This one picks up right where the last one left off.
Keira and Gage are escorting Lord Gage Sr. to the home of his notorious Roscarrock family after hThis one picks up right where the last one left off.
Keira and Gage are escorting Lord Gage Sr. to the home of his notorious Roscarrock family after he had been ambushed and beaten after an attempt on his life. While he had been recuperating, they received an urgent missive from his aunt saying his uncle has died and she suspects foul play and would they please come and investigate.
Lord Gage is estranged from this side of the family. They live in Cornwall and are notorious smugglers. As a youth he participated in the smuggling, but on a fateful night a lot went wrong, a friend was killed, and a treasure lost. Gage Sr. was sent away and was able to live the life of propserity and respect he has now because he turned his back on that criminal past.
This book is a great companion piece to the preceding one. It contunues both the Gage Sr. back story and his redemption arc. We are getting to meet the man under the biting, sharp rebukes and the ruthless power wielder. We see what forces created him and why he turned his back on the family. And like the last book, we get a current mystery that is absolutely mired in the past.
I am liking how the author is slowly redeeming Gage Sr. It feels earned, and not just an exercise where the author decided to do a heel turn on a character. I am liking the way his relationship with both Keira and Gage is evolving. With Gage, there are slow incremental steps where Gage is content to wait for his father to slowly open up and meet him half way. With Keira, she is much more proactive and often makes the first move, more overtly showing compassions and forcing Gage Sr. to acknowledge that she is slowly eroding his walls. And then of course there is his marshmallow center when it comes to Emma, his granddaughter.
The mystery is interesting with some nice twists and turns and an exciting climatic resolution.
It sounds like the next book they will be heading to Scotland and I am curious to see how much more they've evolved as a family....more
This series is still going strong. I am glad I stockpiled a bunch of them to 'binge' them so to speak.
In this one, we get a deeper glimpse of Lord GaThis series is still going strong. I am glad I stockpiled a bunch of them to 'binge' them so to speak.
In this one, we get a deeper glimpse of Lord Gage's inner humanity. Throughout this series he has been a gaping asshole really. Cold, harsh, autocratic. But here and there he shows a glimpse of something underneath. And then we got to An Artless Demise where he performed an act of compassion and allyship that was so unexpected yet kinda hardcore that I had some hope for him. So the payoff here was kind of nice.
This book picks up where the last one left off. Keira and Sebastian got an urgent note saying Lord Gage had been attacked and was on his deathbed. They along with their trusty servants, their infant daughter and Lord Gage's illegitimate son, Henry, rush to his side.
When they arrive they find that it was no random highwayman attack, but a targeted attack. Of course this requires Keira and Gage to investigate and figure out what is going on. Like a lot of their investigations, the sins of the past have roared onto the present to exact a price.
This was a good quick read. Lots of interesting side characters. The doctor who is treating Lord Gage and who opens his home to Keira and Gage to stay while Lord Gage is recuperating and as they investigate is an especially interesting character whose background I found very interesting.
But beyond the mystery there was a lot of EXTRA family dramaahhhh! In this one. The Gage men got into it and often. Sebastian confronting his dad on his infidelities, Lord Gage being his usual cuttting and cruel self, lashing out at Henry and even at Keira. But the book does a good job of unpacking a lot of that where the family ends up in a hopeful place. It doesn't hurt that Lord Gage is absolutely smitten with his granddaughter. It was a little comical how everyone was flabbergasted that he basically melts in a puddle around her.
The mystery was concludes nicely. I gather that ALH likes a dashing anti-hero rogue like figure because we get a character who is a lot like Bonnie Brock in this one.
And because Lord Gage was not created in a vacuum, we learn a lot about his family... which leads right into the mystery of the next book....more
This is a really nice conclusion to this series (if it isn't it reads like a conclusion).
After the events of the last book, Ivy can now talk to the deThis is a really nice conclusion to this series (if it isn't it reads like a conclusion).
