Customer Reviews

Bar Sinister/The

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The only way I can think to describe this one is "Mary Stewart writes a regency." If you're looking for a very well written regency suspense in which for the first 3/4 of the book (which covers 3 years) the h/h are together for a total of about 1 week, this is your book.

Captain Richard Falk is a widowed Army officer who places his two children in the care of Emily Foster before he rushes back to the war in the Peninsula. Emily is baffled as to why he doesn't take them to his relations until she finds out that his dead wife was Spanish and that he is a [...] with no English relations of his own.

At least this is what she believes until Richard's half sister shows up on day inquiring about her niece and nephew. Upon writing to Richard's friend and to-be guardian in case anything happens to him, she learns that Richard is the [...] son of not the Duke of Newsham, but his Duchess. And that Richard has real reason to fear that his half brother, now Duke, will take up where his father left off and try to kill not only him but also his two children. The old Duke never repudiated Richard and the Duchess has never acknowledged in public the scandal that titillated the ton, leaving Richard with the opportunity to claim a share of the rich estate.

But along with dodging the sinister plans of his half brother, Richard has to try to stay alive throughout the rest of the Peninsular Campaign, part of the War of 1812, then Waterloo. Plus he writes to his daughter and Emily's son serial accounts of Dona Inez, an incorrigible Spanish senorita and her duenna Dona Barbara, plus he writes hack novels to try to supplement his meager officer pay.

Once the very real threat to him and his children is uncovered, his sister and her husband take an active part in trying to spike the current Duke's plans and also bring Emily and Richard, whom Emily has fallen in love with over the course of their correspondence.

This is definitely not your typical regency and in fact is more like a regency historical as far as the suspense part of the plot. Richard is a man who has faced bastardy and its stigma all his life and who has learned to be wary of all but the closest friends. Emily is a very no-nonsense woman who rises to the challenge of providing a home for and coming to love and try to protect not only Richard's children but Richard as well. Lady Sarah, Richard's sister, and her husband, Sir Robert are wonderful secondary characters. The book is well written and researched and flew by as I read it. A definite B+

THIS is a regency author. Very well written with wonderful dialogue, well-developed characters, and an original story.

I read about this book on a website that has reviews of some of the older "trad" regencies and bought it on the strength of the comments. I was not disappointed - in fact having discovered that some of the characters in this book appear in others, I've bought up the author's backlist. It's rare to find an undiscovered trad writer for me as I read a lot of regencies and have done for over 30 years so I'm familiar with most of them. Sheila Simoson was a gratifying find and I would encourage anyone who loves the older style regency to seek her out.

This book has many things I personally like: widowed father with small children; wounded hero with a sad past; believeable child characters; nasty family; army background. And, I have to say that the hero of this one Lord Richard Ffouke, aka Richard Falk is truly memorable. A cuckoo in the nest he has endured a lot from his family and has had to make his own way in life. Widowed with two tiny children he seeks to foster them out in England whilst he returns to the Peninsular campaign. However, said nasty family is trying to kill him.

The hero is a "dime" novelist of some success with a sarcastic turn of phrase. However, he is the archetypal wounded hero who needs the love of a good woman to get him on track to future happiness. Emily Foster is just that woman. Strong minded, independent and a wise mother, she is able to stand up to his apparently crochety behaviour, eventually finding out just what this man has dealt with and continues to deal with in his life.

The author writes very well; beautiful prose with occasional antique spellings which add charm when they could easily have been mere affectations. This was a cracking story with a hero I shan't forget easily whose story was quite extraordinary - never seen a plot like this one. I recommend this highly and will have it on my personal DIK shelf because I will want to revisit Richard and Emily again.

I am really glad to see Sheila Simonson's books available on the Kindle. I have always enjoyed her work as it grounds the historical period in real-life concerns applicable to contemporary life -- all the while keeping true to the sensibilities of the time frame. Simonson's plots seem to unravel in a logical manner without broadcasting every upcoming event. "Bar Sinister" particularly deals with the economic realities of war and its effects on families -- definitely a topic relevant to the present.

An author well worth discovering.

I greatly looked forward to this novel as I had just finished the author's excellent book "Lady Elizabeth's Comet". I'm sorry to say that I didn't connect AT ALL with the main male character who was the strong, too silent type. I also didn't connect to the main female character, although she was an excellent mother, I found it hard to believe she fell in love with someone based on the witty stories he wrote to entertain his daughter....yet in the 2 or 3 times she was in his company he was nearly completely silent,and his mood was taciturn, and completely undemonstrative of the love he felt for his children. He in no way indicated any attraction or love for the main character...through most of the novel he is away at war or away trying to resolve a threatening family conflict. Still, good writing, and I liked learning more about Tom, a secondary character here, but a primary character in "Lady Elizabeth's Comet." I was glad I borrowed this one from the library, yet it is a regency, quality writing--I just didn't get the connection.