Category: Historical Mystery

Murder on the Rhône by Ashley Gardner

On By BarbaraIn Barb's Reviews, Historical Mystery, Part of a Series, Regency Era (1811-1820)Leave a comment

Murder on the Rhône (Captain Lacey Regency Mysteries Book 18)

Barbara’s rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
Series: Captain Lacey #18
Publication Date: 3/17/26
Period: Regency Lyon
Number of Pages: 297

Lacey and his wife travel to Lyon, France, to attend his daughter Gabriella’s wedding. It is a bittersweet time for Lacey, as he has only recently been reunited with his long-lost firstborn. Now, he feels as though he is losing her again—but she is so clearly happy and deeply in love that he cannot help but share in her joy. Determined to spend as much time with her as possible before the wedding, Lacey sets aside his usual work… though he has an unfortunate habit of stumbling across murder victims wherever he goes.

While walking through a crowded street with Brewster, Lacey catches sight of a man from his past—a man who once left him for dead. Because the incident occurred during the war, Lacey chooses not to pursue the encounter, but fate clearly has other plans. Early one morning, he encounters the man again… standing over a dead body.

The victim’s questionable past provides plenty of possible motives, but the gendarmes quickly focus their suspicions on the family of the man Gabriella is about to marry. The story weaves together past and present, blending multiple mysteries with fascinating glimpses into the history and atmosphere of Lyon.

This is a well-paced and engaging mystery populated with memorable characters—from an outrageously flamboyant mistress to an elegant and refined countess. Readers will also enjoy spending time with the familiar supporting cast who make this series so enjoyable.

I happily recommend this book, this series, and this author. Happy reading!

View all my reviews

The Sinister Deception by Lana Williams

On By TracyIn Historical Mystery, Part of a Series, Tracy's Reviews, Victorian Era (1837-1901)Leave a comment

The Sinister Deception (Field & Greystone #6)The Sinister Deception by Lana Williams

Tracy’s Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Series: Field & Greystone, #6

Release Date: March 24, 2026

Once again Henry Field and Amelia Greystone find themselves embroiled in a new mystery, this one involving a close friend of Amelia’s Aunt and her stay at Hollowgate Heights, an exclusive clinic that boasts alternative treatments and possible cures for people that traditional medicine has deemed hopeless. But Amelia’s friend is not the only reason Henry has taken an interest in this case. His good friend Arthur Taylor, the surgeon who performs the postmortems for Scotland Yard has also brought up some concerns about a recent postmortem he performed on a former guest of the clinic. Unfortunately, their visit to the clinic does nothing to relieve their concerns and only raises more questions.

As usual, Henry also has other cases and while following up with an informant, he is caught in an explosion that results in serious injuries to not only his body, but to his memory. He is concerned that he can’t remember why he was speaking to his informant and wonders what else he has forgotten. Upon learning of his injury, Amelia is beside herself with fear, and wonders about the future of their relationship, as she has already known loss and isn’t sure she can endure losing another person she loves. Thankfully, Henry does recover his memories, but his investigations don’t seem to be progressing, and even more concerns arise about the clinic as well as the increasing number of bombings around London, especially when Amelia is unwittingly caught up in the investigation.

This was another well-written, nicely paced story with a great mystery and a bit of intrigue. I love the relationship between Amelia and Henry is progressing and giving them both a well-deserved chance at a happy life. This book has more than one mystery, a very slow burn romance, interesting historical facts, wonderful secondary characters, a satisfying resolution to at least one case and the promise of more intrigue to follow. Overall, I highly recommend this series and am looking forward to the next installment. This is the sixth book in the series and while it could be read as a standalone title, I would recommend reading the series in order for the best reader experience.

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher/author. All opinions in this review are my own. *