Customer Reviews

Sick of Shadows: An Edwardian Murder Mystery (Edwardian Murder Mysteries)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Other reviewers wrote great reviews telling the plot, etc. So I won't do that. Instead, I'm writing this review to let you know whether or not the book is worth your hard-earned cash. In my opinion, Sick of Shadows is a worthy purchase.

These are the reasons that I liked Sick of Shadows:
1) The prose is "light" and easy to read. Its simplicity is actually charming.
2) There are no explicit sex scenes.
3) I enjoy the banter among the characters.
4) I enjoy the TV-script-like plights and miscommunications (reminds you of the "trouble" that "Lucy" would get into).

Why I withheld one star. I do not like historically incorrect details specifically modern attitudes ascribed to Edwardian characters (in this case--the main characters semi-accepting homosexual proclivity as acceptable behavior which was not the case in Edwardian times).

The books in this Edwardian mystery series by Marion Chesney are delightful to read. I read all three published to date and look forward to additional stories in the future.

If you haven't read the first two books in this series, I recommend that you do so, in order for you to really get to know the characters, although Sick of Shadows is fine as a stand alone book.

Again, this review is to let you know about the book itself and its entertainment value to me. Thank you and hope you enjoy this book as well.

The story is uneven and slow in places. Some of the dialogue is stilted and the editing is non-existant. I found many typos and dialogue that was credited to the wrong character or not at all, leaving it uncertain who was speaking. One short paragraph was so badly mangled it made no sense at all.

I have read a lot of Marion Chesney, both the romances and the M.C. Beaton mysteries. Parts of this book seemed to be written by someone else. The writing is not as strong and descriptive as Chesney usually is and some of the actions and dialogue do not fit the characters I have come to know from the first two books. The storyline itself is very slow and almost disappears for a while before finally returning to the mystery of the murder.

Also, in this book, it is stated that Captain Cathcart forgot to give Lady Rose an engagement ring, however, in "Hasty Death" the ring was clearly given.

While this is nowhere near Chesney's best writing (see either the Daughters of Mannerling or the Poor Relation series for a wickedly funny read), it is still moderately enjoyable. Some (but not enough) of her trademark humor is present, and the mystery is nicely done. But I very much miss her wit and brilliant, outrageous characterizations and hope she will ditch this field of inquiry (the Edwardian Age) and return to Regencies post haste.

Before she wrote her highly acclaimed Hamish MacBeth mystery series, Marion Chesney was better known for her historical romance novels, esp for her Regency-era romance novels like the Six Sisters series and the Poor Relatives series. With this Edwardian-era Lady Rose Summer & Captain Harry Cathcart mystery series, Marion Chesney marries the two genres, mystery and romance, giving readers who enjoy a light mystery that's tinged with some romance, a rather entertaining read.

In order to stop the Earl and Countess of Hadfield from shipping their beautiful and rebellious daughter, Lady Rose, to India so that she can find a husband there (Lady Rose has disgraced herself by taking part in a suffragette rally), Captain Harry Cathcart has proposed to Lady Rose that they pretend to be engaged. That way her parents, while they may bemoan the fact that their daughter is engaged to an eccentric, will have to let her stay on in England, and Lady Rose can have some breathing space to either find a husband more suited to her needs or wait to attain her majority. Needless to say Lady Rose eagerly agrees to the plan. But this pretend engagement is not all it's cracked up to be, Lady Rose finds, because the Captain, busy with his private detective work, is seldom at the lady's side, and people are beginning to make some rather snide remarks. Quite bored and unhappy, Lady Rose finds company in her misery in the Season's latest sensation, Dolly Tremaine. Fresh from the country, Dolly is finding her first season to be very overwhelming and her parents' pushing expectations that she marry well, extremely trying. But this promising friendship is cut shot when Dolly is found floating in the river, a la the Lady of Shalott (she had been brutally stabbed and then artfully arranged in death). The newspapers are quick to exploit the lurid details of Dolly's death, esp when they discover that Lady Rose, well known for being involved, previously, in two other murders, was a close friend of Dolly's. Does Rose know more than she's letting on about Dolly's murder? they speculate. And when Lady Rose receives a letter threatening her life, Captain Cathcart is summoned. Who is threatening Lady Rose? Does she actually know something that could unmask Dolly's murderer? Will Captain Cathcart save the beautiful and impetuous Lady Rose from a determined murderer? And will Cathcart and Lady Rose ever reveal their true feelings to each other?

The mystery subplot is a rather light one -- few suspects and with practically no interesting plot twists -- and actually plays second fiddle to the subplot involving Lady Rose's growth as an individual and her feelings for Harry Cathcart (equal parts frustration at his high-handed and remote manner towards her, plus attraction to Harry in spite of how much he angers her). So if you're looking for a compelling and perplexing mystery novel, this may not be the book for you. On the other hand, if you're looking for a light but entertaining read that dwells on the foibles of Society, "Sick of Shadows" is just the read for you.

