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Casebook of Barnaby Adair #3
La dama y el misterio (Top Novel)
Montague ha dedicado su vida a gestionar el capital de la élite londinense, pero pagando un precio muy alto por ello: no poder disfrutar de una familia propia. Hasta que aparece en su vida la encantadora Violet Matchman, buscando su ayuda. Ante el enigma que le presenta, Montague encuentra un intrigante desafío tanto profesional como personal.
Violet, entregada dama de compañía de la anciana lady Halstead, acude a Montague para que su señora pueda estar segura de que tiene todos sus asuntos financieros en orden. Pero el famoso Montague no es en absoluto lo que ella esperaba. Se encuentra con un hombre decidido y cautivador, fuerte y comprensivo, todo lo que Violet necesita de un aliado, un papel que Montague reclama de inmediato.
Pero lady Halstead muere asesinada y Violet y Montague corren a descubrir a un asesino astuto y frío al que saben cada vez más cerca. ¿Descubrirán la impactante verdad demasiado tarde como para abrazar la oportunidad de un amor imperecedero?
"En los libros de Stephanie Laurens podrás siempre encontrar protagonistas de convicciones firmes y mucha sensualidad".
Fresh Fiction
"El estilo de Laurens es brillante".
Publishers Weekly
"A la hora de escribir romance histórico entretenido y exquisitamente sensual, Stephanie Laurens no tiene rival".
Booklist
"Stephanie Laurens nunca falla a la hora de entretener a sus lectores con argumentos brillantes, diálogos rápidos y personajes inolvidables".
Historical Romance Reviews
434 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 29, 2014
170 people are currently reading
1063 people want to read
About the author
Stephanie Laurens
206 books5,587 followersStephanie Laurens was born in Sri Lanka, which was at the time the British colony of Ceylon. When she was 5, her family moved to Melbourne, Australia, where she was raised. After continuing through school and earning a Ph.D. in Biochemistry in Australia, Stephanie and her husband moved to Great Britain, taking one of the last true overland journeys from Katmandu to London.
Once in London, Stephanie and her husband both began work as research scientists in Kent. They lived in an area surrounded by history. Their own cottage was built in the 16th century, while next door were the protected ruins of an early Roman villa, and nearby was a 14th century castle.
After four years in England, Stephanie and her husband returned to Australia, where she continued to work in cancer research, eventually heading her own research laboratory. One evening Stephanie realized that she did not have any more of her favorite romance novels to read. After years of thinking about writing her own novel, during nights and weekends for the next several months, she began crafting her own story. That manuscript, Tangled Reins, was the first of her books to be published. After achieving a level of success with her novels, Stephanie "retired" from scientific research and became a full-time novelist. Her novels are primarily historical romances set in the Regency time period.
Stephanie and her husband live on peaceful acreage on the outskirts of Melbourne. If she isn't writing, she's reading, and if she's not reading, she's tending her garden.
Once in London, Stephanie and her husband both began work as research scientists in Kent. They lived in an area surrounded by history. Their own cottage was built in the 16th century, while next door were the protected ruins of an early Roman villa, and nearby was a 14th century castle.
After four years in England, Stephanie and her husband returned to Australia, where she continued to work in cancer research, eventually heading her own research laboratory. One evening Stephanie realized that she did not have any more of her favorite romance novels to read. After years of thinking about writing her own novel, during nights and weekends for the next several months, she began crafting her own story. That manuscript, Tangled Reins, was the first of her books to be published. After achieving a level of success with her novels, Stephanie "retired" from scientific research and became a full-time novelist. Her novels are primarily historical romances set in the Regency time period.
Stephanie and her husband live on peaceful acreage on the outskirts of Melbourne. If she isn't writing, she's reading, and if she's not reading, she's tending her garden.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 214 reviews
August 26, 2016
26/8 - What does a supremely boring mystery plus a fluorescent-purple-worded romance equal? A hot mess of a book. Every time I read a Stephanie Laurens book from the last decade I wonder what the hell happened to her. Her early Cynster books were some of my favourite historical romances, but then something changed when she began to write the spin-offs. Viscount Breckenridge to the Rescue was the beginning of the end for me, but no matter how boring the plots get or how bad the sex is I seem to be addicted to the name. I can never go past a Laurens book without picking it up to see if I've read it, and borrowing it if I haven't. I have the next book in the Barnaby Adair series waiting for me on my bedside table and (surprisingly) I am attracted to more than just the name on the cover; the match of the wounded and disfigured older hero returning home to find a widowed mother of two with secrets occupying his home has me intrigued (but I was 'intrigued' by this book, so we shall see...).
I do have to give credit to Laurens for writing a book in the rarely attempted 'financial crime murder mystery' genre, with the amount of detail included here her research must have been exhaustive (I certainly found it exhausting to read). Does anyone know a 'financial crime mystery' (without or without the murder) that is thrilling, because I'd be interested in giving it a go?
*ETA*
I forgot to give credit to Nymeria's review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... for giving me the idea of skipping any scenes that neither Montague nor Violet were in (which meant I was able to skip multiple sex scenes that didn't feature the main couple). Because of this great advice I was able to finish it much faster and avoid all the 'non hero/heroine' filler scenes that I wasn't interested in anyway.
I do have to give credit to Laurens for writing a book in the rarely attempted 'financial crime murder mystery' genre, with the amount of detail included here her research must have been exhaustive (I certainly found it exhausting to read). Does anyone know a 'financial crime mystery' (without or without the murder) that is thrilling, because I'd be interested in giving it a go?
*ETA*
I forgot to give credit to Nymeria's review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... for giving me the idea of skipping any scenes that neither Montague nor Violet were in (which meant I was able to skip multiple sex scenes that didn't feature the main couple). Because of this great advice I was able to finish it much faster and avoid all the 'non hero/heroine' filler scenes that I wasn't interested in anyway.
August 25, 2016
I might be slightly exaggerating but it felt that this book was 30% about the two "main" characters and 70% about characters from previous books continuing their romance and solving the "mystery". Which makes this book a big WTF?!?
On the plus side, I read this book amazingly fast. My secret? I skipped/skimmed all the scenes that didn't involve Violet or Montague, our 2 MCs. I don't need everything to be about the MCs but here the screen time given to the other characters was just so ridiculous that I couldn't be bothered with their scenes. I didn't know them, I didn't care about them and the few scenes I read before I started skimming didn't make me curious about them. I did read enough to know that said secondary characters got more action in the bedroom than Violet and Montague. Actually, they spent way more time together (I mean "on page together") than V & M, period. So of course it's a complete romance fail. And since it failed in the mystery department as well, it's 100% fail.
One last warning in case you're brave enough to pick up this book: don't expect Montague to be "masterful". The title is vastly misleading . He doesn't exhibit any alpha tendencies during the book. He had the potential to be a very interesting character. If only the book had actually been about him...
But in the end, since I only wasted about an hour on this book:
Next!
February 21, 2014
For me, in many ways, this was a step back from the last few books by Stephanie Laurens. I've read all of her books, and the reason I keep going back even when I feel slightly dissatisfied is the woman knows how to write a mystery. That being said, her characters can often leave something to be desired--they rarely deviate from a certain archetype to the point where I feel like she could write a series starring one couple involved in many mysteries.
That particular aspect of her writing was very apparent in The Masterful Mr. Montague, an offshoot of her Cynster series, in which she revisits Barnaby Adair and Penelope Ashford from Where the Heart Leads, but also brings back Inspector Stokes and his new wife Griselda and the recurring character of Heathcote Montague, the go-to financial management genius in her universe. By juggling these two couples, and attempting to build a romance between Montague and Violet Matcham, the companion to murder victim Lady Agatha Halstead, I think Ms. Laurens takes on too much.
The characters are not different enough to capture my attention and become invested in their separate stories. There is some mention that Penelope is trying to balance her old interests, her new motherhood and her penchant for investigations, but it's never much of a focus. The relationship with her husband is shown only through brief love scenes (much shorter than the norm in Ms. Laurens' previous novels). The relationship between Stokes and Griselda is even more shallow--there are very rare moments of them away from everyone else, and the two couples are so completely similar that there are two instances where Stokes and Adair both enter the same room, and come across their wives with their respective children, and marvel at the newfound awesomeness of their life. The family life is so superficially described that it was nearly the end of the book before I realized which child belonged to which couple.
