The House on Vesper Sands, By Paraic O’Donnell ~ 4.0 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Mystery, Suspense, Victorian Historical Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Tin House Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: January 12th, 2021

408 Pages

Synopsis:

London 1893: High up in a house, on a dark, snowy night, a lone seamstress stands by a window. So begins the swirling, serpentine world of Paraic O’Donnell’s Victorian-inspired mystery, the story of a city cloaked in shadow, but burning with questions: why does the seamstress choose to jump out of that window? Why is there a cryptic message sewn into her skin? And how is she connected to a rash of missing girls, all of whom seem to have disappeared under similar circumstances?

On the case is Gideon Bliss, a young Cambridge dropout who is in love with one of the missing girls, and his partner, Inspector Cutter, a detective as sharp and committed to his work as he is wryly hilarious. There is also Octavia Hillingdon, a young reporter determined to tell stories despite her employer’s preference that she write a woman’s society column. By turns, clever, surprising, and impossible to put down, The House on Vesper Sands peels back the mystery layer by layer, offering in the strange undertow of late 19th century London a startling glimpse at the secrets we all hold inside.

The House on Vesper Sands is a little slow in the beginning, but it gathers steam as it moves along, and turns out to be an imaginative Victorian mystery, touched with a bit of the supernatural. The characters are well written and I especially enjoyed the engaging repartee between Inspector Cutter and young Gideon Bliss. Their exchanges provided some much needed moments of levity amidst the darker, eerie tones of the story. While much of the action takes place in the final chapters of the book, I found O’Donnell’s atmospheric writing and quirky characters quite entertaining, and was thoroughly satisfied with the way the ending wrapped everything up. I’m actually hoping that O’Donnell turns this into a series because I’d love to see more of Cutter and Bliss. While it shares some similarities of other books in the sub-genre of Victorian Gothic, it contains many unique elements that make it stand out. I particularly recommend The House on Vesper Sands for fans of classic authors such as Wilkie Collins and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter (The Athena Club Bk. 1) by, Theodora Goss ~ 4.5 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Adventure, Classic Horror Retellings, Mysteries, Suspense, Victorian Historical Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Saga Press for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: Available Now

416 Pages

Synopsis: Mary Jekyll, alone and penniless following her parents’ death, is curious about the secrets of her father’s mysterious past. One clue in particular hints that Edward Hyde, her father’s former friend and a murderer, may be nearby, and there is a reward for information leading to his capture…a reward that would solve all of her immediate financial woes.

But her hunt leads her to Hyde’s daughter, Diana, a feral child left to be raised by nuns. With the assistance of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, Mary continues her search for the elusive Hyde, and soon befriends more women, all of whom have been created through terrifying experimentation: Beatrice Rappaccini, Catherine Moreau, and Justine Frankenstein. 

When their investigations lead them to the discovery of a secret society of immoral and power-crazed scientists, the horrors of their past returns. Now it is up to the monsters to triumph over the monstrous. 

The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter is an absolute delight from start to finish for so many reasons. It’s clever, creative, and original, with funny and memorable characters that fans of classic horror will love.

This motley group of young women, or as they call themselves, “monsters”, each take turns contributing to the story that Catherine Moreau is writing, which relates how they meet and the adventure they embark upon. It took me a couple of chapters to get used to the writing, because each character kept interrupting Cat, especially young Diana Hyde who is hysterically incorrigible. While I wound up loving these asides, at the beginning they were a bit distracting. 

The plot itself is so imaginative and Theodora Goss has my deepest admiration for coming up with the idea to bring together the “daughters” of some of classic horror’s most infamous villains to solve a mystery. And not only that, but she gives them all fully developed personalities and backstories without taking away from the central plot. There are even nods to Sherlock Holmes & Watson, and Dracula.

The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter is truly a monster mash-up of epic proportions, and I cannot recommend it highly enough, particularly to fans of classic horror. I just read that the sequel will be coming out in the summer of 2018, and I can’t wait for the further adventures of the Athena Club!

 

 

 

 

 

The Ripper’s Shadow (Victorian Mystery #1) ~ By Laura Joh Rowland – 4.5 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Jack the Ripper, Mystery, Prejudice, Suspense, Victorian Historical Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

368 Pages

Synopsis: The year is 1888 and Jack the Ripper begins his reign of terror.

Miss Sarah Bain, a photographer in Whitechapel, is an independent woman with dark secrets. In the privacy of her studio, she supplements her meager income by taking illicit “boudoir photographs” of the town’s local ladies of the night. But when two of her local models are found gruesomely murdered within weeks of one another, Sarah begins to suspect it’s more than mere coincidence.

