Customer Reviews

Death at Bishop's Keep (Robin Paige Victorian Mysteries, No. 1)

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Husband and wife team Susan and Bill Albert, writing under the pseudonym Robin Paige, launch with this book a series of Victorian mysteries. This being the first book in a series the first order of business is to introduce the readers to the main characters and this writing duo does a fine job of it. We are first introduced to Miss Kate Ardleigh, an American woman in her mid twenties who has been raised by her maternal uncle after the deaths of her English father and Irish mother. Kate works as a personal secretary for ladies in New York and secretly writes a mystery serial for a New York newspaper. She keeps it a secret and writes under a pseudonym because Victorian ladies aren't supposed to even read mystery novels, let alone write them.

Kate ends up going to England to work for her father's sister, an aunt that she never knew existed and finds that this aunt is quite well off. She also finds another aunt, a vile wretch of a woman who knows something on the good aunt and holds it over her head so that she will be allowed to live at Bishop's Keep and run the household. It doesn't take the reader long to really despise Aunt Jaggers and since this is a mystery I read on vigorously in hopes that somebody would murder this hateful old hag.

Soon after her arrival in England, Kate makes the acquaintance of Sir Charles Sheridan, an amateur photographer who believes that technology like the camera and fingerprinting are the wave of the future when it comes to solving crimes. When Kate first meets him he is already trying to solve the mysterious murder of a stranger whose body was found in an archeological dig. Kate becomes immediately intrigued because she wants to study real crimes in order to gain material for her so-called penny dreadful mystery series.

As the story evolves there are two more murders to be solved, a cult to be infiltrated and peacock feathers to be traced. All in all, I must say that this is a very good and imaginative mystery novel with wonderful plot twists and enough clues to allow the reader to figure out the mystery if you pay close attention. The characters are very well developed and are incredibly believable and the historical detail is marvelous and adds a great deal to the story. There is also a slight thread of sexual tension running throughout the book that I assume will come to something farther along in the series. I already have found myself becoming attached to these fictional characters, especially the cook who seems like my kind of woman. Finally, all of the loose ends are wrapped up at the end of the story, which is a virtue that many books of this type do not share. Nothing irritates me more than red herrings that are just forgotten about and never explained. Thankfully that trait is gloriously absent from this book.

I found that this book started off a little slowly and I wasn't at all sure that I was going to like this series, but I must admit that the story picked up in a hurry and I soon found that I was having trouble putting it down. I lost some sleep by reading when I should have been in bed but I think that my sleep depravation was well worth it. I highly recommend this book.

Death at Bishop's Keep opens the Victorian (1890s) mystery series by Robin Paige. Kate Ardleigh, an independent American woman who secretly writes "penny dreadfuls" to pay the bills, accepts an invitation by an English aunt to work as her secretary. Although she has some trepidations concerning such a major move, she is delighted when she arrives to find that her aunt is willing to buy a brand new Remington type writing machine, and that a murder has occurred in the neighboring town (she hopes she will be able to use the murder as research for her penny dreadfuls). Her aunt has joined a spiritualist cult group, and the murder victim is found wearing emblems of the cult. Sir Charles Sheridan, amateur sleuth and photography pioneer, is staying with friends in the area and decides to help the police with their murder investigation. Sir Charles is fascinated by the new field of forensic science, and he knows much more than the local country police (the police are decidedly ambivalent about Sir Charles' help) about it. He goes about applying his methods, only to find Kate asking questions and disconcertingly informed on subjects such as fingerprints. Sir Charles is torn between admiration and exasperation for Kate's intelligence and interest. Life would be so much more comfortable were Kate a "normal" Victorian young woman, but on the other hand, Sir Charles is pretty certain that it would be more dull. Kate has access to inside information on the cult, and Sir Charles has forensic evidence the police don't know how to interpret; and in this first outing of the series, they each race to find the killer, wanting to be the one to solve the case before the other. Definitely worth reading to find out who wins.

If you are looking for a great victorian mystery series to get into, look no further. This is the one for you! Robin Paige's book Death at Bishop's Keep is the place to start! I have never ventured into victorian mysteries before and I am so thrilled to have found this series. What I really enjoyed about this book is the intricate detail. Robin Paige helps you see into the lives of not only Kate, Sir Charles, and The Marsdens, but also of the servants. You get a glimps into the whole social structure of the victorian times, both upstairs and down. Do not hesitate to read this series. I do believe once you have started you will be hooked. I know I am!

This is my first Kate Ardleigh, and also my first book by Robin Paige. The authors certainly did their research, and they insist on giving you all of it. If you're mad about Victoriana, you'll love it. If you just wanted a good old mystery, like me, you'll probably find yourself skipping over huge, dense gobs of detail on such things as the cameras in use at the time. Also, Kate's in-your-face liberatedness seems a bit forced. That said, this is a solidly plotted mystery featuring many colorful characters, both lovable and deliciously hatable, and the sights, sounds and mannerisms of the era are well done. By the end of the book, I found myself appreciating Kate's bravado when she gets the killer. She's a pushy broad, but I guess she grew on me.

