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A review by tdesgross
A Dangerous Mourning by Anne Perry
3.0
Overall a good book, but I didn't find it as interesting as the first. I feel like mysteries can depend on interesting investigators, an interesting crime, or a blend of both. In this case, both the mystery and Monk's development beyond confused amnesiac detective left a lot to be desired. Now, to be fair, confused amnesiac detective is a pretty awesome premise, but the author didn't cover much new ground for Monk personally in this book compared to the previous. His professional developments were interesting enough, but Perry mostly seemed to use this book to set up future novels, so it felt pretty flat emotionally. To be fair, Hester Latterly and a mostly new character, Oliver Rathbone, are both interesting, sympathetic characters, and I'm excited to see more of them. The mystery itself and its conclusion were disappointing. Personally I thought the resolution - or at least, the main antagonists - were fairly obvious.
As a very nitpicky sidebar, all of the characters are very definite about the fact that women won't be able to be doctors, never, ever, oh no, poor Hester. I would have liked at least a throwaway line about Elizabeth Blackwell and some hope for the future. EB graduated from medical school in the US in 1849 then studied in Paris in 1852 or thereabouts. She worked in England in the late 1850s and was a recognized physician there. Either way, 4-7 years before our characters come into contact with each other she had medical training and was recognized in the States and in Europe. Now, I'm not saying this would have significantly altered Hester's career path, but you'd think it would at least have come up in conversation.
As a very nitpicky sidebar, all of the characters are very definite about the fact that women won't be able to be doctors, never, ever, oh no, poor Hester. I would have liked at least a throwaway line about Elizabeth Blackwell and some hope for the future. EB graduated from medical school in the US in 1849 then studied in Paris in 1852 or thereabouts. She worked in England in the late 1850s and was a recognized physician there. Either way, 4-7 years before our characters come into contact with each other she had medical training and was recognized in the States and in Europe. Now, I'm not saying this would have significantly altered Hester's career path, but you'd think it would at least have come up in conversation.