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Death at the Altar: After a traumatic loss, will a new murder case help Mary recover...?
The Shelleys are back with a new murder case! For fans of Mary Shelley, Daphne Du Maurier, Diane Setterfield and Laura Purcell.
With Percy under suspicion, can Mary find the real murderer in time…?
1815, London
When her infant daughter dies, Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin is plunged into a deep depression.
And it doesn’t help that the father, and man who she loves, Percy Shelley, cannot commit to her as he already has an estranged wife.
When Mary receives an invitation to a wedding from a beloved school friend from her Dundee days, Percy thinks it would provide the perfect distraction.
But even away from London, they cannot escape people talking about their relationship.
And when the curate is shot dead at the end of the wedding, the locals turn on Percy.
Mary must find the true killer before their misguided suspicions become a witch hunt.
And as Mary has murder on the mind, her stepsister Claire sets her targets on someone else — Lord Byron…
DEATH AT THE ALTAR is the third book in the Mary Shelley Investigation thrilling Gothic murder mysteries with a tenacious literary heroine working as a female sleuth.
THE MARY SHELLEY INVESTIGATIONS
Book The Missing Wife
Book The Lost Girls
Book Death at the Altar
With Percy under suspicion, can Mary find the real murderer in time…?
1815, London
When her infant daughter dies, Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin is plunged into a deep depression.
And it doesn’t help that the father, and man who she loves, Percy Shelley, cannot commit to her as he already has an estranged wife.
When Mary receives an invitation to a wedding from a beloved school friend from her Dundee days, Percy thinks it would provide the perfect distraction.
But even away from London, they cannot escape people talking about their relationship.
And when the curate is shot dead at the end of the wedding, the locals turn on Percy.
Mary must find the true killer before their misguided suspicions become a witch hunt.
And as Mary has murder on the mind, her stepsister Claire sets her targets on someone else — Lord Byron…
DEATH AT THE ALTAR is the third book in the Mary Shelley Investigation thrilling Gothic murder mysteries with a tenacious literary heroine working as a female sleuth.
THE MARY SHELLEY INVESTIGATIONS
Book The Missing Wife
Book The Lost Girls
Book Death at the Altar
218 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 5, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 1, 2026
Our 3rd installment in the Shelley investigation series.
There's a slight time jump and Mary's situation is devastating. She's a broken woman and Percy isn't much use. Claire isn't either and I'll maintain my previous thoughts about the two. Mary would be so much better off but yet, she's weak in her resolve.
There appears to be different sides to Mary. Her relationships are horrendously toxic and bring no real stability to her or security. They make her seem weak and reinforce the conventions of the time in which the books are set. She has limited options and that's a desperate situation for a woman to be in.
She also has good insights where crime is concerned and we're seeing her, yet again, surrounded by wrongdoings and her determination to gain answers leads her to a satisfactory conclusion. The crimes are close to home and introduce us to some old friends of Mary's. It goes on to show the wider impact that her personal relationship has had on her social standing and friendships aswell as showing the lengths that greedy people will go to. It's nice to see a bit of Mary's history in terms of her friends and the journey she takes to solve the crimes defies the convention of her time. It's nice to see her independence and tenacity!
There's a slight time jump and Mary's situation is devastating. She's a broken woman and Percy isn't much use. Claire isn't either and I'll maintain my previous thoughts about the two. Mary would be so much better off but yet, she's weak in her resolve.
There appears to be different sides to Mary. Her relationships are horrendously toxic and bring no real stability to her or security. They make her seem weak and reinforce the conventions of the time in which the books are set. She has limited options and that's a desperate situation for a woman to be in.
She also has good insights where crime is concerned and we're seeing her, yet again, surrounded by wrongdoings and her determination to gain answers leads her to a satisfactory conclusion. The crimes are close to home and introduce us to some old friends of Mary's. It goes on to show the wider impact that her personal relationship has had on her social standing and friendships aswell as showing the lengths that greedy people will go to. It's nice to see a bit of Mary's history in terms of her friends and the journey she takes to solve the crimes defies the convention of her time. It's nice to see her independence and tenacity!
February 22, 2026
I read Death at the Altar by Donna Gowland, a historical thriller and the third instalment in the Mary Shelley Investigates series, inspired by the real Mary Shelley.
The story’s conversation flowed with such natural realism that I felt as though I were part of it. Reading the third book in the series felt like meeting up with old friends, I already knew the characters well and was eager to discover what had changed and what new details would emerge. That said, the novel worked perfectly well as a standalone.
