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3.56 AVERAGE
3.56 AVERAGE
A menagerie in the Scottish Highlands? A doctor in a remote Scottish Highland village with extensive experience in autopsy? Ok, I’ll attempt to willingly suspend my disbelief and look past those rather incredible details. Oh, and here we are once again, jumping back and forth between completely separate stories in different time periods with only the most tenuous connection between the two. As seems to usually be the case, there’s absolutely nothing about the story from the past that is in any way really relevant to the mystery, simply “here’s a story from the past set in the same place, with something which a character in the past owned which is now present in the background of the mystery.” Now to my surprise, I actually found myself enjoying the “past” story more than the actual “present mystery.” Usually I find the jump back in time chapters tedious and annoying (and I may be guilty of bypassing that part of the story altogether in some past Lady Emily books). But in this case it was the actual mystery timeline which was the tedious one. A key theme in the story is how everyone in this village seems to know everything about everyone else in the village, all the goings on in the village, all the comings and goings…and yet, NO ONE in this very well informed place were aware of the vicar’s wife’s infidelity, her pregnancy/loss, and no one witnessed the victim’s murder. To say nothing of the way that Emily & Colin are being led around by the nose by all these people who seemingly know everything and yet never anything of use. There even seems to be a lot of contradictory info being shared by all these people and never do Emily or Colin seem to notice.
And of course there’s Jeremy, who has made it his life’s ambition to be useless for (checks notes) 16 prior books in which he’s been part of Emily & Colin’s murder investigations, and suddenly does a 180 and decides that perhaps that’s not who he wants to be anymore?
I will say I enjoyed a lot of the characters in this book (Emily & Colin’s children are a bit of a riot) but overall, a very uneven entry in the series.
And of course there’s Jeremy, who has made it his life’s ambition to be useless for (checks notes) 16 prior books in which he’s been part of Emily & Colin’s murder investigations, and suddenly does a 180 and decides that perhaps that’s not who he wants to be anymore?
I will say I enjoyed a lot of the characters in this book (Emily & Colin’s children are a bit of a riot) but overall, a very uneven entry in the series.
Trigger warning: sexual violence, spiritualism, racism
Lady Emily and her husband, Colin Hargreaves, and their three sons are accompanying their friend, Jeremy, Duke of Bainbridge, to his castle in the Scottish highlands. But, as always, a murder interrupts their peaceful vacation and they embark on an investigation--first, to learn the true identity of the murdered man, and second, to find and bring to justice his murderer. But some clues seem to tie the murder to another time and another century, when people were being burned at the stake. We also follow two women from that time period, a White woman and her Moorish companion, who are trying to survive their suddenly reduced circumstances in that same small, Scottish town, and who seem doomed from the start.
I really do enjoy this series! I really appreciated that this installment spent more time exploring the personalities of Lady Emily and Colin's sons. As always, the place and both time periods seemed well-researched and came alive through the story. I love learning about them! I am still not a fan of the "impending doom" cliffhanger statements that usually end each of the older timeline (in this case, that of 1676), but I understand why they are employed. I did, however, appreciate the exploration of power dynamics between genders and the different parts of society in that time period, especially between Moorish slaves and the White majority. Alexander never disappoints!
Thank you to @NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Minotaur for my advanced electronic copy. All opinions are my own.
Lady Emily and her husband, Colin Hargreaves, and their three sons are accompanying their friend, Jeremy, Duke of Bainbridge, to his castle in the Scottish highlands. But, as always, a murder interrupts their peaceful vacation and they embark on an investigation--first, to learn the true identity of the murdered man, and second, to find and bring to justice his murderer. But some clues seem to tie the murder to another time and another century, when people were being burned at the stake. We also follow two women from that time period, a White woman and her Moorish companion, who are trying to survive their suddenly reduced circumstances in that same small, Scottish town, and who seem doomed from the start.