Teamed with a motley crew of friends–including a street urchin, a gay aristocrat, a Jewish butcher and his wife, and a beautiful young actress–Sarah delves into the crime of the century. But just as she starts unlocking the Ripper’s secrets, she catches the eye of the local police, who believe she knows more than she’s revealing, as well from the Ripper himself, now bent on silencing her and her friends for good.

Caught in the crosshairs of a ruthless killer, Sarah races through Whitechapel’s darkest alleys to find the truth…until she makes a shocking discovery that challenges everything she thought she knew about the case.

I think I may have mentioned once or twice that I’m a little addicted to the mystery of Jack the Ripper and tend to jump on any new book on the subject whether it’s fiction or non-fiction. The Ripper’s Shadow not only gives a unique and imaginative spin to the unsolved murders, but also provides a cast of well-developed and endearing characters who I instantly became emotionally invested in. Sarah is the type of heroine that you can’t help rooting for. Smart, and stubbornly determined you can feel her frustration not only with dealing the indifferent and bigoted police, but also with her models as they fail to take note of her warnings. Her team of fellow amateur sleuths are truly a motley crew with each having their own interesting backstories. By the end of the book they’re not only a team, they’re a family. The story is action-packed and is filled with shocking plot twists, and surprising suspects. There’s also some humor included which nicely balances the darker aspects of the book. The author’s prose truly brings to life the Victorian London, from the fog and soot which seems to encompass everything, to the corrupt police and prejudiced attitudes towards women, immigrants, and homosexuals. I highly recommend The Ripper’s Shadow to readers looking for a suspense-filled historical mystery filled with colorful characters. I’m eagerly looking forward to the next book in the series!

The Adventuress: A Lady Emily Mystery ~ by Tasha Alexander – 4.5 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Mystery, Victorian Historical Fiction

 I received this e-book from NetGalley and Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis: Emily and husband Colin have come to the French Riviera for what should be a joyous occasion – the engagement party of her llifelong friend Jeremy, Duke of Bainbridge, and Amity Wells, an American heiress. But the merrymaking is cut short with the shocking death of one of the party in an apparent suicide. Not convinced by the coroner’s verdict, Emily must employ all of her investigative skills to discover the truth and avert another tragedy.

The Adventuress is the 10th entry in the Victorian Lady Emily Mystery series and thankfully shows no signs of the fatigue that sometimes appears in long running series. Once again Tasha Alexander has combined a compelling historical mystery with her signature sense of humor, which makes this a thoroughly enjoyable read.

The story is told from Emily’s first person accounts of the extended engagement party and her subsequent investigation into the death of one of the guests, and Amity’s third person flashbacks of the past events that lead up to her engagement to Emily’s childhood friend Jeremy as well as her own point of view regarding the events transpiring during what was supposed to be a joyous occasion. There is such a difference in their voices that if I didn’t know better I’d swear this was written by two authors. Emily relates events with her usual keen observations and dry wit. Amity is immature and impetuous, and it’s difficult to discern how reliable a narrator she is.

The settings take you from the C’ote D’Azur, to India and Egypt through Amity’s memories. I especially loved the characters’ visit to the prison of “The Man in the Iron Mask”. It added another interesting bit of history to a story that was already chock full of historical details. 

There was only one thing that prevented this from being a perfect read for me. Much to my disappointment Emily’s husband and sleuthing partner, Colin really took a back seat this time. They are usually such an intrepid duo and compliment each other perfectly, but in this story Emily is on her own investigating much of the time. 

Like her other books, with The Adventuress, Tasha Alexander entertains her readers with her signature mix of fascinating characters, well researched historical detail, dry sense of humor, and intriguing mystery. Even if you haven’t read the previous books in the series, you can jump right into this without getting lost. 

 

 

 

 

The Strangler Vine ~ By M.J. Carter – 4.0 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Adventure, India, The East India Company, Victorian Historical Fiction

  I received this e-Arc from NetGalley and G.P. Putnam’ s Sons in exchange for an honest review. Release Date: 3/31/15

It’s 1837 and William Avery is a young Ensign in the East India Company, cooling his heels in Calcutta while he becomes increasingly frustrated at not being summoned to join the regiment in Bengal where all the action is. Instead, he’s being swindled by his servants and getting deeper into debt due to his fondness for card games. Then he’s assigned to accompany former Company agent Jeremiah Blake to track down a missing writer whose latest book threatens to expose secrets about not only Calcutta, but the Company itself. While they dislike each other quite heartily, it’s soon apparent that William and Jeremiah will have to trust each other if they’re to not only complete their mission, but make it back to Calcutta alive. 

