books by Stephanie Laurens. cant get enough of them.

Alison De Laine never read her books before, but found hers was quite entertaining.

[Alessandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

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[Sandra Freeman · Rating 2 out of 5]

A Lady by day was not very good.Hard to follow.

[Clarke]

Stars. Public Library 6/4/15. Started the first book but didn't strike my fancy... Maybe another time.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two sweet stories of love.