The More Deceived

Lord Edward Corinth & Verity Browne #5

by David Roberts

It is 1937; Winston Churchill is receiving unauthorized information on Britain’s rearmament program, and Lord Edward Corinth is brought in by the Foreign Office to investigate the leaks. Edward rapidly falls under Churchill’s spell and quickly abandons his investigation to concentrate instead on finding the murderer of a Foreign Office official who may have been one of Churchill’s sources. He soon finds himself trying to untangle a web of deception that threatens the security of the state. There is a second murder within the Foreign Office, and Edward sets out for Spain to find the murdered man’s son, though his real objective is to satisfy the gnawing fear that his friend Verity Browne, also in Spain, is in extreme peril. Verity is reporting on the Civil War for the New Gazette, and she senses a scoop when she is given secret information that the enemy is planning an attack on the undefended town of Guernica. With Edward in tow she arrives just in time to witness a barbarous aerial bombardment on a civilian population with no means of defending itself. However, a near-certain death awaits Edward in England, where nothing—including the woman he loves—is what it appears to be.

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Historical Mystery, Historical, Fiction

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
David Roberts is an English editor and novelist.
Roberts worked for several years as a book editor at Chatto and Windus, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, and Michael O'Mara Books. Since 2000 he has been a full-time writer, best known for a series of crime novels set during the late 1930s, and featuring the joint adventures of Lord Edward Corinth and Verity Browne. The novels use actual historical events as a backdrop and there is an Author's Note at the back of the books briefly outlining what happened to the historical characters subsequently.
Publishers Weekly has described his novels as "well-researched" and "first-rate fun".

Reviews

[Alison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Its 1937 and Lord Edward Corinth is asked by his friend in the Secret Service to investigate how Winston Churchill is getting access to top secret information about Britain's defensive capabilities, possibly from a sympathiser in the Foreign Office.

Invited to dine with Churchill and some friends, Edward soon comes to believe that Churchill is right about how unprepared Britain is for war, although he doesn't 100% trust him, or his cronies, but then one of the men in the Foreign Office department which collates data about arms sales in the UK is found hanged under one of London's bridges, the body is a parody of a suicide, with the man's umbrella hanging jauntily from his arm - who would kill him and why?

Meanwhile, Verity is still in Spain and Edward can't help but be terrified for her safety.

I struggled with this book, there was sooo much history/politics and the mystery sort of got buried underneath it all. Sitting here a day later I honestly don't understand how Edward got a clue to solve the murder and I feel this is my issue with the series as a whole, the detection isn't Sherlock Holmes levels of deviousness, or piecing together several innocuous pieces of evidence so that the reader mentally slaps their head and says 'why didn't I get that?', its just 'hunh? How did he come to that conclusion?'.

Also, Edward's thoughts about Verity are very odd - not sure if its David Roberts' thoughts or him trying to imagine what an aristocrat would think in the 1930s about a free spirited woman but it just jars (and no I can't think of an example - will highlight in the next book if it happens).

I have been seduced by the new covers (they are gorgeous) but with this one I am wondering - where was the train in the story?

Read on my Kindle Unlimited subscription.

[Paul Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I usually love David Roberts Corinth and Browne books but I am afraid I liked it to start with and I still love Edward Corinth and his Girlfriend Verity Browne and some of the other Characters and The Plot was good too and I liked it more than the 2nd Book but I just didn't like it as much as the others, it just didn't grab me like the others, I would still recommend it as I would the 2nd but I look hope the next one is more to my taste.

[Paul Gatehouse · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although I am still invested in the main characters and their burgeoning crime solving relationship, I felt this instalment was less tightly plotted than the previous four. Something about the resolution did not satisfy me. On the plus side, the novel contains an appearance by Winston Churchill!
"The More Deceived" throws Lord Corinth into the murky waters of pre-war espionage. It makes for a heady mix of murder, Nazis, Communists, spies and secrets.
This instalment was inevitably going to strike a darker tone, containing as it does, a horrific account of the attack on Guernica. The series is proving to be quite strong on the politics of the period. David Roberts is realising a whole world here and populating it with fascinating recurring characters. I look forward to reading the next.

[Yorky Caz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoying these books, the characters are developing and maturing as the books move on with time and its interesting to hear about life in the run upto war. So many books are set during war time but its rare to read one that covers the events beforehand

[Sylvia Dixon · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting return to times past and different attitudes.

[Kathleen Freeman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall I enjoyed this book, I love the time period it is set in.

[Ann Taylor]

What a great book. Learnt so much about the political map in 1930's Europe. The unrest in Germany, the Civil War in Spain, spies, intrigue, murder, its all here.

[Mary G. · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good descriptive story.