The book is named for Heathcote Montague, but he remains as much in the background as his mate, Violet. They have maybe a handful of scenes together in their entire relationship, all of which are supremely superficial, and then the reader is supposed to believe in their magical connection. In fact, Violet disappears from the book completely for several chapters. The book description supposes that Montague and Violet lead the murder case, and while they do end up unmasking the culprits, their part in the investigation is never the focus.
Juggling three couples with a murder mystery is not an easy thing to do, but it can be done (Nora Roberts does it supremely well in most of her contemporary novels). This book is not an example of how to do so. Scenes are disjointed, there isn't enough plot to go around, so there are chapters discussing the same thing, as characters discuss the Halstead family with one another, with the Cynster grand dames, and then again with each other, over and over, until it's so monotonous I fell asleep.
Lest you think I disliked this book entirely, here's what pulls it together: I like the age in which this story is set: the beginning of the Victorian age, where society is beginning to shift in structure and composition. The white-collar class is starting to find itself -- with men like Montague who deal in financial management are rising in power. Industry and trade are replacing the old power structures, and it's not surprising that while this book deals with London society, none of the main characters themselves hold titles, and in fact, only Penelope and Adair are related to aristocratic families.
Additionally, though I don't believe the plot was strong enough to carry as much of the book as it needed to, it was intriguing to see it unfold with red herrings and twists. Had Ms. Laurens eliminated the scenes in which information is repeated and replaced them with more character development (if Penelope's balancing is an issue, maybe seeing her struggle with the balance, leaving things undone, being unavailable or too tired for making love, some sign that it's not just lip service to hire Violet as a secretary) or even focus more on Violet and Heathcote, who were interesting characters that had no depth whatsoever, I think the book would have been so much stronger.
The book was interesting, but it doesn't make my list of favorites, which is sad, because the last few books by Stephanie Laurens were among my favorites published.
Thanks to Edelweiss and Avon for the ARC. The Masterful Mr. Montague will be released April 29, 2014.
That particular aspect of her writing was very apparent in The Masterful Mr. Montague, an offshoot of her Cynster series, in which she revisits Barnaby Adair and Penelope Ashford from Where the Heart Leads, but also brings back Inspector Stokes and his new wife Griselda and the recurring character of Heathcote Montague, the go-to financial management genius in her universe. By juggling these two couples, and attempting to build a romance between Montague and Violet Matcham, the companion to murder victim Lady Agatha Halstead, I think Ms. Laurens takes on too much.
The characters are not different enough to capture my attention and become invested in their separate stories. There is some mention that Penelope is trying to balance her old interests, her new motherhood and her penchant for investigations, but it's never much of a focus. The relationship with her husband is shown only through brief love scenes (much shorter than the norm in Ms. Laurens' previous novels). The relationship between Stokes and Griselda is even more shallow--there are very rare moments of them away from everyone else, and the two couples are so completely similar that there are two instances where Stokes and Adair both enter the same room, and come across their wives with their respective children, and marvel at the newfound awesomeness of their life. The family life is so superficially described that it was nearly the end of the book before I realized which child belonged to which couple.
The book is named for Heathcote Montague, but he remains as much in the background as his mate, Violet. They have maybe a handful of scenes together in their entire relationship, all of which are supremely superficial, and then the reader is supposed to believe in their magical connection. In fact, Violet disappears from the book completely for several chapters. The book description supposes that Montague and Violet lead the murder case, and while they do end up unmasking the culprits, their part in the investigation is never the focus.
Juggling three couples with a murder mystery is not an easy thing to do, but it can be done (Nora Roberts does it supremely well in most of her contemporary novels). This book is not an example of how to do so. Scenes are disjointed, there isn't enough plot to go around, so there are chapters discussing the same thing, as characters discuss the Halstead family with one another, with the Cynster grand dames, and then again with each other, over and over, until it's so monotonous I fell asleep.
Lest you think I disliked this book entirely, here's what pulls it together: I like the age in which this story is set: the beginning of the Victorian age, where society is beginning to shift in structure and composition. The white-collar class is starting to find itself -- with men like Montague who deal in financial management are rising in power. Industry and trade are replacing the old power structures, and it's not surprising that while this book deals with London society, none of the main characters themselves hold titles, and in fact, only Penelope and Adair are related to aristocratic families.
Additionally, though I don't believe the plot was strong enough to carry as much of the book as it needed to, it was intriguing to see it unfold with red herrings and twists. Had Ms. Laurens eliminated the scenes in which information is repeated and replaced them with more character development (if Penelope's balancing is an issue, maybe seeing her struggle with the balance, leaving things undone, being unavailable or too tired for making love, some sign that it's not just lip service to hire Violet as a secretary) or even focus more on Violet and Heathcote, who were interesting characters that had no depth whatsoever, I think the book would have been so much stronger.
The book was interesting, but it doesn't make my list of favorites, which is sad, because the last few books by Stephanie Laurens were among my favorites published.
Thanks to Edelweiss and Avon for the ARC. The Masterful Mr. Montague will be released April 29, 2014.
July 7, 2015
3.5 Stars. On with our series reading over in Romance Lovers for the Challenge Impaired. I was looking forward to getting into this one. I'll admit, when it was first announced that Montague was going to have his own story, I wasn't sure about it. I mean, we had been picturing Montague as an older guy ever since he was first introduced in the early Cynster novels, so there was some adjustment in how to imagine him. Reset him to a handsome, virile man in his forties, one who is ready for love, having accomplished many things in his life and attaining a tip-top level in his career. I liked Montague pretty well indeed. He was smart and kind and strong, just like he should be. I only wish more time had been spent getting to know him! The same goes for the heroine, Violet. She seemed lovely, but I wanted to get to spend more time with her, and especially with her and Montague together. Having read some reviews before reading this, I wasn't really surprised by the amount of focus that was on Penelope and Barnaby, and somewhat on Stokes and Griselda too, but I still was left wanting more time with Montague and Violet. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed spending time with the other four characters (especially Stokes, I'm very fond of him), seeing how their families had grown with the addition of the children, seeing how they were handling the change that brought to their lives. However, there were too many love scenes that were not about the main couple. I missed that buildup in the relationship with Heathcote and Violet. I thought their chemistry was good and sweet, but I missed having that simmering tension and time spent getting to know each other that's such a big part of this author's novels.
The mystery though was just fine. I was kept guessing through the story, suspecting one person or another, never being sure. I was surprised by things that I hadn't seen coming, and I liked the way the investigation played out. I think these characters are a fun team to read about, how each of their personalities contributes to the investigating. The addition of Heathcote and Violet will be welcome in future stories in this series, because I hope to see more of them.
I definitely like the more mysterious direction this series has, and the look into the police work of the times. Other little things I liked were the little visit with the older Cynster ladies (and Lady O), and the rescue of the girls from The Laurels, and their placement with the Athena Agency. That, I liked because of my recent read of the fifth Bastion Club novel, where the heroine of that novel had founded the agency. So I liked seeing it mentioned. It's the little things, lol.
I think next up we are continuing with The Curious Case of Lady Latimer's Shoes. Then, after that, we tackle Malcolm and his redemption. That's the one I'm really looking forward to!
The mystery though was just fine. I was kept guessing through the story, suspecting one person or another, never being sure. I was surprised by things that I hadn't seen coming, and I liked the way the investigation played out. I think these characters are a fun team to read about, how each of their personalities contributes to the investigating. The addition of Heathcote and Violet will be welcome in future stories in this series, because I hope to see more of them.
I definitely like the more mysterious direction this series has, and the look into the police work of the times. Other little things I liked were the little visit with the older Cynster ladies (and Lady O), and the rescue of the girls from The Laurels, and their placement with the Athena Agency. That, I liked because of my recent read of the fifth Bastion Club novel, where the heroine of that novel had founded the agency. So I liked seeing it mentioned. It's the little things, lol.
I think next up we are continuing with The Curious Case of Lady Latimer's Shoes. Then, after that, we tackle Malcolm and his redemption. That's the one I'm really looking forward to!