I really do enjoy this series! I really appreciated that this installment spent more time exploring the personalities of Lady Emily and Colin's sons. As always, the place and both time periods seemed well-researched and came alive through the story. I love learning about them! I am still not a fan of the "impending doom" cliffhanger statements that usually end each of the older timeline (in this case, that of 1676), but I understand why they are employed. I did, however, appreciate the exploration of power dynamics between genders and the different parts of society in that time period, especially between Moorish slaves and the White majority. Alexander never disappoints!
Thank you to @NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Minotaur for my advanced electronic copy. All opinions are my own.
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This was amazing. I love this series, and her boys and best friend are hilarious cameos.
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Another good installment of this series! Took me a while to get invested in the two plot lines but then it started to click for me.
Three sad stars for this one in which Lady Emily and family head to Scotland where they encounter murder and general unpleasantness. Top marks for scene setting and putting the reader into a "Highland" mood; that is the best part of the book. The story itself drags along with way too many annoying children and servants popping in and out. I can only assume it is an attempt to distract the reader from the thin plot and dumb mystery. I skipped the alternating chapters, assuming they will add nothing (they never do) and confuse the reader who is desperately searching for a connection to the main story (there isn't). I was given a copy so my own opinion is that while I tried to find something to love about the book it was not an enjoyable read for me.
I really enjoyed A Cold Highland Wind by Tasha Alexander. It was a dual timeline/pov. Most of the time, I find myself connecting more to one timeline than the other but in this book they were both highly entertaining. The characters are likeable and humorous. The storyline is fast paced, mysterious and has some great twists and reveals. I would highly recommend that you add this #historicalmystery to your spooky season #tbr.
A Cold Highland Wind by Tasha Alexander is the seventeenth in the A Lady Emily Ashton Mystery series. It is a dual timeline set in the atmospheric and haunting Scottish Highlands with swathes of suspense and mystery and snippets of folklore. There are also romance, betrayal, family dynamics and courage. The characters are truly fascinating. But for me it was the setting that took my breath away as a huge fan of the Scottish Highlands.
Lady Emily and her husband Colin Hargreaves investigate a murder which takes place at lovely Cairnfarn Castle. This time they and their darling and mischievous sons are on vacation and the sons use their cunning and curiosity to aid their parents unearth clues. They are understandably shaken by death. Their wit and charm are so endearing! A few hundred years earlier well-off Lady MacAllister loses her husband and home, Cairnfarn Castle. She and friend (former slave) Tunisian Tasnim are looked upon with suspicion and hostility by local villagers and are dealt with harshly. When accused of witchcraft Lady MacAllister is desperate to prove herself. The two friends are desperate to hide their secret in the form of bundles of special books. But there are far, far more secrets, too. Though separated by many decades, the stories are masterfully tied together with a gratifying conclusion.
I just love Tasha Alexander's writing. It is always obvious she does her research meticulously as the details are vivid and highly descriptive. If you seek a Historical Fiction Mystery series, do envelop yourself in this one. The potential for future mystery solving is exciting with the energetic boys joining the team!
My sincere thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this beguiling novel.
Lady Emily and her husband Colin Hargreaves investigate a murder which takes place at lovely Cairnfarn Castle. This time they and their darling and mischievous sons are on vacation and the sons use their cunning and curiosity to aid their parents unearth clues. They are understandably shaken by death. Their wit and charm are so endearing! A few hundred years earlier well-off Lady MacAllister loses her husband and home, Cairnfarn Castle. She and friend (former slave) Tunisian Tasnim are looked upon with suspicion and hostility by local villagers and are dealt with harshly. When accused of witchcraft Lady MacAllister is desperate to prove herself. The two friends are desperate to hide their secret in the form of bundles of special books. But there are far, far more secrets, too. Though separated by many decades, the stories are masterfully tied together with a gratifying conclusion.
I just love Tasha Alexander's writing. It is always obvious she does her research meticulously as the details are vivid and highly descriptive. If you seek a Historical Fiction Mystery series, do envelop yourself in this one. The potential for future mystery solving is exciting with the energetic boys joining the team!
My sincere thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this beguiling novel.
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No