Rating: 3 Stars
Description: The March family has gathered at Bellmont Abbey to perform the Twelfth Night Revels for the village. Since this is a once a decade tradition planning has reached fever pitch. In the midst of it is all is a ghost in the woods, an abandoned baby in the stable yard and the whole household comes down with food poisoning. Luckily Lady Julia and husband Nicholas are still on their feet to get the whole thing sorted out.
Genre: Mystery
Why I Picked This Book: What caught my eye first was the cover which is I think is stunning. I had read the first Lady Julia mystery and enjoyed it but for some reason I'd never gotten back to the series. Also, I've read City of Jasmine (review) and liked it so I was definitely looking forward to this novella.
My Impression:
Pros: The mystery was on the small side so this was a good way to meet the rather large March family without also having to keep track of a complicated plot as well. There's a lot of really great characters between Julia and Nicholas themselves, Julia's sister Portia, her niece Perdita and Julia's maid Morag. As usual Raybourn draws a beautiful fleshed out setting for her characters.
Cons: Since this is a novella there isn't much character development. While I'm not new to the Lady Julia series I haven't read all of them so I wasn't as invested in the characters as a regular reader would've been. Also there were a few kind of random references to Julia and Nicholas's sex life. I probably wouldn't have noticed in a a full length book but in a novella where there is so much less space it seemed unnecessary.
Overall: This is a well drawn mystery series with unusual characters. I'm definitely looking forward to reading more of this series - especially the full length novels.
Would I Read More of this Series/Author?: Yes definitely! I've enjoyed both books that I've read.
Would I Recommend this Book?: Yes but I think I would recommend reading the series in order.
It does have an amazing cover! I haven't read anything from this author yet, I'll have to look into her books more :)
ReplyDeleteI definitely would recommend her. I love her ability to set the scene and she has some really unusual characters.
DeleteI'm looking forward to reading this, too -- and I'm like you; I've read the first two, but then lost track of the series. It's time to get back to it!
ReplyDeleteThat's exactly how I feel. Since you're familiar with the basics about the family this may be a good refresher course before starting a full length novel!
DeleteWhat a beautiful cover. But since you only gave it 3 stars, I will have to see if my library ever has it.
ReplyDeleteThe novella itself is good but it's more of a bridge between stories than an actual story in itself. Definitely look for the full length books though!
DeleteI really like the cover. I haven't read anything in this series, but it does sound good from what you've described. I will have to look for it.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely look for it but you may want to read the first one at least first. Though this would be a good (and quick) way to get a taste of the series to see if it interests you!
DeleteNovellas are kind of hard to judge a series on, so it's good that you enjoyed this and want to read the rest.
ReplyDeleteI'm not a huge fan of novellas in the first place. I'm glad I'd read the first in the series and this was a good way to get reintroduced as there are a lot of characters!
DeleteI love that cover too! You've definitely peaked my interest - I need to go back and check out the series though, since it sounds like I definitely won't enjoy it as much without the background. Great review!
ReplyDeleteThanks! Yes, definitely start at the beginning with this one as I think you'd be a bit lost jumping in in the middle. It's a fun and unique mystery series though.
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