October 8, 2014
View of Whitehall (Scotland Yard Headquarters was located in in Great Scotland Yard off the north-eastern end of Whitehall back then. Thanks, Kit★, for finding the following pic.)
★★★½☆ Fair warning: If you’re looking for a ton of romance, you aren’t going to find it in this book. It does have a good mystery, though, which I enjoyed. The love scenes in this one are mostly between married couple, Barnaby and Penelope. I would have liked more page time for Montague and Violet. I really believed them as a couple and thought they made an excellent match. They love was sweet, but not too syrupy sweet for me.
There was a bit of repetition (as usual in a SL book), especially out of Penelope, that drove me a bit batty, but I just skimmed over it. The best scenes where when the six of them (Stokes & Griselda; Barnaby & Penelope; Montague & Violet) were trying to solve the mystery together, so I’ll definitely continue with the series, as there looks to be more of that.
Thanks, to ShoSho and Kit★ – my steadfast “buddy readers” in RLftCI – for sharing their Discussion Questions, supplying pics, and providing so much fun.
★★★½☆ Fair warning: If you’re looking for a ton of romance, you aren’t going to find it in this book. It does have a good mystery, though, which I enjoyed. The love scenes in this one are mostly between married couple, Barnaby and Penelope. I would have liked more page time for Montague and Violet. I really believed them as a couple and thought they made an excellent match. They love was sweet, but not too syrupy sweet for me.
There was a bit of repetition (as usual in a SL book), especially out of Penelope, that drove me a bit batty, but I just skimmed over it. The best scenes where when the six of them (Stokes & Griselda; Barnaby & Penelope; Montague & Violet) were trying to solve the mystery together, so I’ll definitely continue with the series, as there looks to be more of that.
Thanks, to ShoSho and Kit★ – my steadfast “buddy readers” in RLftCI – for sharing their Discussion Questions, supplying pics, and providing so much fun.
April 24, 2014
The Masterful Mr. Montague by Stephanie Laurens is a 2014 Avon publication. I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher and Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
When Lady Halstead notices a discrepancy in her financial statement, she sends for an expert man of business named Heathcote Montague. Violet Matcham is Lady Halstead's ladies maid/ companion and soon becomes very entrenched in the mystery. When Lady Halstead is murdered in her bed, Violet and Montague are aided by Stokes and Adair and their wives in the investigation. The upper classes are up to no good and several shocking and scandalous crimes are uncovered along the way to solving the murders.
It proves to be a tough case to solve. Someone has something to hide and is very desperate and they will kill again to get what need. This leaves everyone on edge wondering who will be next.
Adair and Penelope are adjusting to parenthood and the demands of work and being a mother have Penelope searching for balance, which was clever I think for the time period. Most women didn't have jobs after becoming mothers and it seems like a problem many women face after the birth of their first child and can relate to this issue.
For those who have read Stephanie Lauren's historical romances you will recognize the characters in this book. This particular novel focuses less on romance and more on the mystery than what some may be used to. Montague is a man of business and Violet a ladies companion and I thought it was refreshing have the romance occur between two commoners instead of members of the ton. I would liked to have seen a little more action between this couple because their romance was just budding.
The mystery is a little complex and I confess to having to slow down and re-read a passage or two along the way. I did appreciate the complexity though because it made it hard to figure out what was going on and so I didn't guess who the culprit was.
The story line was a little uneven at times and maybe the book was just a little too long. I still found it an enjoyable enough read, although I wouldn't say this is the best work from Stephanie Laurens. Over all this one is a C+
When Lady Halstead notices a discrepancy in her financial statement, she sends for an expert man of business named Heathcote Montague. Violet Matcham is Lady Halstead's ladies maid/ companion and soon becomes very entrenched in the mystery. When Lady Halstead is murdered in her bed, Violet and Montague are aided by Stokes and Adair and their wives in the investigation. The upper classes are up to no good and several shocking and scandalous crimes are uncovered along the way to solving the murders.
It proves to be a tough case to solve. Someone has something to hide and is very desperate and they will kill again to get what need. This leaves everyone on edge wondering who will be next.
Adair and Penelope are adjusting to parenthood and the demands of work and being a mother have Penelope searching for balance, which was clever I think for the time period. Most women didn't have jobs after becoming mothers and it seems like a problem many women face after the birth of their first child and can relate to this issue.
For those who have read Stephanie Lauren's historical romances you will recognize the characters in this book. This particular novel focuses less on romance and more on the mystery than what some may be used to. Montague is a man of business and Violet a ladies companion and I thought it was refreshing have the romance occur between two commoners instead of members of the ton. I would liked to have seen a little more action between this couple because their romance was just budding.
The mystery is a little complex and I confess to having to slow down and re-read a passage or two along the way. I did appreciate the complexity though because it made it hard to figure out what was going on and so I didn't guess who the culprit was.
The story line was a little uneven at times and maybe the book was just a little too long. I still found it an enjoyable enough read, although I wouldn't say this is the best work from Stephanie Laurens. Over all this one is a C+
May 6, 2023
The Masterful Mr. Montague
2 Stars
Heathcote Montague has dedicated his life to managing the wealth of the elite families of the ton, but feels that his professional success has been at the expense of family and personal happiness. Thus, when he is approached by Violet Matcham, a lady's companion seeking his help on behalf of her employer, Montague is eager to assist as the mystery is intriguing, and Miss Matcham is even more so. Then Violet's lady is murdered, sending Montague, together with Barnaby Adair and Basil Stokes, on the trail of a malicious killer.
Unfortunately, this addition to the Barnaby Adair series is disappointing. While the mystery has potential, the investigation is excessively drawn out with the characters' constant repetition and recapping of details and events. Moreover, the romantic elements are either overly sentimental with flowery sex scenes (Penelope and Barnaby) or bland and unexciting (Montague and Violet).
Honestly, Stephanie Laurens is usually an excellent story teller, if overly verbose, but this book is simply too boring for words.
2 Stars
Heathcote Montague has dedicated his life to managing the wealth of the elite families of the ton, but feels that his professional success has been at the expense of family and personal happiness. Thus, when he is approached by Violet Matcham, a lady's companion seeking his help on behalf of her employer, Montague is eager to assist as the mystery is intriguing, and Miss Matcham is even more so. Then Violet's lady is murdered, sending Montague, together with Barnaby Adair and Basil Stokes, on the trail of a malicious killer.
Unfortunately, this addition to the Barnaby Adair series is disappointing. While the mystery has potential, the investigation is excessively drawn out with the characters' constant repetition and recapping of details and events. Moreover, the romantic elements are either overly sentimental with flowery sex scenes (Penelope and Barnaby) or bland and unexciting (Montague and Violet).
Honestly, Stephanie Laurens is usually an excellent story teller, if overly verbose, but this book is simply too boring for words.
June 4, 2018
Książka trochę za słaba na cztery gwiazdki, ale zważywszy na to, że na tle pozostałych przeczytanych przeze mnie pozycji wypada nieco lepiej, to postanowiłam jednak ocenić ją tak wysoko. Samo śledztwo raczej było nudnawe, ot szukanie pośród finansów różnych wpłat, nieścisłości i nazwiska mordercy. Podobało mi się to, że relacja Heathcote'a i Violet była spokojna i wyważona. Nie zżyłam się z nimi jakoś specjalnie, ale wzbudzili moją sympatię. Czytało mi się to różnie. Mój zapał czytelniczy nieco osłabł w ostatnich tygodniach, ale ostatnie dwieście stron książki pochłonęłam dość szybko i z przyjemnością.
August 7, 2021
Ha sido una novela muy Agatha Christie.
Ya me había leído el 3 libro de la serie y aunque son independientes hay personajes que aparecen desde la primera novela y que me costó ubicar. Ahora con esta lo he tenido todo más claro y no ha estado mal.
Ya me había leído el 3 libro de la serie y aunque son independientes hay personajes que aparecen desde la primera novela y que me costó ubicar. Ahora con esta lo he tenido todo más claro y no ha estado mal.
May 4, 2014
The title of this book is, in my opinion, dreadful and actually a little misleading. To me it conjures up a picture of the very alpha male hero and the little woman heroine, which is not what we get in this novel at all. Yes, the hero is a strong character, but he's actually not as 'alpha' as a lot of other romance heroes and the heroine is a capable, intelligent woman whom he treats as a partner.
