Deanna Raybourn continues the lively adventures of the
marvelous Veronica Speedwell in A PERILOUS UNDERTAKING.
Book two in the Veronica Speedwell series is just as
fabulous as the debut, A CURIOUS BEGINNING. Veronica is an
intrepid Victorian woman, an adventuress and butterfly
hunter. Seemingly orphaned, Veronica was raised to be
unconventional, and much of her charm derives from her
flouting of Victorian conventions in her indomitable and
breezy manner.
Raybourn does a wonderfully engrossing podcast interview
about her inspirations
for this character of Veronica. There are wonderful
historical precedents for Veronica and her attitudes and
behavior, which I find fascinating. Raybourn says, "She is
one hundred percent rooted in history with regard to her
attitude and her actions in choosing not to lead a
conventional life, which is, of course, the, the one thing
I get asked about the most is, well, but you've made her so
twenty-first century." I adore Veronica to bits!
Both Veronica and her erstwhile frenemy, the reclusive
natural historian Revelstoke "Stoker" Templeton-Vane are
such engaging characters. Their constant bickering is so
entertaining. Their banter is witty and very intelligent,
just like Raybourn herself. Their plans for a naturalist
expedition thwarted by an injury to their sponsor, Veronica
and Stoker go on to combine forces to solve a murder
mystery. Reasoning that her skills of observation and
patience as a lepidopterist would serve her well as an
amateur sleuth, Veronica accepts the task of saving art
patron Miles Ramsforth from execution. Ramsforth is accused
of the brutal murder of his fellow artist and pregnant
mistress Artemisia. He is scheduled to be hanged in a
week's time if Veronica cannot track down the true murderer.
The mystery is well presented, and despite their amateur
status, Veronica and Stoker do a persuadingly good job of
detection without it feeling too easy. There are plenty of
convoluted clues to disentangle, and the story runs
trippingly along. This is definitely a historical mystery,
but there is a touch of romance underlying. This will be a
very slow burn romance between Veronica and Stoker. The
sexual tension between the two is delicious. Stoker is a
prudish Victorian man, typical of how the modern reader
thinks the buttoned up Victorians must have been. Stoker
is wonderful foil to Veronica's free and easy sexuality.
Like Raybourn's beloved Lady Julia series, the
characters are just a little over-the-top, but the
tongue-in-cheek wackiness is part of the fun of this writing.
Prepare to be delighted by the whimsical and eccentric Veronica
who barges through her Victorian life. The power of her
brain along with Stoker's deft handling keep her just out of
the trouble her behavior should land her in. A satisfying
and entertaining read!
Veronica Speedwell returns in a brand new adventure from
Deanna Raybourn, the New York Times bestselling
author of the Lady Julia Grey mysteries... London, 1887. Victorian adventuress and butterfly
hunter Veronica Speedwell receives an invitation to visit
the Curiosity Club, a ladies-only establishment for daring
and intrepid women. There she meets the mysterious Lady
Sundridge, who begs her to take on an impossible task—saving
society art patron Miles Ramsforth from execution. Accused
of the brutal murder of his artist mistress Artemisia,
Ramsforth will face the hangman’s noose in a week’s time if
Veronica cannot find the real killer.
But Lady Sundridge is not all that she seems, and unmasking
her true identity is only the first of the many secrets
Veronica must uncover. Together with her natural historian
colleague Stoker, Veronica races against time to find the
true murderer—a ruthless villain who not only took
Artemisia’s life in cold blood but is happy to see Ramsforth
hang for the crime. From a Bohemian artists’ colony to a
royal palace to a subterranean grotto with a decadent
history, the investigation proves to be a very perilous
undertaking indeed....
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