Customer Reviews

And Only to Deceive

5 star:		(57)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I started this one evening and could not go to bed until I had finished it. It is the perfect blend of Victorian sociology, art history, romance and mystery. The characters are strong and well-drawn; intelligent, independent Emily, her friend Ivy, domineering mother, vapid acquaintances, grand dame Cecil du Lac, the butler Davis and maid Meg, painter Renoir, two handsome suitors, her late husband Philip, and the list goes on. But rather than feeling overwhelmed by the number of characters, each is so distinct, they make a strong contribution to the story and the growth and character of Emily. You want to personally know these characters, to study Greek antiquities and re-read the Iliad. The romance is appropriate to the period and the mystery compelling. I loved this book and I anxiously await Ms. Alexander's next book.

There's a reviewer quote on the back of this book that says something to the effect of if Jane Austen had written the Da Vinci code it would have come out like this novel. I only noticed this quote when I was halfway through the book but seeing it made me smile because one of the first things I noticed about this book is that the characters sound exactly like the people in a movie version of one Jane Austen's books-but not like the people in the books themselves. They're too cynical and not polite enough for that. Anyway, this author's voice is enjoyable to read because of the familiar similarity to some of my favorite movies and the added sarcasm makes parts of it a hoot.

This book contains three of my favorite things to read about, though I didn't know it at the time I first bought this novel which made this book a delightful surprise. These things are: Greek mythology, intrigue/crime and love in Victorian England. This is the story of Emily Ashton, whose recent husband Phillip Ashton has just died on a safari in Africa. This doesn't bother her much because she only really married him to get away from her mother and didn't know him well enough to morn him in any way. His death leaves her wealthy, but with two years of mourning to get through; she has a great deal of time on her hands.

So she spends this time learning all about one of Phillip's main interests, the story of the battle of Troy in the Iliad, by Homer and Greek antiques. Most of Phillips finds were donated to the British museum and as Emily studied and learns more about her late husband and his world she learns through his journals how much he loved her and she begins to fall in love with her dead husband (tragic really.) At the same time two men appear on the horizon, both friends of Phillips, Colin and Andrew competing for her affection.

But Emily is discovering that some of the pieces in the British museum, pieces donated by her now beloved dead husband, are forgeries, and Phillip may have been a thief. Even worse, Colin or Andrew may be involved in these thefts. And then come the news that Phillip may still be alive....

This was a good book. As I said previously I really enjoyed the authors writing style and the dialog was all very cute (if you've seen "Emma" you'll just hear the words in your head.) Emily is a great heroine, she's smart, has actual self esteem for a women of her time and real ideas about how women should function in society, and the whole falling in love with a dead person thing is just a wonderful literary device because it makes for an unspeakable tragic situation-always mourning the time you lost with a person you now love. Aside from that the book is romantic, suspenseful and just all around good.

But it doesn't have that special spark that makes a book great, so, four stars.

I love to read, but when it comes to mysteries I only read really good ones. I learned about Tasha Alexander's book from a list I'm on, and went to her website to read the first chapter. It was so delightful, I decided I'd splurge and buy the hardback. I'm totally glad I did. When I got the book, I couldn't put it down; I read it from cover to cover. Ms. Alexander has created a wonderful world filled with the most charming, fascinating people.
This is one book I know I'm going to re-read. Some of the other reviews say Ms. Alexander is going to write a sequel, I sure hope they're right.
(I like Elizabeth Peters, Anne Perry, and Elizabeth George.)

Reviewers cannot write enough about Emily, Ms. Alexander's heroine, and rightfully so. If only for the characters, this book is worth reading. But this book offers so much more--a wonderful balance of mystery, history, arts, and romance, all wrapped in beautiful and intelligent prose. I'm ordering more copies for my friends and family!

This was not a book I wanted to read. I don't like mysteries, I don't like romances, and I've never been much of a history buff. But my friends were so excited about this new, debut novel that I finally had to read it just to keep them happy. . . . Am I ever glad I did! Forget about genres: this is simply a great novel. Alexander knows how to write. There's not a wasted word, and the fluid, deft style keeps you reading just for the fun of the flow. The characters--from the sparkling heroine Emily through her "suitors", the suavely competent Colin and the witty and rebellious Andrew, to superbly drawn minor characters such as the French grande dame Cécile and even the the butler, Davis--are all real people whose company you can thoroughly enjoy. Best of all, the novel manages to be intelligent and culturally informed (Victorian mores, classical antiquities, serious wine) without pretension or awkwardness. No matter what you usually read, if you're looking for several hours of pure delight, this is a must read.

"Few people would look kindly on my reasons for marrying Philip."

In this entrancing fashion begins `And Only to Deceive", a suspenseful story set in London and Paris just before the turn of the last century. Lady Emily Bromley marries Philip, Viscount Ashton, not for his looks, his title or his money, but because he presents her with an opportunity to escape from her mother. It has always been Lady Bromley's dearest wish that her daughter make a brilliant match her first season in society, and when Emily turns down proposal after proposal, Lady Bromley becomes more and more exasperated - and exasperating. She laments Emily's wasted beauty, cuts her allowance because as a spinster she has to learn to live on a pittance, and measures her waist regularly to see how fat she's getting. Finally, Emily decides that enough is enough, and that she is going to accept the next proposal to come along. It comes from the dashing Viscount Ashton, and they are married as soon as Emily`s trousseau can be assembled. A few months later, Philip dies on the plains of Africa, having just bagged himself an elephant, and Emily becomes a wealthy widow. She inherits Philip's money, his house in London, his house in the country, his villa in Santorini... and a truly astonishing collection of Greek antiquities. Astonishing not only for its beauty and value, but because Emily had no idea her husband had any interests beyond hunting.

