The Pirate's Clever Ruse

Gravesyde Village Mystery #5

by Patricia Rice

From bestselling author, Patricia In Regency England, secrets are deadly—and curiosity is the most dangerous trait of all.

Lord Cecil Greybourne is a brilliant scholar, notorious wanderer, and an unintentional magnet for disaster. His latest manuscript—an exposé on the corrupt world of Regency art—has made powerful enemies. When thieves target his work, Grey does what he always disappear.

This time, however, he refuses to leave without his clever assistant—only to discover that “E.A. Leonard” is actually Eleanor Leonard, a woman forced to disguise herself as a man to earn her living in a world closed to her sex.
Eleanor is done hiding. When Grey invites her—and her twin brother—to the quiet town of Gravesyde, she sees a rare chance for independence and security. Instead, they arrive to find a corpse in their new lodgings, and Gravesyde’s peaceful façade fractures.

As rumors spread and Grey’s enemies close in, minor accidents escalate to dangerous. Grey has long accepted that trouble follows him—but Eleanor refuses to stand aside while lives are at risk.

Now, with death stalking ever closer and a mystery growing more perilous by the hour, Grey and Eleanor must uncover who is behind the violence—before curiosity costs them everything.

A Regency romantic mystery featuring hidden identities, a sharp-witted heroine, slow-burn attraction, and a deadly puzzle where love and survival are equally at stake.

335 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 24, 2026

About the author

With several million books in print and New York Times and USA Today's bestseller lists under her belt, former CPA Patricia Rice writes emotionally-charged contemporary and historical romances which have won numerous awards, including the RT Book Reviews Reviewers Choice and Career Achievement Awards.

Her books have also been honored as Romance Writers of America RITA® finalists in the historical, regency and contemporary categories.

A firm believer in happily-ever-after for good reason, Patricia Rice is married to her high school sweetheart and has two children. A native of Kentucky and New York, a past resident of North Carolina and Missouri, she currently resides in Southern California, and now does accounting only for herself.

She also writes under the pen name Jamie Quaid

Reviews

[Cathy Geha]

The Pirate’s Clever Ruse by Patricia Rice
Gravesyde Fillage Mystery #5

~ Delightful addition to a wonderful series ~ Loved watching Grey and El realize what they really meant to one another ~ Gravesyde Village is growing with each story ~ I can’t wait to find out who is up next to star in book six ~

What I liked:
* Cecil (Grey) Greybourne, Baron Greybourne: author, professor, researcher, believes he is cursed, enjoys travel, energetic, cousin lives in Gravesyde Priory, learns and grows a lot through the book
* Eleanor “El” Anne Leonard: educated, Grey’s assistant, passing as male, lives with her twin brother, poor, wise, like a butterfly emerging from her chrysalis and a joy to watch emerge
* Ellis Andrew “Andy” Leonard: Eleanor’s twin, club foot, educated but prefers working with his hands to scholarly pursuits, wonder if he will have a book in the future
* Returning to Gravesyde Village and catching up with the characters in the priory and in the village
* Watching Grey and El “awaken” and realize that they might have a future together as a couple…smiling as I think of them now
* Thinking about how many more people it took to accomplish what machines do now: laundresses, ladies maids, valets, scribes, seamstresses and tailors, and so many more
* The Plot, pacing, setting, and writing
* The murder mystery and how it was solved
* Finding out why Grey felt he was cursed and what the real reason for his mishaps was
* Immersing myself in the story, caring about the characters, and hoping for a positive outcome for the people I’ve grown to like and wouldn’t mind having as neighbors
* All of it really except…

What I didn’t like:
* Who and what I was meant not to like
* Realizing that there have always been greedy evil people in the world and wondering why they are so selfish and willing to kill, steal, and harm others for personal gain
* Having to say goodbye and now wait for the next book…hope there IS a next book!

Did I like this book? Yes
Would I read more in this series? Definitely

Thank you to the author for the ARC – This is my honest review.
5 Stars

[Carey S.]

4.5 stars

Baron Cecil (Grey) Greybourne and Eleanor (El or Leonard) Anne Leonard have worked together for the past year. Grey is an art history professor and author who hires ‘Leonard’ as his assistant, never realizing she is female. She dressed as a male to earn the money to keep her and her twin brother fed and housed, as he is handicapped and doesn’t have as many employment options. Grey is writing an art book, and Leonard has kept him organized and on track.

When the school trustees let ‘Leonard’ go, Grey goes to their home, and discovers that his capable assistant is indeed a woman. Since she is the best assistant he’s ever had, he doesn’t want to lose her, so he offers employment to both twins if they will relocate with him to the small village of Gravesyde, while he finishes his book.

Unfortunately, danger and injury seem to follow Grey, and he vows to keep the siblings safe from harm, while continuing to lead his lonely existence. This is easier said than done, when they discover a dead body on the property Grey wishes to rent, and he gets bashed with an oar shortly after arriving. There is an intriguing mystery along with other related mysteries to be solved in this book.

