Historical Fiction-Mystery & Thrillers-Romance
352 pages
Pub date: 01 September 2026
Five stars 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
My thoughts:
I was so excited to receive an early reader copy of this novel. I knew that I wanted to read it even before it came up for requests on NetGalley.
Offer me a story set in Oxford’s past with good characters and an intriguing plot and I am all in.
This story takes place in the 1950s in an Oxford and environs that are very well described. I could imagine that I was there.
The main characters in the novel are of the “chalk and cheese” variety, although readers will hope that their relationship will move from adversarial to romantic. Ginevra (Gin) is of the upper, well established classes. She is delighted to be at Oxford, where she is studying modern languages (German) and not at home where her father’s deepest wish is for her to get married. Why? Read this one to find out.
On the other hand, Sidney is from the working classes. He served in WWII then returned to his mining village where he worked along with his father and others in their community for a time. It was not for him. Sidney gets to Oxford via a scheme for returning soldiers. He is studying Classics.
Gin and Sidney first clash in the Bodleian library. They will continue to argue over many things in this story.
Plot wise, Gin and Sidney are recruited to unveil a Russian spy. As the story is set in the 1950s the threat was real.
Readers get to meet a wide variety of characters including friends of both, dons, bookstore owners, librarians and many more. There is even a club whose members may not fully exhibit the behaviors expected of those who are students at the university.
I was sorry to get to the end of this novel. I am hoping that I will see more of Sidney and Gin in the future.
Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press-Minotaur Books for this title. All opinions are my own.
Description & Advance Praise:
from the publisher
Set against the backdrop of post-WWII Oxford University, The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies is the irresistible debut from Kate Westbury that seamlessly layers mystery, romance, and a dash of academia to introduce the Crown’s newest undercover operatives.
Oxford, England, 1951 – The Honorable Ginevra Bishop likes red lipstick, clever retorts, and earning top marks in her tutorials. She’s following her mother’s footsteps by studying at Oxford, eager to prove she’s more than a debutante.
Sidney Braithwaite likes brooding, Latin, and ignoring his nightmares. He’s determined to forge a new life for himself at Oxford, far from his childhood mining village and free from memories of the war.
Though Gin and Sidney have little in common, the British Security Service is keen to unite her charm with his espionage experience: there’s a Soviet spy at the university, and the agent tracking them down was poisoned. MI5 wants Gin and Sidney to pick up the trail and identify the informant before more sensitive information is compromised. As a team, the pair of undergraduates clash in personality, upbringing, and taste––but have a connection neither can deny. Gin and Sidney must unite their respective talents to follow the clues before they’re caught in the traitor’s crosshairs…if the sparks flying between them don’t blow up the operation first.
“A delightfully fresh take on historical mystery, done with cleverness and style. . . Ginevra and Sidney are some of the most likeable characters I’ve met in a long time.”
–Kristen Perrin, New York Times bestselling author of the Castle Knoll Files series
“A feminist romp. . . effervescent style and also significant substance.”
–Susan Elia MacNeal, New York Times bestselling author of the Maggie Hope series
Editorial reviews:
From Kirkus Reviews:
Westbury provides a complex mystery with many different types of clues: word puzzles, timetable clues, motive and opportunity clues, hidden relationships, and secrets unearthed from the past…A cracking good debut.
From Library Journal:
Gin and Sidney are an appealing pair involved in a nicely paced, cleverly constructed puzzle. For fans of Anna Lee Huber and Ashley Weaver.
Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too! 