A Death in Norfolk

Captain Lacey #7

by Ashley Gardner

Captain Lacey takes Lady Breckenridge to his boyhood home in Norfolk and finds himself embroiled in intrigue from the past.

Genres: Mystery, Historical Mystery, Historical Fiction, Historical, Regency, Fiction, Historical Romance

280 pages, Nook

First published October 19, 2011

About the author

Ashley Gardner is the pseudonym for NY Times bestselling and award-winning author Jennifer Ashley and nationally bestselling and award-winning author Allyson James. Her award-winning Captain Lacey Regency mysteries have garnered top reviews and an enthusiastic following. These books are now available as digital editions. More about the series can be found at http://www.gardnermysteries.com

Reviews

[Ingie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review written October 1, 2016

4 Stars - Solid good Captain Lacey mystery solving. I both sniffed and tittered. I enjoyed !!

Book #7

At last was a new audiobook here with a historical crime adventure in one of my absolutely favorite series lately, Captain Lacey Regency Mysteries — 6:49 hrs narrated by a terrific pro voice in James Gillies as always. My eight audiobook in this series and I have been enjoying them all a lot so far.

Norfolk, England in September 1817

Our beloved hero Captain Gabriel Lacey travels to his boyhood home in northern Norfolk only to discover mysterious happenings in and around the Lacey estate.

Soon there is a missing person, missing valuable paintings and missing church silver, etc etc. Our amateur sleuth Captain Lacey is 'linking' between it all trying to solve more than one crime puzzle, get some niiiice time with his beloved travel companion (the Dowager Viscountess aka:) Lady Donata Breckenridge, and in the same time also start the project to restore and renovate his childhood home. Busy times... poor stressed Captain.

Old interesting friends, as the very popular dandy Lucius Grenville, Gabriel's loyal manservant Bartholomew, the sassy beautiful actress Marianne Simmons and other acquaintances (slash enemies) as the dangerous dark-souled James Denis soon arrives in our story. The mysteries just gets more and more complicated life's are treated and the exciting action / suspense increases. — Wow, grabbing my earbuds again...

The series, author / pen-name, my reviews:

• There are so far 11 (soon 12) fullenght Captain Gabriel Lacey novels. Historical crime whodunnit's, set a few years after the Napoleon war, with a new mystery case to investigate in every book-part.

• Our main character Captain Gabriel Lacey is veteran of the Peninsular War in Regency era England. A proud man with a big heart of good family without any meens. He needs both money and love and has an itching bad leg wound.

• Ashley Gardner is a pseudonym (or the opposite) for Jennifer Ashley. I seems to like most books and series by her pen - romances or not.

• My reviews (all 4 stars) so far:
★★★★☆ - #1-The Hanover Square Affair
★★★★☆ - #2-A Regimental Murder
★★★★☆ - #3-The Glass House
★★★★☆ - #4-The Sudbury School Murders
★★★★☆ - #4.x-The Necklace Affair and Other Stories
★★★★☆ - #5-A Body in Berkeley Square
★★★★☆ - #6-A Covent Garden Mystery


Once again totally intrigued, like "can't stop listening" hooked, into a (jolly) good English whodunnit mystery case. Yay! Ms Garder/Ashley for sure know her 'thing'. Recommended cozy historical crime fiction in the "lighter" genre ...with a small added piece of love and romance feeling to it. Perfect for me!!

I LIKE - the combo Captain Lacey & James Gillies

[Grisette · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Hmm, for the 7th Lacey, I don't know why but the Lacey in the book felt different from the Lacey of previous books. Was that due to his character development, him moving to a happier life? He still had his annoying propensity to spin outlandish theories and conduct interviews with leading questions that bring him to the wrong trail, but his tone in his pov seemed to lack life. Besides, the reason for investigating in this book felt weak because it stretched belief that a powerful man like Denis would absolutely need Lacey to investigate for him. Hence, for most of the book, I was mentally rating this book at 3 GR stars.

What saved the book was once again the ending that was surprising and with some very gripping action scenes. AG really knows how to write good endings for this series. And though I am not a fan of James Denis, I liked discovering more of his background story and I was impressed with his handling of the traitor. And a welcome bonus for the book: the Brandons were missing for on-page action 😅! So after consideration, I am rounding this one up.

[LJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

First Sentence: In September, amidst a driving rain that swept across the northern Norfolk coast, my hired coach rolled up the drive to my ancestral home and deposited me at the house’s front door.