As she digs deeper, she discovers not only that the husband she married for convenience was in fact deeply in love with her, but also that he wasn't the man she thought he was. Gentleman, scholar, philanthropist... thief? Someone has been replacing the Greek antiquities in the British Museum with fakes, and if the originals are in Philip's country house, what does that say about the dashing Viscount? And what of Colin Hargreaves, Philip's best friend, the only person who was with him when he died? Or Andrew Palmer, another friend and companion on that ill-fated hunt, who is attempting to woo Philip`s widow, whatever the cost? Was Philip's death truly an accident, or did someone kill the Viscount? And for that matter, is Philip really dead at all...?

`And Only to Deceive' will leave you guessing until the end, and you'll have a great time doing it. Lady Emily is enchanting, the writing is superb, and the story is well researched and tightly plotted. A wonderful read by a wonderful new author. And as Tasha Alexander is hard at work on a sequel, there's the next installment to look forward to, as well!

I was concerned, to be honest, about reading something of mystery suspense featuring classical antiquities - particularly when it brings back college memories of studying the works rather than enjoying them for ones own pleasure. My trepidations were erased by the third chapter! This was a really enjoyable read. More importantly, it's one of the few books that received my individual attention until I completed it. Ms. Alexander will quickly join the ranks of such diverse authors as Elizabeth Peters, Laurie R. King and P.D. James. Congratulations on well written novel.

A great read--it's hard to believe this is her first novel! The main character is thoroughly likeable and her reactions ring true. Readers of any age will appreciate Emily's triumphs and stumbles as a young widow challenging some Victorian social expectations, which Ms. Alexander handles well. The supporting characters of both genders are also interesting. It's a nice touch that some of Emily's friendships evolve, rather than just providing static sidekicks. We can hope to hear more about Ivy and Cecile du Lac in a sequal.

The photos of Classic Greek sculpture mentioned in the book on her website really help those of us who don't have such things at our fingertips.

Mostly, the book is a lot of fun & kept me turning pages till the end. It'll make a good gift.

Maybe it's just me, but I'm so tired of the historical heroine cliche in fiction these days. No cliches, heroine or story-wise, from Tasha Alexander! Her Emily is smart as a whip, dedicated to her intellectual freedom, refreshingly candid within the strict confines of Victorian society, and surprisingly tender. Her feelings for her dead husband evolve subtly, and I was a bit surprised to find myself more emotinally involved than I usually am in a historical. Skillfully done. Looking forward to Alexander's next Emily book!

I must confess. I feel a little bad about my relationship with Lady Emily Ashton. I came across her adventures in the wake of Lady Julia Grey's escapades and I fear I won't be able to do Emily justice, that she will always be overshadowed by Julia. And, um, Brisbane. Do not mistake me. I like Colin Hargreaves very much. He is a delight and I hope Emily never throws him over. But he's not....well. He's not Brisbane. There. I've said it. We can move on. If you haven't guessed by now, AND ONLY TO DECEIVE is the first in Tasha Alexander's series of Victorian mysteries featuring Lady Emily Ashton. A series that has a fair bit in common with Deanna Raybourn's Julia Grey novels.

Emily, like Julia, is made a young and rather sudden widow at the start of the story. The thing is, she never much cared for poor, dead Philip. He was simply a way of escaping her overbearing mother. To the cynical Emily, he represented the lesser of all the evils courting her. After his death, however, Emily is shocked to discover her husband was wildly, irrevocably in love with her and she had no idea. Through his journals, letters, and stories told by his closest friends, she comes to know and love her late husband. As she embarks on a study of ancient Greek language and sculpture (in memory of Philip who was something of an afficionado), Emily becomes involved in a ring of forgeries leading back to Philip and his friends. It seems she has a few more things left to learn about the man she married.

The best thing about AND ONLY TO DECEIVE is the wonderful immersion in all things Greek. I was instantly taken back to my history of civ classes and what a wonderful experience I had reading The Iliad (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition) for the first time. Emily, too, had the good sense to prefer Hector to Achilles. I thoroughly enjoyed watching Emily fall in love with her husband and struggle with the fact of coming to know him secondhand and all too late. I loved the way she embraced the life of the scholar as a tribute to him and how she tried to move on despite the ever-constricting mourning requirements imposed on all sides. Unfortunately, her loyal love for her husband soon becomes a bit ridiculous as it is clear he is dead and was not, perhaps, the capital fellow his friends made him out to be. Emily also suffers a few TSTL moments with regards to the merits of her two suitors as well as her endeavors to unmask the villain. As a result, I grew a bit impatient on the whole. Not enough to deter me from the next installment, as I did enjoy many things about this light and charming mystery. Here's hoping things pick up a bit in the next one.