A Grave Matter

by Anna Lee Huber
Book 3 of Lady Darby Mystery

This is another great installment to the Lady Darby series, and I very much enjoyed it.  Of course, if I had to compare, I DO feel like the previous books were better, and the conclusion to A Grave Matter felt a bit abrupt.  Maybe even too easily concluded.  That was probably my only complaint about this book, as each time a grave is dug up and skeletal remains "kidnapped" and ransomed, the way in which the investigation is handled seemed a bit haphazard.

I was feeling frustrated alongside Mr. Gage and Kiera, but I think I was more so because it almost seems like there was no way to capture the culprits, in a logical enough fashion within the story without the conclusion feeling like an author's decree.

Although, as frustrating as the investigation was, I did like the premise of it--body snatchers stealing the skeletal remains of a deceased loved one and ransoming them for money.  I'm just not sure I cared for the ending very much.

The romance was more prominent in this book, and Sebastian Gage's presence is more felt.  I think I'm starting to see the chemistry between Kiera and Mr. Gage a bit better... although because Kiera persists in calling him "Gage," I sometimes forget that his given name is "Sebastian" and not "Gage."  Even I'm referring to him as "Gage" and feeling a bit awkward about it.  If that makes any sense.

I appreciate how the romance was handled between Kiera and Gage, as the two are actually open with each other, in spite of the fact that Gage still has his secrets.  They talk to each other, and the modicum of respect that Gage has for Kiera in her abilities, both to help with the inquiries as well as to take care of herself, is a breath of fresh air.

There maybe could have been less angst involved on Kiera's end, although I can kind of see where she's coming from, even if she was being kind of silly about it.

As per usual, the writing is descriptive and moody, adding onto the macabre-ness of the crimes being committed in graveyards.  Side characters are excellent, and I'm glad that the books include more than just Kiera and Gage stumbling through investigations.  I'm glad that we still get to see a lot of Phillip and Alana, and that others in the St. Mawr family as well as relations are included.

I loved the inclusion of Kiera's brother, Trevor and hope to see more of him in future.


***

Booklikes-opoly 2019

Roll #5: (See Also Memorial Day Bonus Rolls Activity)
Square:  European Vacation 35 | Read a book set in Europe, or that was written by an author who was born in Europe, or that involves travel by boat or that has a picture of a ship on the cover.

How it fits:  This book is set in Scotland.
Page Count:  433
Cash:  $5

Mortal Arts

by Anna Lee Huber
Book 2 of Lady Darby Mystery

Mortal Arts picks up about two months following the events in the first book.  Our characters are headed towards Edinburgh with the intention of settling Kiera's sister, Alana, more comfortably during her pregnancy, in a place more suited to her than Gairloch castle.  But the group is delayed by a summons to a family friend's estates, Dalmay House.

This book touches upon a lot of sensitive subjects, specifically concerning William Dalmay, who was recently found to have been secreted away in an insane asylum by his own father for the past nine years.  It's disheartening to our heroine, as well as friends of the family, to learn that it had been the old Lord Dalmay's inability to accept or understand how Will had changed and suffered after the war that had lead him to sending his son away.  This book also includes a mystery of the disappearance of a girl in the village, whom many are starting to think might have had something to do with William Dalmay.

This book, aside from being a mystery and a build up to romance, I think, takes a rather risky, yet thought-provoking approach to also touch upon the impact of war on the men who fought in it, and how society dealt with such an affect on people during those times.  Will suffers not only battle fatigue, but is also barely recovering from his years being held against his will in an insane asylum--in present-day, his condition would be known as PTSD.  And it's sad to say that people's reaction to this during historical times is not too different than present-day, even if we've become more advanced and open-minded over the decades.

Gage stared down at the swirled pattern of the rug before him.  "Battle-hardened soldiers are far more likely to endure in silence.  It's all they know.  And if they were to admit to having difficulties, who would they tell?" he asked Miss Remmington.  "Our society doesn't exactly welcome such confessions."

I bowed my head.  One only had to look at the old Lord Dalmay's reaction to his son, and his decision to place him in a lunatic asylum, to understand that.  Our nation was eager to welcome home conquering heroes, not broken men.

I admit, I found satisfaction in seeing Kiera finally snap at someone, as she tends to curb her anger and disappear into the woodwork without voicing her opinions.  She did that a lot at the beginning of this book, and so I appreciated, both the exchange that took place with the young, naive Elise Remmington questioning the validity of William Dalmay's nightmares and inability to re-enter society based on society's norms after he'd returned from war.  Truth is, I wanted to slap the little chit myself for being ignorant, but it's hard to fault her when it is society and those who lead society who try to sugar-coat reality, thus keeping their own people, especially women and anyone of genteel breeding, in ignorance.

Still...

But Miss Remmington was not placated by such answers.  "But, truly, how bad could it be?  Men have always gone off to war and come home again.  The history books don't talk about them coming home with nightmares."  Her hands fisted in her lap and she scowled.  "It seems to me Lord Dalmay must have done something particularly awful if it troubled him so much."

A bolt of pure fury shot though me, stiffening my spine.  "And who are you to judge?  You who've never been asked to take up a sword or a rifle and kill someone in the defense of your king and country.  War is a nasty, horrific experience, not handsome men in uniform marching side by side with flashing sabers.  It's slogging through muck, and scrounging for food when the supplies do not come through.  It's witnessing the devastation trampling armies have wrought on the countryside and the livelihoods of innocent people.  It's watching your friend die in a muddy field full of corpses."