Captain Gabriel Lacey travels with Dowager Viscountess Breckenridge, his future wife, to a house party in Norfolk. His family estate is also there, although not filled with warm memories. He also agreed to deliver a message from the criminal James Denis, to whom Gabriel is beholden, to a fellow estate owner, Brigadier Easton. The message causes Easton to flee the country, with Lacey’s help. What Lacey didn’t expect was becoming involved in a hunt for precious paintings, seeking the murderer of one man and trying to locate another.

The first sentence is a true example of how wonderfully Gardner creates a sense of place, time and atmosphere. The first chapter is a compelling indication of the mystery to come.

This is a series I discovered fairly early on. After each I wait anxiously for the next book. This was a particularly long wait—five years between books—but it was worth it.

Ashley has created an ensemble of wonderful characters. Lacey, whose childhood was anything but happy and whose military experience was anything but peaceful and left him injured; his friend Grenville, a wealthy, Beau Brummell-type; Matthias, Grenvile’s valet; Bartholomew, who worked under Matthias but now serves as butler for Lacey, and the lovely Donata, Lacey’s love. And then there’s Denis, to whom Lacey is beholden and an interesting character, indeed.

What is really well done is that new readers are given a solid back-story on the characters so as not to be lost, but even those who’ve been following the series learn much more about the characters than previously known. As well as the human characters, I appreciate an author who uses the weather as almost another character.

At the core is a really solid mystery with very good suspense. Lacey is an understandably strong character, given his background, yet his injury provides a challenge he must often work around. He is also a bridge between the hard world he has known and the society world of his intended.

“A Death in Norfolk” is an excellent book in a series that should be much better known. As always, I recommend reading the series from the beginning but, most of all, I recommend reading it.

A DEATH IN NORFOLK (Hist Mys-Captain Gabriel Lacey-England-1817) –Ex
Gardner, Ashley – 7th in series
Captain Lacey Regency Mysteries – ©2011

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found book three so plodding and boring that I decided to skip ahead several books in the series to find out whether the plot advances form a morose, sad Captain Lacey.

To my pleasant surprise I found this seventh book, "A Death in Norfolk" very engaging with Lacey now engaged to the intelligent and quick-witted Lady Breckenridge. Lacey's rise in fortunes was very heartwarming and I was delighted that cloying hideous Brandons were absent from the story.

The plot was far more invested in the murder mysteries and reveal more of the complexity of Captain Lacey's complex allegiance with the criminal mastermind, James Denis. I enjoyed seeing Lacey, Denis and Grenville working together to solve several randomly connected mysteries including murder, art thief, missing accomplices, and a ten year-old disappearance of a local woman.

The low point of the story for me was when Marianne, now Grenville's mistress, slithered into the story to leash Grenville like a whipped puppy; his slavish devotion to Marianne is sickening to behold.

But overall, this book was a nice, enjoyable mystery.

[Zain · Rating 5 out of 5]

When Captain Lacey decides to visit his family home, Lacey Estates, he is in for a lot of surprises.

Lady Breckinridge goes with him when he visits the family estate, and together they discover strange things are happening, as he tries to do what he can to salvage his property.

He runs into the “gentleman criminal,” James Denis, and together they work on uncovering missing items. Of course, working with Denis, one can expect trouble to ensue.

[Barbara Rogers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Seven of the Captain Lacey Regency Mysteries.

This book was really exciting -- the book is filled with bad guys and you aren't sure which of the bad guys is the really bad guy!

I was glad to see that the Brandon's weren't in this book. I know they've had a resolution of sorts, but I still don't like them.

We learn a lot more about James Denis in this book -- or do we? He finally calls in some of his markers with Lacey -- and it is a good thing for him that he does.

Lacey and Lady Breckenridge travel to Norfolk to get a look at what is left of Lacey's family home and to get an idea of the renovations required to make it habitable. Lacey and Lady Breckenridge have agreed to attend a house party at a friend of Lady Breckenridge's (who lives in the Norfolk area) so they'll have a place to stay while they are evaluating the house.

A hoard of James Dennis' men show up soon after Lacey has arrived and start tearing up the home of a neighbor looking for paintings that the owner has stolen from Denis. They also descend on Lacey's home to do the same thing. So -- Lacey lets them -- after all he'd have to pay to have all of that demolished and this was free.