Those who have read other books by this author will have encountered Heathcote Montague more than once. He is the man-of-affairs who deals with the financial and business matters of many of the heroes and heroines of previous stories. As the title suggests, this time he gets his own story.
However, this book is also one of the Barnaby Adair Casebook series, which means the way it is written is not the same as some of the others by this author. Typically a Stephanie Laurens romance, indeed any romance, is told through the eyes of the hero and heroine. We do get some of that in this book, but we also get a lot of the story told through the eyes of Barnaby, his wife Penelope, and their friends, the Stokes' as well.
So far as the mystery element of the story is concerned, something which revolves around an elderly lady discovering financial irregularities after a recent review of her estate and then subsequent suspicious deaths, this style of story-telling works reasonably well. I do think though that it might detract a little from the romance element because we are distanced more from the thoughts and emotions of our hero and heroine. This effect is not as severe as in a recent novella, The Peculiar Case of Lord Finsbury's Diamonds, in which I frankly wondered why the romance element was there at all as it was so very much sidelined; Heathcote and Violet play an active role in the investigation, so they are more centre stage. But I do wonder if the author might not be better with the 'Casebooks' to simply focus on the mystery instead.
That said, 'Montague' is a solidly written story with well-rounded characters. It was nice to see a different perspective on Society; a lot of Laurens heroes and heroines move in the upper echelons of the Ton. Montague, however, is more middle-class and likewise Violet is of good birth, but she's gentry-born, not nobility, and has spent the last decade working as a paid companion. Thus they and the social circles in which they move are somewhat different to those we've seen in the past and this made a pleasant change.
Those who have read other books by this author will have encountered Heathcote Montague more than once. He is the man-of-affairs who deals with the financial and business matters of many of the heroes and heroines of previous stories. As the title suggests, this time he gets his own story.
However, this book is also one of the Barnaby Adair Casebook series, which means the way it is written is not the same as some of the others by this author. Typically a Stephanie Laurens romance, indeed any romance, is told through the eyes of the hero and heroine. We do get some of that in this book, but we also get a lot of the story told through the eyes of Barnaby, his wife Penelope, and their friends, the Stokes' as well.
So far as the mystery element of the story is concerned, something which revolves around an elderly lady discovering financial irregularities after a recent review of her estate and then subsequent suspicious deaths, this style of story-telling works reasonably well. I do think though that it might detract a little from the romance element because we are distanced more from the thoughts and emotions of our hero and heroine. This effect is not as severe as in a recent novella, The Peculiar Case of Lord Finsbury's Diamonds, in which I frankly wondered why the romance element was there at all as it was so very much sidelined; Heathcote and Violet play an active role in the investigation, so they are more centre stage. But I do wonder if the author might not be better with the 'Casebooks' to simply focus on the mystery instead.
That said, 'Montague' is a solidly written story with well-rounded characters. It was nice to see a different perspective on Society; a lot of Laurens heroes and heroines move in the upper echelons of the Ton. Montague, however, is more middle-class and likewise Violet is of good birth, but she's gentry-born, not nobility, and has spent the last decade working as a paid companion. Thus they and the social circles in which they move are somewhat different to those we've seen in the past and this made a pleasant change.
June 15, 2023
Listened as Audiobook. I read this book in paperback many years ago (before I began tracking on Goodreads) and I enjoyed it. This second time, not so much. I do enjoy the mystery aspect, but overall the book had very little romance between the mains (Montague and Violet). I found the mystery plot mostly engaging but a bit too fragmented in some places, likely stemming from the multi-point mystery that got jumbled in some sections. There were too many POVs and not enough character development. While I wanted to like the romance, the mains didn’t spend enough time together to convince me of their relationship, especially when compared to the relationship development in the first book of the trilogy (which continued to dominate in this book, and I found that strange). As a book in a series meant to solve mysteries, it’s fine and enjoyable, but the title falls short of a believable romance.
SFCP (safe for childless people) as far as no on page pregnancies, but NSFCP (not safe…) if you prefer no infants (less than a year old but not newborn).
SFCP (safe for childless people) as far as no on page pregnancies, but NSFCP (not safe…) if you prefer no infants (less than a year old but not newborn).
Read
June 25, 2019More murder mystery than romance.
July 13, 2017
I had some hopes for this book since it promised a murder mystery and a historical romance. I was disappointed. The mystery took just ages to solve, and the romance was written in the sickly sweetest way.
The beginning of the book was much better and it got more and more boring towards the end. Sorry!
The beginning of the book was much better and it got more and more boring towards the end. Sorry!
August 13, 2016
Montague is, like, this super accountant, and he loves his job.
But lately, he's been a bit bored with numbers.
Until he meets one of the 36-24-36 variety.
Well, she isn't quite dressed like that when she comes to his office, but it's how he sees her.
Anyhoo, Violet Matcham is there at the behest of her employer. She's a companion/secretary to the aging widow Halstead, who recently discovered some odd goings-on in her accounts. She's trying to settle her affairs before she dies, and she wants the best to help her sort things out.
While Vi is plenty incentive to take on the project, Montague is just geek enough to be thoroughly seduced by the mystery of the odd funds being added to Mrs. Halstead's bank on a somewhat regular basis.
Then Mrs. Halstead turns up
The Halstead heirs consist of a fairly large number of people, women who have a distressing tendency to be snooty and have names starting with "C" and men who have a distressing habit of being snobs and having names starting with "W" or "M" (speed-reader's nightmare, esp. since the hero's name also starts with "M") so that they end up being pretty interchangeable, which makes the long and frequent passages where the various cast of investigators (Montague, Violet, Stokes, Adair, and their wives Penelope and Griselda) difficult to follow and annoyingly repetitive.
Add to this there are some lengthy discussions between Penny and Adair about how to balance children and family—maybe moms will appreciate this, but me?
As for the romance part, this is not exactly a passionate couple.
There are a lot of cow-eyed looks exchanged, but the S-E-X in this book is primarily between Adair and Penny and Stokes and Griselda—which is not a great thing for people who haven't read (or don't much remember) the earlier books in the series, as they won't be invested in these characters.
The mystery kept me reading, though. As I say, the potential villains were so interchangeable that I didn't care whodunit but I was curious about the why, and it turns out both the "who" and "why" are more complicated questions than you'd expect. Trying to guess what the income was for was kind of fun (I was closer to the mark than I thought I'd be), and tho Act 2 of the mystery kind of came out of left field, I appreciated the complication.
Oh, and while the story isn't particularly detailed in its historical info, there was a nice tidbit about Queen Victoria.
So I'm tacking on an extra half star and giving this a solid middlin' score of 3.
But lately, he's been a bit bored with numbers.
Until he meets one of the 36-24-36 variety.
Well, she isn't quite dressed like that when she comes to his office, but it's how he sees her.
Anyhoo, Violet Matcham is there at the behest of her employer. She's a companion/secretary to the aging widow Halstead, who recently discovered some odd goings-on in her accounts. She's trying to settle her affairs before she dies, and she wants the best to help her sort things out.
While Vi is plenty incentive to take on the project, Montague is just geek enough to be thoroughly seduced by the mystery of the odd funds being added to Mrs. Halstead's bank on a somewhat regular basis.
Then Mrs. Halstead turns up
The Halstead heirs consist of a fairly large number of people, women who have a distressing tendency to be snooty and have names starting with "C" and men who have a distressing habit of being snobs and having names starting with "W" or "M" (speed-reader's nightmare, esp. since the hero's name also starts with "M") so that they end up being pretty interchangeable, which makes the long and frequent passages where the various cast of investigators (Montague, Violet, Stokes, Adair, and their wives Penelope and Griselda) difficult to follow and annoyingly repetitive.
Add to this there are some lengthy discussions between Penny and Adair about how to balance children and family—maybe moms will appreciate this, but me?
As for the romance part, this is not exactly a passionate couple.
There are a lot of cow-eyed looks exchanged, but the S-E-X in this book is primarily between Adair and Penny and Stokes and Griselda—which is not a great thing for people who haven't read (or don't much remember) the earlier books in the series, as they won't be invested in these characters.
