I don’t read a lot of mysteries. In fact, I think this is the only true mystery series that I’ve been invested in.
That being said, I LOVE a good mystery. The time I spend looking for clues to decipher the truth happening in a book is one of my favorite things. Really great books can get me doing this:
Only seven percent into this book and I was already taking notes on the cast of characters boarding the boat. I knew that someone here was important and I wanted to know everything about everyone.
If you haven’t read Miss Moriarty, I Presume? recently, I’d recommend a refresh of the memory on that one. A Tempest at Sea does bring up the most pertinent point, which I won’t spoiler here; but there is more that I wish I’d remembered a bit more clearly. Also, might not hurt to re-read A Murder on Cold Street as Inspector Brighton makes a return.
In all, there were three large mysteries here. I was wholly invested in each and every one of them. And they kept vying for attention in my mind. As always, there’s no shortage of suspects for Charlotte to wade through, but now she must do it in secret, in disguise, and with no one the wiser as to her even being around.
We get multiple points-of-view, including Lord Ingram’s, Livia’s, and Mrs. Watson. In fact, I think we spend more time in their POVs than in Charlotte’s. I love being with all of these characters, but I do wish that I had more time with Charlotte..
Sherry Thomas also utilizes a flash-back in some chapters to bring us back to the night of the crime in question – these chapters allow us to learn more that we weren’t privy to before knowing what the crime was. I loved how this was employed. For the most part. The one thing I’ll say that I was somewhat disappointed in is that there were a couple of key pieces of information that I wasn’t aware of until nearly the end – despite Charlotte knowing from almost the moment of the crime.
It’s entirely possible that I just missed the clues – I’ve done it before in this series. And even with that, I did get a few things correct in regards to the trifecta of mysteries here. I did say in my review for A Hollow of Fear, that I tend to *hurry* to try to figure things out and that leads me to missing things. So I don’t really hold this against the book.
It doesn’t matter what genre I’m reading, the characters and their relationships are always what will make me read and re-read a book or series. And the developments here with Charlotte, Ash, Livia, and Mrs. Watson are absolutely delicious to read about.
I already can’t wait to see where Charlotte’s masterminding takes us next.
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