Christy Carlyle

I’ve long been a fan of this author’s historical romances, so I was delighted to find she has also leaped into historical mysteries. Now, I have become an even bigger fan of her historical mysteries than I am of her historical romances.

This new series features a unique young Victorian woman, Electra Poole, who is gifted (or cursed, she hasn’t decided yet) with psychometry. She has the ability to ‘see’ past events by touching an object or person. To me, her psychic gift seems to be show more going a bit beyond psychometry, but I don’t have a word for that. 😊 Electra has kept her gift hidden all of her life because her mother had the same gift and was placed into an asylum because of it. However, now that her father has died (he’s the one who committed her mother), she’s beginning to explore her gifts. She has no real control over them yet, but she’s learning.

In order to support herself, Electra has slowly begun to use London’s obsession with mediums, seances, and spiritualists by holding her own version of a séance. She doesn’t claim to be able to contact the dead, but curates the experience toward offering help to find lost things, etc.

Electra has no clue what the invitation to hold a reading for Lady Becknell will lead to, or she might have declined. The whole reading is a very strange encounter in the Becknell household – and it leads to her foreseeing the death of Lady Becknell.

Electra feels deeply regretful that she foresaw the death, but didn’t share it with Lady Becknell. Therefore, she feels driven to help solve the murder even though the Detective Inspector wants her to stay out of his case. DI Gideon Pierce shares a past with Electra, and though they’ve been estranged for several years, he is still drawn to her. Although he doesn’t necessarily believe in or trust her gift, he fully believes in her.

The investigation takes them through the higher echelons of British Aristocracy and leads Electra into danger. The inner workings of the Becknell household are a twisted abyss that will test Gideon and Electra to the end. There are plenty of red herrings, twists, turns, and more suspects than the law allows.

If you enjoy a well-plotted and excellently paced historical mystery, this is the book for you. I’m loving the mystery and the paranormal aspects, and cannot wait to read the second book. show less

A lovely romantic first book in a new series. The Duke’s Den is an exclusive gaming hell owned by three men – Aidan Iverson (large, red-haired, grew up in London’s worst slum), Rhys Forester, Marquess of Huntley, and Nicholas Lyon (large, scarred, abused son of a mad duke). If this book is an example of those to come in the series, I can’t wait to read the others! It is well written, well plotted and I really enjoyed all of the characters.

Nicholas (Nick) Lyon had an absolutely show more terrifying childhood. His father, Talbot Lyon, Duke of Tremayne, was a demented, jealous, abusive man who hated Nick because, in his madness, he believed that Nick was not his son. The despicable things he did to his young son will make your hair stand on end, but you can easily see why Nick has become the man he is. Nick carries deep scars both on his body and deep inside. People refer to him as ‘monster’ because of his mismatched eyes and the jagged scar bisecting the left half of his face.

Miss Thomasina (Mena) Thorne is the daughter of Thomas Thorne, steward of Enderley Castle, the seat of the Duke of Tremayne. Mena grew up on the estate and loved it, the tenants, and the people in the surrounding village. Since her mother passed away when Mena was young, she spent all of her time with her father and knows every inch of the estate and how to manage it. When her father passed away, it was just an easy step to assume her father’s role. The old Duke had also passed away and his heir, Eustace, was a drunken wastrel and didn’t care who managed the estate, so he allowed Mena to assume those duties. However, when Eustace also passed away, Mena didn’t exactly mention to the new heir that she was a female.

Mena was an outstanding steward and was loved and respected by the estate staff. However, she was a woman and the male leaders in the area took exception to her acting in the role a man would normally hold. “Over the years she’d mastered half smiles, grown proficient at blank expressions, and she would’ve earned high marks in tongue-biting if anybody was offering a grade.”

When Sir Malcolm Granville showed up at The Duke’s Den and insisted on speaking with Nick, Nick refused to see him because he recognized Granville as a crony of his deceased father and the mentor of Nick’s older brother Eustace. Instead, Nick sent Huntley to deal with the man – assuming that Granville had come on Eustace’s behalf seeking money because, in the three years since Eustace had inherited, he had almost emptied the ducal coffers. Nick wanted nothing to do with his wastrel brother nor the ducal estate that had served as Nick’s torture chamber. Then, Nick heard the words that brought horror and loathing to him – “Your brother, Eustace, is dead. As of a week ago, you’re the Duke of Tremayne.”

Nick pursued every avenue he could find to refuse the title and inheritance, but there was no way around it. If he couldn’t refuse it, then he’d gut it. He’d empty Enderley Castle of all of its possessions by auctioning off everything that wasn’t entailed, then he will lease out the castle and grounds. He wanted no part of that dark, cruel place.

