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A review by aartireadsalot
The Sleeping Partner: A Sarah Tolerance Mystery by Madeleine E. Robins
5.0
The Sleeping Partner is the third book in Madeleine Robins' Sarah Tolerance mystery series set in an alternate Regency England in which Queen Charlotte rules as Regent (currently). I am a huge fan of this series because I love the way Robins has played so subtly with the Regency to bring attention to gender roles and sexual power in this historical period. I also love the series because Sarah Tolerance is awesome. She is in the perfect position to straddle all levels of society, from the cream of the Ton that comprise her clients all the way to the young boys that work menial jobs sweeping the streets.
In this outing, Sarah Tolerance is hired by a lady whose sister Evadne has gone missing. She's terrified for her sister's well-being though she's also quite frank about the fact that, now that her sister has been missing for several days, her future even if found safe is pretty dire. Sarah, being a Fallen Woman herself, immediately feels for the missing girl and sets out to find her, embroiling herself deep in a sordid family history that involves war profiteering, re-encountering her own lost family and meeting both Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley along the way (hey, it's an alternate history, so it's possible!). And all the while, she's struggling with figuring out her complicated feelings for her good friend Sir Walter Mandiff and trying to determine if her brothel-keeper Aunt Thea is going insane or just being odd.
This book felt much grittier and sophisticated to me than the previous two books in the series. Sarah's London is not the same one inhabited by Georgette Heyer's characters, with glittering balls, lush silk gowns and fluttering fans. Instead, Sarah lives in a very polarized city, where she confronts people from all walks of life, and consequently the city of London is a vivid and fascinating character in this entire series. Add in the fabulous twist of alternate history, and the series really just satisfies on all accounts.
Sarah Tolerance is a strong, intelligent female sleuth. In a genre often populated either by flighty and flirtatious beauties or unrealistically modern-thinking spinsters, Sarah Tolerance stands out as a woman who is secure in who she is and is willing to use her skills within the boundaries that have been detailed for her. She's a great role model for young adult readers, and I am so looking forward to more in this series!
In this outing, Sarah Tolerance is hired by a lady whose sister Evadne has gone missing. She's terrified for her sister's well-being though she's also quite frank about the fact that, now that her sister has been missing for several days, her future even if found safe is pretty dire. Sarah, being a Fallen Woman herself, immediately feels for the missing girl and sets out to find her, embroiling herself deep in a sordid family history that involves war profiteering, re-encountering her own lost family and meeting both Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley along the way (hey, it's an alternate history, so it's possible!). And all the while, she's struggling with figuring out her complicated feelings for her good friend Sir Walter Mandiff and trying to determine if her brothel-keeper Aunt Thea is going insane or just being odd.
This book felt much grittier and sophisticated to me than the previous two books in the series. Sarah's London is not the same one inhabited by Georgette Heyer's characters, with glittering balls, lush silk gowns and fluttering fans. Instead, Sarah lives in a very polarized city, where she confronts people from all walks of life, and consequently the city of London is a vivid and fascinating character in this entire series. Add in the fabulous twist of alternate history, and the series really just satisfies on all accounts.
Sarah Tolerance is a strong, intelligent female sleuth. In a genre often populated either by flighty and flirtatious beauties or unrealistically modern-thinking spinsters, Sarah Tolerance stands out as a woman who is secure in who she is and is willing to use her skills within the boundaries that have been detailed for her. She's a great role model for young adult readers, and I am so looking forward to more in this series!