The Devious Debutante

by Ursula LeCoeur

Beneath the glittering façade of historic mansions and gaslit restaurants, no one tells Maureen Collins what to do. Not her father. Not the old society families of New Orleans. Not even her dead mother, who chose her groom the day her daughter was born. Refusing the husband selected for her, Maureen ventures into a world of lies, disguises and midnight rendezvous—to win the love of Ben Merritt, an intriguing stranger with something to hide.
Merritt leads a double life. By day he’s a priggish attorney; when the moon rises, he prowls the docks tracking opium smugglers. When he meets Maureen, he suppresses his desire and thinks of her as a useful tool to aid his investigation of her father—his prime suspect.
Each tries to make sense of the other’s peculiar behavior. Maureen concludes Merritt is an opium addict, while Merritt deduces that Maureen and her father are cohorts in a vast smuggling operation.
As the deceptions multiply, the stakes grow higher. When Maureen’s desperate plan to learn the truth turns deadly, only one man can identify the threads of conspiracy to save her life.

383 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2015

Reviews

[Kristine · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE DEVIOUS DEBUTANTE takes a modern twist to an old time drug trafficking story. Who even knew this existed and was so prevalent in this era. The story takes place in New Orleans, in 1885. Ingeniously, it has all the makings of life in the modern world, with old school charm. Men still fall for married women, are using drugs, and drinking in excess. The business transactions are crooked, and people they deal with are shady. The women are fawned over and critiqued by everyone. The daily paper ran a society page, spilling all the gossip of the town’s events and people’s personal business. The ladies were expected to have proper daily habits of high tea, sherry, minimal food intake and binding corsets. To visit a person, calling cards were mandatory. So all these factors became an issue when Ben and Maureen became smitten with one another, and her father was totally against the relationship. He had other plans for her to marry a childhood friend. Complex relationships left harsh decisions between love and honor. A Murder! Deception! Trickery! By everyone! These issues are all similar today. The proper society still experienced infidelity, domestic abuse, and drug trafficking. The business men had great plans to scheme and plot to make lots of money and swindle people. Mistaken truths lead to despair and the hope things would all work out like a fairy tale in the end. All is fair in love and war. This was a great story which took me back to the Victorian times of fine fabrics and sweet smelling flowers. When men were gentlemen and a woman wore beautiful gowns, must sneak out to meet a suitor. The mysterious crime ring and drug trafficking of the time era was news to me. I had no idea New Orleans was one of the main ports for drug trade. They were very slick in the way they smuggled drugs. I give the book four out of 5 stars. Fun to read about the creative way women were adventurous! I received this book in exchange for an unbiased and honest review.

[Mike Siedschlag · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ursula LeCoeur provided an e-copy of The Devious Debutante for review.

The Devious Debutante is the third book in the Love in New Orleans series. I had my doubts about accepting this book for review as I don't generally read straight up romance. Fortunately (for me anyway), The Devious Debutante has much more going for it than straight up romance.

The setting, New Orleans, was the first thing to attract my attention. The second; the story line about a treasury agent trying to bust an opium smuggling cartel in the 1880's. Romance is still the story here, a particularly ardent, and at times, steamy romance. Fans of the genre should have no doubt that The Devious Debutante is first and foremost a romance. But there was enough action to keep even an old grump like me interested.

Ursula LeCoeur is the pen name for a mother-daughter team who borrowed the name Ursula from I believe, their cat. I note this because they write scenes of sexual activity that I could never have even mentioned in front of either of my parents (the times, they are a-changing, nod to the Byrds). Oh yeah, there are scenes of graphic sex within. Also drug use and graphic violence. Sex, drugs but no rock-n-roll (it's 1886). There is humor, high fashion, shameless flirting and general silliness.

A strong willed young lady (is there any other kind?), an overbearing father (ditto), a love besotted treasury agent, and the young lady's lifelong male friend are the main characters of our story. They are well realized and entertaining. Having not read any of the rest of the series, I do not know if these are recurring characters or not.

The Devious Debutante by Ursula LeCoeur was a fun read romance fans should like. Enjoy!

Mike

[C.P. Lesley]

Although love stories have a way of creeping into novels whatever their genre, books that focus on instantaneous passion don’t always give equal weight to the “historical” element in historical fiction. The series written by the mother/daughter team that publishes under the pen name Ursula LeCoeur, however, takes place in the richly detailed, lavishly imagined, deeply researched world of 1880s New Orleans. The Devious Debutante, third in the series, follows its hero and heroine through docks and bayous, ballrooms and opium dens, back streets, taverns, and Mardi Gras floats.

