fishwitch's review against another edition
3.0
This book was rather “meh”. It deals with a difficult topic- the sexual exploitation of young girls, but the blurb leads the reader to believe that there is more to the story. Spoiler: there’s not. If I had gone into reading this knowing that, I would have had a different mindset. Instead I was hopeful of reading a relatively lighthearted Victorian mystery and that my friend, is not what this book is.
attytheresa's review against another edition
4.0
London, October 22, 1810. The Rogue is anonymously hinting in the Prattler about unnamed members of the upper class, particularly a newly made knight, of sexual abuse of scullery maids little more than children. The Masked Avengeress is on a mission in the dark of night to rescue one such scullery maid from the new townhouse in Clerkenwell, and succeeds but not without a confrontation with the new knight caught in flagrante delicto. The next morning the newsheets are filled with the gruesome murder of the new knight, the stealing away the scullery maid, silver stolen from the house, and accusations of the Avengeress now being a murderer.
That's how the author launches us into her series and introduces us to Emmeline St. Germaine, a young single woman of the nobility who has vowed to do all she can to save children from abuse at the hands of lecherous men. Emmeline is strong, intelligent, opinionated, fearless, though there are hints of darkness in her own past. She's also walking a very fine line as she's dependent on her eldest brother, one who has no belief that a woman can be independent and manage her own life. Emmeline is a wonderful character, one I can't wait to see mature as the series develops.
It's a well plotted complex murder mystery with deep themes of dark issues such as human trafficking and sexual abuse of young girls, and the subjugation of women of the era. Emmeline herself has a deep aversion to marriage, chafes at any man having control over her, her life choices, and her financial wherewithall, but I suspect that somewhere down the road in this new series that stance will soften given how her present position as a dependent of her elder brother cannot improve unless she marries a more forward thinking man. And of course, there is one on the sidelines.
That's how the author launches us into her series and introduces us to Emmeline St. Germaine, a young single woman of the nobility who has vowed to do all she can to save children from abuse at the hands of lecherous men. Emmeline is strong, intelligent, opinionated, fearless, though there are hints of darkness in her own past. She's also walking a very fine line as she's dependent on her eldest brother, one who has no belief that a woman can be independent and manage her own life. Emmeline is a wonderful character, one I can't wait to see mature as the series develops.
It's a well plotted complex murder mystery with deep themes of dark issues such as human trafficking and sexual abuse of young girls, and the subjugation of women of the era. Emmeline herself has a deep aversion to marriage, chafes at any man having control over her, her life choices, and her financial wherewithall, but I suspect that somewhere down the road in this new series that stance will soften given how her present position as a dependent of her elder brother cannot improve unless she marries a more forward thinking man. And of course, there is one on the sidelines.
annarella's review against another edition
5.0
This is a good start for a new historical mystery series and I enjoyed it even if deals with quite disturbing facts.
The heroine is a strong woman, not conforming to the norm, and fighting for the underdogs.
The plot flows and the mystery kept me guessing.
If we want to define it cozy I would add "dark cozy.
I liked it and it's strongly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine
The heroine is a strong woman, not conforming to the norm, and fighting for the underdogs.
The plot flows and the mystery kept me guessing.
If we want to define it cozy I would add "dark cozy.
I liked it and it's strongly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine
sarajane11's review against another edition
2.0
I really wanted to like this, but for whatever reason it just did not hold my interest at all.
akolb51's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
4.0
The murder of Sir Henry Claybourne leaves Regency London shaken. But for spinster Miss Emmeline St. Germaine, the crime slices far too close to home. Just hours before his death she held a dagger to him, threatening him as she rescued a scullery maid he had procured for his pleasure. Did the person who murdered Sir Henry know of her visit? Emmeline must solve the crime or face scandalous exposure and ruination, and maybe the noose, for a crime she did not commit.
This was an interesting historical cozy mystery that showed the underbelly of Regency England. Emmeline seemed to be the perfect sleuth, although I felt that she was ahead of her time because her views and deeds were not popular for that time period. The plot was intriguing and contained many red herrings that kept me guessing until the end. Thank you to NetGalley and Beyond the Page Publishing for this advanced reader’s copy. This review is my unbiased opinion.
lindseyllado's review
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
noblelady1606's review against another edition
3.0
I wanted to love this book but I didn't. The audio book was poorly edited and in the first half of the books she forgets her maids name apparently and it also replayed one of the chapters forgivable I suppose what was not forgivable in my opinion is the heroine either she is a strong woman or she's not. It seems like towards the end of the book she does a 180 in personality and becomes the delicate flower. It seems to me that there is a flaw in the writing I just don't understand what happen the last chapter seemed as through it was added on solely for the propose of introducing the next book by someone who didn't read the rest of the book. It wasn't bad it just wasn't good. the story line was just okay.
noblelady1606's review against another edition
3.0
I wanted to love this book but I didn't. The audio book was poorly edited and in the first half of the books she forgets her maids name apparently and it also replayed one of the chapters forgivable I suppose what was not forgivable in my opinion is the heroine either she is a strong woman or she's not. It seems like towards the end of the book she does a 180 in personality and becomes the delicate flower. It seems to me that there is a flaw in the writing I just don't understand what happen the last chapter seemed as through it was added on solely for the propose of introducing the next book by someone who didn't read the rest of the book. It wasn't bad it just wasn't good. the story line was just okay.
hearth_hobbit's review against another edition
3.0
This was a fun read though there are parts a bit boring. I wish there was more action but there isn’t much past the first chapter.
noblelady1606's review
3.0
I wanted to love this book but I didn't. The audio book was poorly edited and in the first half of the books she forgets her maids name apparently and it also replayed one of the chapters forgivable I suppose what was not forgivable in my opinion is the heroine either she is a strong woman or she's not. It seems like towards the end of the book she does a 180 in personality and becomes the delicate flower. It seems to me that there is a flaw in the writing I just don't understand what happen the last chapter seemed as through it was added on solely for the propose of introducing the next book by someone who didn't read the rest of the book. It wasn't bad it just wasn't good. the story line was just okay.