“…visions, murderous rogues, traitors, and a coldly evil woman…” [quote from the book]
Review: Rating: MA: mature-reader [->17]: erotic sex, deviant references [but not grounded], graphic and descriptive violence, murder, madness, espionage, possible trigger warnings for violence against women, murder, torture, spying for the French, murder, treachery, traitors, murder: did I mention ‘there be’ murder? Language: British cursing: Angst level: high: Book 3/7 in the psychic Wherlocke, paranormal series: Source: purchased: I had previously read this series in paperback form and have been systematically gathering the ebooks for my personal library. Now that I have all the books, I have looked forward to reading them again. I am fascinated by this family. There are so many of them and their ‘gifts’ are so unique and varied. You almost need a play-bill just to keep up with them. I was sorely tempted to create a spreadsheet and list them all with their powers. I resisted, of course. I may have a touch of OCD, but not that bad. This review may contain spoilers.
This story was extremely interesting and I enjoyed it even more than books 1 & 2. We have the story of Alethea Vaughn with the gift of seeing visions. She was five-years-old when she first saw a vision of a young Hartley Greville. Every year, for the next fifteen years, she would experience a vision of him during an emotional time in his life, good or bad. The last one she had was of his death and she knew she had to warn him. Enlisting the aid of her uncle Iago Vaughn [who had his own gift], she traveled to London in search of Lord Greville.
Villains: talk about your evil villains, this will take your breath away. I don’t think I’ve read of such cold-hearted evil to the extent of this story. This was no walk in the park. This was hardcore madness. Life had no meaning and no one [man, woman, or child] was safe. Nothing was sacred. Everything was about money, control, power, money, prestige, and what someone could do for them. Did I mention money?
What I liked: there was humor in spite of the dangers and atrocities in this story. I loved the cadre of friends and associates surrounding Lord Greville. Those guys were a hoot. They were so much fun and such a help to our main characters. They all worked for the Crown [perhaps I should say the Home Office] in some capacity or another and were in the process of plugging the holes that were leaking information to the French. Then in walked Lady Channing and her Uncle Iago with information regarding a plot to kill Hartley. As they worked through the labyrinth and intricacies of the plot, they discovered that many of Lady Alethea’s relations also worked for the Crown in areas they didn’t even know existed. Who was this family? I LOVED it and HIGHLY recommend it for those who love mystery, intrigue, adventure, and with a healthy dose of HEA thrown in.
Wherlocke Series: each book can standalone and usually contains references to and visits from characters in previous books. I love this family.
Book 1: If He’s Wicked [Cloe Wherlocke and Lord Julian Kenwood]
Book 2: If He’s Sinful [Penelope Wherlocke and Lord Ashton Radmoor]
Book 3: If He’s Wild [Lady Alethea Vaughn-Channing and Lord Hartley Greville]
Book 4: If He’s Dangerous
Book 5: If He’s Tempted
Book 6: If He’s Daring
Book 7: If He’s Noble