A Bitter Truth (2011) Charles Todd Set in Europe in 1917 Bess Crawford is back in London on leave from the war when she finds a young woman hiding in her doorway. Deciding to help her leads to a chain of events including the uncovering of murder. I do love the historical settings of WWI. […]
The Killings at Badger’s Drift (1987) Caroline Graham Miss Emily Simpson was found dead in her home. An elderly woman, her death didn’t seem suspicious, but her best friend, Miss Lucy Bellringer insists that something was wrong and the death should be investigated. I had very very vague memories of this book. First, that Inspector […]
A Conspiracy in Belgravia (2017) Sherry Thomas This is the second Lady Sherlock Holmes book, and as I’ve mentioned before, I generally hate Sherlock Holmes stories, but this one I don’t mind as such, since instead of taking the characters are Doyle wrote them, she has imagined that Sherlock Holmes was based upon a woman, […]
This Side of Murder (2017) Anna Lee Huber Set in England in 1919. Verity Kent is a war-widow. Her husband was killed during the Great War and she has spent the last 15 months trying to come to terms with his dead and adapt to her new status. The period during and immediately after the […]
An Impartial Witness (2010) Charles Todd Set in Europe in 1917. Nursing sister Bess Crawford has just escorted a group of wounded soldiers back to London, including a terribly burned pilot whose picture of his wife was what he turned to through his excruciating first days. When that woman’s murdered body is discovered, Bess realizes […]
A Duty to the Dead (2009) Charles Todd Set in Europe in 1916 Bess Crawford is a nursing sister on the HMHS Britannic when its sunk by the Germans. She’s sent him to recuperate, and also to deliver a message given to her by a dying soldier. The mystery here is good, but what I […]
Shores of Desire (1997) Tracy Grant Set in Europe in 1815 Robert Lescaut is a French colonel and spy, who has come to Scotland to try and discover who killed his wife–a woman he believed was a Scottish Blair. Emma Blair is tired of the feuding between the Blairs and Lauders, so when Captain Robert […]
Dark Angel (1994) Tracy Grant Set in Spain and England in 1813 Adam Durward has used his ability with languages to move throughout Europe, gathering information. He also investigated issues in England, including the problem of exploding canon. Caroline Rawley has known Adam since they were children. Once they were best friends, then things changed […]
From the Editorial Page of the Falchester Weekly Review (2016) Marie Brennan This short story is a series of scientific letters between Isabella Camherst and Benjamin Talbot in “The Falchester Weekly Review” about a supposed discovery made by Talbot. It’s a brief story, and silly, since it’s all the politeness of scientists accusing each other […]
A Scot in the Dark (2016) Sarah MacLean Set in London in 1834. Alec Stuart has become the Duke of Warnick, even though he wants nothing to do with the Dukedom–or England. Seventeen dukes, if he were honest, Bernard supposed— all dead. All within the span of a fortnight. It was a turn of events— […]
Dukes Prefer Blondes (2016) Loretta Chase Set in London in 1822. Lady Clara Fairfax is this season’s popular beauty. But she’s turned down multiple marriage proposals, never quite sure of what she wants. Raven Radford is the grandson of a duke, but as his father became a barrister and married a divorcee, he is most […]
Forever Your Earl (2015) Eva Leigh Set in London in 1816. Eleanor Hawke runs one of London’s scandal sheets, and one of their favorite subjects is Lord A–d, a notorious rake. Daniel Balfour, Earl of Ashford, is searching for his best friend, Jonathan Lawson, who returned from the war a changed man. He is trying […]
Bridge of Birds: A Novel of an Ancient China That Never Was (1984) Barry Hughart Set in the Middle Kingdom of China, Year of the Tiger 3337 (AD 639) All the children in the village between the ages of eight and thirteen have fall victim to an unknown illness, and all the silkworms have died, […]
At Bertram’s Hotel (1966) Agatha Christie Several years ago when I had the flu I started to re-read the Miss Marple mysteries (which I hadn’t done in a couple decades). I read through all my favorites, then stopped once I felt better. Since I’ve been reading books set in the time of her later mysteries, […]
The Black Hand (2008) Will Thomas The fifth Barker & Llewelyn book finds the inquiry agent and his apprentice asked to find a solution to mafia killings that have come to London. “Are many of them Sicilian?” “Sicilian?” Dunham asked, as if it were a new word to his vocabulary. “Dunno ’bout that. One I-talian’s […]
As Death Draws Near (2016) Anna Lee Huber Set in Ireland in 1831 Kiera and Sebastian are on their honeymoon when Gage receives a letter from his father, ordering him to Ireland. (A) nun at the Loretto Abbey there, has gotten herself murdered. The matter is of some importance to His Grace, the Duke of […]
A Pressing Engagement (2016) Anna Lee Huber Set in Scotland in 1831 This is a short story, but you should think of it as an outtake from the novels, rather than a stand-alone story you could pick up to read if you are unfamiliar with the characters or want to see if you like the […]
