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Zebra, Apr 2003
Reviewed by Joy Calderwood
In the three novellas of MURDER AT ALMACK’S, the decorous halls of Regency
England’s most exclusive social club are polluted by scandal. If Polite
Society thought of Almack’s as a place where people might be murdered,
they might stop attending. Members of society take on the roles of
investigator in these stories. They might not think of their most
important role as "savior of Almack’s," but there are those who do.
"Invitation To Trouble" by Jo Ann Ferguson
Almack’s is running a contest for society maidens who meet high standards
of social graces. The prize is a full season’s membership, but the winning
ladies are being lethally attacked. Lord Foxington finds himself obligated
to discover who has their priorities so badly skewed as to kill over a
social opportunity.
The two main characters seem to have been designed to appeal to me. Amelia
Wallace would rather read than party, and prefers to date chatterbox men
because she can’t think of anything to say. Lord Foxington is widely known
as the most boring and unresponsive of company. Once they come to an
understanding that they will ignore social rules and speak honestly to
each other, they find a great deal to talk about. However, a lot of what
they say and do wavers back and forth between behavior appropriate for the
Regency period, and behavior that is twentieth century in costume dress.
The author cares only about her plot, not about historical accuracy. This
would be more acceptable if the plot had any surprises in it.
"Murder Most Indiscreet" by Mona Gedney
Recorded in the wager book at White’s gambling club is a bet that Lord
Palmering will get himself murdered. No one thought to bet that he would
be killed at Almack’s, or that he would accuse his wife Lily with his
dying breath. The accusation is dangerous to Lily’s social standing,
because she usually carries bruises he has given her. With the help of
Lord Brookstone, Lily’s sister Rose sets out to prove that the killer was
one of the many other people Palmering has outraged.
Mona Gedney’s characters behave unpredictably without stepping too far
beyond the boundaries of Regency behavior. Even if they had, I was
inclined to give them leeway because they are good company and I couldn’t
tell what they would do next. The author also gives us plenty of
believable suspects to choose from – I guarantee you will not guess the
murderer. Kudos to Gedney for an interesting step outside the standard
Regency.
"A Rare Blade" by Valerie King
Lydia Sherborne is present at the horrifying death of Mr. Bentham, mentor
to the Earl of Kingslade. Kingslade wants to restrain his long-time friend
Lydia from getting into the investigation, but Lydia misunderstands this,
and once she does understand, resents being kept out of the fun. They have
to mend their mutual mistrust before they can resolve the problems caused
by Bentham’s death.
There probably were society ladies who carried out spy duties during the
Napoleonic Wars, and this makes the basis of Valerie King’s plot unusual
but believable. The well written death of Bentham occurs under
circumstances that give it a great deal of impact. On the other hand, the
murderer is too obvious for the reader to miss. I found it impossible to
believe that Lydia and Kingslade could have such a close friendship while
carrying such a poor opinion of each other.
In MURDER AT ALMACK’S, a popular Regency plot is approached in three
different ways. Society maiden meets attractive man, behaves
disgracefully, but gets man anyway. If you like this plot and don’t mind
widely varying levels of story quality, you will have a good time. I would
have preferred to see Mona Gedney’s "Murder Most Indiscreet" be one of her
separate, full length novels, to give buyers a better deal for their
money. I will be watching for Gedney’s books in future, as a chance to
read the unexpected in a genre which is rarely difficult to predict.
Apr 2003 Review
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