After the events of the last book, Ivy can now talk to the dead and boy are they pesky, chatty little buggers who keep nagging her to help them to move on.
But it is also through them that Ivy learns that a serial killer who targets witches is on the lose. And it is up to her and Winter to track them down and stop them.
Ivy is still snarky and funny and would much rather sit on her couch and eat potato crisps. But at this point and given what she has done over the last couple books, it feels almost like rote lip service, even to herself since she just is not content to sit by and let this person continue to kill.
On the personal front she and Winter are in love and living together. I would not categorize this series as romance per se since Ivy and Winter's romance isn't given a lot of its own space. They just kinda say "i love you' and just kinda are together with no muss, no fuss. Their romance isn't a thing, but them being together ...happens. But they make a great partnership and it is nice to know they are ride or die (literally) for each other.
The supporting characters we've gotten to know over the last few books all continue their roles. At first I considered Tarquin a villain and wondered why he was allowed to continue to exist with no consequences. But I realize his punishment in the series is subtle. He isn't a villain per se but more of a bit of a puffed up buffoon who is allowed to think he is more important than he is despite all the evidence to the contrary that everyone sees but him. He has become more comic fodder than villain fodder so that works for me.
The ending was apt and felt good and I like that everyone seemed to end of where they were supposed to. Winter of course is given his due and Ivy has a fair bit of redemption.
Keira and Gage are in the Highlands for the wedding of Keira's cousin and her friend Charlotte (whom I liked this one a bit better than the last one.
Keira and Gage are in the Highlands for the wedding of Keira's cousin and her friend Charlotte (whom we met first in the first book). Keira is an artist with a deep knowledge of the fine art. At the house party where family and friends are gathered for the wedding, she notices that several of the pieces of the fabulous art collection of her host are forgeries. This discovery leads to murder. And this in turn leads to a story of thwarted love, family pride, jealousy and more murder.
Keira has come a long way and we see that in many ways from the relationships around her in this book, her husband, her daughter, her friends and her reputation. She and her husband Gage are on the job getting to the bottom of both the forgeries and the murder. And setting right a long ago wrong.
I figured out the culprit about midway through. Even so the reveal was a great scene.
And as is usual with this series, the last bit of the last chapter sets up the next book right away.
I liked the first couple of books of this series. But the third book annoyed me. My biggest complaint was that the author used the entDNF at 30 pages.
I liked the first couple of books of this series. But the third book annoyed me. My biggest complaint was that the author used the entire first part of the book to bring everyone up to speed on what happened in the previous two books in excruciating detail. It stalled the forward momentum of that story.
So I peaced out on this series. Since I still had fond memories if the first couple of books, I decided to jump ahead -- this is book 9 -- to see if the story flowed better.
Nope. The first 20-ish pages is nothing but data dumpy exposition of all the stiff that happened in the preceding books. So. Much. Explanation. I even skipped whole passages hoping we'd get to the start of this story. But I'd land on another spot of meandery long-winded thought.
My first foray into Dorothy Sayers and Peter Wimsy. I liked it. It went fast and flowed. The audiobook was well narrated. Will definitely co3.5 stars.
My first foray into Dorothy Sayers and Peter Wimsy. I liked it. It went fast and flowed. The audiobook was well narrated. Will definitely continue on into the series....more
Even though a major character in this series is a ghost, it didn't particularly feel too paranormal. It has always felt like a good cozy mystery serieEven though a major character in this series is a ghost, it didn't particularly feel too paranormal. It has always felt like a good cozy mystery series with, hey, that guy is a ghost.
But this one walked way over the paranormal line. And it also went a little darker than I generally like.
In this one, a former resident of Dunmullach Ty Lismore, comes back to the village in tow with his super rich, super spoiled fiancee. She is an American heiress and a social media influencer with millions of followers. Everything she does is about appearances and she is a total enfant terrible. But Ty is no winner either. He's kind of an ass.