A Study in Death (2015) Anna Lee Huber Set in Scotland in 1831 Lady Darby is slowly returning to society, and has started taking commissions again. Her sister is planning Kiera’s upcoming wedding to Sebastian Gage as a way to deal with her confinement during her pregnancy and as a distraction from the danger she […]
The Tropic of Serpents (2014) Marie Brennan The second novel in the Lady Trent series finds Isabella preparing to go on another scientific journey–this one to Eriga, where they hope to document other types of dragons. The warnings delivered in my first foreword continue to apply: if you are likely to be deterred by descriptions […]
A Grave Matter (2016) Anna Lee Huber Set in Scotland in 1831 After the death of her friend in the previous book, Kiera has fled to her brother’s home (her sister and brother-in-law are in Edinburgh during her sister’s pregnancy), but a New Year’s Eve murder pulls her into another investigation, and back into the […]
Mortal Arts (2013) Anna Lee Huber Set in Scotland in 1830. Alana and her sister and family are setting up in Edinburgh, because Alana is pregnant again, and the local doctor is a quack, and they want her to have access to better care. Their journey–slow as it is with Alana’s carriage sickness–is interrupted with […]
The Anatomist’s Wife (2012) Anna Lee Huber Set in Scotland in 1830. I must have read the first paragraph of about twenty books before I settled on a re-read of The The Anatomist’s Wife. Lady Darby has been hiding at her brother-in-law’s estate after her husband’s death and the ensuing scandal. At a house party, […]
The Custom of the Army (2010) Diana Gabaldon Set in London and Canada One of the things I loved about the story was the brief glimpse of Hal (much of the book is set in the Americas). his brother often did take his daughter out, with the feeble excuse that the child needed air. His […]
The Hellfire Conspiracy (2007) Will Thomas Set in London in 1885. Barker and Llewellyn are pulled into a case possibly involving the white slave trade–the sale of girls into prostitution. I’d seen women in the East End, pursuing their occupation boldly in the light of day, but it had never occurred to me that they […]
Lord John and the Hand of Devils (2007) Diana Gabaldon This is not a novel. This is three novellas: “Lord John and the Hellfire Club” is set in London in 1757. “Lord John and the Succubus” is set in Germany in 1758. “Lord John and the Haunted Soldier” is set mostly in London in 1759. […]
Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade (2007) Diana Gabaldon This is a boinking book, but it’s also a book about family and justice and doing what is right. Although I find Hal (John’s brother) sometimes rather difficult, I think in this book I truly begin to like him. Hal relaxed a bit at […]
Lord John and the Private Matter (2003) Diana Gabaldon Set in London in 1757. I’m have to different mysteries on hold to borrow from the library, and in the meantime, I started about twenty different books and none of them appealed to me, so it was time for a re-read. There were a couple things […]
The Limehouse Text (2006) Will Thomas Set in London in 1885. Inspector Bainbridge has come to Barker with new evidence in the case of the murder of Barker’s former assistant, Quong: a pawn ticket. This reopens a year-old case, and leads to several new murders before Barker and Llewellyn discover the murderer. “What exactly is […]
To Kingdom Come (2005) Will Thomas Set in London in 1884. Unknown Irish bombers have blown up Scotland Yard and several others places in London, as part of their fight for freedom. Because they have threatened another bombing within a month, and because Scotland Yard has been unable to infiltrate the Irish factions, Barker decides […]
Shinju (1984) Laura Joh Rowland Yoriki Sano Ichiro has been assigned to clear the case of a double-suicide. He has been given strict orders by his supervisor as what he is precisely to do. However, he is rather unsuited to following orders and instead looks into the death, which some suspect might have been murder. […]
The Admiral’s Penniless Bride (2011) Carla Kelly Set in England in 1816. Sally Paul is a paid companion. Because she works for older women, she is frequently looking for work, and when she goes to take a job in Plymouth, she discovers the women has already died. This leaves her with nothing, and nowhere to […]
You’re the Earl That I Want (2015) Kelly Bowen Set in England in 1818. Heath Hextall never expected to inherit the Earldom. His only goal had been to increase his family wealth. He needs a wife to take care of the things he doesn’t have time for, so he asks one of his best friends […]
The Cryptographer (2015) Alice Wallis-Eton Set in England in 1813. Irritating is, I believe, the best description for this story. There were parts of it I really liked (which is why I finished it) but greater parts were annoying and unnecessary. Aster Tanner is a young woman making her living in a world that makes […]