Maureen Collins, the daughter of a wealthy cotton merchant, should be focused on her trousseau and on attracting a scion of an old New Orleans family. Instead she spends time in her greenhouse, searching for a way to graft red camellias onto white stems. When by accident she runs into Ben Merritt, an attorney from Philadelphia who has no obvious reason to lurk around her family estate dressed like a workman, his peace offering—an example of that rare red camellia—turns out to contain a tin of opium among its roots. More plants follow, and Maureen’s suspicions grow, especially after her attempts to investigate lead her to the scene of a murder that the local police appear to have little interest in investigating. Is she falling in love with an opium addict, or a person even more sinister? As Mardi Gras sweeps the town into revelry, Maureen strives to find out. Meanwhile, Ben races to collect evidence on the killer before he can carry out his dimly overheard threat against Maureen.

For an interview with the mother/daughter team behind the pen name, see http://newbooksnetwork.com/ursula-lec....

[Fionna Guillaume · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best historical romances I've read lately! I just couldn't get enough of The Devious Debutante. Read it like a maniac, and loved every minute! New Orleans itself in a character in this story. The city is at its height of beauty, elegance, and charm, as well as a bustling multicultural center for trade. I loved getting to know the city, and learning some of its history this way. Makes me wish I could go back in time and be a part of it.

The romance, too, is delightful. Ben is a romantic love interest, and an all-round engaging character. His explorations and perceptions of the city give another layer to the story, especially with the excitement of an opium smuggling operation to uncover. Miss Maureen Collins is not a typical Southern belle, either. She's spunky, opinionated, and driven to succeed in her passion for flowers. It's wonderful following the blooming romance between her and Ben Carson. (I only wished there had been a little more of it!)

In addition to them, you will meet many other fascinating denizens of 1886 New Orleans: servants and ship captains, girlfriends and ex-beaus, parents and old family connections. It's a well built story full of great characters, action, and romance, all set in one of the most fabulous cities of all. Well done, and an un-put-downable good read.

[Patty Nobles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ursula LeCouer has become one of my all-time favorite authors after I read her epic novel “The Devious Debutante.” Ms. LeCouer takes her readers to New Orleans in the 1880’s where she introduces her readers to Maureen Collins, an intelligent young woman who has no desire to conform to society’s pressures of whom she should marry, but wishes for adventure and growing exotic plants. Ben Merrit is a dashing undercover officer sent to New Orleans to undercover the growing Opium problem that is plaguing our nation. Ben is smitten by Maureen when they first meet and he knows that he must have her. Maureen is equally enchanted with Ben, but her father is against the match and insists she marry a man she could never love because he is just like a brother to her. Ben pursues Maureen with the gift of flowers and Maureen welcomes his attention, but his real job is wreaking havoc with her emotions. Ms. LeCouer adds many twists and turn in this delightful story of intrigue and revenge creating a passion between two characters that are meant to be together, I was giving this book to read by the author in exchange for an honest review

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am given this book for free, in exchange for an honest review.

New Orleans, 1885, a time when high society and the sweltering heat of the south collides. A romance between two people who meet by chance on a foggy night. You seriously can't get me interested into a book faster than this. The Devious Debutante caught my heart and attention from the very first word and kept me going into the end with a bit of sadness that it had to come to an end. If you are a fan of the likes of Gaelen Foley, or Sabrina Jeffries (Like I am!!) then you need to pick up this book.

It's the perfect blend of romantic suspense and hard hitting plot for every romance reader alike. Not only is the plot strong, but LeCoeur's characters are both breathtaking and down to earth in the same breath. The chemistry between the two characters is palpable keeping the reader wanting more between the two lead characters. 4 out of 5 stars from this reviewer. I'll be looking out for this author in months to come for her new books.

[CommonBookSense · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Devious Debutante is a very good book. The writers (they are a mother/daughter team) did their research, so the moments in the story were accurate to the time period. It was a mystery and a love story. The story was easy to read and the mystery in trying to figure out who the good guys were kept me interested through the book.

The problems with opium smugglers were real in that time, and the way Ben, one of the main characters, investigated it kept you wondering if he was a good guy. The way everyone in the story was looped together in the end was amazing. These writers are very talented.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good love story. I look forward to reading more books by Ursula LeCoeur.

You can find this review (and many more) here, on the CommonBookSense blog.