The mystery kept me reading, though. As I say, the potential villains were so interchangeable that I didn't care whodunit but I was curious about the why, and it turns out both the "who" and "why" are more complicated questions than you'd expect. Trying to guess what the income was for was kind of fun (I was closer to the mark than I thought I'd be), and tho Act 2 of the mystery kind of came out of left field, I appreciated the complication.
Oh, and while the story isn't particularly detailed in its historical info, there was a nice tidbit about Queen Victoria.
So I'm tacking on an extra half star and giving this a solid middlin' score of 3.
January 29, 2015
Genre: Historical, Action/Adventure, Mystery, Romance, Science Fiction, Suspense
Length: Novel
Heat Level: Spicy
Reviewer: Suki
Date: January 24, 2015
First I want to say I am a huge Stephanie Laurens fan. Fell in love with the Cynsters years ago. That said, this is not your typical SL book. When I first started reading it I was confused, where was the love story with Montague and Violet? Wait, why are we in the bedroom of the other two characters, and in their head. None of this fit the usual style. If you have read SL’s books you have seen Penelope in a few other books and her story with Adair has already been told in the previous book, Where the Heart Leads, and although I love to catch up with past characters, I do not need to be in their bedroom again. We have seen it and been there; we know their love story...I digress. I was confused enough to finally go to Ms. Laurens website where it states The Masterful Mr. Montague is a mystery with romantic elements. AHHHHHH well that's a horse of a different color isn’t it. So now that I am not expecting the typical SL romance I can get down to the mystery. And this is a mystery, in fact it's one of many and it appears that they will now include this whole group solving them.
I have to say I didn’t guess who did it although there were times when I suspected. The story is good and I actually skimmed over the love scenes when they came (see above for why). My biggest complaint about the book is that the love story is shoved into the last few pages of the book and it is not given the time and the space these two characters deserve. I enjoyed these two very much and want to know more about them. Although I love the book, because the publisher is selling it as a romance I can't give it a 5, but because SL does explain on her website that it's a mystery with romantic themes it redeems the book back to a 4.
Length: Novel
Heat Level: Spicy
Reviewer: Suki
Date: January 24, 2015
First I want to say I am a huge Stephanie Laurens fan. Fell in love with the Cynsters years ago. That said, this is not your typical SL book. When I first started reading it I was confused, where was the love story with Montague and Violet? Wait, why are we in the bedroom of the other two characters, and in their head. None of this fit the usual style. If you have read SL’s books you have seen Penelope in a few other books and her story with Adair has already been told in the previous book, Where the Heart Leads, and although I love to catch up with past characters, I do not need to be in their bedroom again. We have seen it and been there; we know their love story...I digress. I was confused enough to finally go to Ms. Laurens website where it states The Masterful Mr. Montague is a mystery with romantic elements. AHHHHHH well that's a horse of a different color isn’t it. So now that I am not expecting the typical SL romance I can get down to the mystery. And this is a mystery, in fact it's one of many and it appears that they will now include this whole group solving them.
I have to say I didn’t guess who did it although there were times when I suspected. The story is good and I actually skimmed over the love scenes when they came (see above for why). My biggest complaint about the book is that the love story is shoved into the last few pages of the book and it is not given the time and the space these two characters deserve. I enjoyed these two very much and want to know more about them. Although I love the book, because the publisher is selling it as a romance I can't give it a 5, but because SL does explain on her website that it's a mystery with romantic themes it redeems the book back to a 4.
May 24, 2014
The Masterful Mr. Montague cements the change of focus from a romantic pursuit in the context of intriguing mystery to criminal investigation procedural set against a backdrop of social classes and manners in S.L.'s novels that began with Stokes and Griselda's story (the only S.L. book that didn't compel me to finish reading it). Adair/Penelope and Stokes/Griselda provide the established emotional intimacy S.L. fans expect and token PG-13 sexual interludes, while Violet and Montague are the token lovers, who spend most of the story apart from each other (although thankfully, not due to any manufactured misunderstandings or laughable conflicts). It's this lack of physical proximity that makes it difficult to accept their sudden declarations of love. Maybe if the pacing of their courtship ran as a developing thread through future Barnaby Adair cases instead of seemingly abrupt declarations at the end, their relationship would feel more credible?
And could more authors, editors, etc. please, please resist the temptation to put a character in jeopardy by making formerly intelligent characters experience sudden amnesia, in which they forget that a person is being guarded for life-threatening reasons (other than plot pivot conveniences)!
This story feels like it's more about the personal and professional interactions between the main characters to establish a complementary team for solving future cases. The preview of Loving Rose suggests that it will offer a more conventional romance framed within mysterious intrigue, which makes me look forward to reading it.
The Masterful Mr. Montague is a sweet historical cozy mystery, but not recommended as a first read as an introduction to Stephanie Laurens; try original Cynster series, Bastion Club or Cynster Sisters.
And could more authors, editors, etc. please, please resist the temptation to put a character in jeopardy by making formerly intelligent characters experience sudden amnesia, in which they forget that a person is being guarded for life-threatening reasons (other than plot pivot conveniences)!
This story feels like it's more about the personal and professional interactions between the main characters to establish a complementary team for solving future cases. The preview of Loving Rose suggests that it will offer a more conventional romance framed within mysterious intrigue, which makes me look forward to reading it.
The Masterful Mr. Montague is a sweet historical cozy mystery, but not recommended as a first read as an introduction to Stephanie Laurens; try original Cynster series, Bastion Club or Cynster Sisters.
May 20, 2014
My expectations for this book were very high and sadly, the book did not live up to expectations. Due to the title and the back cover blurb, I assumed this would be a Historical Romance focused on:
1) the relationship between Mr. Heathcote Montague and Miss Violet Matcham,
2) the murder mystery, and then,
3) Barnaby and Penelope Adair, the husband/wife investigators from previous books who work with Inspector Stokes and his wife Griselda.
In fact, I thought most of the book would be taken up with Violet and Heathcote investigating together. Instead, the story plays out with the main focus on:
1) the murder mystery
2) Barnaby and Penelope and their relationship
3) small amount of Heathcote and Violet
Thus, my disappointment. In fact, the majority of sex scenes were between Barnaby and Penelope (FILLED with purple prose by the way. Sometimes I couldn't even figure out if any sex was actually happening).
I would have approached this story in a better mindset if it had been called, perhaps, "The Malicious Murder of Lady Halstead". Then I would have known most of the story was actually about the murder. As to that, I think all of the suspects' names started with a "M" or a "W" and I kept getting confused who was who.
All in all, this was just an okay read for me and I'm not sure I'm going to read any more in the Casebook of Barnaby Adair series.
1) the relationship between Mr. Heathcote Montague and Miss Violet Matcham,
2) the murder mystery, and then,
3) Barnaby and Penelope Adair, the husband/wife investigators from previous books who work with Inspector Stokes and his wife Griselda.
In fact, I thought most of the book would be taken up with Violet and Heathcote investigating together. Instead, the story plays out with the main focus on:
1) the murder mystery
2) Barnaby and Penelope and their relationship
3) small amount of Heathcote and Violet
Thus, my disappointment. In fact, the majority of sex scenes were between Barnaby and Penelope (FILLED with purple prose by the way. Sometimes I couldn't even figure out if any sex was actually happening).
I would have approached this story in a better mindset if it had been called, perhaps, "The Malicious Murder of Lady Halstead". Then I would have known most of the story was actually about the murder. As to that, I think all of the suspects' names started with a "M" or a "W" and I kept getting confused who was who.
All in all, this was just an okay read for me and I'm not sure I'm going to read any more in the Casebook of Barnaby Adair series.
February 9, 2014
It's really nice to see Heathcote Montague - who has shown up either in person or by letter in almost all of Stephanie Laurens's Cynster and Bastion novels - get his own book. And it has a bit of a different tenor than the others. Montague and Violet are gentry, not aristocracy, and reflect those social mores; consequently, they only become intimate at the end of the novel.
