It's release day for Queen of Lombard Street by Lisa Kleypas!

Queen of Lombard Street

By: Lisa Kleypas

Release Date: October 20, 2026

Publisher: AVON - HarperCollins

Genre: Romance/Mystery/Historical

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From New York Times bestselling author Lisa Kleypas—a sweeping, richly layered Victorian novel about a trailblazing female economist who’s determined to build Britain’s first women’s bank, but she must fight both financial corruption and a system intent on destroying the newly found family she’s created.

In Victorian England, no woman—not even a brilliant economist like Reina Martin—is allowed to open her own bank account. Men will take care of everything, women are told. But Reina knows better. As the illegitimate daughter of a Spanish immigrant mother, she’s haunted by the memory of living with unpaid grocer’s bills and no coal for the hearth.

So together with her mentor, the powerful banker William Farlow, Reina will build the first all-women’s bank, where women can manage their own financial security.

At home, Reina’s domestic staff of recently paroled prisoners are building new lives and becoming a found family. But soon Reina is shocked to discover that her enigmatic butler, John Pembroke, is an undercover police detective. He’s been assigned to investigate Farlow, who’s suspected of financial crime on a scale so massive, it could destabilize the British economy. Pembroke needs Reina’s expertise for a high-stakes nighttime heist to obtain incriminating evidence.

Now Reina faces the agonizing choice of betraying her mentor or turning her back on thousands of working-class families who stand to lose everything. Either way, her dream of the women’s bank may be over.

But courage and sacrifice aren’t limited to the battlefield—they also occur at the kitchen table, where women who believe in compassion and community are working to remake the future. And when the stakes are highest, Reina knows to trust her heart as well as her intellect.

Based on real-life trailblazers such as Mary Paley Marshall, Britain’s first female economist, and financial titan Hetty Green, Queen of Lombard Street brings to light the hidden history of extraordinary women whose achievements should be celebrated. How can we know who we are, if we don’t know who we were?

 

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Lisa Kleypas

Lisa Kleypas graduated from Wellesley College with a political science degree. Her novels are published in forty different languages and are bestsellers all over the world. Currently she lives in California with her husband Gregory. Learn more about this author here.

Reina Martin was tired of being told that men would take care of everything, she earned her own living and wanted to have and maintain her own bank account... she certainly didn't need to depend on a man to do it for her. So, she decided if she couldn't use their banks, she'd build her own... and that's exactly what she did. But some were not happy about her endeavour and went to great lengths to stop her...

Queen of Lombard is a story of resilience, strength, determination, hope, friendship, with a touch of mystery. As we follow our heroine on her ambitious journey we learn that not everyone around her is playing on an even field. She is wanting to do something to move women forward in the world and someone is using her endeavour for something unsavory and illegal. Their misdeeds could undo all that she worked so hard to build and I thoroughly enjoyed watching her take them down.

This is my first venture between the pages with this author's work and I have to say it impressed on all fronts, it was engaging, made me smile a time or two, and left me with a newfound appreciation for the women who came before me. It was refreshing to read a story with a strong heroine at the helm that could her own amongst the toughest of men. She stood toe to toe with them and never took no for a final answer, she did exactly what needed to be done and did it with great pride and strength. Wow what a story!

If you are a fan of historicals, you must pick up this book, it's pages will take you on an adventure that'll definitely leave an indelible impression! Highly recommend!

 

I requested an advanced copy of this title from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving my honest and unbiased opinion.

The publisher, Avon-HarperCollins, via NetGalley request