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tough_cookie 's review for:
Silent in the Grave
by Deanna Raybourn
While not a very fast-paced novel, Silent in the Grave nevertheless offers a puzzling mystery that engages the reader until the very end. Julia Grey's husband, Edward, collapses at a party and then proceeds to die. While it was known that he had heart trouble and the attending doctor ruled his death a natural one, the enigmatic and quick-tempered Sir Nicholas Brisbane approaches Julia saying that he believed it was in fact murder. However, Julia dismisses his claims and sends him away. A year later, though, she turns up evidence that makes her question Brisbane's claims and so engages him to help her unmask the murderer.
The actual culprit was quite a surprise and added scandal to an otherwise VERY scandalous (and salacious) plot. For my taste, it was a bit heavy-handed when it came to perverse acts, but again, that's according to me. However, what truly irked me was Julia's incompetence; 400 pages of her bumbling about the investigation and making a mess of things was enough to put me off reading more entries in the series. Brisbane was an interesting character, though, with his mysterious background and his "second sight", which added an air of magic to the book. However, he was too moody and angry and prideful for my liking. Overall, a well-written mystery will a deeply interconnected plot, but not good enough to keep me reading the rest of the series.
The actual culprit was quite a surprise and added scandal to an otherwise VERY scandalous (and salacious) plot. For my taste, it was a bit heavy-handed when it came to perverse acts, but again, that's according to me. However, what truly irked me was Julia's incompetence; 400 pages of her bumbling about the investigation and making a mess of things was enough to put me off reading more entries in the series. Brisbane was an interesting character, though, with his mysterious background and his "second sight", which added an air of magic to the book. However, he was too moody and angry and prideful for my liking. Overall, a well-written mystery will a deeply interconnected plot, but not good enough to keep me reading the rest of the series.