On the other hand, Laurens has provided the reader with plenty of lovey/not-n-heavy scenes between Adair/Penelope and Stokes/Griselda which are mostly unnecessary. And there are multiple - the three couples discuss the case at Adairs, everyone goes home, Adair/Penelope put their child to bed-discuss how much better she feels now that she's "working" instead of just taking care of the baby-have purple prose sex, and then Stokes/Griselda have almost the exact same conversation/scene. Repeat several times, changing the order slightly. We didn't need all that. It weighed the book down too much.
On the other hand, Laurens has provided the reader with plenty of lovey/not-n-heavy scenes between Adair/Penelope and Stokes/Griselda which are mostly unnecessary. And there are multiple - the three couples discuss the case at Adairs, everyone goes home, Adair/Penelope put their child to bed-discuss how much better she feels now that she's "working" instead of just taking care of the baby-have purple prose sex, and then Stokes/Griselda have almost the exact same conversation/scene. Repeat several times, changing the order slightly. We didn't need all that. It weighed the book down too much.
July 10, 2016
The players: Constance and Cynthia, sisters by marriage and Carolyn daughter of Constance. Then there were the brothers Mortimer and Maurice (the hero is named Montague). Another brother William and a brother by marriage Wallace whose son was Walter completing the family. I struggled to keep them all straight.
Thankfully the heroine was named Violet. I never confused her with anyone else.
I do not consider this a romance. It is a mystery. There is attraction between Montague and Violet which they decide to put off until the mystery is solved. There is the continuing saga of Stokes and Griselda plus Barnaby and Penelope originally from Where the Heart Leads. There’s actually more dialogue concerning those two couples than Montague and Violet. It was a good mystery but the relationship between Montague and Violet was not well developed and more appropriately a novella.
It is not a re-read so I wish I had waited to get it from the library.
Thankfully the heroine was named Violet. I never confused her with anyone else.
I do not consider this a romance. It is a mystery. There is attraction between Montague and Violet which they decide to put off until the mystery is solved. There is the continuing saga of Stokes and Griselda plus Barnaby and Penelope originally from Where the Heart Leads. There’s actually more dialogue concerning those two couples than Montague and Violet. It was a good mystery but the relationship between Montague and Violet was not well developed and more appropriately a novella.
It is not a re-read so I wish I had waited to get it from the library.
March 29, 2015
I don't know what was worse: the condescending, holier-than-thou attitude that made me hate all characters (the good ones more than the 'bad' ones); the insta-love, which comprised of nothing more than staring and smiling; the fact that the main characters were the ones that the author spent the least amount of time; the bland, repetitive writing; or the below average mystery that, admittedly, only had one nice twist.
If the author's thought was to tease the readers into continuing the series for more information regarding Victoria and Montague, then she's totally missed her mark. I mean, WHY would I read a book about characters in another book when they SHOULD'VE been at the centre stage in a book where they were, supposedly, the main characters.
I should've trusted my instinct to not read the book as I've read another Stephanie Laurens book several years ago that I still cringe at. Needless to say, I've learned my lesson.
If the author's thought was to tease the readers into continuing the series for more information regarding Victoria and Montague, then she's totally missed her mark. I mean, WHY would I read a book about characters in another book when they SHOULD'VE been at the centre stage in a book where they were, supposedly, the main characters.
I should've trusted my instinct to not read the book as I've read another Stephanie Laurens book several years ago that I still cringe at. Needless to say, I've learned my lesson.
June 2, 2014
My keeper shelf is two rows deep with Ms. Laurens’ books and I’m about 80% through with her backlist and so far I’ve liked the majority of everything I’ve read so far [here]. That said, I was mighty disappointed with this story.
I honestly couldn’t make up my mind if this was a romance or mystery, and if I couldn’t decide, I believe that even the author had some trouble figuring that one out. Neither was fully developed. I discerned the mystery fairly quickly, so I hoped that the romance aspect ... thanks for jumping to b2b to finish my review ...
http://bookworm2bookworm.wordpress.co...
Melanie for b2b
Complimentary copy provided by the publisher
I honestly couldn’t make up my mind if this was a romance or mystery, and if I couldn’t decide, I believe that even the author had some trouble figuring that one out. Neither was fully developed. I discerned the mystery fairly quickly, so I hoped that the romance aspect ... thanks for jumping to b2b to finish my review ...
http://bookworm2bookworm.wordpress.co...
Melanie for b2b
Complimentary copy provided by the publisher
May 21, 2014
Wow. Did you know that a man with a fortune needs a wife?
Ok. I don't mean to make fun of that basic premise of many romances, but I always count on Stephanie Laurens to give me a good mystery to keep the storyline interesting. This time around her formula felt thread-bare and predictable. The characters, settings, and pace are well-crafted as you might expect. But I found the mystery so predictable that I welcomed the red herring when it interrupted the story flow.
Hated to give the 3-star but there was nothing inventive or sparklie in the book. Laurens just covered the territory competently, even juggles a scene with 20 characters, but ...
Ok. I don't mean to make fun of that basic premise of many romances, but I always count on Stephanie Laurens to give me a good mystery to keep the storyline interesting. This time around her formula felt thread-bare and predictable. The characters, settings, and pace are well-crafted as you might expect. But I found the mystery so predictable that I welcomed the red herring when it interrupted the story flow.
Hated to give the 3-star but there was nothing inventive or sparklie in the book. Laurens just covered the territory competently, even juggles a scene with 20 characters, but ...
January 4, 2015
I've read many of Lauren's books. They are usually a bit dry and wordy but the story is usually interesting enough to maintain my attention.
The masterful mr montegue should have been named "the murder of mrs halstead". I was so frustrated the whole book was about Penelope and her husband/friends. I didn't connect with Montegue or violet. How they fell in love was beyond me. They didn't have a real conversation until page 400 something.
Sadly disappointed Stephanie. A lot of energy for a book where you forgot the main characters and their love story. Oops
The masterful mr montegue should have been named "the murder of mrs halstead". I was so frustrated the whole book was about Penelope and her husband/friends. I didn't connect with Montegue or violet. How they fell in love was beyond me. They didn't have a real conversation until page 400 something.
Sadly disappointed Stephanie. A lot of energy for a book where you forgot the main characters and their love story. Oops
April 25, 2014
I have loved this author for many years. She is the reason I fell in love with Romance. Unfortunately, she has been writing the same love story, over and over and over.
This was boring, because I already knew everything.
This was boring, because I already knew everything.
June 19, 2016
I enjoyed the mystery. The style of involving so many characters takes some getting used to. I liked all the characters, especially Violet and Heathcote. The story moved but didn't flow.
August 28, 2015
Wonderful novel! I really enjoyed the intrigue and wasn't certain of the identity of the murderer until he finally closed in.
October 25, 2021
Mild spoilers.
So yea…I don’t like giving low ratings to books when I really like the characters…but this just wasn’t the one. I’m torn between a 2 or a 3 star rating. If it was any other author I’d go for 2 but as it Laurens I’m going to go for 3. The writing after all is competent and I’ve read enough Laurens to know what to expect from a Laurens novel. If she does the things she does that I don’t like, well I only have myself to blame. I can categorically say I will not read it again though.
Firstly, let me start by saying I never thought I’d read a full length Laurens book where the Hero and Heroine only banged once! And right at the end! This is the queen of the 50 page sex scene after all (I may exaggerate a little bit)…Penelope and Barnaby are banging all over the place mind. 🤣
I liked Where the Heart Leads as it set up the characters and because it had the right balance of the mystery and the personal. This is also true of Lord Finsbury’s Diamonds because in that we got to see Barnaby and Penelope have a baby. This one was sadly lacking in romance, in fact I’d go as far as to say it wasn’t a romance novel. Funnily I was hesitant to read it because my draw to this series is the established characters and I wasn’t sure how much they would feature. I thought it would be mostly about Montague and Violet with a sprinkling of the others but actually the opposite was true and I ended up being disappointed by that. Violet and Montague don’t feature in the book enough in my opinion, or at least their romance doesn’t. They don’t have any conversations past the superficial or discussing the investigation until quite late in the book when they spend some time alone walking in the park. There are a lot of instances of holding hands for comfort and one instance when he hands her down from a tree, a few quick kisses. That is about the extent of the physical contact which, as I said above, is very unusual for a Laurens novel. She normally packs them full of far more sex than they need. There is nothing to suggest why these characters fall in love. Montague is lonely at the start of the book and the first time they see each other they feel an attraction but it isn’t really based on anything, they don’t really pursue it or get to know each other, it is just there and that is that apparently. I have to admit when they declared their intentions in the garden somehow, SOMEHOW, I did think ‘Ah, that’s cute.’ Fucks know why! 🤣 I guess Laurens did something right to get that reaction from me. This book would have been so much better if we could have less of the characters sitting around discussing stuff and more of some stuff actually happening. The mystery element of the book could have been dealt with in far less pages, probably half! The rest of the book could have been spent developed the relationship between Montague and Violet. For example we could have seen a bit more of Montague and Violet reacting to the fact that she would have been murdered had she not had the foresight to take a step to protect herself. That has got to be pretty traumatising! I guess they do spend quite a lot of time together over the course of the investigation and that was enough to assess each-others characters and for feelings to grow but they could still get married and find out they are horribly incompatible lol. What they seemed to have achieved by the end of the book was a good basis for dating but then I guess people didn’t date back then did they!