As I read this excellent book, I kept thinking, "I hope the author doesn't ruin a great mystery by having the female "detective" withhold evidence from the police and go off to meet one of the suspects in a dark alley. (Don't you hate it when authors have allegedly intelligent characters do incredibly stupid things?) There is a little of the amateur-detective-does-something-stupid at the climax, but not enough to prevent me from looking forward to the next book in what I hope will be a long and successful series. The book is set in Victorian England. The amateur detectives are a wealthy Englishman, Sir Charles, and an independent-minded American woman who goes to England to take a job as secretary to her wealthy aunt. The characters are enjoyable, the setting is enjoyable, the writing is superb.

Wonder what the feeling was like in the traditional Victorian Society when Henry Ford introduced the automobile? Or perhaps you'd rather spend your afternoon having a talk with Oscar Wilde and Arthur Conan Doyle - how did he ever dare to kill Sherlock Holmes? We can always attend a seance afterwards. These, and more delightful adventures are part of the new series of Victorian Mysteries produced by husband-wife writing team Susan Wittig and Bill Albert, under their pseudonym Robin Paige.

In "Death at Bishop's Keep", we are introduced to the two main sleuths, Kate Ardleigh and Sir Charles Sheridan; a couple with lots of potential for deathly amusement. Kate is an American Victorian, but very unconventional, woman. She writes stories (called penny-dreadfuls) for a living and has no need of a husband. Sir Charles is also kind of unconventional. With his camera and his rugged appereance, who could've thought he holds a knighthood. The pair meet when Kate is summoned by a long lost aunt to come to England. Always in search for adventure, she accepts gladly. But when she arrives, she not only finds two aunts instead of one, but also sees obvious tension in the homey air of the country house. The servants are thoroughly resentful and her aunts... well, that is another story. But Kate quickly finds friends next door, among them the intriguing Sir Charles, who will help make her stay in England a long and memorable one.

I couldn't honestly find any faults with this book. The plot is intriguing but never long-winded, the ending wrapping up beautifully. The description of Victorian society and customs couldn't be better; and the characters, well... halfway through the novel one feels they are part of one's family. One gets attached to them, and cannot wait for the next adventure. Even the cover illustration, by Teresa Tasolino, shows superb taste and serves as introduction to the British country house that will surely be the setting of many wonderful adventures; with a take from the lake, black swan and all.

I just finished the book and I'm already longing for the sequel. It's strange that this happens with me. Usually, I like to alternate between series, but with the Victorian Mysteries, it is not the case. I fervently hope that Mr. and Mrs. Albert continue the series for many years to come.

As a fervent admirer of Victoriana in general, I found this book to be a breath of fresh air. Placing an independent-minded American woman into the world of the British upper class in the 1890's creates a whole new perspective for those of us who read Victorian novels or modern novels set in the Victorian era on a regular basis. I couldn't put it down and immediately bought the second book in the series. I recommend this to anyone who loves the Victorian era, especially Yeats, Wilde and Conan Doyle (hint, hint).

If you enjoy Dianne Day and her Fremont Jones series, then this series will be for you.

Kate is on her own in the world and leaps at a chance for adventure. She journeys from America of the latish 1800's to England where she enters a different world entirely. I have more of this series sitting on the shelf waiting for me to have time for them. I highly recommend this series.

Also go out and get the China Bayles books by Susan Albert Wittig.

...a Victorian mystery. I enjoyed the character development in this book and (as it is my lot to always read series out of order) had already read several of the others. It was nice to read where it all began. As this is the first in the series the style isn't as well developed as the later books which is why a star is missing in my review. One thing I really like about this series is that anyone can read them. I could give these to daughters or nieces without worrying about the need to dodge sexual content or foul language. True to the Victorian times; mature subjects are hinted at but not discussed in gruesome detail and without delicacy.

DEATH AT BISHOP'S KEEP was written by the husband and wife team of Susan Wittig Albert and Bill Albert. It's their first story in a series of Victorian mysteries. The authors are writing under the name of Robin Paige. I recently became interested in the books when Susan Albert gave a talk at my local library. Her lecture was very interesting and she touched a little bit into the history of the forensic sciences that were just starting to be developed during the Victorian age. I was intrigued and ready to read the first story.

Kate Ardleigh is the main character of DEATH AT BISHOP`S KEEP. She's a strong and independent American woman who leaves New York when summoned to England by her aunt, Sabrina Ardleigh. Kate was unaware that she even had any relatives left in England. She's actually asked to be her aunt's secretary. Sabrina's home is called Bishop's Keep where she lives with her sister. Kate loves the idea of traveling to England and because she's a secret writer of short stories for a monthly magazine, she feels that she'll acquire a lot of fascinating material for her stories. Aunt Sabrina is a kind woman who Kate admires. Surprisingly, she is a member of a clandestine group called the Order of the Golden Dawn. Kate learns a little about the organization while working on Aunt Sabrina's papers. Unfortunately, Sabrina's sister, Bernice Jaggers shows no welcome to her niece and tells her that she didn't want her to come and to address her as Aunt Jaggers.

At the beginning of Kate's visit, the body of an unknown man is found at a local archaeological dig. When some other deaths take place, Kate feels that there must be some connection to the first death. Sir Charles Sheridan is the duel character to Kate. He's a wealthy and intelligent man who is fascinated with all of the new sciences that are just emerging. He and Kate meet and find each other to be interesting, but a kind of rivalry is sparked between them when they both become involved in helping to solve the mysteries.

I liked the premise and I'm looking forward to reading the next story. From my own experience, a series like this can get even better when the characters become more seasoned and start playing off one another