In the history of the United Kingdom, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria’s reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardian period, and its later half overlaps with the first part of the Belle Époque era of continental Europe.
Preceded by: Regency era
Followed by: Edwardian era
Monarch: Victoria
Barbara’s rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Series: The Royal Saboteurs #2
Publication Date: 10/11/22
Period: Victorian London
Number of Pages: 268
There is an elite group of Agents for the Crown within the home office. That group, known as the Royal Saboteurs, is made up of carefully chosen and highly trained agents who have sworn to guard Queen and country. Willoughby Galloway’s parents were both elite agents during the Napoleonic Wars (Lord and Lady Spy) and it has been his lifelong goal to not only be an Agent for the Crown but to be a part of the most elite group. He’s finally completed his training and has an assignment. An Irish Separatist group, known as Innishfree, is in London and has made attempts on the Queen’s life. Will’s assignment is to investigate one of the Queen’s Ladies-in-Waiting to see if she is the palace insider assisting Innishfree.
Emily Blythe-Coston, Lady Averley, has served the queen as Lady-in-Waiting for the last two years – since her husband Jack died. She loved Jack dearly and is still in mourning for him – and the still-born child they had lost not long before. She’s made a life for herself – but is she really happy? With the threats against the Queen, they’ve been so confined that the palace has begun to seem like more prison than a home. During a particularly confining day, Emily suggests a ride in the park, and the queen is attacked. While the queen escapes without injury, Emily becomes suspect because she suggested the outing.
From the moment he lays eyes on her, Will cannot believe Emily is a traitor. Of course, he knows that traitors usually look just like the rest of us, and he’ll do everything in his power to prove she is a traitor – or not.
Even when Emily is wounded during an attack, Will can’t rule her out – yet he is drawn to her like no other. He can’t forsake his queen – he must protect her no matter the cost. What a conundrum for an honorable man. Can Will prove Emily innocent? Can he protect the queen? Will his attraction to Emily cost him his place in the Royal Saboteurs? You’ll just have to read this fast-paced, excellently written, engrossing tale to find the answers.
I enjoyed meeting Will and Emily and spending time with them. I also delighted in the cameo appearances of Callahan Kelly and Bridget Murray Kelly from the first book. I hope you will read the book and enjoy it as much as I did.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Flora Flowerdew has a secret. The former Florrie Gubbins, music hall dancer, is now Madame Flowerdew, one of London’s most renowned spirit mediums. But it’s actually her beloved Pomeranian dog, Chou-Chou, who can see the ghosts.
One of her most lucrative seances, for the wealthy Petrie family whose daughter is about to marry a handsome young duke, goes chaotically awry. The duke’s late, and very irate, grandfather demands Flora and his grandson Benedict find the long-missing family diamonds—even the search becomes littered with mayhem and murder! Can Flora discover the jewels before she loses her career, her sanity—and her heart?
Sparks fly as Flora, Benedict, and Chou-Chou pursue the truth of the diamonds’ disappearance in this lighthearted, cozy historical mystery set in foggy, gas-lit London
Giveaway to Win an e-copy of Flora Flowerdew and the Mystery of the Duke’s Diamonds & a Victorian necklace (Open to US Only)
*Terms and Conditions –US entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will be passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfillment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for the despatch or delivery of the prize.
I wanted to read this book because, with a name like Flora Flowerdew, I just knew it was going to be humorous. While it didn’t turn out to be really laugh-out-loud humorous, it was still entertaining and I enjoyed the read. How could you not find a former showgirl who decides to be a ‘medium’, a Pomeranian who really does sense ghosts, a girl who wants to get out of a betrothal to a duke, and a duke whose family diamonds are missing – to be totally entertaining?
Flora Flowerdew, formerly chorus girl Florrie Gubbins, has made a good life for herself as a medium. She makes enough money to afford a nice flat in a good neighborhood and she genuinely helps her clients. Her Pomeranian, Chou Chou sometimes gets a hair-raising when a real ghost might be present, but Flora hasn’t seen one – yet. That all changes when she agrees to do a séance for the Petrie family – A baron, his wife, his pretty daughter, and his spinster sister. The baron wants some assurance that his daughter will have a happy life if she marries the duke who has been courting her.
The séance goes well – until – a REAL ghost makes an appearance. It is the very angry ghost of the duke’s grandfather. He is whirling around the room upsetting tables, candles, glassware, etc., and shouting that his family is cursed and the diamonds must be found. Then – whoosh – he’s gone and the room is quiet again.
Flora realizes she is going to have to solve the mystery if she wants to save her reputation and continue to make a good living as a medium. After all, what client would want to do a séance with a medium who can’t control her ghosts?
The duke and Flora begin visiting anyone who knows any of the duke’s family history. The more they learn, the more confused they become. Is the duke’s father really dead? Then, there is a murder and they know things have to speed up. There are hints dropped throughout the book that will tell you who the villain is – if you follow them and put them together.
There is a nice supporting cast of characters in the book, and I would hope they will continue throughout the series. There is the duke, of course, and I really liked him; Mary, Flora’s maid started on the East End streets just as Flora did; and Evie a reporter who is a whiz at digging up information from old newspaper files. It will be interesting to see if a romance develops between Flora and the duke because they seem attracted to each other despite the differences in their stations in life.
I certainly enjoyed this nicely written story and will be looking forward to the next one in the series.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced e-Reader Copy (eARC) of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
About the Author:
Amanda McCabe wrote her first romance at the age of sixteen–a vast historical epic starring all her friends as the characters, written secretly during algebra class (and her parents wondered why math was not her strongest subject…)
She’s never since used algebra, but her books (set in a variety of time periods–Regency, Victorian, Tudor, Renaissance, and 1920s) have been nominated for many awards, including the RITA Award, the Romantic Times BOOKReviews Reviewers’ Choice Award, the Booksellers Best, the National Readers Choice Award, and the Holt Medallion. She lives in New Mexico with her lovely husband, along with far too many books and a spoiled rescue dog.
When not writing or reading, she loves yoga, collecting cheesy travel souvenirs, and watching the Food Network–even though she doesn’t cook. She also writes as Amanda Allen…
Barbara’s rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Flippin' Pages Book Reviews 