One of Denis' men is killed and another disappears. Denis is fearful that the man who has disappeared has been killed as well and wants to find him. Lacey is, of course, the one chosen by Denis to solve the mystery.

As always, there is another sub-plot going on at the same time as the main plot. This time, it is the mystery of a local woman who disappeared.

This is an excellent book and I'm sure you'll like it too. Each book in the series seems to be more exciting than the last.

[Cynthia Pratt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series just keeps getting better and I like that all the characters are becoming more complicated. Captain Lacey is a very interesting mixture of temper and justice, dogheadness and love. His friends and fiancée are also out of the ordinary with great capacity for lover and friendship yet have their flaws. (the Grenville-Marianne thing is getting a little trying).

[Lorena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice to see Lacey's childhood home at last, and get a little (very little) more background on Denis.

[Eileen Lynx · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great surprise ending. The cover art of this series makes you think that the stories will be silly romance novels. However, don’t be deceived these are good historical mysteries.

[Keri · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was another wonderful addition to the Captain Lacey series. Gabriel decides to head home to his ancestral roots and show his fiancé, the beautiful Donata where he grew up. Of course, with the house not being lived in, it is going to need a lot of work. But of course before the first nail is hit, murder and mayhem soon follows as Lacey ends up delivering a message to a local magistrate from Denis a man that Lacey loves to hate, but his honor insist that he must fulfill a debt to the hateful man. When one of Denis's men ends up dead, of course Lacey is expected to find the killer. Gabriel also finds out some disturbing things about his mother and lets him know he didn't know her as well as he thought. Even though these books are in a cozy format, it didn't feel like a cozy as there was a lot of attention to detail paid to the surroundings and the people of Norfolk. It was a very satisfying read and lots of mysteries for Lacey and the rest of us to get wrapped in to try and find a killer.

[Jill E. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh

The adventures of Captain Lacey continue in this new book in the series.

When Lacey is given his assignment by Mr. Denis, a mystery unfolds that at first seems straightforward. It does not take long before another mystery… The missing Miss Quinn… Presents itself. As the story progresses, the seemingly straightforward mystery begins to take on a great deal more complexity.

I did not feel that the structure of the plot was as stable as those of the previous mysteries. In fact, it was not as easy to follow the two separate mysteries as I expected—this author often provides two unrelated mysteries in the same book.

It was more difficult to connect the pieces of these two separate plot lines, and therefore I felt I had more questions than answers as the story moved to its conclusion.

We learned a lot about Mr. Denis.

Lacey is involved in several situations where he needs to make important decisions; I feel that the author was not steadfast in preserving Lacey’s sense of honor, one of the few things he feels he has not lost after the heartache of an abusive father and the devastation he experienced on the battlefield.

This is not the first time the author has turned things in an unexpected direction, leaving me unsettled. Interestingly, even Lacey does not seem to feel satisfied with this chapter of his life.

While Lacey tries to come to terms with the difficult choices that are forced upon him, Denis offers him a token of his thanks—but Lacey‘s response is not in keeping with the character presented to us in the first six books.

Along with this disappointment in the author’s character development, I had a few questions at the end, situations that I did not feel were fully addressed. It is hard to know if these were loose ends that the author failed to tie off, or if they will have some meaning in the next book of the series— though I find it hard to imagine that they would be of any consequence later, though I may be wrong.

And I also felt that the ending was much too abrupt, which also left me feeling dissatisfied.

The book can probably stand alone: and in this way, many readers might not notice the changes in Lacey’s character. However, becoming invested in the story over seven books, I feel this is not one of the better portrayals of Captain Lacey.

It is all right, but I don’t feel I can give it a rave review.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

Captain Lacey is back, and James Denis calls in one of his "favors"...

Lacey has agreed to attend a country house party with his paramour, Lady Breckenridge. Lady B and Lacey are making plans to marry in the new year, and Lady B wants Lacey to meet an old frenemy of hers in the country. The estate happens to be near where Lacey grew up, in Norfolk, so Lacey takes the opportunity to revisit his boyhood home, now falling in ruins since his father spent every last dime and then some of the Lacey money. But James Denis demands that Lacey work off part of his "debt" by having Lacey call upon a neighbor (Easton) and deliver a message from Denis. Of course, Lacey reads the message first, as Denis knows he will. But Lacey can't understand the cryptic sentence, so he delivers the message, as asked.