Horrible Ty, his horrible fiancee Sunny, and their entire wedding party consisting of Ty's two male best friends groomsmen and Sunny two bridesmaids (who don't seem to like her much) have come to take pre-wedding photos that Sunny can post on her social media.
To add to the chaos, Ty was once engaged to be married to Verna Cunningham, Frankie's new girlfriend. He left her at the altar and very publicly humiliated her. So there is a lot of drama surrounding this bunch.
But drama isn't the only thing that accompanies this crew, murder does as well. Lots and lots of murder. A lot of past history is uncovered between Verna and Ty and members of his entourage and Gethsemane gets involved. She is determined that not only would Frankie's heart not be broken (again) but also that he would not be blamed for a murder he did not commit (again).
Like I said, this installment read as much darker than the previous ones in the series. There is a strong paranormal element that goes beyond Eamon's ghostly self. The mystery is interesting and twisty. I liked the backstory and even the motives of the killer. But I am not sure I am on board with the occult piece of it.
This takes place in the summer, so Gethsemane's classes aren't in session and I have to say I really missed that aspect of the story. I liked Gethsemane's interaction with her students and I like it when there is a school subplot. This was hyperfocused on all these horrible strangers and the mystery so imo this one lost some of the charm I associate with this series....more
Just like Land of Shadows a book I read earlier this year, I feel as if this book were written just for me.
Like that book, it tickThat was delightful!
Just like Land of Shadows a book I read earlier this year, I feel as if this book were written just for me.
Like that book, it ticks off a lot of the things that make a book just work for me.
- African American female lead who is smart and excellently competent in her job - Fantastic dialogue - Funny - good story - good writing - great supporting characters who are not cardboard but have personality
And in this case a nice hook in a good cosy mystery. Also one of my favorite tropes is the outsider who comes in and shakes things up and this book is definitely that.
Gethsemane Browne is a virtuoso violinist whose life has imploded around her. She was promised a job as the assistant conductor of the Cork Philharmonic orchestra only for it to be snatched from under her by the music director's mistress. Since she had given up everything in the states to take the position -- her job, her apartment, her boyfriend -- she was literally left with almost nothing.
Because she comes from a family of overachievers -- doctors, chemists, nuclear physicists, judges -- she can't slink back home an utter failure. It is not to be borne. So she takes a job as a music teacher in a teaching academy in a small Irish village. It happens to be the home of one of the world's most renowned composers and concert pianists, Eamon McCarthy. A man who had supposedly murdered his wife and then killed himself.
Only this isn't true as Gethsemane quickly learns. She is housed in Eamon's cottage as part of her teaching contract. What they didn't tell her is that the cottage comes with Eamon's restless ghost. Well, they didn't tell her because they didn't know. It seems only Gethsemane has the luck to be able to communicate with his ghost.
What follows is a fun mystery as Eamon inveigles Gethsemane to clear his name and restore his reputation. The two have a very Ghost as Ms. Muir vibe, but with a decidedly modern twist as the snark factor between them is high and the quips fly fast and furious. But there is affection underneath as their friendship flourishes as Gethsemane gets closer to the truth.
Gethsemane is a great character to hang the story on. She has a bit of an irreverent sense of humor, she knows her whisky and Negro League baseball, she is talented and extremely focused. Even though she enters into her amateur sleuthing reluctantly, once she gets her teeth into she refuses to back down even as other murders happen that are clearly connected and she is most likely a target herself.
I also rather enjoyed all the relationships and connections she makes with the very colorful local characters. Her prickly relationship with the cold case Inspector O'Reilly or her co-conspiratorial relationship with the nicely sarcastic math teacher Francis.
And finally, I like that the writing doesn't try to Americanize everything. The names and places and terms are specifically Irish. For instance she could have just said the 'Dunmallach police' but a local uses the term 'Dunmullach An Garda Síoichána.' Sure they don't trip off the American tongue easily but I appreciated that the author seems to have enough respect for her audience to keep it real...
The mystery gets solved in the end, but the story isn't entirely over. Our heroine has a bit of a professional dilemma she needs to work through and our resident ghost finds himself in a bit of a pickle.
