It's hard to resist a heroine who reads novels by writers like Mary Elizabeth Braddon. Novels not fit for ladies. I should say that this is a Victorian heroine and an unconventional one at that. Not only does she read the 'wrong' sorts of books, but she also drinks port with the gentlemen after dinner and solves the occasional mystery. Just so you won't raise your eyebrows too much, however, Lady Emily Ashton is from an aristocratic family and a widow, giving her entrée into Society and the excuse to get away with her somewhat unusual behavior. She's also elegant and clever and extremely likable. All in all Tasha Alexander's A Fatal Waltz, the third installment in this series (following And Only to Deceive and A Poisoned Season), was a satisfying and entertaining read complete with an appealing setting, an interesting mystery and a dash of romance. Just the sort of book for a rainy afternoon.
The year is 1891 and Emily is attending a country house party with her fiancé, Colin Hargreaves. The host of the party, Lord Fortescue, a mover and a shaker in Her Majesty's government, is an unbearably annoying man. When he's murdered I can't say I was surprised or disappointed. The man arrested for his murder, however, happens to be Lord Fortescue's protégé and also the husband of Emily's best friend. Although Colin happens to be an agent of the crown and used to these kinds of situations, he's already mixed up in other political intrigues and is unable to come to his assistance. It will be Emily that Robert and Ivy turn to, to help discover the truth of the matter. Emily has only one clue to work with and it will take her to Vienna.
Although I love Emily and Colin and the tension between them, part of what I like about these books are the secondary characters. It might be enough to only read about Emily and Colin and their adventures, but there's added depth to the story by incorporating Emily's family and friends in as well. Emily's mother is slightly exasperating, a terrible gossip and one of Society's proper matrons. You have to wonder how she ended up with a daughter like Emily (much to her chagrin at times, no doubt). Her friend Margaret, nearly as unconventional as Emily, is an American of the nouveau riche class and shares Emily's love of learning (yes, she does read more than just sensationalist literature). Once again Margaret has to miss the fun as she stays behind with Ivy in England. Emily talks her French friend, Cécile, and her childhood friend, Jeremy (the Duke of Bainbridge), into traveling with her to Vienna.
Vienna at Christmastime is lovely, and the mood is captured quite nicely. Alexander peppers the story with cultural references and even such notable figures as the Empress herself and Gustav Klimt make appearances. At first I wasn't sure if this would work, but considering that Emily and her friends move in the upper echelons of society, it wasn't really surprising. The lovely seasonal mood is marred only by Emily's investigation, which will take her to the unsavory parts of Vienna as she tries to piece together clues. Emily must deal with thugs and anarchists, and what she discovers will have significance to Colin's work for the Queen, which has also brought him to Vienna.
It's not all murderers and anarchists, though. Emily will find time to waltz with Colin (they're in Vienna after all--home of Strauss and the Waltz) and finds that her longtime friend Jeremy is harboring his own romantic feelings for her. Emily also must deal with her feelings of inadequacy as Colin's work brings him into contact with an old flame who's intelligent, sophisticated and very sexy. The subplots are almost more entertaining than the mystery. There's a traditional mystery in the book, but there's also political intrigue woven in. I wasn't particularly surprised by the solution to the mystery (though I hadn't worked out the motivation until the end), but I enjoy these novels as much for the setting and interactions between the characters as for the mystery aspect.
Each installment gets a little better I think. Colin and Emily's relationship continues to grow (are they really going to get married?), and they find that they work very well together. I won't be surprised if Emily goes beyond dabbling in the odd murder to more international sorts of crime considering the work her fiancé does. Of course now I'll have to wait until the next book to find these things out. Perhaps I'll have to go back and read the first two books again while I'm waiting. You can read my thoughts on those here and here. Check out the author's website here. A Fatal Waltz is due out in May.