The ending was satisfying. Violet had to have the obligatory TSTL moment and Montage had to save her. At least Laurens heroines aren’t pathetic and fight back. Right after Montague saves her he is all, ‘I was so scared.’ Way to make it about you dude! 🤣 I’m joking of course, it was sweet.
Another annoyance was how often people saluted each other in the book, jeez give it a rest!
So yea…I don’t like giving low ratings to books when I really like the characters…but this just wasn’t the one. I’m torn between a 2 or a 3 star rating. If it was any other author I’d go for 2 but as it Laurens I’m going to go for 3. The writing after all is competent and I’ve read enough Laurens to know what to expect from a Laurens novel. If she does the things she does that I don’t like, well I only have myself to blame. I can categorically say I will not read it again though.
Firstly, let me start by saying I never thought I’d read a full length Laurens book where the Hero and Heroine only banged once! And right at the end! This is the queen of the 50 page sex scene after all (I may exaggerate a little bit)…Penelope and Barnaby are banging all over the place mind. 🤣
I liked Where the Heart Leads as it set up the characters and because it had the right balance of the mystery and the personal. This is also true of Lord Finsbury’s Diamonds because in that we got to see Barnaby and Penelope have a baby. This one was sadly lacking in romance, in fact I’d go as far as to say it wasn’t a romance novel. Funnily I was hesitant to read it because my draw to this series is the established characters and I wasn’t sure how much they would feature. I thought it would be mostly about Montague and Violet with a sprinkling of the others but actually the opposite was true and I ended up being disappointed by that. Violet and Montague don’t feature in the book enough in my opinion, or at least their romance doesn’t. They don’t have any conversations past the superficial or discussing the investigation until quite late in the book when they spend some time alone walking in the park. There are a lot of instances of holding hands for comfort and one instance when he hands her down from a tree, a few quick kisses. That is about the extent of the physical contact which, as I said above, is very unusual for a Laurens novel. She normally packs them full of far more sex than they need. There is nothing to suggest why these characters fall in love. Montague is lonely at the start of the book and the first time they see each other they feel an attraction but it isn’t really based on anything, they don’t really pursue it or get to know each other, it is just there and that is that apparently. I have to admit when they declared their intentions in the garden somehow, SOMEHOW, I did think ‘Ah, that’s cute.’ Fucks know why! 🤣 I guess Laurens did something right to get that reaction from me. This book would have been so much better if we could have less of the characters sitting around discussing stuff and more of some stuff actually happening. The mystery element of the book could have been dealt with in far less pages, probably half! The rest of the book could have been spent developed the relationship between Montague and Violet. For example we could have seen a bit more of Montague and Violet reacting to the fact that she would have been murdered had she not had the foresight to take a step to protect herself. That has got to be pretty traumatising! I guess they do spend quite a lot of time together over the course of the investigation and that was enough to assess each-others characters and for feelings to grow but they could still get married and find out they are horribly incompatible lol. What they seemed to have achieved by the end of the book was a good basis for dating but then I guess people didn’t date back then did they!
The ending was satisfying. Violet had to have the obligatory TSTL moment and Montage had to save her. At least Laurens heroines aren’t pathetic and fight back. Right after Montague saves her he is all, ‘I was so scared.’ Way to make it about you dude! 🤣 I’m joking of course, it was sweet.
Another annoyance was how often people saluted each other in the book, jeez give it a rest!
March 17, 2022
I love Stephanie Laurens books...But there should have been a little more story about Volet and Montague story...💖💙💖
Then she kissed him, acceptance, agreement, and commitment reaffirmed—passionately—in the caress. Without conscious direction, his arms closed around her and he gave her the same in return. And let the moment lead him—and her—as it would. When he lifted his head—separated their lips by a heated breath—and glanced at the door to his left, then arched a brow at her, her smile only deepened. And she whispered against his lips, “Yes.” Violet didn’t need to say more. Not to him—the man who looked at her with love and passion in his eyes, solid and true and unwavering. She could never question the rightness of this—could not doubt the sense of falling in with destiny as she let him lead her into his bedroom and close the door. What followed . . . was a reflection of them, of who they were, the straightforward, honest, and true people they knew no other way to be. They offered themselves up—to each other, to the glory that erupted and swept through them. In the soft sheets of his bed, in the soft light of a long, autumn afternoon, they found each other, and discovered themselves. Discovered a wider view of all they could be—of all they could aspire to claim. Passion and joy, heat and desire, and the culminating cataclysm of ecstasy—they found them all on that golden afternoon, found, seized, and made them theirs. And when, at the end, Violet settled in his arms—a Violet unbridled, her lustrous hair rippling in a silken mass over his chest and arms—he smiled. On his back, eyes drifting closed, he recalled an earlier thought. “Before I met you and all this”—with a slight wave, he indicated them and their togetherness—“came about, I never thought of myself as a man of action. But courtesy of you, and all that’s followed, I’ve discovered that when the need is there—” “You very much rise to the occasion.” She chuckled, soft and low. He could feel the curve of her lips against his chest. “Believe it or not, I wasn’t going to put it quite like that.” “That’s why I said it—I knew you wouldn’t.” She shifted; lifting her head, she looked into his face. Smiled. “You haven’t surprised me—I saw you, your potential, clearly from the first. You’re the man I’ve been waiting all my life to find, and now I’ve found you and claimed you . . .” Stretching up, she touched her lips to his. “I’m never going to let you go.” As she eased down again, into the hollow by his side—a space, it seemed, perfectly fashioned for her—he tightened his arms around her. “Just as well, because you’re everything to me.” Settling, she sighed happily, then spread her hand over his heart and lightly patted. “My Heathcote.” He smiled. Through the last hours, she’d said his name several times—gasped it, moaned it, sighed it . . . Nestling his cheek against her hair, he closed his eyes. Hearing her call him by his given name had already become his most treasured dividend.
Then she kissed him, acceptance, agreement, and commitment reaffirmed—passionately—in the caress. Without conscious direction, his arms closed around her and he gave her the same in return. And let the moment lead him—and her—as it would. When he lifted his head—separated their lips by a heated breath—and glanced at the door to his left, then arched a brow at her, her smile only deepened. And she whispered against his lips, “Yes.” Violet didn’t need to say more. Not to him—the man who looked at her with love and passion in his eyes, solid and true and unwavering. She could never question the rightness of this—could not doubt the sense of falling in with destiny as she let him lead her into his bedroom and close the door. What followed . . . was a reflection of them, of who they were, the straightforward, honest, and true people they knew no other way to be. They offered themselves up—to each other, to the glory that erupted and swept through them. In the soft sheets of his bed, in the soft light of a long, autumn afternoon, they found each other, and discovered themselves. Discovered a wider view of all they could be—of all they could aspire to claim. Passion and joy, heat and desire, and the culminating cataclysm of ecstasy—they found them all on that golden afternoon, found, seized, and made them theirs. And when, at the end, Violet settled in his arms—a Violet unbridled, her lustrous hair rippling in a silken mass over his chest and arms—he smiled. On his back, eyes drifting closed, he recalled an earlier thought. “Before I met you and all this”—with a slight wave, he indicated them and their togetherness—“came about, I never thought of myself as a man of action. But courtesy of you, and all that’s followed, I’ve discovered that when the need is there—” “You very much rise to the occasion.” She chuckled, soft and low. He could feel the curve of her lips against his chest. “Believe it or not, I wasn’t going to put it quite like that.” “That’s why I said it—I knew you wouldn’t.” She shifted; lifting her head, she looked into his face. Smiled. “You haven’t surprised me—I saw you, your potential, clearly from the first. You’re the man I’ve been waiting all my life to find, and now I’ve found you and claimed you . . .” Stretching up, she touched her lips to his. “I’m never going to let you go.” As she eased down again, into the hollow by his side—a space, it seemed, perfectly fashioned for her—he tightened his arms around her. “Just as well, because you’re everything to me.” Settling, she sighed happily, then spread her hand over his heart and lightly patted. “My Heathcote.” He smiled. Through the last hours, she’d said his name several times—gasped it, moaned it, sighed it . . . Nestling his cheek against her hair, he closed his eyes. Hearing her call him by his given name had already become his most treasured dividend.