Except that once Easton receives the message instantly blanches and tells Lacey that the message is really a message from Denis that he'll have Easton killed. So Lacey helps Easton get away in the night... and then faces Denis' thugs (Cooper and Ferguson) in the morning at Easton's home. Seems that Easton had been hiding away some very valuable paintings that belong to Denis, and Denis' message was to let Easton know that Denis wasn't sitting still.

Cooper and Ferguson start demolishing Easton's house, on orders from Denis, who himself arrives to take up residence in Easton's home. (Turns out Denis owns the home, too.) In the meantime, Cooper and Ferguson have orders to demolish Lacey's abandoned home, too, since Easton might have hidden the paintings there, knowing that no one was in residence. (Really? That seemed a bit far-fetched to me.) But Lacey knows that he can't keep the home in its current condition, and because his father was such a nasty brute, who beat both Lacey and his mother, Lacey hasn't any qualms about tearing his boyhood home apart. Donata Breckinridge, wonderful lady that she is, has decided that she wants to live in Lacey's boyhood home and has the funds to restore it. So she puts in her two cents about how to keep the home's "good bones" and still accomplish what Denis and Lacey want - to tear the place apart.

But in the search for the painting, Lacey discovers a mysterious debutante's dress in his mother's old dressing room... and the bludgeoned body of Ferguson in his family's windmill... and Cooper seems to be missing. Denis refuses to believe that Cooper killed Ferguson. And here's where Denis reveals some of his own history to Lacey: Denis alludes to being an orphan, who at 7 was taken in by a woman who "liked boys" and taught him how to steal from the places where she was a maid. Denis ran away from her to the streets of London, where he survived until the age of 10 as a pickpocket, when he chose to pick the wrong pocket -- Cooper's pocket, to be exact. Cooper had just been set down as the heavy-weight boxer of his era, and seeing something of use in Denis, Cooper took Denis in and taught him about survival. Denis, even at the age of 10, was a smart lad, and he was soon the brains behind Cooper's brawn. Denis' schemes not only kept Cooper and Denis alive, they eventually landed Denis in the role of "Underworld Lord" - the man who could get anything, for the right price. Denis' loyalty to Cooper is as a mentor and friend, but Lacey thinks it's misplaced loyalty.

Then there's the strange goings on at the country house party. Lady B's husband liked to flaunt his mistresses and indiscretions in her face, so Lady B is putting Lacey to a test with her frenemy. She knows that her frenemy will attempt to seduce Lacey, and she wants to see what he does. Lacey, of course, is on to the scheme, and not only has no interest in the vulgar "lady", but evades her easily on duty for Denis. Grenville has joined the house party, but he, too, escapes its vulgarity and drudgery by assisting Lacey. Lady B has to own up to her scheme, especially when Lacey asks her to leave and go to her son, Peter. Denis has threatened the lives of all Lacey's friends, and especially Lady B and her son, when Lacey tells Denis that he's done - he won't work off this "debt" to Denis any longer -- Denis can go hang.

But Denis is persistent. Especially after Lacey discovers a severed hand that Denis identifies as belonging to Cooper.

While all of this is going on, Lacey's trying to track down the debutante to whom the gown in his mother's dressing room belongs. It seems that this Helena Quinn eloped with a stranger 10 years ago, leaving her cousin who was at Waterloo in the lurch. Helena also managed to make off with the silver from her father, the vicar's, church. And Lady B finds a diary belonging to Lacey's mother... a diary that indicates that his mother had an affair with a much younger man and contemplated running off with the man. The diary also mentions that his mother had hopes of "increasing", perhaps with a daughter this time. Who is this mysterious man? What connection is there between his mother and Helena Quinn? Lacey learns more than he ever wants to know... and has to fight off the specter of his horrid father and the anger at knowing that his mother chose to stay behind for him rather than seek her happiness in scandal.

AND THEN... we have to get back to the mystery of Cooper... We see another side to Denis, and through the turn of events, it seems obvious to me that Lacey more than works off any indebtedness to Denis. But does Denis see it that way? Will Lacey be free of him now? Sure, there will always be some connection between Lacey and Denis, and Denis will, no doubt, seek to put Lacey back into his debt. But nothing much is said about their current "debts" being settled. And that unsettles me.
--------------

I like that we see even more backbone from Lady B. I like that we know that Lacey will find happiness with her. I like that we discover more about Denis and how he might have become who he is; although even Lacey knows better than to take everything Denis says to him at face value. What can Lacey prove about Denis' past? Probably nothing. But it does help Lacey and the readers understand more. Some resolution is found with Marianne and Grenville, since she finally shares her secret with him - about time! And as we, the readers knew all along, Grenville wouldn't be the high-handed person Marianne and even Lacey feared he might be. He interferes, of course, but in the best of ways.

But as I said, the various mysteries in this book, while entertaining and enlightening, served only as the means for furthering the life stories of Lacey and Denis. Everything happens so quickly and so violently, it's tough to get much of a handle on the who's and why's... Although we aren't in doubt, this time, of who the culprit is in the main case. In the secondary mystery of Helena Quinn, a bittersweet tale emerges, and Lacey is able to right the wrongs of the past in a way that prevents the naive and innocent from being exposed to harsh justice.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story

In which we learn more of Captain Lacey's personal history and Gabriel learns that certain decisions are not always black and white. In preparation for his upcoming marriage to Lady Breckenridge, Captain Lacey travels to his ancestral home in Norfolk to see what has become of the place in his absence. While he is there, he is to deliver a note from James Denis to one of his former neighbors. Meanwhile, he will be staying at a house party with Lady Breckenridge and Grenville at the country house of an acquaintance of Lady Breckenridge. The simple delivery of a note turns into a complicated puzzle involving murder and theft. And reconnecting with childhood friends turns into an investigation into a ten year old disappearance.
I liked this book because we got to see Captain Lacey's childhood home. I thought that the ruined condition of the home itself was quite symbolic of Lacey's life, up to this point. As Lady Breckenridge stated, even though it was falling down in places, "it still had good bones." The symbolism doesn't end when Gabriel and Donata, with a little inspiration from Denis' henchmen, decide to gut the place down to its bones and rebuild it as a summer home for themselves after they are married. Meanwhile, Gabriel learns more of the history of the enigmatic James Denis, or at least what Denis is wiling to reveal. As a consequence, when things heat up and lives are on the line, Gabriel discovers, much to his discomfort, that some decisions lie firmly in the gray areas of life. I look forward to reading more.

[A.M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I inhaled this in a day; it is just so easy to read - which is not easy to write, I can tell you.

Now he has a fancy fiancée, he decides he might renovate his tumbledown estate. And of course, nothing quite goes the way he planned. Denis orders him to deliver a message to the local magistrate, who opens it, freaks out and runs for it. The man has been stupid enough to steal from Denis; oh boy. A small squad of bully boys descend on the town and start smashing out the panelling in both the townhouse and Lacey’s house looking for misappropriated goods.

I adored Donata steering them into doing half the reno knockdown for them. lol

By now, Denis’ business partner is gone, then an ex champion boxer is found beaten to death in a mill, and his most trusted lieutenant is missing. He comes down himself and demands Lacey, sort it out. He drags Grenville out of an estate party to help.

Lacey is distracted by unhappy memories, learns more about his parents, and notices a debutante gown left in his mother’s sitting room. It might belong to a missing local girl?
5 stars

So far this year, my library saved me A$2106.05

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Captain Gabriel Lacey visits his old home to find in poor and neglected shape and when he delivers note to a neighbor from James Denis the results is that he whisks the neighbor away for his own protection. Then Denis shows up with his gang of toughs and begins to tear apart the neighbors home searching for some paintings. The search then moves to Lacey's home and while dismayed he takes advantage of the help to get rid of ruined and broken paneling and damaged timbers. He also learns of the disappearance of a village woman he knew as a young girl, makes some surprise discoveries and is again put to work against his wishes by Denis to find one of missing and second in command who has gone missing. He learns things about the village residents that he did not know and in doing so had to compromise his conscience to some extent from the black and white strictness to a bit of gray to fit the circumstances. This one was a good and fast read.

[Laurla2 · Rating 4 out of 5]

-4 stars. good mystery, i wasnt able to predict any of it.

"he'd beaten me for every sin, real and imagined. he'd been trying to make me obedient, and instead had made me rebellious."

"denis had chosen control. his early life had given him none, and so he'd learned to wrest control from those who'd tried to rule him."

"men are who they are. we try to make them into something they are not, and then they are astonished when they turn out not to be what we wanted. we betray ourselves."

"i'd fallen in love with him... no, truth to tell, i was infatuated and flattered by him. no one else had said the things to me that he did. to realize that i'd fallen for his pack of lies, that he'd used me ... it hurt."

"life had a strange way of tearing apart one's convictions."

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Captain Lacey gets to go home again in A Death in Norfolk, but London crime comes along like unwanted baggage.

I find it ironic that I stopped and started the first couple of installments on this series because I didn't know if I was vibing with the stories. Now, I look forward to the read cycling back up on my TBR with anticipation that I will get a great story and a good mystery. I'm still super new to the mystery genre (even after a 250+ books) but I was right about the culprit but had zero clues about the side mystery. The side characters/found family in this series has really found their sweet spots and this book, NO Louisa Brandon, which was glorious. I find James Dennis to be a very interesting character and can't wait to see that unfold in the future.

[Kat Green · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the voice of James Gillis as he narrates “A Death in Norfolk” by Ashley Gardner (Jennifer Ashley). Obviously I listened to the audiobook for this one as I’ve been working. An intricate, breathtaking mystery. Captain Lacey is a uniquely strong minded, logically thinking, ex-military man with morals and heart. With his history with James Dennis and their love/hate relationship, they both gained insight on the others past & what makes a person act the way they do. Excellent writing and narrating for a grand adventure! 😍

[Lorraine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Captain Gabriel Lacey travels with Lady Breckenridge to his abandoned home in northern Norfolk. He learns of the disappearance of a young woman some 30 years past. He decides to investigate. At the same time, his nemesis, Mr. James Denis, finds himself in the same locale. He demands the Captains assistance in discovering the whereabouts of several missing paintings. Ŧhis is the seventh outing for Captain Lacey.

[Roxie Klinksiek · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy these books about Captain Lacey. He entertains and irritates all at the same time. I like his determination to reveal the truth no matter what. With his upcoming marriage to Lady Breckenridge, he suffers a certain amount of loss of esteem. However, I am hopeful that it will settle somewhat as he becomes accustomed to his new life. As always, the mystery is intriguing and the characters are engaging.

[M · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can you go home again? Lacy finds out the answer this age old question. I am amazed at the situations that Lacy's nemesis/benefactor Mr. Denis draws him into. So many times in Norfolk Lacy could have rid himself of Denis's interference in his life --now they are inextricably glued together by secrets they share. Lacy, Lacy, Lacy.

[Cindie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I waited a month to read this book. Patient but impatient until it was finally purchased by the library. I nearly read it in one sitting. The characters evolve and are developed beautifully, Captain Lacey learns to be even less rigid in he perception of right and wrong. And we see why Mr. Denis trust no one. Great book.

[Julie Bates · Rating 5 out of 5]

Taut and Richly Detailed

I love this series. Captain Lacey is a complex and intriguing man, haunted by the past but determined to live life as he chooses. The mysteries align with historical events but have themes that resonate with today's world. These are great books to curl up with a cup of cocoa and your pets for an evening in.

[Jeanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

The "Captain Lacey" series by Ashley Gardener is a lot of fun to read. I recommend that you read them in order to appreciate the storyline that spans the various books. (Actually they are more like novellas.) Captain Lacey is a character worth getting to know. I enjoy books from this era which adds to the enjoyment.

[Suzette Kunz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lacey returns to his home estate, which has fallen into ruin. While there, he becomes involved in one of Denis's business affairs, which ends up with a missing person, a dead body, and a decades old mystery to boot. I liked the part where Lacey and Denis are trapped together. We get to see an interested side of Denis.

[Jill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Captain Lacey has become a favorite character of mine and I'm enjoying getting to know him and his friends in this series. This book takes us to his boyhood home and we learn more about Lacey's family.
This was also my least favorite book in the series so far. Still an enjoyable read, but not as action-packed. That's all I will say because I don't want to include spoilers.

[amypete · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars. Decent mystery series, but hard to jump in at book 7 when many things that happened in earlier books are mentioned. For some reason my library only has book 7, so not sure I'll ever read the others.

[Jenny Hardesty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still enjoying this series. Capt. Lacey returns to his roots in this episode only to uncover secrets about his parents, investigate an unsolved missing person as well as a recent murder. The supporting characters are becoming more and more likable as well.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author really likes cramming the same characters into every book, whether they make sense in there or not, but I like the characters, so I'm not complaining too much. I liked the whole atmosphere, setting, and plot here.

[Inés · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect Captain Lacey mystery. The story is well paced, the mystery is neither trivial nor convoluted and we get to know better some of the usual characters: Captain Lacey himself, Lady Breckenridge and James Denis.