Ring of Secrets by Roseanna M. White

 Winter lives with her loyalist grandparents. They urge her to play the dumb beauty at social events, but she is really a patriot spy.  Most men don't see past her beautiful but witless façade, except awkward Harvard professor Bennet Lane. He is convinced that there is more to Winter than her beauty, and is determined to find out what it is.  His attentions make it harder for Winter to pass the information she gleans from her many admirers, but Winter's grandparents urge her to encourage Lane's attentions since he is set to inherit a large English estate. As they are thrown together, Winter begins to feel as attached to him as her grandparents wish, but how can she fall in love with a loyalist, continue her spy work, and let the man she is starting to love see the real her. 

My dedicated readers know how much I loved Ms White's Christian spy romances that were set in WWI.  They have been some of my favorite all time Christian historical romances. I also really enjoyed this one but it has a slightly different flavor. As I read it I wondered if it was one of Mrs White's earlier books, and it is. Her writing just wasn't quite as refined as in the Codebreakers series.  The religious elements are quite a bit more heavy handed.  Every chapter has the characters praying out-loud of spouting scripture. It could be off-putting to some, but it was actually just right for me this week (despite the less than ideal cover). I like her characters, and her plot was well crafted. I wonder how much reflects actually Revolutionary War history? I have already put the second in the series on my wish list and will check it out next time I need some biblio RX. (352 p. 2013)