Evie Duggan came from poverty to the world of the courtesan. She had men fighting over her and winning her hand in a game of cards. She married an Earl with reasonable expecatation of a charmed life thereafter. However, the sudden, unexpected death of the Earl changes her life yet again. She inherits a shabby manor house in Pennyroyal Green. Her plan is to spend her mourning period there, making a place for herself in the village. Her hopes are soon dashed as the stories about her life soon begin circulating.

Adam Sylvaine comes from a poor family and his best option of making a living is as the vicar. It doesn't hurt that his relatives can give him a living as the vicar in Pennyroyal Green. Even knowing all the gossip and being warned away from her, the first time he sees Evie, he is lost.

With hard work and a concerted effort, Evie is starting to make a place for herself, then one of the men who vied for her comes to town to win the hand of a local heiress. Evie does her best to make her friend aware of his unsavory past. When he starts spreading lies. all of the work done to win Evie a place in society is undone. Once again, Evie is on the outside looking in.

With little hope of achieving their aims, Evie turns Adam away and is ready to return to London. Events go awry and life takes a different path.

A big fan of Ms. Long, I really hoped for another one of her light-hearted, amusing stories. This book is neither. While I could sympathize with Evie, i found it hard to empathize with her. Adam was the character who was most appealing to me. His desire to do good, even as he didn't consider himself a good man was refreshing. This story didn't draw me in or allow me to immerse myself in the surroundings.

There were some amusing parts to the story and some interesting secondary characters but A NOTORIOUS COUNTESS CONFESSES will never be a favorite of mine.