This book starts off strong, and the premise kept me interested throughout this story. There are characters from prior books that show up briefly in this book, but most of the story focuses around solving the mysteries, and around the relationship between El and Grey.

[SylviaV]

The Pirate's Clever Ruse by Patricia Rice.(Gravesyde Village Mystery #5)

This is mainly a historical mystery with a hint of romance and an update on what is happening with the myriad of characters who were introduced to the readers in both the Gravesyde Priory Mysteries (6 book series) and this series. I enjoyed my time reading the story but was not as engaged as previous books in these 2 series. I gave this book 3 and half stars.

This is book 5 in this series and it follows Lord Cecil Greybourne who is moving into the village at the request of his cousin Dorothea, whom we have met in the previous series. Greybourne is writing a book on art history and fraud, while teaching at an university in Edinburgh. His assistant Eleanor Leonard has been pretending to be a man to earn a living as his assistant at the school where women are not allowed. The story meanders along with a murder and various mysteries and against this back drop a slow burn romance develops between Eleanor and Greybourne.

The next book will be the conclusion to this series and will answer some questions about the mysterious tutor at the manor house and a romance with Lavender Marlowe who operates a modiste’s shop .

[Karen]

The Pirate's Clever Ruse is the fifth book in the Gravesyde Village Mystery series, a spinoff of the Gravesyde Priory Mystery series. While it can be read as a stand alone book, it is best enjoyed when read in the series. I have read both series and really enjoyed seeing the village grow and come back to life but did find this book a bit more complicated to follow with the addition of so many new additions to the village characters. The author does give a good character list at the beginning of the book if you need to refer back to it to help you keep track of who is who in the story line.
For me this was my least favorite book in the series as it felt a bit too convoluted and the ending felt like I was left hanging. There was mystery and romance as is often the case with this authors books and some great unexpected twists. Over all I would give this one a 4 out of 5. I do recommend reading it but take your time and get to know the characters as they are well fleshed out and there is more to them than first meets the eye!

I was given an advanced reader copy of this book for free for my honest and unbiased review of this book.

[Julia David]

Gravesyde Village is seeing an influx of new residents. Eleanor has disguised herself as a man to find work and spent a year employed by Lord Greybourne before being dismissed. Grey sets out to find E.A. Leonard, only to discover that the man who worked for him is actually a woman. Surprised by her sharp mind, unlike the frivolous women he’s known, Grey brings Eleanor—who has been transcribing his book—and her twin brother to Gravesyde to finish his work. But their plans take a turn when they stumble upon a dead body. While the villagers treat it as nothing unusual, Grey is unsettled. Unsure whether to stay or leave, he worries about someone trying to steal his work, convinced he’s cursed and wary of endangering Eleanor and her brother. When strangers are caught searching their rented house, Grey suspects the thief is after his manuscript, though others believe it’s hidden money they seek. Can they catch the culprit before anyone else gets hurt?

[Lesley]

Great characters and an interesting plot.
When the boy’s school where Eleanor works (disguised as a man) makes cuts back she finds herself sacked. Much to her surprise the Professor she assisted, infuriated that he no longer has her at his beck and call, turns up on her doorstep. Relatively unphased by the discovery of her gender, he offers both her and her brother jobs, on the condition they leave Edinburgh and accompany him to a remote village. Readers that know Gravesyde will realise that Greybourne may find himself knee deep in murderous plots!
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from the author. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[H.]

I received an ARC of The Pirate’s Clever Ruse, Book 5 in the Gravesyde Villiage Mystery Series. This review is mine and mine alone. Well, I believe this is my favorite book in this series so far! What an absolute joy to read. I love the “E.A. Leonard” character and how Eleanor just dug in looking for murder clues and without vapors. I also really liked Lord Cecil Greybourne. Trouble just seems to follow him everywhere. And now him knowing Leonard is a woman, he becomes very protective and more. This is a fun read and I highly recommend it! A lot of escalation of dangerous and mysterious events and pleasant ones too.

[Cristina]

This book is easy to read. The plot is straightforward. The pace of the story is good. The main characters are well-developed. As with the other books, there are many new secondary characters. Ms. Rice always has a list of the characters, which is helpful. Almost all the manor residents (from the series The Gravesyde Priory Mysteries) make a short appearance.
I received a copy from the author. This review is entirely my own opinion.

[Lucia Valenzuela]

A great story. I love Grey and El’s convoluted journey to their HEA. Grey is convinced that he is basically the cause of everything bad that has happened in his past. Discovering that his irreplaceable assistant is a woman greatly shocks him. Seeing El learn to not be invisible is delightful. A wonderful story that you will not want to put down. Loved it.
I received this book from the author and this is my voluntary, honest review.