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frasergirl's review against another edition
5.0
I always found mistery novels hard to captivate me but now that I read this amazing book, I realized I haven't found the right one until I picked this one up. I won my copy in a giveaway and I am so happy that I did!
The characters are just amazing, relatable and complex while being absolutely real. The story is breathtaking. I thought it was slow-burning at first but the more I read, twists came and left me surprised and even more hooked than before! Everything made sense in the end, every twist, every character and that kind of symmetry makes it a masterpiece.
The characters are just amazing, relatable and complex while being absolutely real. The story is breathtaking. I thought it was slow-burning at first but the more I read, twists came and left me surprised and even more hooked than before! Everything made sense in the end, every twist, every character and that kind of symmetry makes it a masterpiece.
gawronma's review against another edition
4.0
A really nice story. It was both happy and sad at the same. I am really hoping to see another book by Karen Odden.
cmbohn's review against another edition
4.0
I love a good historical mystery. I get to learn about some aspect of history, in this case the Victorian art world, while enjoying a good whodunnit. This book was no exception. I was a little hesitant, since this was book 2 in a series, but as it happens the books are set in the same general time frame, but are not truly related.
The story centers around the murder of an artist during an art theft. A valuable French painting goes missing while being restored. Only after its disappearance do the police learn about a dispute over the ownership of the missing painting. Meanwhile the artist's sister, who is an art student herself, joins the hunt for the killer. Annabel and the police inspector dig through the past to track down the painting - and the murderer.
I feel like a lot of writers struggle to get it right when writing a historical mystery with a female main character. They give her modern attitudes and allow her modern freedoms that are completely out of place. While I understand wanting to showcase some parts of life that have been left out of existing mysteries, throwing a totally modern character into a 19th century story just doesn't work.
In this case, I felt like Annabel's story was authentic enough. The Slade did accept female students, and there were female artists. I just question whether a single young woman would wander about so much on her own. Would people really take her seriously enough to answer her questions? Most of the time she accompanied the inspector, though, so that was mostly OK. I did like the characters and the story moved at a good pace. This one definitely kept my interest. I liked it enough that I'd be happy to go back and read the first book.
This book was just released this week. I read it in paperback and I have to thank the publisher for the chance to read this one.
The story centers around the murder of an artist during an art theft. A valuable French painting goes missing while being restored. Only after its disappearance do the police learn about a dispute over the ownership of the missing painting. Meanwhile the artist's sister, who is an art student herself, joins the hunt for the killer. Annabel and the police inspector dig through the past to track down the painting - and the murderer.
I feel like a lot of writers struggle to get it right when writing a historical mystery with a female main character. They give her modern attitudes and allow her modern freedoms that are completely out of place. While I understand wanting to showcase some parts of life that have been left out of existing mysteries, throwing a totally modern character into a 19th century story just doesn't work.
In this case, I felt like Annabel's story was authentic enough. The Slade did accept female students, and there were female artists. I just question whether a single young woman would wander about so much on her own. Would people really take her seriously enough to answer her questions? Most of the time she accompanied the inspector, though, so that was mostly OK. I did like the characters and the story moved at a good pace. This one definitely kept my interest. I liked it enough that I'd be happy to go back and read the first book.
This book was just released this week. I read it in paperback and I have to thank the publisher for the chance to read this one.
annarella's review against another edition
4.0
An excellent historical mystery with cozy elements, engrossing and entertaining.
I loved the well researched historical background, the fleshed out cast of characters and the solid mystery that kept me guessing.
It can be read as a stand alone and it's an enjoyable read that I recommend.
Many thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
I loved the well researched historical background, the fleshed out cast of characters and the solid mystery that kept me guessing.
It can be read as a stand alone and it's an enjoyable read that I recommend.
Many thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
aliab's review against another edition
3.0
Overall it was an enjoyable read. I liked the setting as the story takes place in 19th century Victorian London. The characters well-written. It got quite emotional at times, and I think that the author did a great job describing the characters' feelings and explaining the reasons behind their actions. I don't often read stories involving stolen art or even art in general, and so I found the mystery around the disappearance of Madame de Pompadour's portrait interesting. Still, it's the mystery resolution that fell short for me. I found it to be predictable and rather anticlimactic. I would have enjoyed more suspense and some more elements of surprise.
meagangrace's review
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying and Violence
Moderate: Murder, Physical abuse, and Child abuse
Minor: Sexual assault
jessicamap's review against another edition
4.0
Thanks to William Morrow and TLC Book Tours for the free copy in exchange for my honest review and blog tour feature
This is book two in the Victorian Mystery series by Karen Odden. Book one was A DANGEROUS DUET (4 stars for me!) and I was looking forward to continuing the series. A TRACE OF DECEIT can be read as a standalone, so if it sounds of interest then you don’t need to worry about feeling lost if you start here.
Another solid historical fiction meets mystery read and I was completely engrossed in the era. This is what I remembered the best from book one, Odden sets the scene and period so perfectly that she transports you there. This is one thing I have always loved about historical fiction. Not only that, but the author gives us a great mystery to go along with it! An artist murdered, a missing painting that was supposedly destroyed years ago, and one woman trying to get to the bottom of it.
Book one focused more on the setting and the atmosphere, but book two gives us more character development and becomes focused on fleshing them out more. Which, again, good news for those starting the series here, because you’ll get a more in-depth look into the characters!
This is book two in the Victorian Mystery series by Karen Odden. Book one was A DANGEROUS DUET (4 stars for me!) and I was looking forward to continuing the series. A TRACE OF DECEIT can be read as a standalone, so if it sounds of interest then you don’t need to worry about feeling lost if you start here.
Another solid historical fiction meets mystery read and I was completely engrossed in the era. This is what I remembered the best from book one, Odden sets the scene and period so perfectly that she transports you there. This is one thing I have always loved about historical fiction. Not only that, but the author gives us a great mystery to go along with it! An artist murdered, a missing painting that was supposedly destroyed years ago, and one woman trying to get to the bottom of it.
Book one focused more on the setting and the atmosphere, but book two gives us more character development and becomes focused on fleshing them out more. Which, again, good news for those starting the series here, because you’ll get a more in-depth look into the characters!
annarella's review
4.0
An excellent historical mystery with cozy elements, engrossing and entertaining.
I loved the well researched historical background, the fleshed out cast of characters and the solid mystery that kept me guessing.
It can be read as a stand alone and it's an enjoyable read that I recommend.
Many thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
I loved the well researched historical background, the fleshed out cast of characters and the solid mystery that kept me guessing.
It can be read as a stand alone and it's an enjoyable read that I recommend.
Many thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss for this ARC, all opinions are mine.