Shadows in Time

June 22, 2020
In McElwain’s unsatisfying fifth Kendra Donovan mystery (after 2019’s Betrayal in Time), Kendra, a 21st-century FBI profiler who was somehow transported to Regency England in her first outing, A Murder in Time, gets another opportunity to do some sleuthing. In 1816, Kendra agrees to help Mrs. Gavenston, a brewery owner, find her missing business manager, Jeremy Pascoe, despite doubting that the woman has been fully forthcoming. Kendra’s search for Pascoe leads to her finding him stabbed to death in a remote cottage. Meanwhile, the life of her guardian, the Duke of Aldridge, is upended by the appearance of a woman claiming to be his daughter, who was long-believed dead. McElwain doesn’t sweat the details. Kendra uses anachronistic jargon, referring to a murder suspect as an “unsub” without explaining that term, and the story does no more than touch on the dilemma of someone from the future trying to avoid changing history. Nothing in this entry bodes well for future series installments. Agent: Jill Grosjean, Jill Grosjean Literary.

Starred review from July 1, 2020

In McElwain's follow-up to Betrayal in Time, time-traveling former FBI agent Kendra Donovan now lives 200 years earlier in Regency England in 1816. She's still uncomfortable with the restrictions on women, so she's surprised when she encounters Mrs. Horatia Gavenston, who owns and runs a brewery that has passed down from mother to daughter. Mrs. Gavenston knows Kendra found a killer once, so she asks her to find her missing business manager, Jeremy Pascoe. She has secrets, though, so even she is a suspect when Kendra finds Pascoe's body. Kendra also has troubles closer to home. The Duke of Aldridge has made Kendra, his ward, feel as if she were his daughter, Charlotte, who was swept overboard 20 years earlier. When a woman shows up claiming to be Charlotte, Kendra has her doubts. She hires Sam Kelly, a Bow Street Runner, to assist with both cases. VERDICT The fifth "Kendra Donovan" novel is an atmospheric and character-driven mystery. The time travel, intrigue, romance, and returning characters will appeal to Diana Gabaldon's fans--Lesa Holstine, Evansville Vanderburgh P.L., IN

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