Gowland created a vivid sense of time and place. The nuances of the period, clothing, etiquette, social interactions, and status, stood out clearly and added depth without ever slowing the pace. The historical detail enriched the mystery and made the world feel authentic and immersive.
Overall, I found this to be an engaging and atmospheric historical thriller with convincing characters and a strong sense of period. It satisfied me both as a mystery and as a continuation of a series I had come to enjoy, and I finished it eager to spend more time in this world.
The story’s conversation flowed with such natural realism that I felt as though I were part of it. Reading the third book in the series felt like meeting up with old friends, I already knew the characters well and was eager to discover what had changed and what new details would emerge. That said, the novel worked perfectly well as a standalone.
Gowland created a vivid sense of time and place. The nuances of the period, clothing, etiquette, social interactions, and status, stood out clearly and added depth without ever slowing the pace. The historical detail enriched the mystery and made the world feel authentic and immersive.
Overall, I found this to be an engaging and atmospheric historical thriller with convincing characters and a strong sense of period. It satisfied me both as a mystery and as a continuation of a series I had come to enjoy, and I finished it eager to spend more time in this world.
March 3, 2026
Genre: Mystery
Pages: 218
Publisher: Sapere Books
Star rating: 4/5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This is the 3rd book in the series and I know one thing is certain. Mary Shelley always seems to find trouble, no matter where she goes. This time, a series of murders has taken place during and after a wedding for an old friend. What started as a vacation to get away from the grief she has felt since her newborn's demise quickly turned into a Murder She Wrote episode. The book was fast paced and left you with the satisfaction of another mystery solved at the investigative hands of Mary, Percy, and Claire. Beautifully written and kept in line with the time period. I loved every minute of the adventure and only left me wanting more cases to pop up.
Pages: 218
Publisher: Sapere Books
Star rating: 4/5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This is the 3rd book in the series and I know one thing is certain. Mary Shelley always seems to find trouble, no matter where she goes. This time, a series of murders has taken place during and after a wedding for an old friend. What started as a vacation to get away from the grief she has felt since her newborn's demise quickly turned into a Murder She Wrote episode. The book was fast paced and left you with the satisfaction of another mystery solved at the investigative hands of Mary, Percy, and Claire. Beautifully written and kept in line with the time period. I loved every minute of the adventure and only left me wanting more cases to pop up.
December 17, 2025
"Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin kept the ghosts with her."
Death at the Altar, the third book in the series, begins with Mary trying to cope with the tragic loss of her first baby, born prematurely and surviving only 13 days. Mary has experienced so much trauma in her life that one wonders how she kept her sanity. Certainly, Percy Shelley and Mary's stepsister Claire did nothing to help her. As in the previous books, in addition to the delicious details of Mary and Percy Shelley's life, there is a suspicious murder to be solved. Mary's keen mind, attention to detail, and determination always set her on a collision course with the men involved.
In each book of the series, Donna Gowland leaves a trail of breadcrumbs leading eventually to Frankenstein. She gives us a look into experiences in Mary Shelley's life, beginning in childhood, that find their way into the story Frankenstein. If you've read the book, it's such fun coming across a new detail, knowing exactly where it appears in the story. Death at the Altar brings Lord Byron into the lives of the Shelleys and sets up the all-important summer vacation in Switzerland. I am thoroughly enjoying this series and look forward to the next one at a dark and chilly Lake Geneva.
Death at the Altar, the third book in the series, begins with Mary trying to cope with the tragic loss of her first baby, born prematurely and surviving only 13 days. Mary has experienced so much trauma in her life that one wonders how she kept her sanity. Certainly, Percy Shelley and Mary's stepsister Claire did nothing to help her. As in the previous books, in addition to the delicious details of Mary and Percy Shelley's life, there is a suspicious murder to be solved. Mary's keen mind, attention to detail, and determination always set her on a collision course with the men involved.
In each book of the series, Donna Gowland leaves a trail of breadcrumbs leading eventually to Frankenstein. She gives us a look into experiences in Mary Shelley's life, beginning in childhood, that find their way into the story Frankenstein. If you've read the book, it's such fun coming across a new detail, knowing exactly where it appears in the story. Death at the Altar brings Lord Byron into the lives of the Shelleys and sets up the all-important summer vacation in Switzerland. I am thoroughly enjoying this series and look forward to the next one at a dark and chilly Lake Geneva.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews