Veronica Speedwell navigates a dark world of scandal and murder in this new adventure from New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award-nominated author Deanna Raybourn.
Veronica Speedwell and her natural historian colleague Stoker are asked by Lady Wellingtonia Beauclerk to help with a potential scandal so explosive it threatens to rock the monarchy. Prince Albert Victor is a regular visitor to the most exclusive private club in London, known as the Club de l'Etoile, and the proprietress, Madame Aurore, has received an expensive gift that can be traced back to the prince. Lady Wellie would like Veronica and Stoker to retrieve the jewel from the club before scandal can break.
Worse yet, London is gripped by hysteria in the autumn of 1888, terrorized by what would become the most notorious and elusive serial killer in history, Jack the Ripper--and Lady Wellie suspects the prince may be responsible.
Veronica and Stoker reluctantly agree to go undercover at Madame Aurore's high-class brothel, where another body soon turns up. Many secrets are swirling around Veronica and the royal family--and it's up to Veronica and Stoker to find the truth before it's too late for all of them.
Kindle Edition, 336 pages
Expected publication: March 10th, 2020
by Berkley
3.5/5
Veronica Speedwell and Stoker have been one of my favorite couples since reading A Curious Beginning, the sexual tension, with its sarcastic dialogue between these two and the situations they find themselves in makes for an entertaining read.
In anticipation of this release (the 5th in series) I did a reread via audiobook, they are excellent and I highly recommend, I was able to put voices to these unique individuals. I don’t feel this book would work as a stand-alone, there are lots of backstories that would be confusing and make for an unenjoyable read.
Beginning where book 4 left off and I gotta say the author sure knows how to start a book, what a hoot! The synopsis above does a great job outlining the story, and yes there is action and adventure that is to be expected with these two, but this one just lacked a little something that I can't quite put my finger on. It had the twists and turns that surprised me and went in a direction I didn't anticipate.
I read this on my kindle which features the dictionary. Veronica has a vocabulary (as does the author) that had me looking up words without interrupting the flow. A Murderous Relation had Jack the Ripper and Prince Eddy making appearances and brought back fictional characters from previous books. If you haven't read this series yet I highly recommend it.
My thanks to Berkley (via Netgalley) for an advanced e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
No comments:
Post a Comment