I guess what riled me the most was that, in the end, Kiera had to apologize to everyone for being so blunt about reality, and yet Elise Remmington never even offered so much as quiet repentance for her rudeness.  That even after Kiera's outburst, one of the other characters still felt that she was merely trying to be mean in scaring Elise Remmington.  Whether that character was simply trying to coddle Miss Remmington or was genuinely ignorant of the realities of war, I'm not sure, but I had to roll my eyes.

As far as the mystery is concerned (because, yes, there was a mystery in there), I felt like it was rather solid, even if kind of predictable from the start.  The direction it takes certainly has you thinking and doubting your own conclusions at times, and I love how easily and naturally Kiera and Mr. Gage kind of just fall into the investigation like an old partnership, despite having really only worked on one murder case together a couple months ago in the timeline.

I enjoyed their slowly building chemistry, though I must admit, the banter left much to be desired.  I get that the romance is going to be a slow burn, but I'm still not a hundred percent certain I'm feeling any love for their relationship as a romantic couple at the moment.  They work well together in terms of investigating the mysterious disappearance of a young woman in the village--whenever Gage isn't keeping secrets from Kiera, that is--but I feel like their romance is still a bit lacking.  And maybe this truly is a very slow burn that will take a few more books to come to fruition... in a way, I don't mind.

I'm much more interested in seeing Kiera get requests to help investigate more mysteries.

Writing-wise, I absolutely enjoyed the descriptions of the decrepit castle, and the lands surrounding Dalmay House.  I would have also liked to see more descriptions of the house itself, as we are lead to believe that the place is quite grand, catching Kiera by surprise, when she'd been living in a castle for so long.

There may have been some tangents that felt overmuch, but I quickly forgot about those as the story drew me right in, ending with a rather melancholic conclusion, even if it was a rather expected one.

As with some of the historical mysteries I've been reading lately, Lady Kiera Darby's narrative leads us to anticipate the events of the next mystery awaiting us in the book to follow, and I'm very much looking forward to it.

The Anatomist's Wife

by Anna Lee Huber
Book 1 of Lady Darby Mystery

It took a little while to get into the book, as the first couple chapters were sort of slow-paced, but once the story got going, I pretty much got sucked in.

The writing is absolutely wonderful, and the descriptions lend a beautiful atmospheric presence to both the castle and the highlands.

There were some points in the book where I might have rolled my eyes or gotten frustrated, but ultimately, those moments paled in comparison to everything else I liked about the book.  I liked how Lady Darby was quick, level-headed, and resourceful, even in spite of a few times she might have made a few poorly judged decisions about her own safety and her own investigations.  I liked how Sebastian Gage was not made out to be a completely, all-knowing, perfect, yet broody rake--though aside from that, he truly didn't really do much for me aside from be non-standard.

The mystery itself was quite twisty, though at some points pretty predictable, such as the obviousness of some of the red herrings thrown out there.

Meanwhile, if this book had also been intended as a romance, I'm not sure I quite felt the chemistry between Kiera and Gage.  I'm not even sure they partnered all that well investigating the murder together, either, and a lot of the "tells" that Kiera kept mentioning seeing from Gage had to be deliberately mentioned repeatedly, as if trying to convince herself more than anything how well she knew Gage after only a couple days of acquaintance.

Otherwise, this was an extremely intriguing and strong start to this series, and I look forward to the next book already.  I actually appreciate the slow burn approach that I'm sure the romance will take, and am glad that the "I love you" declarations are nowhere in sight for this first book.  Of course, it might also be because I couldn't quite feel the romance, though there is still room for development there.

I particularly like that Kiera isn't completely alone in the world, and that she is at least surrounded by some good people, especially her sister and brother-in-law.  I hope to see more of them as well.

I wish there were a few more positive friendships with Kiera, especially with the women in the book.  I understand the reason why Kiera is ostracized, even if I don't like it, but that was just how I suspect life was like for all women during that time period.  Gossip, scandals, and anything out of the norm can really do a number on your reputation, and Kiera, being a rather introverted person who doesn't seem to care to defend herself or speak up for herself is more likely to face more gossip and scandal.

Then again, speaking up for herself will probably get her trolled by the rest of the ton... so, it's a lose-lose situation, no matter what.  Sad.

Meanwhile, one particular character kind of stood out to me: Marsdale.  I'm not sure how to explain my completely ridiculous, yet intriguing interest in this particular scoundrel.  A jackass and rogue he may be, but somehow I found I appreciated how easily he saw through everyone's outward facades, and how he seems to call out, rather bluntly even if tactlessly, all the obvious truths and open secrets around.  I disliked him to the extreme at first, and I'm not quite sure I even like him much (nor if it will matter if he's just a supporting character in this first book, and we'll never see him again), but he stood out.

Hi everyone! Long time no see-I missed you guys! I hope everyone is doing well and having a wonderful year so far! I'm trying to get back in the Booklikes swing of things so when I saw this lovely game I thought, hey that's the perfect way to do it! So here I am...I just finished this book for the Weapon card: Cause of Death-Arsenical Toothpaste (Author with first name that begins with the A in Arsenic) and I'm reading for the Yellow Team. I hope I'm doing this right, if not, please let me know. 

P.S.- I'm still having a hard time reviewing and posting. Everything I try to do is taking forever to load so I take it there's still some tech issues or is it just me??  

As I've already reviewed the book, this review will only cover the audiobook. For my thoughts on the story, characters, etc., please click here.

All I have to tell you is I read this book twice last year, the second time using the copy I'd just bought, for you to understand how much I love this series. The three books that make it up are easily some of my top 10 of 2014.

I almost grabbed this the moment I saw this available on Audible but held back. This audiobook was one I knew I'd need to try out before purchasing. With the setting in Scotland and the multitude of characters, the narrator was going to have quite a task.

By and large, Heather Wilds delivered. Philip's accent was good and most of the characters stood out as best as such a huge cast could.