{"id":9203,"date":"2017-08-18T09:06:22","date_gmt":"2017-08-18T13:06:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/?p=9203"},"modified":"2025-10-01T18:53:27","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T22:53:27","slug":"the-emperors-conspiracy-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/9203","title":{"rendered":"The Emperor’s Conspiracy"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Emperor’s Conspiracy<\/a><\/em> (2012) Michelle Diener<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Set in England in 1811.<\/p>\n

Charlotte Raven was rescued by Lady Howe from life as a chimney sweep–a life for which she had finally grown too large. Her past, and her gratitude towards Lady Howe create a young woman who will do what she can to help those in need–especially children. <\/p>\n

A woman who needed a chaperone. Despite herself, she smiled. <\/p>\n

\u201cStop that.\u201d Catherine drew her farther away from the dance floor. <\/p>\n

\u201cStop what?\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cThat pitying way you have of looking at me, when you think I\u2019m being foolish in protecting you. You deserve the same respect and protection as every other woman here. Never forget that.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cThen I take it back. You\u2019re a hope-killer. \u2019Cause at least if you\u2019d done it on your back, that\u2019s something we c\u2019n understand. Something we c\u2019n do ourselves. But kindness? Luck like that\u2014 it\u2019s a million-to-one chance, and you already took the one chance going.\u201d <\/p>\n

She did not dispute it. She agreed.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Although I do initially have a very hard time believing the action of Lady Howe in taking in Charlotte and make her her ward and heir, that disappears both with Lady Howe’s personality and with the story. Did things like that happen? How would we know, since they would have been kept secret? So it’s possible, and that’s good enough for me.<\/p>\n

Lord Edward Durnham works for the Crown, and has enjoyed being able to avoid society and its demands. When his sister comes to him for assistance, he is drawn into the world of Charlotte Raven.<\/p>\n

\u201cRisky, wasn\u2019t it? Emma might have been a gossip.\u201d His voice was not quite steady. <\/p>\n

She raised her eyebrows. \u201cGossip is one thing; seeing three boys sent off to Frethers without trying to do anything about it is another. I took a chance, because I couldn\u2019t do anything else.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Edward initially comes of as unlikable, but that is dismissed once he realizes truly what has happened to his sister. He’s still a difficult man, but his embarrassment and shame at his actions immediately redeem him to me. After all, everyone makes mistakes.<\/p>\n

This is a mystery first, and a romance second, which is just the way I like it.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019d just suggested I prostitute myself to you to get the information he wants. But none of the men he joined afterward so much as looked back at me, let alone leered. And it is my experience, when men think you can be had for a price, they look you over to establish if they could pay it themselves, and if they\u2019d want to if they could.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I also really liked the secondary characters in this book–the smuggler who quit a job because his son was fighting the French, the crime lord who was deeply deeply flawed, the former street kids who were torn between their allegiance between Charlotte and Luke. It was complicated and messy.<\/p>\n

And compelling.<\/p>\n

I highly recommend this book.
\nRating: 8.5\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n

Published by Gallery Books<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Emperor’s Conspiracy (2012) Michelle Diener Set in England in 1811. Charlotte Raven was rescued by Lady Howe from life as a chimney sweep–a life for which she had finally grown too large. Her past, and her gratitude towards Lady Howe create a young woman who will do what she can to help those in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[191,30,668,33,8,41,26],"tags":[672,671,251,547,252],"class_list":["post-9203","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-8-5-10","category-british","category-comfort-read","category-historical","category-mystery","category-reread","category-romance","tag-child-abuse","tag-child-sexual-assault","tag-michelle-diener","tag-napoleonic-era","tag-regency-london"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/piQkW-2or","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":23611,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/23611","url_meta":{"origin":9203,"position":0},"title":"The Emperor’s Conspiracy","author":"Michelle","date":"May 28, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"The Emperor's Conspiracy (2012) Michelle Diener (Regency London) Set in England in 1811. Once you accept the premise of the relationship between Charlotte and Lady Howe, this is a fantastic mystery and romance. Lady Howe really is marvelous. \u201cThere is no man in this house,\u201d Catherine said into the silence.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8.5\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8.5\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-5-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Emperor's Conspiracy","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/The-Emperors-Conspiracy-e1511011261344.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":12641,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/12641","url_meta":{"origin":9203,"position":1},"title":"The Emperor’s Conspiracy","author":"Michelle","date":"March 18, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The Emperor's Conspiracy (2012) Michelle Diener (Regency London) Set in London in 1811. Charlotte Raven was rescued as a child, and although she leads a somewhat unorthodox life, she tries very hard to be the perfect lady for Lady Howe, who saved he from the stews. This always surprised her,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8.5\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8.5\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-5-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Emperor's Conspiracy","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/The-Emperors-Conspiracy-660x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5738,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/5738","url_meta":{"origin":9203,"position":2},"title":"The Emperor’s Conspiracy","author":"Michelle","date":"March 19, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"The Emperor's Conspiracy (2012) Michelle Diener Set in England in 1811 Charlotte was saved from the Rookeries by Lady Howe, and has been debuted has her ward, but Charlotte has never forgotten her past, and maintains friendships and ties with those in the slums--although she does everything she can to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "British"","block_context":{"text":"British","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/british"},"img":{"alt_text":"The-Emperors-Conspiracy","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/The-Emperors-Conspiracy.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":11622,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/11622","url_meta":{"origin":9203,"position":3},"title":"The Emperor’s Conspiracy","author":"Michelle","date":"February 7, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"The Emperor's Conspiracy (2012) Michelle Diener Set in England in 1811. Lord Edward Durnham works for the crown in secret, and has been asked to look into gold being smuggled to France. Edward is also somewhat of an ass. (W)hy is she staying with Miss Raven and not you?\u201d Edward\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/The-Emperors-Conspiracy-e1511011261344.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":24413,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/24413","url_meta":{"origin":9203,"position":4},"title":"The Emperor’s Conspiracy","author":"Michelle","date":"April 10, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The Emperor's Conspiracy (2012) Michelle Diener (Regency London #1) Set in London in 1811 After being annoyed by the last regency mystery, I wanted to reread a favorite, and of course had to start at the beginning of the series. (H)e was looking at her hands again. \u201cShould I put\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8.5\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8.5\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-5-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Emperor's Conspiracy","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/The-Emperors-Conspiracy-193x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":14157,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/14157","url_meta":{"origin":9203,"position":5},"title":"The Emperor’s Conspiracy","author":"Michelle","date":"March 29, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"The Emperor's Conspiracy (2012) Michelle Diener (Regency London) Set in London in 1811 Charlotte Raven is the ward of Lady Howe, and likely her heir. Despite that, she is almost a wall-flower in society, enjoying herself but never making splash. Emma tried to think if she had ever heard any\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8.5\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8.5\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-5-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Emperor's Conspiracy","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/The-Emperors-Conspiracy-e1511011261344.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9203","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9203"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9203\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9203"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9203"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9203"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}