An Appearance of Impropriety by Jayna Breigh
Publisher:  Kregel Publications
Release Date: January 27, 2026
Genre:  Romantic Legal Drama

Will their love turn into a scandal despite their efforts?

As the youngest female judge in Los Angeles, Mahalia Jackson has her career on a fast track to success. Her polished exterior makes sure of that. But when she volunteers for the Junior Jurors and ends up working side by side with attorney JD Cash, her plans begin to falter.

JD heads up the program—born out of his own troubled past—where local teens learn about the legal system. He leverages his position as an attorney to fulfill God’s calling on his life: to support the orphans and widows of society who have lost beloved fathers and husbands to TransNation’s eighteen-wheeled time bombs roaming America’s freeways.

Mahalia’s rule—never date a lawyer—is a straitjacket that tightens when she presides over the case where JD serves as a young widow’s attorney. When Mahalia is placed in a vulnerable position, her resolve begins to waver.

Her increasing proximity to the empathetic lawyer sparks an onslaught from anonymous online adversaries attempting to destroy Mahalia’s reputation and career by throwing around claims of an appearance of impropriety. The digital disgrace pushes Mahalia to ask one hard question: Is loving JD worth risking her career?

With a great story, well-developed characters, and a tale that explores the value of second chances and giving back, the latest from Breigh is a must-buy. —Library Journal, Starred Review

“An Appearance of Impropriety is filled with characters I cared about who were placed in challenging situations that compelled me to keep reading long into the night.”—Cara Putman, award-winning author of the Secrets to Keep series

PURCHASE LINKS:
Goodreads | Kregel Publications | Amazon
Barnes & Noble | Christianbook | BookBub | Bookshop

My Review and Reflections

The amount of tears that welled up into my eyes over the course of this book cannot be counted. From the inner thoughts and experiences of Mahalia’s life as a Black woman, to JD’s childhood, and the teenagers Mahalia and JD mentored, I could not control the emotional toll this was taking on me. Then after all these strong weepy emotions, I found myself laughing out loud on page 311. I bet you wonder what that was about. You’ll have to read the book to find out.

What I Loved About These Characters

I connected with both Mahalia and JD. I found a little bit of myself in both of them. With Mahalia, I could understand a little bit of her pain in being judged on a genetic trait that you have no control over. Although my situation and Mahalia’s are totally different and I can’t truly experience her hurt, I was provided a small glimpse of her pain. When Mahalia thought about the comments made by her grandfather about the color of her skin, it brought back my own memories and made me realize the magnitude of hurt someone can feel even when there is much love between them. With JD, I can relate to growing up in a trailer and wishing for a better home or place to live. Although, I do not think the situation was nearly as bad as JD’s.

I enjoyed that both Mahalia and JD were into fashion. Mahalia seemed to use it as some sort of armor. JD just seemed to like being wrapped in clothing that showed he respected himself and allowed him to enjoy the things he did not have as a child. It was also important for JD to help the children he mentored in this respect too. The art of clothing has gotten lost so it was nice to read about characters that understand their importance without it being strictly for vanity.

How This Story Made Me Feel

I don’t think I’ve flagged a book this much in awhile. I don’t think I’ve flagged a book this much in a while. There are moments of sadness, things that made you chuckle, or little spots of life that are so true that you feel like you’re right there. Like when elderly Judge Godlstein’s accident at the Vail retreat was upgraded to a black-diamond slope or jump area injury by the rumor mill. But he really had a slip and fall in front of the hot cocoa machine.

“She was stunning, brilliant, gracious, and allergic to elevators. He was in trouble.”

The romance was total slow burn and took a lot of time to evolve. I really liked that the timeframe is over months as opposed to days. Although at times, the book seemed to drag just a tad bit. However, you really were able to see how things slowly turned for Mahalia in particular. Especially as it relates to her faith. Once she opened her life to God’s will and decided to give him control it changed so much. Her perspective, her thoughts, and how she moved forward in the world. Having a front row seat to that type of transformation is a wonderful experience, even if fictitious. And despite JD’s strong Christian foundation, even he had his God moment when he realized he could do better. Faith and romance together just brings out all the best in a book.

Why You Might Enjoy This Book

People who enjoy books that have a strong legal leaning will enjoy this book. If you enjoy fun callouts that showcase secret message boards, text messages, or private DMs you will really get a kick out of this book. For Christian readers who really like faith as a central part of the story, this book will definitely deliver. And if you like totally unexpected surprises after the 50% mark, then Breigh has you covered. Overall, an excellent read worth spending time with.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via JustRead Publicity Tours.
All opinions are my own.

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About the Author

Jayna Breigh is a retired attorney living in the southeastern United States and the author of The Hunted Heir. She brings to her writing over a decade of experience in trust and estate litigation in Los Angeles.

Connect with Jayna by visiting www.jaynabreigh.com. to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.