What Angels Fear
A Sebastian St. Cyr Mystery
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
THE FIRST SEBASTIAN ST. CYR MYSTERY!
“The combined elements of historical fiction, romance, and mystery in this fog-enshrouded London puzzler will appeal to fans of Anne Perry.”—Booklist
It’s 1811, and the threat of revolution haunts the upper classes of King George III’s England. Then the body of a beautiful young woman is found savagely murdered on the altar steps of an ancient church near Westminster Abbey. A dueling pistol discovered at the scene and the damning testimony of a witness both point to one man: Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, a brilliant young nobleman shattered by his experiences in the Napoleonic Wars.
Now a fugitive running for his life, Sebastian calls upon his skill as an officer during the war to catch the killer and prove his own innocence. In the process, he accumulates a band of unlikely allies, including the enigmatic beauty Kat Boleyn, who broke Sebastian’s heart years ago. In Sebastian’s world of intrigue and espionage, nothing is as it seems, yet the truth may hold the key to the future of the British monarchy, as well as to Sebastian’s own salvation....
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Set in England in 1811, Harris's riveting debut delivers a powerful blend of political intrigue and suspense. When Sebastian Alistair St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, is accused of the rape and murder of actress Rachel York, mistress to various members of Spencer Perceval's wobbly Tory cabinet, Sebastian goes "on the lam," in the words of young Tom, his adopted companion and faithful servant, and must spend frantic days in clever disguises chasing "across London and back." Uncanny powers of sight and hearing help him to identify several suspects, including Hugh Gordon, Rachel's fellow actor and ex-lover; shadowy French migr Leo Pierrepoint; and even his own wayward nephew, Bayard Wilcox, who had been stalking the victim for weeks. Also implicated is portrait painter Giorgio Donatelli, for whom Rachel often posed nude, whose current patron, Lord Fairchild, is expected to be the next prime minister. Waiting in the wings to rule over this gathering chaos is dissolute Prince George (aka Prinny), soon to become regent for his incompetent father, George III. Backed by a blurb from Stephanie Barron, this fresh, fast-paced historical is sure to be a hit.
Customer Reviews
What angels fear
Fast moving. Good historical perspective
Where Angels Fear
This my second St. Cyr novel. Harris writes very well, historical details for the 1800s are accurate, and the dialect is very well done. I had to look up several interesting terms, which were new to me.
My first book was from later in the series. I picked it from my (real, not virtual) bookshelf recently and decided to see if this series was available. Delightfully, it is.
If you like historical mysteries, with an extremely well-done protagonist, this book and it's subsequent ones are for you.
The Author's note regarding Bithil Syndrome is icing on the cake as kudos for her research.
Predictable
And too much sex. Also way too pink. I wanted a murder mystery not a romance novel.