A Christmas Escape

My copy of A Christmas Escape came to me through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program. It's the 13th of Ms. Perry's annual Christmas novellas, which focus on a supporting character from either her Charlotte & Thomas Pitt or her William Monk series. This entry stars Charles Latterly, Hester Latterly Monk's surviving brother.

Charles is in his mid-forties now and his wife has recently died. He thinks that he's a failure compared to his brother, James, who died a hero in the Crimean War, and his sister, who became one of Florence Nightingale's nurses there. Charles married a suitable woman and had a marriage that sounds as if it had been passionless as well as childless. He reflects on how William Monk hadn't seemed a suitable man for show more Hester to marry, but she's happy. You may learn more about how and why Charles and Hester lost their parents in the first William Monk novel, Face of a Stranger.

Charles has come to spend three weeks on the island of Stromboli, where the volcano's activity is usually harmless. His host, a man named Stefano, is genial and a very good cook.

The first of the other guests we meet is a teenaged girl named Candace Finbar. I'm sure she and Hester would take to each other immediately, because they are both intelligent and independent. Candace and Charles certainly take to each other at once. In case you're worried that Ms. Perry is going to have the kind of middle-aged man and adolescent girl romance found in actual Victorian novels, don't. Their relationship is completely platonic. In fact, Candace makes Charles wish he had a daughter.

Candace is an orphan who still misses the warm and loving grandmother she lost a few years ago. Her great-uncle Roger is her guardian. He's an honorable and likeable man. Colonel Bretherton is a bit stiff and unimaginative, but he's kind. Isla Bailey has the misfortune to be married to a verbal abuser who is happiest when he can humiliate someone else. Worse, this is set before England passed the Married Women's Property Act of 1882. This means that the property she inherited has become her husband's to do with as he wants.

Mr. Bailey (he insists he's 'Walker-Bailey,' but not using the hyphenated version is a form of mild revenge against a man who can suck all the joy out of a room by opening his mouth), is particularly nasty to Percival Quinn. Quinn's novel, Fire, is very popular. Charles hasn't read it, but Candace has and her description is glowing. Bailey acts as if Quinn couldn't possibly have written such a book. Of course Quinn doesn't like that.

This 'escape' from his petty life in London would be so much more pleasant for Charles (not to mention everyone else), if Mr. Bailey weren't there. He's a perfect candidate for either the victim or the killer in a cozy mystery. If you're like me, you'll be hoping he'll be the victim.

Stromboli is important to the background as its activity -- if you'll pardon the expression -- heats up. At least Stefano knows what to do and Charles has the good sense to listen to him. Would that all of the other guests were as sensible! Roger Finbar has a request to make that Charles hopes will not prove necessary.

There is a murder, and the number of suspects is very limited. While Charles takes his time figuring out something that experienced readers are likely to guess much earlier, he's wiser than many characters because he doesn't confront anyone about it. After all, if the killer realizes Charles has guessed the motive, Charles could be the next corpse.

The last fifty pages or so allow Charles a chance to prove he may be worthy to share the same genes as James and Hester.

The way Ms. Perry took care of the killer was quite satisfying. So was the end of the book. I recommend this to Anne Perry and historical cozies fans. show less

I look forward to Anne Perry's little Christmas novelettes every year. They always include a minor character from one of her two long-running series. In this case we have Charles Latterly, Hester Monk's brother. The setting is different for a Christmas story. Charles has traveled to the Mediterranean island of Stromboli to spend Christmas. He has just recently lost his wife and he wants to get away to regroup and do some hiking. Stromboli island has a very active volcano, but the hiking is spectacular. He is staying at a small hotel on the island that is located in the lee of the volcano. The food is fantastic, but the other guests are varied, and some are not very likable. A lot happens in this little book. The Stromboli volcano is show more showing signs of becoming very active. There is a lot of antagonism between some of the guests that spills over onto the other guests like Charles. Anne Perry's storytelling is excellent, whether it's in one of her novels, or in a small novelette like this. Her descriptions and her characterizations makes her stories and her characters come alive. There wasn't much about Christmas in this book, but it was enjoyable all the same. show less

Anyone looking for a historical Christmas mystery has come to the wrong place. Anne Perry has created a short, small predictable mystery but thrown in the whole Christmas thing as an afterthought. Nothing about this story screams Christmas except perhaps the last line. Charles has gone to a small island for the holidays to bask in the sun on the side of the volcano. Things take a dark turn when one of the men staying at the "hotel" (more like B & B) says that someone tried to kill him. As if things couldn't get anymore dangerous the volcano starts to grumble. Are they all in danger? Will the volcano blow? A quick read narrated beautifully by Steven Crossly.

I received this audiobook for free from Library Thing in return for my honest, show more unbiased opinion. show less

Recently-widowed Charles Latterly arrives on the island of Stromboli for the Christmas season. His fellow guests in the small hotel are all British, and it's soon apparent that there are tensions among them. Most of the other guests were already acquainted before their arrival at the Italian hotel and it seems they brought their rivalries and disagreements with them. The teenaged Candace is the one bright spot for Charles. Candace is still young enough to speak her mind without restraint, and Charles' shock and alarm at her frank assessments of their fellow guests is tempered with admiration for her spirit. The tension comes to a head as the island's volcano comes to life, and Charles and his fellow guests must flee for their lives show more while wondering which one of them is a murderer.