The Strangler Vine is a historical mystery that is rich in atmosphere. The descriptions of India are so gorgeously detailed that I felt as though I were there. The book doesn’t begin with a lot of action, but instead, slowly and steadily builds, letting you become acquainted with the characters and the customs of India. By the time the book finishes, young William and the older more jaded Jeremiah have survived beautiful but dangerous jungles, assassination attempts, possible attacks by the Thugees, and the increasing tensions between the English and Indians. I wasn’t that familiar with the history of English rule in India during this time so I found M.J. Carter’s detailed account fascinating. She describes India during the Victorian era in all it’s glory; including descriptive passages featuring the Indian hierarchy and politics, and the exquisite but at times deadly landscape. Adding another layer is her inclusion of actual key figures of the time. The characters were equally interesting, although I must admit I found William extremely annoying at first. Thankfully, Jeremiah who I loved, was a good, (or bad depending how you look at it!) influence. In a way this reminded me of a sleepier version of Indiana Jones. The ending of the book was a bit convoluted but ultimately satisfying and I’m looking forward to reading the next book featuring the odd couple of Avery and Blake.

One last note: I always consider a historical fiction novel a success if it’s made me want to research more about it’s subject, and that’s what happened with The Strangler Vine. I think it must be the librarian in me! I found myself looking up everything from the history of the East India Company to the political struggle between England and India’s royalty, to whether the Thugees really existed. 

Artful: A Novel ~ by Peter David – 4 Stars

Tags

Horror, Parodies, Vampires, Victorian Historical Fiction

 I always found Huckleberry Finn more interesting than his friend Tom Sawyer, so I was delighted when I saw that NetGalley had this book offered for review. I must have been so excited that I entered a giveaway for it on Goodreads also, because I now have it in ebook format as well as print. Thank you NetGalley and Goodreads! Luckily I really did like this book. Artful picks up where Oliver Twist left off, and with a lot less whining. I apologize if I’ve offended any fans of Oliver. So, we all know that Jack Hawkins is a bit of a rogue, but did you know he is also a courageous hero? After saving a mysterious damsel in distress, The Artful discovers an insidious plot by some familiar villains (cough, cough, Fagin) who are plotting to not only terrorize London, but to bring down the British Monarchy itself! And you probably won’t be all that surprised to learn that Fagin and his cohorts are vampyres, which actually explains quite a lot. Oh, and they’re not the good looking, brooding, sparkling kind. Thankfully, The Artful is joined by Isaaac and Abraham Van Helsing, Princess Victoria, and The Baker Street Irregulars, in stopping this nefarious plot. This is a clever and amusing parody much in the same vein as Pride and Prejudice, and Zombies. It even has amusing chapter headings that are as fun to read as the story itself. For example: “In Which The Reader’s Patience Is Rewarded By Explaining The Seemingly Inexplicable And The Jailer Is Introduced For As Long As He Suits Our Purposes.” The book is a little slow in the beginning but it doesn’t take long for it to turn into a rousing adventure. I would recommend this to fans of supernatural horror, Victorian Fiction, and books that don’t take themselves too seriously.

Evernight ~ Kristen Callihan 4.0 Stars

Tags

Paranormal Romance, Steampunk, Victorian Historical Fiction

This review is for an ARC ebook provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Will Thorne is a Sanguine demon (vampire who can also turn himself into a lethal shadow), whose sole purpose is to kill Holly Evernight. It was she who put a clockwork heart in him which has the agonizing side effect of slowly turning his mind and body into platinum. He’s also been left without most of his memories. When his assassination attempt fails, he is surprised by not only Holly’s healing touch, but also that she’s not the cold unfeeling monster he thought. Can these two lost souls forgive each other and find who is really trying to kill Holly? I wasn’t sure if I would like this 5th book in the Darkest London series. Holly came across as being kind of cold and unfeeling in the previous book Shadowdance, and Will despite his physical and mental anguish isn’t the most sympathetic character in the world. I was surprised as the story unfolded at how much I wound up liking them. Holly’s perceived coldness is a shield that she uses to hide the trauma of her past. While Will can be a bit obnoxious he winds up being so protective of Holly my heart wound up melting. What’s great about this series is that each book can be read as a stand-alone. I’ve liked reading them in order though because in each book the characters which will star in the next book are introduced. This is an entertaining book and series for readers who like Paranormal Romance, Victorian Fiction, and Steampunk.

Books in the Darkest London Series:

 

                                                           TBR Feb. 24th, 2015