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cmcahill's review against another edition
4.0
Reread in May 2014
After Sherlock Holmes (Conan Doyle) and Laurie King, these books are my favorite comfort read.
After Sherlock Holmes (Conan Doyle) and Laurie King, these books are my favorite comfort read.
bev_reads_mysteries's review against another edition
4.0
Regency dandy Julian Kestrel is brought into a second mystery--this time by the sister of his valet, Thomas "Dipper" Stokes. Sally Stokes is a girl on the game, has been ever since their parents died and she and Dipper got separated. Dipper (his name from his pickpocketing ways) was rescued from a life of thieving when he lifted Kestrel's "ticker" and rather than prosecute the lad for taking his watch the gentry-cove decided to hire him as a servant.
When Sally has a busy night with three gents she names "Blinkers," "Bristles," and "Blue Eyes," she does what she always does--lifts a handkerchief as a bit of remembrance (the money the hankies bring in is even better for remembering...). Blinkers turns out to be a bit rough and leaves Sally bruised and battered after their encounter. Fortunately, she runs into her brother when she's back out on the street and he takes her home so he can have a doctor check her over. He doesn't expect his master to be at home, but Julian surprises them both and takes an interest in Sally's welfare. He also returns her property to her...the hankies and the money she had stored in her petticoat pocket had managed to fall out. But when he also hands her a letter found among the handkerchiefs, she claims no knowledge of it. It must have been caught up in the hankie when she lifted it.
But which one? That becomes an important question because when the letter is read it's obvious that there's an urgent mystery to be solved. The letter is unsigned but clearly the woman who wrote it is in great distress. Sally tells Julian everything she can remember about the three men and he soon identifies one of them. Other clues lead him to the Rev. Gideon Harcourt's Reclamation Society--a "shelter" for fallen women. Sally volunteers to go undercover as a fallen woman looking to be saved, but they are too late. The author of the letter is found dead the very morning Sally presents herself to be reclaimed. What was to be a rescue mission is now a murder inquiry, but there are other mysteries surrounding the three men and the Society and Julian will need to sift the clues carefully to find killer.
I first read the Kate Ross books back in the 90s when they first came out and enjoyed them thoroughly. It has been very nice to revisit these books to see if they still stand up after about thirty years. And they do. The research is impeccable and Ross uses the lingo of the Regency period with ease. She also uses the phrases in such a way that the reader can easily determine what is meant from context and can be very comfortable with the language.
This outing gave us a fiercely independent young woman in Sally who helps the investigation in very definite ways that neither Julian nor Dipper could accomplish. She makes an excellent addition to the team of detectives and it isn't just Julian and Dipper who are sad to see her go at the end of the story. But she's used to being on her own and doing as she pleases and it's obvious she can't be tied down in one place for long.
The mystery itself is interesting and complex with a couple of side issues to muddy the waters nicely. One has to figure out which of the threads lead to the main issue (the woman who wrote the letter and later died) and which don't. Nicely done.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting portions of review. Thanks.
When Sally has a busy night with three gents she names "Blinkers," "Bristles," and "Blue Eyes," she does what she always does--lifts a handkerchief as a bit of remembrance (the money the hankies bring in is even better for remembering...). Blinkers turns out to be a bit rough and leaves Sally bruised and battered after their encounter. Fortunately, she runs into her brother when she's back out on the street and he takes her home so he can have a doctor check her over. He doesn't expect his master to be at home, but Julian surprises them both and takes an interest in Sally's welfare. He also returns her property to her...the hankies and the money she had stored in her petticoat pocket had managed to fall out. But when he also hands her a letter found among the handkerchiefs, she claims no knowledge of it. It must have been caught up in the hankie when she lifted it.
But which one? That becomes an important question because when the letter is read it's obvious that there's an urgent mystery to be solved. The letter is unsigned but clearly the woman who wrote it is in great distress. Sally tells Julian everything she can remember about the three men and he soon identifies one of them. Other clues lead him to the Rev. Gideon Harcourt's Reclamation Society--a "shelter" for fallen women. Sally volunteers to go undercover as a fallen woman looking to be saved, but they are too late. The author of the letter is found dead the very morning Sally presents herself to be reclaimed. What was to be a rescue mission is now a murder inquiry, but there are other mysteries surrounding the three men and the Society and Julian will need to sift the clues carefully to find killer.
