The Ambitious Stepmother

This is the third in Morgan's series and it just keeps getting better and
better.

This time, the Countess and Alpiew have accepted an assignment as chaperones
to a young English girl whose new stepmother wants to get her tidily out of
the way. The stepmother wants the girl to find a suitable husband. So she
commisions our heroines to escort the girl to St. Germaine in France, the
current home of the "rightful" King of England, James, and his court. The
Countess is excited, thinking life will be a whirlwind of parties and social
gatherings, until they arrive at St. Germaine after being set upon by
highwaymen and left penniless. St. Germaine is not the giddy place she had
imagined. Instead, it is a gloomy and staid place ruled by the iron hand of
a show more plain stick of a woman named, approriately, Lady Prude. The Countess is
relegated to a tiny garret room and Alpiew is sent off to the kitchens to
work for their keep.

And then the poisonings begin.....

This book is, again, filled with colorful and distinctive characters with a
list of suspects a mile long, with more added with nearly every chapter.
There are several passages that made me laugh out loud. Though I figured
out the identity of the murderer about two thirds through the book, I still
devoured every page.

Reading Morgan's books is like eating chocolate, a real treat. show less

'A murder. Finally, Alpiew thought, a proper job.'

Fidelis Morgan delivers once again in this book where we follow Ashby and Alpiew (with a healthy helping of Pigalle) to France. While it wasn't as hysterical as the first two, I thoroughly enjoyed this story and it's always a pleasure to spend time with such entertaining and interesting characters. We touch a bit upon many subjects, including the Man in the Iron Mask, the use of papier maché in art and the kind of life prisoners led at the Bastille prison. The attention to period detail is second to none and the tone is pitch perfect as usual, not a dull moment in this book as we go from adventure to adventure. Such a delight to read!

An amusing interlude.
I missed the London setting of Fidelis Morgan's other books but enjoyed this plot. This is easy reading for those of us who like a historical novel but are overwhelmed at times by the seriousness of some authors.
However, I thing that the author is in danger of reflecting Restoration comedies too fully in the names she chooses for her characters. A little more overt history and a little less slapstick probably wouldn't go amiss.

Number three in a series of four,thus far. This is a 17th century romp featuring Countess Ashby de la Zouche and her faithful assistant Alpiew. They take on the task of traveling to France while attempting to find a suitable husband for the stepdaughter of Mrs Alderman Franklyn-Green. The girl turns out to be quite a handful,with a mind of her own. Early on they are robbed of all their funds by a highwayman and things go steadily downhill from there on.
Could have profited by the cutting of about 20 or so pages,but apart from that an enjoyable read.