2-3-4 Challenge Book Discussions #1 discussion

Regency England, August 1812: Sebastian St. Cyr’s plans to escape the heat of London for a honeymoon with his new bride, Hero Jarvis, are shattered when the murdered body of Hero’s good friend Gabrielle Tennyson is discovered drifting in a battered boat at the site of a long-vanished castle known as Camlet Moat. Missing and also presumed dead are Gabrielle’s two young cousins.

Still struggling to define the nature of their new marriage, Sebastian and Hero find themselves occasionally working at cross-purposes as their investigation uncovers dark secrets at the heart of the Tennyson family and an enigmatic young French lieutenant who is concealing mysteries of his own.

Sebastian and Hero’s race to unmask a ruthless killer and unravel the puzzle of the missing children puts both their lives and their growing love for each other at risk as they’re threatened by powerful men in high places…and by a tall, dark stranger who may hold the key to Sebastian’s own parentage.

51 Chapters
August 1812

Character List
(view spoiler)[
Sebastian St. Cyr: Viscount Devlin. Tall, leanly built man, not yet 30-years old. He has dark hair and strange yellow eyes with the unnatural ability to see clearly at great distances or at night. Lord Hendon's only surviving son, they enjoy a very complicated and acrimonious relatiohship. St. Cyr's mother abandoned him at a young age which still affects him to this day. He was forced to forgo the love of his life, Kat Boleyn due to familial secrets. He's now married to Hero who is pregnant.
Hero Jarvis St. Cyr, Lady Devlin: Viscountess Devlin. Daughter of Charles, Lord Jarvis and St. Cyr's enemy, She's tall, 25-years old with gray eyes and was considered a spinster until she married Sebastian. Independent minded, smart and not afraid of her father. She's pregnant with his child.
Charles, Lord Jarvis: Brilliant, ruthless man and cousin to the King. Completely dedicated to the preservation of the House of Hanover, he was considered the power behind Prinny (Prince Regent) weak Regency due to King George slipping into madness. In prior mysteries, St. Cyr had broken into Jarvis' house, held him at gunpoint and thrown a knife at him. They were not on the best of terms and neither trusted the other. He's Hero's father.
Alistair St. Cyr, Earl of Hendon: Sebastian's father to the world but in reality he was not. Sebastian recently learned he's not his biological father but the Earl has always known. He is, however, the father of Kat Bolyen, Sebastian's former lover, and allowed Sebastian to believe they were brother and sister. Currently the Chancellor of the Exchequer, in his late sixties with deep blue eyes.
Sir Henry Lovejoy: Once the chief magistrate at Queen Square, now the newest of Bow Street’s three stipendiary magistrates, and friend of Sebastian.
Gabrielle Tennyson: Friend of Hero's who was murdered. The daughter of a famous scholar, she’d been well on her way to earning a reputation as an antiquary in her own right—a decidedly unusual accomplishment for one of her sex. She lived with her brother, himself a well-known and respected barrister. She was an amateur archaeologist searching for Camelot and was 28-years old.
George Tennyson: Gabrielle's 9-year old cousin.
Alfred Tennyson: Gabrielle's 3-year old cousin.
Sir Stanley Winthrop: Owner of Camlet Moat, where Gabrielle was excavating for Camelot. She was discovered on his property. He's a prosperous banker and owner of Trent Place where Camlet Moat is located.
Lady Winthrop: Stanley's much younger wife.
Hildeyard Tennyson: Gabrielle's brother, a respected barrister, with whom she lived.
Emily Goodwin: Hildeyard's fiancée.
Charles Tennyson d'Eyncourt: Gabrielle's cousin and uncle to the two missing boys. He's an MP in Parliament and heir to his father's wealth.
Mary Bourne: d'Eyncourt's sister.
Lieutenant Philippe Arceneaux: Friend of Gabrielle, French prisoner of war.
Margaret Campbell: George and Alfred's nurse.
Tessa Sawyer: The 15-year old village girl who finds Gabrielle's body.
Paul Gibson: Former army surgeon, an Irishman who shared the battlefields with Sebastian where he lost a leg. Unmarried, he works out of a small surgery at the base of Tower Hill and shares his knowledge of anatomy at St. Thomas and St. Bartholomew's teaching hospitals. He frequently assists St. Cyr, his friend, with his murder investigations and provides an invaluable source of knowledge. He's 32-years old slim, dark haired and of medium height and has an opium addiction.
Lady Amanda Wilcox: Oldest of the St. Cyr siblings, sister to Sebastian. Her husband drowned as he was attempting to murder Sebastian. He had already murdered several people. Mother of Bayard and Stephanie.
Jamie Knox: Owner of the Black Devil tavern.
Lady Winthrop: Sir Stanley's heiress wife, plain and religious.
Rory Forster: Winthrop's foreman.
Jules Calhoun: Sebastian's valet. Began his life in one of London's most notorious flash house, some of his unusual talents were of use to Sebastian who made solving murders his life's passion.
Morey: Sebastian's butler.
Kat Boleyn: Irish actress now toast of London. Former spy for the French. Sebastian's former lover who is now married to Russell Yates, a privateer.
Russell Yates: Privateer, married to Kat. He's gay and his marriage to Kat is his cover.
Tom: Sebastian's 13-year old groom or tiger who is devoted to him because he rescued him from the streets after he saved Sebastian's life. Secures information for Sebastian due to living on the streets and his ability to go undetected.
Bevin Childe: Rival antiquary of Gabrielle's.
Gaston Colbert: French prisoner of war free on parole.
Colonel Jasper Urquhart: Jarvis' new investigator.
John Richards: Magistrate.
Molly O'Keefe: Irishwoman who runs a lodging house in Covent Garden.
Charlotte Roach: Young girl living at Molly's house.
Mrs. O'Donnell: Tennyson's housekeeper.
Chien: Arceneaux's dog.
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The Mystery of the Glastonbury Cross

Definitions
Footpad: Highwayman operating on foot rather than riding a horse.