A royal scandal’s connection to a brutal serial killer threatens London in this new Veronica Speedwell adventure from New York Times bestselling and Edgar® Award–nominated author Deanna Raybourn.Autumn 1888. Veronica Speedwell and her colleague Stoker are asked by Lady Wellingtonia Beauclerk to stop a potential scandal so explosive it threatens to rock the monarchy. Prince Albert Victor is a … monarchy. Prince Albert Victor is a regular visitor to the most exclusive private club in London, 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 it from the club before scandal can break.
Worse yet, London is being 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 Auroreʼs high-class brothel, where a body soon turns up. Secrets are swirling around Veronica and the royal family—and it is up to Veronica and Stoker to find the truth, before it is too late for all of them.
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I love this series SO much and Deanna only releases one book a year, so I really treasure each story. She is a true master of her craft and I delight in her clever writing and incredible characterizations. This series has one of my all-time favorite protagonists (forthright lepidopterist Veronica) and couples (V’s mystery-solving partner is historian Stoker who is gruff, brilliant, heroic, and delicious). In this new book, the two of them investigate a member of the royal family’s possible ties to the Jack the Ripper murders. I laughed, cried, and swooned while reading this and am still thinking about it a month later! If you haven’t read this series, I urge you to do so.
This one gets 4 stars because, while everything I enjoyed about the previous books is still present and enjoyable, the characters for all their celebrated brilliance, do one incredibly stupid thing (which I won’t divulge). I knew when they chose that action that it was a mistake, but I hoped it was one of those narrative choices where the author has the heroes choose a seemingly foolish action while keeping from the readers that they are really laying an elaborate trap for the perpetrator. Sadly, that was not the case. And even the supporting characters get a chance to berate our heroes for it, rightly so. Still, it does give the supporting characters a chance to shine and create the potential for more of an ensemble. Overall, all the witty banter and prodigious vocabulary (reminiscent of Amelia Peabody and her Emerson, one of my favorite pair of amateur sleuths) continues to delight. I look forward to the next book.
It is no secret that I am addicted to audiobooks and one of my favorites has been the Veronica Speedwell series. Narrator Angele Masters brings this character brilliantly to life.
While I was late in discovering the author, Deanna Raybourn, coming up her only after she started the Veronica Speedwell series, I have become a die-hard fan. If you haven’t read or listened to this series you need to start at the beginning, believe me, these books are worth your time. The Veronica Speedwell series begins with A Curious Beginning. Veronica is a modern woman in Victorian England. She has had to rely on her own wits to survive. She is a butterfly hunter, scientist and scholar. She writes papers using only her initials because the era is not welcoming to women with thoughts in their heads, even with a woman monarch.
From the first book in this series to this fifth book, A Murderous Relation, Deanna Raybourn has given us a little more insight into the main characters Veronica and her colleague Stoker, and those closest to them. While each story stands alone the relationship and the growth of the characters from book one to five is an important progression.
Veronica is a woman of honor, strength and conviction. While she may not be conventional, she is of her era, but she is also the embodiment of the women who changed the world. Like women from all eras in history, Veronica pushes against the constraints polite society has put up her, she strives to be greater than her stature and she is determined to do whatever has to be done to see the job completed.
In A Murderous Relation, Veronica is once more to be used as a pawn against the monarchy. She and Stoker find themselves protecting the prince against those who would start a royal scandal. Is it just about an expensive gift to a courtesan or will they try to accuse him of being the notorious Jack the Ripper? Will Veronica and Stoker live to explore the romantic relationship that’s been simmering for way too long or will their relationship be used to destroy England?
I absolutely love this series!
Each book in the Veronica Speedwell series is an adventure that introduces you to new and interesting characters while bringing back some of my favorites from past books in this series. I picked up A Murderous Relation excited to follow Stoker and Veronica on their next adventure. This adventure introduced me to more of Veronica’s family and showed that not all of them think she is should be kept a secret. There was some history shared with Jack the Ripper storyline but it was mostly fiction and fun.
