"The Lost Heiress" by Roseanna M. White

Raised as a prince's daughter in the palace in Monaco, Brook is a free-spirited and highly cultured young lady. Yet the longing to find her true identity tugs insistently at her heart, and when her dearest friend returns to her with the news that he's found her biological father, it is with trembling hope that Brook journeys to northern England to meet the Earl of Whitby. She possesses enough links to undeniably be the earl's lost daughter, and he immediately welcomes her with the full joy of his heart. Other family members and household staff are not so sure, however, and Brook must handle their disapproval as well as the adjustment of missing her Monegasque home.

Having safely seen Brook to her new home, her friend Justin Wildon finds himself in a predicament. Not only is he in a time of grieving and inheriting his father's title and responsibilities, but now that Brook has been ushered into a home with every future luxury ensured, he feels awkward to think of courting her at this point, when she might think he was only changing the nature of their relationship due to her new fortune. Deciding the best course of action is to let her settle in, Justin pushes Brook away and throws himself into learning his own new position in society.

Brook is soon inundated with new friends and suitors, some genuine and some who are only fortune hunters. There are also cousins and relatives to meet and get to know. Even as she cherishes the growing relationship with her father, Brook longs for more of the freedoms she's used to, and she misses Justin and his ability to help her make sense of her life.

It soon becomes clear that there is a mystery underfoot. Brook is attacked for something called the Fire Eyes, and she realizes that one of her servants has been betraying her. There is also the lingering doubt as to why her mother left England before her death, giving infant Brook to a stranger with instructions to keep the child out of the country. When it becomes clear that there are those who will stop at nothing to gain the mysterious Fire Eyes - even though neither Brook nor her father know what they are - every attempt goes to keeping Brook's life safe. Danger lurks everywhere, including among those who call themselves family.

This was the first book by Roseanna M. White that I have read, but it won't be the last! It was easy to get lost in fictional 1910 Europe, and while sometimes the characters drove me crazy with their choices, you always hoped for the best for them. The story of the Fire Eyes continues throughout the next two books in this series, and I'll be doing my best to read them soon!