It was with great anticipation that I read the recently released Lady Julia Gray mystery over the holiday break, Silent in the Sanctuary by Deanna Raybourn. I'd literally been waiting all year for it after her first novel entertained and amused me. I didn't expect to see it until after the first of this year, but lo and behold I came upon it the weekend before Christmas. Needless to say it was my holiday companion for several days running and I was sad to see this installment end, as now I'll have to wait another year for more adventures.
The series is set in Victorian England, and it is not surprising that Lady Julia is a fairly unconventional heroine/sleuth. It would be very surprising to find any single, Victorian woman of any age doing detective work. Raybourn gets around those oppressive Victorian rules and restraints of women by making her 30-ish Lady Julia a widow and of some financial means. The mystery of the death of her husband was solved last time around. I'm no expert in Victoriana (though with as many books as I read with that setting I should be getting there), so I am not sure how much 'poetic license' Raybourn takes with the facts of the period she sets her story in. I will say I am willing to turn a blind eye in this case and let any little inaccuracies, or perhaps better to say little stretches of the imagination that may occur pass, since I find the characters so completely enjoyable.
The novel begins in Italy where Lady Julia has gone to recuperate from the loss of her husband and a brush with death after events in her first mystery. She's gone to stay with her two brothers Lysander and Plum (Eglamour), who might possibly be even more (no, wait, they are definitely more) unconventional than she is, and through them becomes friends with handsome, young Alessandro. I should mention that Lady Julia had a bit of a love interest thing going on with enigmatic Nicholas Brisbane previously. He is an inquiry agent (read private detective) and aided Lady Julia in the discovery of her husband's murderer. Alas, months have passed since Brisbane has written to her. Was their budding romance only a figment of her imagination?
To make a longish story short, Lady Julia returns to England with Plum, Lysander and his new Italian wife, and Alessandro in tow. The family seat is a former abbey (deconsecrated during the Dissolution and made into a home). And yes, murder once again will occur. What was particularly fun about this novel was it takes place during the Christmas season, so the story is sprinkled with bits of Victorian holiday tidbits. Family and friends, some nicer than others, will descend upon the abbey for not only holiday celebrations, but also a wedding. Oh, and one of the guests is Nicholas Brisbane who has brought along his recently acquired fiance. I won't give anymore away, but to say someone will be found murdered in the chapel. Nicholas Brisbane is asked by the family to investigate before local authorities must be brought in, and Lady Julia seems the obvious choice to assist him as all fingers point to her cousin (and also bride-to-be) as the culprit.
Lady Julia is a smart and spirited heroine and her interactions with Nicholas Brisbane are witty and a tad bit biting (all the more fun), and I relished it every time they were alone together. There was a nice, little romantic thread running through the story, but I won't say who with (don't forget the charming Alessandro). So now the holidays are over, the mystery is solved and I am once again waiting. Deanna Raybourn has a blog and I've read that the next mystery, Silent on the Moor, is already in her editor's hands. I suppose the possibility of hacking into her editor's computer and reading the forthcoming novel is pretty slim (and I for one have no problem with 600+ pages). So back to waiting. I suppose if I get impatient I can always go back and reread the first two mysteries, which I would happily do. They are the sort of books that are perfect to curl up with and escape from the world.
As you can tell I am fond of these types of mysteries. If you enjoy them as well, I thought I'd mention Tasha Alexander who also writes about this period. Her mysteries are somewhat similar, but have their own spin to the characters and settings. Happily her new mystery, A Fatal Waltz will be out later this spring. Of course there is Maisie Dobbs, though the setting is later (1920s-30s). I'm thoroughly enjoying Jacqueline Winspear's latest, An Incomplete Revenge. I'll be posting about it in the next week or so. Last year I also discovered a couple of other new mystery authors who I'll be following; Clare Langley-Hawthorne (she writes Edwardian mysteries) and Cordelia Frances-Biddle (her mysteries are set in mid-1800s Philadelphia). So far I've not heard of any forthcoming books from these authors. Over the break while I was waiting for the Winspear book to come in the mail, I started reading Laurie King's The Beekeeper's Apprentice. Mary Russell, who at the beginning of the series is a young 15, meets retired Sherlock Holmes. It's 1915 and I think Mary and Holmes are going to have a long and fruitful relationship. I'll be getting back to them shortly. Perhaps I'll come across some new authors writing about this period as well this year!