Rivals in the City

This is the fourth book in “The Agency” series, a charming blend of mystery and romance set in Victorian England London in the late 1850s.

Mary Quinn is now a fully-trained detective thanks to her time with The Agency - a secret spy ring used by the police as well as private clients. Recently, The Agency underwent a shakeup after an altercation between its two managers, Anne Treleaven and Felicity Frame. Their dispute was ideological, although there has been, throughout the series, the suggestion that the woman had a personal relationship as well. In any event, now each of them runs her own agency, and Mary, loathe to choose between them, has paired with her fiancé, James Easton, to form yet a third private detective firm.

In show more addition, Mary, who is now 20, is independent for the first time in her life, thanks to a very generous payment for services nine months ago from Queen Victoria.

As this installment begins, Anne comes to see Mary to offer her one last job for the Agency. Henry Thorold, whom Mary was sent undercover to investigate for her first job as a detective, was dying. Scotland Yard was hoping that his wife, the more serious criminal of the two, would come back to London to make contact with him, whereupon they hoped to catch her and arrest her. Mary would be most likely to recognize her.

Anne asked Mary to do this as a favor, adding, “I know there’s nothing now to tie you to the Agency….” Except, thought Mary, gratitude, memories, and very real affection for this woman who along with Felicity had rescued her from certain death and been like parents to her. And so of course she agreed.

In the meantime, James was approached by Felicity, who believed it was James who was best-placed to spot Mrs. Thorold. An engineer, he was hired to help the Bank of England alter their gold vaults. Felicity believed Mrs. Thorold would stage a robbery during the reconstruction process.

And so, James and Mary began to work separately and unwittingly for the two former partners and now rivals.

In a side plot, Mary and James go to see a Chinese pugilist who is touting the superiority of Chinese hand-and-foot fighting. Mary feels drawn to this young man, in part because of her own half-Chinese heritage, which she keeps secret in light of the racism against Asians in England. Indeed, she discovered there was a most unexpected actual connection between them.

All the threads come together in the end, but at the cost of a number of lives, and with Mary in mortal danger.

The book, which is presumably the end of the series, ends, however, in a way that will please readers, while still leaving room for more resolution if the author chooses to pick up the story again.

Evaluation: History and romance are enhanced by the author including Mary’s love/hate exploration of her identity as a hated “half-breed”. The intrigue and tension-building will keep readers turning the pages. I hope the author decides to expand upon the series. show less

The last book in the Mary Quinn quartet. Sigh. I was both satisfied at the ending, which tied up some loose ends and saw many reconciliations (between Anne and Felicity, and between Mary and her past ). It was fitting that Mary's story ended with the resolution of the Thorolds' story, since her first case involved them.

(Though I really wish we had seen more of Octavius Jones, who I really like as a foil to James Easton.)

Nine months have passed since the conclusion of Mary Quinn's last case and things have changed. The Agency's two main leaders have split up because of their differing goals for the future of the Agency. Mary and James have formed their own private inquiry agency. Mary has gained an independent income which has allowed her to set up her own home. James and Mary are contemplating marriage but Mary has worries about losing her new found independence.

When Miss Treleaven, the Agency leader who wants to continue the Agency as it was, comes to Mary to ask her to take a case, Mary is intrigued. It seems that Mrs. Thorold who was the villain of Mary's first case has decided to return to England with another crime in mind. Her husband who was show more imprisoned after his part in that case, is dying and it is thought that Mrs. Thorold will come to see him. It is known that Angelica Thorold is on her way from Vienna to visit her father.

Mary is tasked with befriending Angelica in the hops that she will lead them to her mother. With Mrs. Thorold potentially arriving in England and having a major grudge against James, James and Mary decide that they need to hide their relationship both personal and professional for both their safety.

While Mary is doing her investigation, James has received a commission to redo the vaults under the Bank of England. But James is assaulted and his offices are broken into leading to the theft of the prints of the vaults. Fearing that it is part of Mrs. Thorold's scheme, forces are gathered to move the gold stored there to keep it out of the hands of thieves.

Meanwhile, Mary meets a cousin of hers who has come from China and who tells her more of her father's story. I liked Lang and thought it was interesting that he was making his living as a pugilist who won his victories using his oriental fighting techniques.

The story brings Mary's career in the Agency in a full circle and makes a nice conclusion to this series. It is packed with action. It also illuminates the role of women in Victorian society and the treatment of anyone not English at the time. show less

Mary Quinn and James Easton have had a life of relative quiet for the past nine months and their fledgling detective agency is doing respectable business. But when Anne Treleaven, one of the heads of the now divided Agency, approaches Mary to ask her to do one more job on their behalf, Mary can't resist. Particularly as the case in question could have dire ramifications for her life with James.

I've been a fan of the Agency series since I first discovered it a couple years ago but I have to admit that this latest entry left me underwhelmed. While I am still fond of the characters, the plot of this mystery seemed a bit too much of a rehash of previous novels and the constant pointing at the coincidences that propelled the plot along show more ceased to be charming and became ridiculous. While relationship developments between Mary and James make this one worth picking up for fans of the series, a part of me hopes that this might be the last outing for these characters if the quality remains at this level. show less

A marginally satisfying conclusion to the series. The core conflict presented as the story's premise seemed somewhat of a stretch to me from the beginning. Nevertheless, I enjoy Lee's writing even though I'd rank this the least enjoyable of the four Agency books. I'd highly recommend this series to teens interested in historical mysteries.

A nice wrap-up for the quartet

Mary Quinn and James Easton find that a spectre from their past threatens both their happiness and safety. This felt like it went by quicker than the previous books, maybe because we know these characters for the most part (though I could've spent more time with Lang and integrating him into the narrative).

Mary and James have set up their own independent detective agency They are investigating the possibility that the mastermind of the first book will come out of hiding to visit her husband who is dying in prison. Meanwhile, James has been asked by one of the remaining Agency women to do some investigating himself. And so begins a very intriguing novel that has lots of twists and turns as the final one in the series.