Anne Perry's historical crime novels focus on motive and psychology. They can be excellent when she hits it just right. When she doesn't hit it right, they become too melodramatic. This novella is heavy with melodrama. Recommended only for series completists. show less

Although this story is loosely related to author Anne Perry's Commander Monk mystery series, it never the less stands well on its own. The lead character, Charles Latterley, is the anchor-less brother to Monk's wife, who is now a widower and lacking in confidence and direction. The results of this story soon provide him with purpose and reasons enough to continue.

The setting is Christmas holiday time, in the late 1800s on the island of Stromboli just off the coast of Sicily. The volcano (with the same name as the island) is threatening to wreak its havoc upon the islanders and holiday makers just in time for Christmas. All is not well among the travelers at the mountainside inn. Nothing raises one's Christmas spirits quite the way show more murder and theft do.

This is not your usual happy, glittery with shiny tinsel Christmas story. It is dark and brooding. In spite of all that, hope will prevail as it does every Christmas.

I am grateful to Recorded Books and LibraryThing Early Reviewers program for having provided a copy of this audio-book. Their generosity, however, did not influence this review - the words of which are mine alone.

This is not a bright holiday tale. It is deep, but there is sadness mixed in with the hope. The tone is bittersweet and a tad melancholy. I must have been in just the right mood because I was satisfied with the emotions the story drew out.

My only real niggle is that the revelation and subsequent ending felt rushed and abrupt. Yes, it leaves thing clear about who and much of the why, but skipped over the how and a more in depth why. I do hope there will be more Charles and Candace in the regular series.

So, again, I enjoyed the story of one of the side characters set at Christmas time with his own mystery to solve. The setting was fantastic and I felt like I took a little journey to southern Italy as a result. show less

Charles Latterly, a recent widower, is taking a vacation on Stromboli, one of Italy’s islands over Christmas. The inn where he is staying is in the shadow of a volcano that has been sputtering on and off for years. He is thrilled to meet Stefano, their host, who is a wonderful cook and tries his best to take care of and calm his guests. The other guests consist of The Baileys, who are a mismatched couple. Mr. Bailey bullies his wife as well as treating everyone else abominably, often baiting them. Colonel Bretherton is an old military man, who seems to care very much about Mrs. Bailey. The Finbars, Roger, an older gentleman who is his great-niece’s guardian, and his precocious niece, Candace, who meets Charles upon his arrival and show more charms him immediately. The last vacationer is Quinn, a best-selling author who wrote a rather racey book from the perspective of his major character, Lucy, who reminds Candace of her feisty grandmama. Considering this is a novella, Anne Perry does an admirable job of introducing us to her characters and letting us get to know them.

There is a lot of animosity between some of the characters, which plays out at the dinner table during meals. Most involves the obnoxious Mr. Bailey. Quinn and Mr. Bailey often have curt words with each other with Candace coming to his defense and inadvertently causing more issues. Charles tries to be the peacemaker in a couple of situations but is not always successful. Mr. and Mrs. Bailey do not seem to have an amicible relationship and the smitten Colonel must be careful not to intervene in their situation. When Bailey turns up dead, although it is covered up to look like an accident, there are any number of suspects. Of course, that investigation has to be put on hold as the volcano wakes up and furiously begins to spew lava and hot rocks. The mad dash down the mountain and the dead bodies left in its wake bring this story to a fast and furious ending.

This short novella is well-written with descriptions that are very realistic and make the reader feel like they can actually see the beautiful Stromboli. The biggest disappointment about this novella is the fact that, other than being set in the Christmas time frame, there is not much about it that is Christmas-like. The story may just as well have taken pace at a different time of the year as during this holiday season. I have not read any of the Anne Perry mystery series so can not relate to her other books as many of the other reviewers have done but I enjoyed the book as a standalone.

I received a copy of this book from the Mysteries and Crime Thrillers Blog. show less

I wasn't exactly thrilled by this entry into the Victorian Christmas Mystery series featuring characters from the world of Charlotte and Thomas Pitt. This one featured Charles Latterly, the brother of Hester Latterly Monk. Charles, a recent widower, feeling like a failure whose life has been wasted, goes to Stromboli, a volcanic island in the Mediterranean for a three-week Christmas vacation at a lovely inn near the top of the active volcano. I kept getting distracted from the mystery by the odd relationship between Charles- a 40-something year old widow - and a precocious orphaned teenaged girl. Although the relationship is portrayed as completely benign, I wondered that the girl's guardian was so quick to trust Charles with her show more well-being. Anyway, *SPOILER WARNING* the volcano erupts a few days into his vacay, killing one of them, and one of the guests staying at the inn is found murdered just before the survivors have to flee for their lives down the mountain ahead of the lava flow. *END SPOILER* I thought the ending was abrupt even for a novella. I read one of these a few years ago - A New York Christmas - and liked it a bit more, but I don't think I'm going to be searching out more of these to read. show less