C.S. Harris
What Angels Fear (2005)
Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, is a somewhat dissolute young noble who returned from the Napoleonic wars far more bitter than when he left. A prickly relationship with his father and a willingness to fight duels have not helped his reputation, but he doesn't much seem to care. However, when he becomes the suspect in a horrible rape and murder case, we can see that he doesn't really have a death wish, and despite his protestations, his sense of honor and his desire for justice, have remained intact.
I thoroughly enjoyed this story and very much liked Sebastian St Cyr. Despite all he has seen, and his wish to be cynical, he is still deeply connected to the world around him, and is offended by injustice--and not just the injustice of his own situation. But mostly I found him a very likable character. I also liked his she created a background for him that made him a good investigator. Serving in the military gave him one set of skills, but working in intelligence gave him yet another set of skills, both of which served him well as he attempts to clear his name.
Her attention to detail was also something that I particularly liked, and it always makes me feel a little better when the author of a period book is an historian. Not that the rest of us can't get details right, but I think there is something about loving history so much you're willing to get a degree in it that imparts itself when an historian writes a story set in the past. C.S. Harris filled the story with lots of little details mentioned almost in passing that made the period come to life, which I thoroughly enjoyed.
The writing was also very good. The pacing of the story was fast, and I had to force myself put the book down at night, or else I would have stayed up all night finishing it.
The dialog was also well done and enjoyable.
"Those rumors I mentioned?" Christopher said in an undertone as he and Sebastian moved forward. "They say the last time Talbot fought a duel, he chose twenty-five paces, then turned and fired after twelve. Killed the man. Of course, Talbot and his second swore the distance had been settled at twelve paces all along.""And his rival's second?"
"Shut up about it when Talbot threatened to call him out--for naming Talbot a liar."
Sebastian gave his friend a slow smile. "Then if Talbot should have occasion to call you out for a similar reason, I suggest you choose swords."
I did, however, have a couple of caveats about this book. I am not sure if I am going to recommend it to my grandmother, because it does have a bit of boinking, and the descriptions of the murder of Rachel York are quite brutal. The murder itself is not described, but the is a good deal of detail about the body and the blood etc. So if you are squeamish, you might be bothered by portions of this book.
All in all, I very much enjoyed this book, and am looking forward to the next book--which is sitting in my Amazon shopping cart as I type. If you like historical mysteries and thrillers, then you should definitely pick up What Angels Fear.
Rating: 9/10
When Gods Die (2006)
Last year I picked up What Angels Fear on because I thought it looked mildly interesting. I was pleasantly surprised to find an intriguing and fascinating Regency thriller. I then placed the the second book in the series When Gods Die on preorder, which means I’ve been waiting since March for this book to come out in paperback. Was it worth the wait? Yes.
It has been several months since Sebastian St. Cyr cleared himself of murder charges. While he and his father are attending a party thrown by the Prince Regent, a young woman is found murdered–a jeweled knife hilt sticking out of her back, while the prince–who discovered her body–is suspected by the populace of killing her, although anyone who knows the prince figures him incapable of such an act. Lord Jarvis commands Sebastian’s presence and asks him to search for the killer. Sebastian declines, until he is shown the necklace found around the woman’s neck–a necklace that disappeared with Sebastian’s mother when she was lost at sea years ago.
As with the previous book, the characters are my favorite part of the book. Sebastian is a complex character, whose many quirks and eccentricities are credited to his time in the war. His past also gives him a good reason for his skills–a set that would be highly unusual for a Lord at that time. Kit is also fascinating, and in this book we learn more of why she continues to refuse to marry Sebastian. We also see Sebastian’s relationship with his father grow more complex, as the death of his mother appears to figure in this mystery.
The mystery itself is full of political intrigue: if the Prince didn’t kill the young woman, why was she killed, and why was the body moved so as to place suspicion upon the prince? We also–in the background–see the continued development of the Bow Street Runners. Not that they play a major role in the story, but they are in the background, and unlike other stories I’ve read from the point of view of the Runners, you can see in this tale, the disdain that the wealthy and empowered feel for the Runners. It’s an intersting point of view switch from other Regency mysteries I’ve read.
If you enjoy mysteries set in the past, then I recommend When Gods Die. You should be able to read and enjoy the story without having read What Angels Fear, but of course I always think it’s best, if possible, to read stories in order. So you’ll have to make up your mind whether you want to start her, or at the beginning of the series.
Rating: 8/10
What Angels Fear (2005), When Gods Die (2006)