I have come to the conclusion that anyone who reads these books looking for a satisfying mystery is going to be heartily disappointed. The books are rI have come to the conclusion that anyone who reads these books looking for a satisfying mystery is going to be heartily disappointed. The books are relatively short and, of the two books I've read in the series, the mystery portion doesn't really get going until into the second half of the book. In fact, I get the strong feeling reading this book that the mystery isn't really the raison d'etre.
No in this one it felt more like a "let's hang out with Harry and Rose some more and see what happens next and oh, by the way, let's solve a murder" book.
As I was just pleased to listen to the prose and spend more time with Harry and Rose the wafer thin mystery plot wasn't really bothersome.
I do have to say that I liked the structure of the book a bit more than I thought I would. It meandered quite a bit.
The book starts out with Rose wanting to be an "Independent Girl" and actually do that horrid middle class thing known as 'working'. Humoring her, her parents with the collusion of Harry find a suitable job for her as a bank typist. Rose correctly and quickly realizes this is nothing but make work to appeaser her. Both her parents and Harry realize that as soon as the pampered, aristocratic Rose actually gets to experience what a real lower-to-middle class working girl must experience that she'll hot-foot it back home right away.
Rose is a lot spoiled and a lot naive and instead of making Rose some intrepid heroine who cheerfully makes do with her little hostel room and manages to live on her meager income, the author doesn't sugar coat Rose's faults. Rose is horrified by the poverty of the hostel and the small amount of food her little money buys. She is disdainful and a little snotty. And as predicted she latches onto the first excuse to go back to her comfortable upper class existence.
From there it meanders into a strange subplot with her parents allowing themselves to be bamboozled into having Rose committed to an Asylum.
And finally we get to the mystery element which is about the murder of a young man who is a suspected blackmailer.
All the while Harry and Rose fight their obvious attraction to each other while their faithful servants, Daisy and Beckett are trying to throw them together.
And in the meantime, woven throughout the whole story there are a bunch of side characters of various interest: Harry's secretary, her mother, the psychotic Dr. of the asylum, a sympathetic baker, a pair of larcenous servants, etc. Chesney employs the narrative device of letting us know, as asides throughout the book, how each of these people's interactions with Rose and Harry affects their lives -- either good, bad or, in one case, shocking. We get to follow each of them to their eventual fate which is told in a sometimes conversational, sometimes prophetic tone.
I am really enjoying these books even if they aren't quite what i expected in a mystery. ...more
Captain Harry Cathcart returns to England from the Boer wars as taciturn man. The younger son of a Baron, he used to be happy-go lucky, but the war chCaptain Harry Cathcart returns to England from the Boer wars as taciturn man. The younger son of a Baron, he used to be happy-go lucky, but the war changed him. Now he is home, aimless and poor. Until his name is given to the Earl of Hadshire as someone who could help him with a problem.
The results of the small bit of detective work the Earl asks Harry to undertake are so successful that Harry suddenly finds himself in demand. Discreet word of mouth has it that for a hefty fee, Harry can "fix" things. Soon Harry is flush with cash and alive with purpose as he is helping the well-heeled upper crust discreetly fix their scandalous problems.
But his biggest challenge comes when he is engaged to help discreetly cover up the death of a member of a house party. When it seems that the woman didn't simply die accidently but was murdered,Harry draws the line. Instead he begins to investigate the murder.
To make matters worse, Lady Rose Summer, the daughter of his first patron, the Earl of Hadshire, is in attendance at the party and insists on being involved in every aspect of the investigation.
Rose is a determined and surprisingly enterprising young woman and before he knows it, he, Rose, his manservant Beckett and her maid Daisy find themselves sleuthing around a drafty castle and hunting down a shifty murderer.
I've read a few of Marion Chesney's regency romances back at the dawn of time, but I've never had the occasion to read any of her mysteries that she writes under the name of Mc Beaton. I thoroughly enjoyed this one. Not just because it is just the type of cozy mystery I like to read just as a comfort read but I loved the setting and the characters.
