Lady Knight coming April 1st, 2025 from Joy Revolution; 384 pages
Content Warning: Armed robbery
About the Author and Illustrator: “AMALIE HOWARD is a USA Today and Publishers Weekly bestselling author. Always Be My Duchess was one of Cosmopolitan’s 30 Best Romance Books and The Beast of Beswick was one of Oprah Daily’s 24 Best Historical Romance Novels to Read. She is also the author of several award-winning, critically acclaimed novels for teens and younger readers. Her young adult release Queen Bee was a Target book club pick, a Scholastic book fair pick, was on multiple state high school reading lists, and was named “A true diamond of the first water” by ALA Booklist. Her books have been featured in The Hollywood Reporter, Entertainment Weekly, and Seventeen Magazine. When she’s not writing, she can usually be found reading, being the president of her one-woman Harley Davidson motorcycle club, or power-napping. She lives in Colorado with her family” (Bio from author’s website).
Find Amalie Howard on the following platforms:
Zia, a duke’s daughter, is a feminist who dreams big. Declared diamond of the season, she feels trapped within the confines of her gender, in the roles defined for women. When she and her friends, her “Lady Knights,” take control of these roles by secretly becoming thieving rebels for a noble cause, she runs into trouble when she encounters Rafi. Zia has always known Rafi, the ton’s disreputable rake and her brother’s best friend. She’s no stranger to him or his antics, which is why it’s shocking when Rafi discovers Zia’s scandalous secret. As they spend more time together—so Zia can ensure Rafi doesn’t spill her secret and cause a scandal she’ll never recover from—they both discover sides of each other hidden from everyone else.
Historical fiction can be tricky, since authors need to find the balance between fact and fiction. Despite its delicate nature, however, readers should easily be able to tell that Howard is a seasoned historical romance author. While there’s plenty that is rooted in truth for the Regency era in which the book is set, there’s also plenty of fictional elements that enhanced the book. An example of this balance was the inclusion of more diverse characters. In the story, there are characters of different sexualities, ages, and ethnicities—which might not have been historically present in the Regency era, but certainly make the novel more representative of modern experiences and people. One of my favorite aspects of the story was the book club the Lady Knights were part of. Their discussions on authors, texts, femininity, and gender roles were so refreshing to read. On another note, the dedication at the beginning of the book was a great reminder and I encourage those who typically skip past dedications to take a second to read it. Lady Knight is the perfect read for people looking for a main character that is like Bridgerton’s Eloise Bridgerton and Penelope Featherington combined. It’s a great young adult introduction to regency romance filled with fun banter and an overarching theme of feminism.
Lady Knight releases on April 1st, 2025.
Pine Reads Review would like to thank NetGalley and Joy Revolution for sending us an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Any quotes are taken from an advanced copy and may be subject to change before final publication.
Vanshikha Vij, Pine Reads Review Writer