Published by The
Mystery Press, 2012. ISBN: 978-0-7524-7001-6
Janet Laurence is an accomplished writer of
crime fiction, so her name will be well-known to most crime fiction fans. This,
her latest novel, is set it in the past, 1903 to be precise, and features an
interesting new female character, American Ursula Grandison.
Ursula
has accepted a commission from a wealthy fellow-American, Chauncey Seldon, to
discover what is going on in his daughter Helen’s marriage in England where she is wed to an
English Earl and has the title of Countess of Mountstanton. To this end, Seldon
sends his younger daughter, pretty and lively seventeen-year-old Belle, to
visit her sister Helen with Ursula Grandison travelling with the girl as her
companion.
Ursula
and Helen used to be close friends but the Countess harbours old resentments
from their past and is far from pleased when her ex-friend arrives unexpectedly
with Belle. Ursula can see a marked changed in Helen and soon realises that all
is not well in her marriage; that she is not happy living in the dreary
decaying Mountstanton House with her titled husband, the arrogant Earl, and his
forbidding mother, the Dowager Countess of Mountstanton.
When
Ursula discovers the drowned body of a nursemaid, whom they had earlier
believed had left the household, her suspicions about the family increase.
Refusing to believe that the death of the housemaid is the accident everyone in
the family believes it to be, Ursula sets out to delve deeper into the
Mountstanton family and its secrets. When a second death occurs, she is even
more determined to discover the truth as
well as to protect young Belle. The denouement of the novel is as convincing as
it is shocking.
This
is an engaging and enjoyable read, stylishly written, evoking the English way
of life for the wealthy and not-so-wealthy of that era. The story flows well,
with some good twists in the plot and with characters which are diverse and
well-drawn.
For
lovers of good crime-fiction, this novel is a must. Highly recommended.
-----
Reviewer: Edna Jones
Janet Laurence wanted to be a novelist from the age of seven.
First, though, she became a cookery writer for The Daily Telegraph. A member of
the Guild of Food Writers, she has published seven cookery books. Soon, though,
she started writing crime novels. Ten Darina Lisle culinary crime novels
followed, and three historical ones featuring Canaletto, the Italian painter
during his time in England.
She has also published three general women’s fiction under the pen name of
Julia Lisle. Other publications include Writing
Crime Fiction – Making Crime Pay. She has run many crime writing workshops,
including in Australia where
she has been a Visiting Fellow at the University
of Tasmania, and at Bristol’s annual CrimeFest. Deadly
Inheritance is the first in a new series of historical crime novels set
in the early nineteen hundreds featuring Ursula Grandison. She is now working
on the next in the series. Janet lives in Somerset.
Edna Jones has been
writing novels, articles, book reviews and short stories for some
years. Using the pseudonym Clare Dawson for crime novels and short stories, a
few other pseudonyms had been used for romantic fiction etc. Born in the West Midlands she has had a variety of jobs, is now
retired and lives in Cambridgeshire. Has had two crime novels published
(one as an e-book) and several short stories in various anthologies and
magazines here and abroad. Single. As well as reading, enjoys outdoor life,
travel, and crosswords.
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