I first read the Kate Ross books back in the 90s when they first came out and enjoyed them thoroughly. It has been very nice to revisit these books to see if they still stand up after about thirty years. And they do. The research is impeccable and Ross uses the lingo of the Regency period with ease. She also uses the phrases in such a way that the reader can easily determine what is meant from context and can be very comfortable with the language.
This outing gave us a fiercely independent young woman in Sally who helps the investigation in very definite ways that neither Julian nor Dipper could accomplish. She makes an excellent addition to the team of detectives and it isn't just Julian and Dipper who are sad to see her go at the end of the story. But she's used to being on her own and doing as she pleases and it's obvious she can't be tied down in one place for long.
The mystery itself is interesting and complex with a couple of side issues to muddy the waters nicely. One has to figure out which of the threads lead to the main issue (the woman who wrote the letter and later died) and which don't. Nicely done.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting portions of review. Thanks.
teaandbooklover's review
2.0
I read this after I read the third in the series, and after reading reviews, I find that the third is thought of as Ms. Ross' best book.
Here the main character was not Julian but Sally, his man-servants prostitute sister. I cannot stand her accent with SO many phrases and words that I eventually tired of looking them all up! I always read with a dictionary by my side but I've never read a book with this stunted dialogue all the way through. It was very annoying and not necessary! How long did the author spend looking up all these phrases and words that no one has heard of nowadays?
This was just too far different from the best book in the series that it was highly disappointing. I also did not see why she put Julian with Sally. Ridiculous.
Here the main character was not Julian but Sally, his man-servants prostitute sister. I cannot stand her accent with SO many phrases and words that I eventually tired of looking them all up! I always read with a dictionary by my side but I've never read a book with this stunted dialogue all the way through. It was very annoying and not necessary! How long did the author spend looking up all these phrases and words that no one has heard of nowadays?
This was just too far different from the best book in the series that it was highly disappointing. I also did not see why she put Julian with Sally. Ridiculous.
tlsouthard's review against another edition
4.0
Just as good as the first. Sally, Dipper's sister,is a wonderful character. I hope she appears again later.
jmeston's review against another edition
2.0
I dearly needed a novel and this filled the bill. But lordy, what an anachronistic bundle of romance among the Dickensian grime. The dialogue is handled well. But the characters in this strictly proscribed historical social setting seem to have very little awareness of class or morality.
wild_night_in's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
bob_muller's review against another edition
2.0
A seriously flawed effort with coincidental character relationships everywhere and central to the plot development, unbelievable social interactions even for bizarre Victorian gentlemen, and not very compelling emotional and social characterization. I couldn't finish it.
wealhtheow's review against another edition
4.0
Julian Kestral is such a dandy that his style is copied everywhere, but his true gift is in sleuthing. When his valet's sister stumbles upon a chilling letter, he takes the case. The mystery is twisty and dark, and solved through a combination of legwork, wit and courage. I love the dialog in these books, which is snappy but always feels natural. The relationships between characters are my favorite part. Dipper and his master, Kestral, live together in a wonderfully symbiotic way, and his sister's cocky, forthright addition to their dynamic is adorable to read. Rare among mystery series, the characters from the first book's mystery (Dr.MacGregor, Philipa) pop up again in this book, which makes everything feel more realistic. (After sharing such intense emotions and experiences, it seems unlikely that they would all fall out of touch, just in time for another mystery to pop up, as generally happens.)
threerings's review against another edition
4.0
Quite a satisfying historical mystery. The new character of Sally Stokes, a prostitute, was an enjoyable addition to the cast. The historical details in this book were superior to the last.
lauraellis's review against another edition
4.0
This is the second [novel in the] Regency series featuring Julian Kestrel. A new character, who will recur I gather, is the housemaid Sally (also sister to Julian’s valet, Dipper), who infiltrates the home for reform(ing) fallen women, aka prostitutes, and also seduces, sort of, Julian. It started out slow, I thought, but then it became engrossing. I would have preferred to see more of Julian in his role as a dandy.
2020: Alas, this author died young so we only have four of the Julian Kestrel mysteries.
2020: Alas, this author died young so we only have four of the Julian Kestrel mysteries.