After several rounds of correspondence with the estate manager, T. Thorne, Nick heads out for a personal look at the estate to see what needs to be repaired and handled prior to leasing the estate – and to start the process of cataloging the items for auction. When he arrives early, the scene where he meets his steward is very entertaining and funny.

Mena and Nick are at a standoff. Nick plans to gut and empty the estate, so he can’t really hire a new steward at the moment – and Mena is the one with all the answers to Nick’s questions. The only option is to work with Mena. Mena is agape when she learns of Nick’s intentions but realizes there is nothing she can do except try to make him see what is good about the estate and especially its people.

Their path to their HEA was not an easy one, but their attraction grew and grew until both of them finally realized how much they cared and what each would give up for the other. It was a lovely romance between truly lovable characters.

I hope you will enjoy the read as much as I did.

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"I requested and received this e-book at no cost to me and volunteered to read it; my review is my honest opinion and given without any influence by the author or publisher." show less

I’ve long been a fan of this author’s historical romances, so I was delighted to find she has also leaped into historical mysteries. I have just completed the first book in the series and could hardly wait to jump into this second one.

While Electra is becoming more comfortable with her gifts, she is still a bit dismayed by all of the attention she is still getting after helping to solve the murder of Lady Becknell. Therefore, she is happy to receive an invitation from her good friend show more Lady Alice to visit her in Oxford. Electra sensed a bit of worry when she opened the letter, but she’d figure out what, if anything, was wrong when she arrived. Electra and Lady Alice had become fast friends when they attended finishing school together and had remained friends since. Electra looked forward to seeing Lady Alice and her aunt, Lady Dalrymple, who had adopted Electra as an honorary niece.

Electra sensed high tensions among the guests when she arrived, but she had no idea what was amiss. Everyone seemed cordial enough, but there were currents beneath the surface. Then, she discovers that Lady Alice has scheduled a séance – but thankfully, she doesn’t expect Electra to conduct it. No, even stranger. She wants Electra to sit beside her fiancé at the séance, so she will need to hold his hand and perhaps ‘read’ his real intentions for Lady Alice.

When Lady Alice’s fiancé, Lord Lockhart, is found dead before the séance, the constabulary is called. Electra, however, wishes her friend, Gideon Pierce from Scotland Yard, were there. Luckily, Gideon hears of the murder and rushes to Electra’s side, though he cannot officially help unless he is asked to do so by the locals. Happily, that happens, though the local was perfectly proficient at his task. I’m glad the author didn’t make him seem like a bumbling fool.

Solving the murder isn’t easy when everyone has an alibi and everyone has a motive. It seems Lord Lockhart wasn’t all he should be, and his enemies were many, though everyone said they liked/loved him. With that many enemies – who murdered him? Was it one? Was it all? Goodness, what a tangled web – and then there was a second murder.

I absolutely loved the storyline. The mystery was compelling, well-paced, and excellently delivered. Throughout, I was sure who the murderer was not, but wasn’t quite sure who it was. You’ll enjoy picking through the threads of evidence and trying to fit them into the correct spots in the puzzle, but it isn’t as easy as it seems it should be.

If you enjoy a well-paced historical mystery filled with relatable characters, you’ll enjoy this book. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! Now, on to the third book in the series. Happy Reading! show less

A Deadly Invitation by Christy Carlyle
Electra Poole Mystery #2

~ Excellent addition to a series I am thoroughly enjoying ~ Electra & Gideon have a bright future solving cases and hopefully finding a HEA together ~

What I liked:
* Electra Poole: senses emotions, sees visions, sometimes hears words in the visions, refining her skills, mother was institutionalized for similar abilities, loved & hated her father for what he did to her mother, has known Gideon for years and is attracted to him
* show more Gideon Pierce: Detective Inspector, taken in by and mentored by Electra’s father, controlled, well dressed and spoken, bright, protective, follows his gut and the evidence, attracted to Electra and is looking forward to spending more time with her
* That Gideon and Electra know one another well and are able to build on the past to create a stronger relationship in the present
* The paranormal element of the story and wanting to see how Electra’s abilities develop through the series
* The police procedural aspects of the story, following the clues, and finding out that sometimes there is more to the story than expected
* The plot, pacing, setting, and writing that had me invested in the characters, story, and the resolution of the murder
* That all of the threads were tied up at the end of the story and the murderer caught
* Knowing that there will be another book to read in the future

What I didn’t like:
* The ease with which the killer committed and got away with his crimes before he was murdered
* Thinking about how someone would willingly plot and commit some of the crimes in this story
* Wondering what the penalty for murder was in this era and what part social status might play in the sentence handed down – hangman’s noose or???

Did I like this book? Yes
Would I read more in this series? Definitely

Thank you to the Author, Oliver Heber, and Booksprout for the ARC – This is my honest review.
5 Stars show less