When Gods Die

Starred review from September 18, 2006
Fans of quality historical suspense who mourn the end of the late Kate Ross's Julian Kestrel mysteries and the late Bruce Alexander's Sir John Fielding novels should find solace in the work of promising newcomer Harris, whose series (beginning with 2005's What Angels Fear
) is set in Regency England. The ability of Harris's detective, Sebastian St. Cyr, the Viscount Devlin, to mingle freely with the cream of society leads to his receiving a highly sensitive commission. Given the perilous state of the English monarchy in 1811, the discovery of the dissolute Prince Regent with a murder victim in his arms makes the death of the beautiful young wife of an aristocrat even more scandalous. St. Cyr is charged by the powers that be with solving the crime and absolving the royal suspect. The author deftly combines political intrigue, cleverly concealed clues and vivid characters for a fast-moving story that will have readers eagerly anticipating future volumes in the series.

Starred review from October 1, 2006
It is June 1811. At a party thrown by the Prince Regent at Brighton Pavilion, the notoriously decadent royal is discovered in a secluded room with the corpse of the beautiful young wife of a marquis, a knife planted in her back. Most assume the Regent, a victim of excessive appetites, is guilty but of what they cannot say. Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, is asked to find out who killed the marchioness and how her body was smuggled into the Royal Pavilion. He only agrees after he recognizes the necklace worn by the dead woman. It had been worn by his mother the day she was lost at sea, her body never recovered. Harris knows her English history and has a firm grasp of how a mystery novel is supposed to play out. In this second Sebastian St. Cyr novel ("What Angels Fear"), she cleverly pulls the threads of her plot together, ending in a crescendo of suspense and surprise. Fans of historicals, especially those set in Regency-era England, will snap up this triumph. Harris lives in New Orleans.

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