Since most of my lighter reading set in historical times is usually in the romance genre, I very rarely get a glimpse of time periods outside of the Georgian or Regency. So this was nice to read a book set in the Edwardian era where the world is on the cusp of entering the modern era.
I also thoroughly enjoyed the characters, Harry especially. His change from the brooding veteran living frugally on his pension who is given a large berth by society because, well, he's depressing to the man who takes delight in playacting and detecting and enjoying the lucrative work is fun to see. I especially like how totally overboard he goes in some of his schemes to give his clients their money's worth. Harry was a great character and I completely and totally enjoyed him.
It took me some time to warm up to Rose because at first I thought she was a bit of a naive idiot. But the author allows the reader some time with Rose to see why she is the way she is. Her parents, although they love her, largely ignored her and left her to a radical governess who really didn't prepare Rose well for her station. As a result, Rose is something of a fish out of water even in the world she is supposed to inhabit seemlessly. She is a proto-feminst and activist in a time that is extremely unforgiving of both of those things. She is also a shy woman who simply doesn't know how to go on.
By the time the main mystery is in progress I am firmly on Rose's side. I especially enjoy how she simply has no delicacy when it comes to the less than savory parts of the mystery they are investigating. As it meanders into some fairly flagrantly sexual territory, some would think a young virgin like Rose would be dismayed with what she learns, but she is very matter of fact and frank when she discusses theories with Harry -- which completely flabbergasts him.
She and Harry clash and obviously are attracted to each other although both are in deep denial. I see that there are four books in the series so I fully expect Rose and Harry at some point to realize how they feel. But until then I am enjoying him being perplexed by her and she being upset by him.
Nice book with great characters main, colorful supporting characters, a great undertone of humor, and a neat little, albeit uncomplicated, mystery (I guessed the murderer fairly easily).
I listened to this on audio and Davina Porter who reads it is excellent.
New author for me and I am glad to have discovered her.
The story follows Diane Fallon a forensic anthropologist who has returned stateside after havinNew author for me and I am glad to have discovered her.
The story follows Diane Fallon a forensic anthropologist who has returned stateside after having worked for ten years for a human rights organization. Her time with the organization had her identifying mass graves to use as evidence against a ruthless dictator. But it ended in tragedy with Diane vowing never to do that sort of work again.
So she is back home, having been given the directorship of a science museum. But she isn't there too long before an old friend & lover asks her to look at a bone to see if it could possibly belong to the missing daughter of a friend.
So Diane finds herself slowing drawn back into what is really her first love while also dealing with the surprisingly vicious world of museum and academic politics.
As I mentioned above, this is a new author for me. In most of the blurbs I read there were all these comparisons to Patricia Cornwell. Frankly I soured on Patricia Cornwell a long time ago so that made me a bit leery. But then I read a review on Amazon where the reviewer mentioned the multiple plotlines, all the different supporting characters and the various character types. It sounded like a busy, sprawling sort of mystery, peopled with an interesting assortment of characters -- just the kind of story I like sometimes. So I dug in.
And I am glad I did. As the reviewer on Amazon stated, there is a lot going on. But in a very good, never lets the story get stale, way. There are multiple plotlines -- there is a murder mystery that is the main A plot. There is also the mystery of the bones, who are they and are they related to the main murder mystery? And if so how? There is a politics mystery behind the museum. People on the board want Diane to sell but why? And is that related to the murder mystery? There is Diane's background and what happened before she came to take over the museum. And finally there are all the various personalities winding through the narrative and which of the plotlines they belong to -- the musicians who become interns, the grad students, the professors who are constantly bugging her for office space, the sullen second in command, the board members of the museum, the police etc. etc.
All in all I was kept highly entertained as I read the book and, wonderfully, did not guess the guilty party at all.
I really liked Diane as a protagonist. She reads as approachable, grounded and very human. And she also has a few moments where she is a total hardass. There are moments where we are given science-fact information but they aren't intrusive.
