The gruesome murder of a young French physician draws aristocratic investigator Sebastian St. Cyr and his pregnant wife, Hero, into a dangerous, decades-old mystery as a wrenching piece of Sebastian’s past puts him to the ultimate test.Regency England, January 1813: When a badly injured Frenchwoman is found beside the mutilated body of Dr. Damion Pelletan in one of London’s worst slums, Sebastian … worst slums, Sebastian finds himself caught in a high-stakes tangle of murder and revenge. Although the woman, Alexi Sauvage, has no memory of the attack, Sebastian knows her all too well from an incident in his past—an act of wartime brutality and betrayal that nearly destroyed him.
As the search for the killer leads Sebastian into a treacherous web of duplicity, he discovers that Pelletan was part of a secret delegation sent by Napoleon to investigate the possibility of peace with Britain. Despite his powerful father-in-law’s warnings, Sebastian plunges deep into the mystery of the “Lost Dauphin,” the boy prince who disappeared in the darkest days of the French Revolution, and soon finds himself at lethal odds with the Dauphin’s sister—the imperious, ruthless daughter of Marie Antoinette—who is determined to retake the French crown at any cost.
With the murderer striking ever closer, Sebastian must battle new fears about Hero’s health and that of their soon-to-be born child. When he realizes the key to their survival may lie in the hands of an old enemy, he must finally face the truth about his own guilt in a past he has found too terrible to consider….
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My Rating: 4.5*
Another rich historical Sebastian St. Cyr murder mystery novel this time centered around the ‘Lost Dauphin’ and his sister Marie-Therese, the Duchesse d’ Angouleme, children of the executed King Louis XVI of France and his wife, Marie Antoinette.
Whatever this is, it’s ugly. Very ugly.” (quote from the book)
When Sebastian’s good friend and surgeon, Paul Gibson, stumbles upon a badly injured woman and a dead man with a gruesome injury, he is soon drawn in to finding who the killer or killers are. And when the injured woman is one from his past, his nightmares ratchet up and his concerns heighten. Not only does he embroil himself in this investigation, but Hero, his wife, is soon to give birth to their child. An event which terrifies him. Considering the ‘knowledge’ of physicians during this time, I don’t blame him!
“Those who believe God was on their side, all too often found it easy to kill in His name, secure in the comfortable certitude of their own righteousness.” (quote from the book)
As always, I thoroughly enjoyed this mystery. Ms. Harris has an amazing ability to bring to life the characters, emotions, scenery and all the five senses. She also has a very good understanding of human nature.
“I lie all the time. I’ve never subscribed to the pathetic belief that we owe our fellow men the truth.” (quote from the book)
I highly recommend this series but do strongly suggest you start at the beginning with ‘Where Angels Fear to Tread’.
4 stars for another book in this excellent historical fiction/mystery series. It is set in London, January 1813. This is book 9 in the series and I recommend that you read them in order, as there are continuing plot developments in Sebastian St. Cyr’s personal life. Sebastian, or Viscount Devlin, heir to the Earl of Hendon, likes to solve murders without pay. He is wealthy and does not worry about money.
Devlin’s friend from his army days, Doctor Paul Gibson, comes across a badly mutilated body and a severely injured woman. He asks Devlin to investigate. Devlin is warned off by his hostile father-in-law, Lord Jarvis, one of most powerful men in Britain. Jarvis despises Devlin and hates Devlin for marrying his daughter Hero. Devlin has no love for Jarvis, since Jarvis once tried to have Devlin killed.
Despite this, Devlin does investigate. He is attacked and almost killed several times, but miraculously escapes every time. The murderers attacking Devlin is a recurring theme in each book.
Devlin does solve the case, with the help of Gibson, Hero and others. There were several different suspects and I was not sure who the murderer was until the end.
Some quotes:
London winter: “Th e sun was a distant golden ball in a frigid blue sky, but there was no warmth in its brittle light.”
Description of a Frenchman member of a peace delegation: “Harmond Vaundreuil drew up in the shadow of the chapel’s modest portico. He was built small and rotund, with fat fingers and a short neck swathed in a voluminous white cravat.”
Hero’s doctor: “The problem, my lady, is that your humors are out of balance.” He proposes to solve this by bloodletting–no less than 2 pints, so she will have a successful pregnancy.
This was a library book.
I have read all in this series and can’t say enough about the writing, plot and characters.
Amazing writer!
4.5 Stars!
Sebastion St. Cyr continues to impress me as he maneuvers through political machinations and mysteries, staunchly protects his growing family, and succumbs to the inevitable – love. Another great addition to this series.
ANOTHER WINNER IN THIS SERIES.
As always, Harris combined history, politics, a wonderful sense of time and place, with fully realized characters and a believable love interest in this outing.
PLEASE read this series in order. It is so very worth your time.