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wiseowl33's review against another edition
4.0
Lady Emily's adventures keep getting better! Poor Jeremy though... I felt for him. But continue to look forward to Emily's life as Colin's partner. Love this time period.
bigotterbooks's review against another edition
3.0
3 stars. The plot just drops you into the hunting party at Lord Fortescue's estate; no rehash of the last book etc so I was lost as to who these people were and why Lord Fortescue was such an ass. Then once it got started it was a decent book. The mystery was confusing and tied up with spies and royalty and lovers from the past. The story bogged down in the Vienna coffee house world of art and dragged on and on. The ending and wrapping up the murder was a bit of a let down. Will keep reading the series.
eawsmom's review against another edition
4.0
I am reviewing the audio edition of this book. I give the book itself 4 stars; I give the narrator two at most.
The book is well written and gives insight into life in Vienna in the early 1890s, as well as a small glimpse into the British justice system at that time. When the unpleasant Lord Fortescue is murdered and Lady Emily Ashton's good friend is jailed for the crime, she sets out to clear his name. The trail leads to Vienna, a group of anarchists, her fiance's former lover, and the suspicious death of the Emperor's son. Emily successfully clears her friend's name and wins her fiance.
Sadly, the person chosen to read this book is very annoying. Her method of reading is plodding and unenthusiastic, and her pronunciation of some words is irritating. She pronounces "I'd" as "odd", "husband" as "huss-band" with equal emphasis on both syllables, and "baroque" as "barack" to name just a few things. She also makes a high society woman from New York sound like someone from the back streets.
The book is well written and gives insight into life in Vienna in the early 1890s, as well as a small glimpse into the British justice system at that time. When the unpleasant Lord Fortescue is murdered and Lady Emily Ashton's good friend is jailed for the crime, she sets out to clear his name. The trail leads to Vienna, a group of anarchists, her fiance's former lover, and the suspicious death of the Emperor's son. Emily successfully clears her friend's name and wins her fiance.
Sadly, the person chosen to read this book is very annoying. Her method of reading is plodding and unenthusiastic, and her pronunciation of some words is irritating. She pronounces "I'd" as "odd", "husband" as "huss-band" with equal emphasis on both syllables, and "baroque" as "barack" to name just a few things. She also makes a high society woman from New York sound like someone from the back streets.
stephshoff88's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
little_miss_3657's review
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-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
4.0
goodxgirl9238's review against another edition
5.0
I read it in two days.
Honestly, that says a lot for me. Probably would have been faster, but I do have a job.
Honestly, that says a lot for me. Probably would have been faster, but I do have a job.
starbooks's review
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
skrau's review against another edition
3.0
Honestly, I'm not sure why I'm continuing to read this series. I read the second book first without realizing it when I checked it out from the library, wasn't a huge fan but figured I'd give the first one a try, and I was curious about the references to the previous book's characters & plot. It was a little better, but the third one is the closest I've come to really liking it. Giving A Fatal Waltz 3 stars is stretching it a bit actually, but based on the fact that I was finally surprised by the solution to the mystery (and wrong in my own prediction), its probably fair.
I'm a sucker for historical mysteries with strong, rebellious female protagonists, but either I have read too many or this series is too derivative with not enough innovation. Lady Emily gets a bit boring, and Colin Hargreaves is almost too sweet. The characters, as well as the plots, are pretty predictable, and its the minor characters and the settings (and the fashion) that are keeping my interest I think.
I find myself comparing Emily & Colin to the exploits of Deanna Raybourn's Lady Julia & Brisbane a LOT, to which this series does not measure up in my opinion. Maybe that's why I'm finding it so hard to properly like. Plus the dark & brooding Brisbane and his somewhat steamier scenes with Julia is more interesting than the more Victorian society-conscious Colin & the author's glossing over of their romance. I don't need outright sex, but a kiss described in more than a sentence is always nice in books clearly aimed towards women, despite being described as "a novel of suspense" on every book's cover.
I do intend to read all of the series so far though, because I do still have hope that they'll get progressively better. Plus, they are actually addicting and extremely quick reads, and after a semester of graduate history classes & the readings that go with it, these books are proving an effective way to un-fry my brain and enjoy reading again.
I'm a sucker for historical mysteries with strong, rebellious female protagonists, but either I have read too many or this series is too derivative with not enough innovation. Lady Emily gets a bit boring, and Colin Hargreaves is almost too sweet. The characters, as well as the plots, are pretty predictable, and its the minor characters and the settings (and the fashion) that are keeping my interest I think.
I find myself comparing Emily & Colin to the exploits of Deanna Raybourn's Lady Julia & Brisbane a LOT, to which this series does not measure up in my opinion. Maybe that's why I'm finding it so hard to properly like. Plus the dark & brooding Brisbane and his somewhat steamier scenes with Julia is more interesting than the more Victorian society-conscious Colin & the author's glossing over of their romance. I don't need outright sex, but a kiss described in more than a sentence is always nice in books clearly aimed towards women, despite being described as "a novel of suspense" on every book's cover.
I do intend to read all of the series so far though, because I do still have hope that they'll get progressively better. Plus, they are actually addicting and extremely quick reads, and after a semester of graduate history classes & the readings that go with it, these books are proving an effective way to un-fry my brain and enjoy reading again.
ladyhighwayman's review against another edition
4.0
A delightful book. Not as fantastic as I thought A Poisoned Season to be, but entertaining nonetheless. Like A Poisoned Season, the ending had a great twist that I did not see coming. This book had a bit more action in it than A Poisoned Season and I felt myself holding my breath at some points. A Fatal Waltz was a great third installment to the Lady Ashton series and I cannot wait to read the next.
brookeonbooks's review against another edition
4.0
Overall I enjoyed this third installment in the Lady Emily series but found myself slightly annoyed with the dynamic between Colin and Emily as the novel went on. Moving half the plot to Austria allowed for an interesting setting, but I felt the absence of Emily's British household and the catty society characters acutely. I'm looking forward to book four of the series and hope they return to England!