I am looking forward to reading more in the series....more
I won't do a major review because there are scads. But I simply enjoyed this book. I like the chatty, almost conversational tone. I loved the setting I won't do a major review because there are scads. But I simply enjoyed this book. I like the chatty, almost conversational tone. I loved the setting and I especially loved Amelia's voice.
I easily figured out not only the identity but also the motive of the culprit, but even so it didn't dim my enjoyment. Another new to me author that I've recently discovered who has a deep backlist. Definitely will be visiting with Amelia and Emerson again....more
Lily's Sister is getting married and Lily needs to go home to participate in all the pre-wedding celebrations because she is the maid of honor.
Since the rape/torture that happened to her over seven years ago, Lily has remained largely apart from her family. They simply didn't know how to react to her trauma and in the aftermath Lily simply did not know how to communicate with her family either. So she's moved away and has led a distant relationship with them.
But she can't back out of the wedding and since it is so close to Christmas, she feels that she needs to be there. Also, Lily has healed a bit and has become a bit more centered since her relationship with PI Jack Leeds.
So Lily heads back home and is slowly feeling her way back into her family and into her home town when Jack show up unexpectedly. He is on the trail of a missing child. A baby was kidnapped eight years ago and Jack has received reliable evidence that one of three little girls who live in Lily's hometown is that baby.
But horrors, one of those three little girls is the daughter of Lily's sister's fiance. Lily is reluctantly drawn into Jack's investigation even while she and Jack are falling in love and he manages to charm her family.
This book had a much better flow and feel than the previous book. The mystery was interesting and quite suspenseful. And the best part was reading how Lily and her family negotiate through their feelings and expectations to come to some terms with what happened to Lily.
The only thing about this book that niggled at me, and it could just be a flow over from how he was introduced in the previous book, is Jack. As a character he is actually quite interesting. He has a great back story and looks really good on paper. The problem is, his relationship with Lily leaves me feeling oddly cold. He is charming and wonderful and they are seriously falling in love. There isn't anything sinister or alarming about him. I get the impression as reader that he is exactly who he (and the author) says he is -- the guy for Lily. And yet, I am not feeling them at all.
But that aside, this book was a really good read and actually made me feel like I was reading a good cozy mystery....more
Hmmm. I didn't enjoy this one as much as the first book.
It starts out promising enough. Lily discovers the dead body of a bodybuilder at the gym wherHmmm. I didn't enjoy this one as much as the first book.
It starts out promising enough. Lily discovers the dead body of a bodybuilder at the gym where she works out. Simple enough... but then we start hearing about Lily and her involvement in "the fight" and how it has brought some negative attention to her in the town. Now I'd read the first book and I couldn't remember anything about a fight. Turns out, as we learn in flashback, that recently Lily had intervened in what appeared to be a racially motivated attack in the parking lot of a supermarket of a young black man and a group of white men. While two hick -- possibly racist -- police officers merely looked on, Lily and a young Marine stepped in to break up the fight.
From there the story veers into what feels like a series of disjointed vignettes on too-quickly escalating racial tension in the small town Shakespeare. The young black man from the parking lot fight was later found tortured and killed in the woods. Two other men, both white, were also killed in suspicious circumstances (black retaliation perhaps?) And then there are pieces of paper stuck in people's windshields of their cars obliquely referring to white men's rights. There is also a bombing of a black church -- where incidentally -- Lily was in attendance.
I don't doubt that racial tensions can grow and upon reaching some invisible tipping point, quickly escalate. But I think Harris' handling of her own storyline was clumsy and unconvincing. I don't feel that she had built a very good foundation to show that there were bad race relations in town. We get from one thwarted beating in a parking lot to white men suddenly feeling threatened about their rights?
I continue to like the taciturn and monosyllabic Lily. But I am getting a bit weary of the need for Harris to make Lily so darned desirable to almost every man in town.
So I am marking this one down as a major disappointment....more
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