Delicious (2008) Sherry Thomas Set in England in 1892. This was a fun story–and one full of loving descriptions of food. It also has main characters who are middle aged (30s may not sound middle aged nowdays, but it would have been at a time when most people died in their 50s and 60s.) Verity […]
Nearly a Lady (2011) Alissa Johnson Set in England during the regency. Freddie Blythe and Lilly Ilestone have been barely surviving in Scotland after the death of Freddie’s father and the promise by Lord Haverston to care for his Freddie. Gideon and Lucien Haverston are trying to set their inherited estates to rights after discovering […]
Under Heaven (2010) Guy Gavriel Kay With bronze as a mirror one can correct one’s appearance; with history as a mirror, one can understand the rise and fall of a state; with good men as a mirror, one can distinguish right from wrong. —LI SHIMIN, TANG EMPEROR TAIZONG Guy Gavriel Kay’s writing is always epic, […]
Destined To Last (2010) Alissa Johnson Set in England in ~1814 Lady Kate Cole was, by most accounts, a young woman of exceptional beauty, extraordinary talent, and notable charm. She was also, by all accounts, a woman so remarkably prone to accidents that it was generally considered wise to back away if she happened to […]
McAlistair’s Fortune (2009) Alissa Johnson Set in England in 1814 Evie Cole has lived with her cousins since she was a young girl. After her father’s death in a carriage accident, her mother was unwilling to care for her, so the injured child moved to Haldon Hall and remained there with her cousins. McAlistair worked […]
Tempting Fate (2009) Alissa Johnson Set in England in 1813 Whittaker Cole, Earl of Thurston, and Miss Mirabelle Browning have fought and argued with each other since they were young. Whit’s mother, however, has had enough and orders him to bury the hatchet and behave themselves, for it’s possible his attitude towards Mirabelle has kept […]
As Luck Would Have It (2008) Alissa Johnson Set in England in 811 Miss Sophie Everton has spent years overseas following the death of her mother and sister, but has decided to return to London to experience the Season. Unfortunately, the cousin her father left in charge of their properties and monies has not done […]
A Study In Scarlet Women (2016) Sherry Thomas Let me be blunt: I never read Sherlock Holmes stories that were not written by ACD. I hate them. I also can’t stand having the character appropriated by other authors. Honestly, I don’t even care as much for the last couple of Sherlock Holmes stories written by […]
It Takes a Scandal (2014) Caroline Linden Set in England in 1822 Abigail Weston is the daughter of a wealthy attorney, and has a dowry to make her acceptable to society, but she wants more than someone who wants her for her father’s money. Sebastian Vane returned from war with a shattered knee and a […]
The Rogue Not Taken (2015) Sarah MacLean Set in England in 1833. Sophie Talbot is tired of being the youngest Soiled S, never truly accepted. The Talbot family was the scandal of the aristocracy. Sophie’s father was a newly minted earl, having received his title a decade earlier from the then King. Though her father […]
Her Every Wish (2016) Courtney Milan Set in England in 1866 This is a novella in the Worth Saga, and follows after Once Upon a Marquess. Daisy Whitlaw is struggling to keep herself and her mother housed and fed. Everyone tells her to let her mother go, that she can’t support the two of them, […]
Once Upon a Marquess (2015) Courtney Milan Set in England in 1866. Judith Worth has been raising her brother and sister since her father and eldest brother were convicted of treason. Since that conviction cost them their fortune, it has been a struggle–especially since they didn’t know how to do anything for themselves. Additionally, her […]
Never Judge a Lady by Her Cover (2014) Sarah MacLean Set in England in 1824 Fathers’ sins never seemed to stick. It was the mother who bore the heavy weight of ruin in these situations. The mother who passed it on to the child, as though there were not two involved in the act. The […]
No Good Duke Goes Unpunished (2013) Sarah MacLean Set in England in 1831 Temple is called the killer duke, accused of murdering his father fiancee. Disparaged by society he became one of the four partners of The Fallen Angel. The Angel’s founders had created a single path of redemption for these men. There was a […]
One Good Earl Deserves a Lover (2013) Sarah MacLean Set in England in 1831. Cross is the fourth partner in The Fallen Angel, the one who keeps the books and all but lives in the gaming hell. He also has a past from which he attempted to escape but has been unable to forgive himself. […]
A Rogue by Any Other Name (2012) Sarah MacLean Set in England in 1831. This is the first book of the Rules of Scoundrels and possibly my least favorite of the lot. Penelope Marbury is just about a spinster, and her father wants her provided for, since she has no brothers to care for her […]
A Dangerous Deceit (2017) Alissa Johnson That was completely unexpected. In a very good way. Gabriel Arkwright is the third Gentleman Thief-taker, and like Samuel, he has a past he doesn’t talk about. He’s also glib and very good at becoming who he needs to be for each case. Jane Ballenger lives in an isolated […]