December 14, 2018
I quite wanted to like this book, but this is the first romance I can recall in which the two supposed main characters were supporting characters at best. On page 160 or so, I think they finally had their second scene together - or, at most, third. Their first meeting (in this book? I assume they’ve met before? If not MY GOD THAT IS SO MUCH WORSE) happened “offscreen” so to speak. We’re told they met and discussed the plot, but only after they separated and only as they recollect in solitude how they’re drawn to each other. (One can only take their word, as they are together rarely enough that I can’t say I had a chance to discover that for myself.)
I admit I may be hindered by not having read the books about either Stokes or Barnaby, but this book didn’t drive me to seek them out. Not because they were bad characters. They weren’t, I guess. But if you asked me to tell you who’s who, or which woman they married, or what their distinct personality traits are, I honestly couldn’t. They both seemed like exactly the same character, with only names changed. I didn’t get a strong sense of personality traits or character description other than that they investigate things, appreciate their wives’ help to an extent, and wish their wives had decided to give up on investigations upon making the babies. (One is with Scotland Yard. The other...is not? I don’t even remember what the other one DOES. Or which is which.)
Needless to say, I didn’t get a strong distinction between either of them or Montague - a character who’s so little an entity in his own book that I had to look at the title to remember his name and can only assume the title was chosen ironically.
As for Violet, she...exists. Mostly offscreen. I’m pretty sure entire chapters passed without checking in on her, and when we did, it often seemed like we did so just to be reminded she was sad about the murder and really wished it would be solved.
So I’m afraid as much as I WANTED to like this book and didn’t intensely DISLIKE it enough to hate it, I have to give it a low rating. For the record, the second star is mostly out of pity - and because there wasn’t really much in this book to feel that strongly about one way or another.
The two “main” characters aren’t on the page (individually and CERTAINLY not together) often or long enough to make this a good romance novel with a solid mystery subplot. And the mystery isn’t interesting enough to make this a good mystery novel with a solid romantic subplot.
Much like the “main” characters, this book merely...exists. As you’re reading it, you’re kind of wondering what the point is, and once you finish and put it down, you forget about it completely.
I admit I may be hindered by not having read the books about either Stokes or Barnaby, but this book didn’t drive me to seek them out. Not because they were bad characters. They weren’t, I guess. But if you asked me to tell you who’s who, or which woman they married, or what their distinct personality traits are, I honestly couldn’t. They both seemed like exactly the same character, with only names changed. I didn’t get a strong sense of personality traits or character description other than that they investigate things, appreciate their wives’ help to an extent, and wish their wives had decided to give up on investigations upon making the babies. (One is with Scotland Yard. The other...is not? I don’t even remember what the other one DOES. Or which is which.)
Needless to say, I didn’t get a strong distinction between either of them or Montague - a character who’s so little an entity in his own book that I had to look at the title to remember his name and can only assume the title was chosen ironically.
As for Violet, she...exists. Mostly offscreen. I’m pretty sure entire chapters passed without checking in on her, and when we did, it often seemed like we did so just to be reminded she was sad about the murder and really wished it would be solved.
So I’m afraid as much as I WANTED to like this book and didn’t intensely DISLIKE it enough to hate it, I have to give it a low rating. For the record, the second star is mostly out of pity - and because there wasn’t really much in this book to feel that strongly about one way or another.
The two “main” characters aren’t on the page (individually and CERTAINLY not together) often or long enough to make this a good romance novel with a solid mystery subplot. And the mystery isn’t interesting enough to make this a good mystery novel with a solid romantic subplot.
Much like the “main” characters, this book merely...exists. As you’re reading it, you’re kind of wondering what the point is, and once you finish and put it down, you forget about it completely.
September 9, 2021
My rating: 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4 stars.
This book is well-written, because Stephanie Laurens is a talented writer. I read it several years ago, but recently decided to re-read several of Laurens' books, since I had enjoyed them all. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I still like this book -- maybe not quite as much as the first read, but I still liked it a lot.
I liked Montague and Violet, and liked that they realized they belonged together almost immediately. I also liked that he was happy to accept Violet's help with his work, and didn't mind letting her know that he cared for her. I did wish, though, that there had been a little more emphasis on their romance -- most of the book dealt with the mystery, and I would have liked a little more romance.
One thing I really liked, which is typical of this author's work -- the strong women characters, and how their men didn't try to change them into submissive women. For that time period, it would have been unusual for women to be actively involved in any criminal investigations. I thought it was refreshing that Penelope, Griselda, and Violet all helped in this one.
I also liked that couples from the first book in this series were heavily included in this book (Penelope and Barnaby; and Griselda and Stokes). The reader was able to see how their relationships had matured in the months since they got married.
My rating system is below.
1 star -- Hated it, or did not finish. I usually only give this rating if some of the content is truly objectionable to me, like if one of the main characters does something really awful, and gets away with it.
2 stars -- Didn't like it. This rating usually means that I thought the writing wasn't very good, the editing was terrible, I didn't like the characters, or it had other major flaws.
3 stars -- I liked it, but had some minor issues with it. This rating means that there were minor editing issues, the story needed more character development, it was just too unrealistic, or had some other fairly minor issue. The majority of books I read get this rating – I do not consider it a bad rating.
4 stars -- I liked it a lot. This is a high rating for me, and I rarely give a higher one.
5 stars -- I loved it, and will probably read it again. Very few books are good enough to get this rating from me. The ones that do are usually classics.
This book is well-written, because Stephanie Laurens is a talented writer. I read it several years ago, but recently decided to re-read several of Laurens' books, since I had enjoyed them all. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I still like this book -- maybe not quite as much as the first read, but I still liked it a lot.
I liked Montague and Violet, and liked that they realized they belonged together almost immediately. I also liked that he was happy to accept Violet's help with his work, and didn't mind letting her know that he cared for her. I did wish, though, that there had been a little more emphasis on their romance -- most of the book dealt with the mystery, and I would have liked a little more romance.
One thing I really liked, which is typical of this author's work -- the strong women characters, and how their men didn't try to change them into submissive women. For that time period, it would have been unusual for women to be actively involved in any criminal investigations. I thought it was refreshing that Penelope, Griselda, and Violet all helped in this one.
I also liked that couples from the first book in this series were heavily included in this book (Penelope and Barnaby; and Griselda and Stokes). The reader was able to see how their relationships had matured in the months since they got married.
My rating system is below.
1 star -- Hated it, or did not finish. I usually only give this rating if some of the content is truly objectionable to me, like if one of the main characters does something really awful, and gets away with it.
2 stars -- Didn't like it. This rating usually means that I thought the writing wasn't very good, the editing was terrible, I didn't like the characters, or it had other major flaws.
3 stars -- I liked it, but had some minor issues with it. This rating means that there were minor editing issues, the story needed more character development, it was just too unrealistic, or had some other fairly minor issue. The majority of books I read get this rating – I do not consider it a bad rating.
4 stars -- I liked it a lot. This is a high rating for me, and I rarely give a higher one.
5 stars -- I loved it, and will probably read it again. Very few books are good enough to get this rating from me. The ones that do are usually classics.
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