The attraction between Stoker and Veronica is so hot. I expect them to explode at some point. I enjoy that their relationship is moving slow and that Stoker wants them to come together at the right time but oh my gosh… how long does a girl have to wait?
The excitement, the characters, the mystery kept me turning the pages with the need to find out the rest of the story. I am excited for book 6 to be released since these are now characters that I am invested in, that I enjoy reading about and look forward to seeing what new trouble they can get themselves into.
This was a fantastic installment in a much-loved series! This is the fifth book in the Veronica Speedwell Mysteries series which is a series that is best read in order. I have been with Veronica since the beginning and am finding that I like this series more and more with each installment. I read this book in just a couple of days and found it to be incredibly entertaining. I really had a great time with this book.
I have grown to love Veronica, Stoker, and some of the other recurring characters in this series. Veronica and Stoker work very well together and obviously are quite good at solving mysteries. They also have a lot of chemistry. We have been gradually watching the heat grow between these two since the beginning of the series and while I do sometimes wish things would move a bit faster, it is obvious how much they care about each other.
The mystery in this book was a bit unexpected. Veronica’s heritage is a well-kept secret. Because of her connections, she is asked to look into some of the dealings of the prince. He has given a piece of jewelry that can be traced back to him to a woman who runs a scandalous club and his family wants it back before anyone can find out about it. Of course, things are never easy and Veronica and Stoker must navigate a pretty dangerous situation before everything is settled. Throw in the famous Jack the Ripper murders which are happening and you have quite an exciting story on your hands.
This book had everything that I hoped it would have. There were some rather light-hearted moments and some pretty intense scenes. I loved the chemistry between the characters and am loving the way Veronica and Stoker are slowly working their way towards each other. There were a few surprises in this book and I really enjoyed the fact that the Jack the Ripper murders were a part of this story. I thought that the pacing of the story was very well done and I found the book hard to put down.
I would highly recommend this book to others. This is a smartly written mystery series with incredibly wonderful characters. I cannot wait to read more of Veronica and Stoker’s adventures!
I received a digital review copy of this book from Berkley Publishing Group via NetGalley.
Deanna Raybourn, author of “A Murderous Relation” has written an intense, captivating, suspenseful, and witty novel. The Genres for this novel are Fiction, Mystery, Suspenseful, Historical Fiction, and Romance. This is the fifth book in the series, and I think that reading the other books would be helpful. This is the only book in the series that I have read, and at times I found it difficult to understand the characters. The story takes place mostly in London, and the timeline for this story is around 1888 and goes to the past when it pertains to the characters or events. The author describes her colorful cast as characters as complex, complicated, and quirky. There are betrayals and strange and dangerous things going on.
This is the era of the notorious Jack the Ripper, which is causing a panic. Veronica Speedwell and her colleague Stoker are called in by Lady Wellie to investigate some situations that cause political problems. It seems that Prince Albert Victor has given a special expensive gift to a lady who is the owner of a special house of ill repute. The gift identifies the Prince. Lady Wellie would like Veronica and Stoker to retrieve this item from this establishment.
This is a dangerous assignment. Somehow, Veronica Speedwell’s background is discussed in this book, and there are people who actually would use Veronica for their own political venues. Meanwhile, in the establishment that Veronica and Stoker visit, they are in costumes, as are other people. Not only is there risk and danger, but there is also murder. I would recommend this book for readers who enjoy a mysterious and suspenseful novel.
This historical book was really well-researched. I love that it’s set in Victorian times with authentic language and details. The tension between Veronica and Stoker in their relationship is very tantalizing. I also enjoyed the interplay of characters and the Sherlockian feel of the mystery. I’m grateful for a strong heroine in Veronica and how she’s able to keep calm in dangerous situations. I also really enjoyed the dabbling of contemporary issues, including the independence of women, the divide in social classes, and the reference to Jack the Ripper.
A complex historical mystery that solidly builds on the preceding novels in the series.