This book is a good cozy read but I don't think Ms. Chesney wrote it. In the second book he gave her a ring and in this book it said that he didn't. Also, lets get these two together already. I am sick of their stupid lack of communication. This could be a great series if they just got married and solved mysteries like in the Pitt books by Anne Perry. My advise is wait for the paperback or use your library.

This is the third in a series of murder mysteries set in Britain in the first decade of the 20th century featuring Captain Harry Cathcart and Lady Rose Summer.

To date there are four books in the series, which are

Snobbery with Violence
Hasty Death
Sick of Shadows
Our Lady of Pain

The author writes romantic fiction, mostly humorous regency romances plus one or two set in the Edwardian period, under the name Marion Chesney; and also writes mystery/detective stories such as the Agatha Raisin and Hamish MacBeth series under the name M.C. Beaton.

This Edwardian series is a something of a cross-over between the two - part romance and part murder mystery - and the books often have both names on the cover (usually something like "M.C. Beaton writing as Marion Chesney.)

At the start of this third book, Lady Rose Summer is engaged to Captain Harry Cathcart. They agreed an engagement to prevent her parents, the Earl and Countess of Hadfield, shipping Lady Rose out to India to find a husband. Neither has admitted even to themselves that they actually have feelings for each other.

Lady Rose has arranged to meet Dolly Tremaine, the latest beautiful debutate to mesmerise London society, but finds her murdered, with Dolly's body laid out as a horrible parody of the painting "The Lady of Shallott."

Despite the fact that fierce arguments between them cause their engagement to be broken off, Lady Rose and Captain Cathcart must work together again to find out who murdered Dolly. Meanwhile they have to deal with a pair of noble blackmailers and with wicked society gossips .....

The main characters in the series are:

Captain Harry Cathcart, younger son of a Baron, has left the army after being injured in the Boer war. At the start of the first book in the series he carried out a service for Lady Rose's father for which he gained a reputation as a fixer, and by the time of this third book he is successfully running a business as the Edwardian equivalent of a Private Investigator - though this makes some members of "Society" look down on him as being "in trade."

Lady Rose Summer, only daughter of the Earl and Countess of Hadfield - slightly notorious as having briefly been involved with suffragettes. Chafes at the fact that society will not allow her a useful role, and constantly looking for something more challenging to do - fom working as a typist for a bank to helping the police solve murders.

Beckett - Harry's valet: in love with Daisy

Daisy - Lady Rose's companion. A former chorus girl, but when Captain Cathcart recruited her to play the role of a maid with a contagious disease as one of the escapades in the first book, Lady Rose recruited her to do the job for real. Later Lady Rose promoted her from Maid to Companion. In love with Becket.

Detective Superintendent Kerridge - a senior policeman of humble origins and carefully supressed radical views, reinforced by the fact that whenever he has to interview an aristocrat they always threaten to report him to the Prime Minister. Plays Inspector Slack to Lady Rose's Miss Marple.

Despite that comparison, this is not in the same league as Agatha Christie as a detective story, and neither is it in the same league as Jane Austen as a romance. However, it is an amusing and entertaining light read.

I have read all three of the books in this series. I was first an Agatha Raisin fan, then I discovered Hamish MacBeth. I enjoy both of those series very much, and have also read her stand-alone, "Skeleton in the Closet."

I enjoyed "Snobbery with Violence" (first of this series), so went on to read the other two books. Starting with "Hasty Death," and continuing with this one, I liked the plot lines and the character interaction, but typos, inconsistencies, and "historical" data being clunked into the story line with very little reason, began to get to me.

So I guess that my verdict is that this is a charming bit of fluff, but not very well written (and not very well edited). If you haven't read her M.C. Beaton stories, I would go for those first. Agatha and Hamish are both written as modern day, but take place (one in the Cotswolds and one in the Highlands) in locations where old customs are still very much alive, with the results being both more intriguing and quite humorous.

I'm not a big fan of this series, but since the books are small and breezy, I wanted to finish them. Sick of Shadows is my favorite in the series. Or, perhaps more accurately, it was the book I disliked the least. Here's why:

*I liked that Rose and Daisy got to spend some time in the country with a new family. It did wonders for Rose's humanity.

*Harry and Rose are finally taking steps to forming a real friendship and admiration.

*The tone was a little more fast-paced which made for a better, more tightly written mystery. I found myself actually caring whodunit and that wasn't so for the previous books.

*Harry's new Secretary, Ailsa. Who can't love a character like her? Even while gin soaked, she still manages to fend off bad guys with a gun. Love her.

I've read most of M.C. Beaton/Marion Chesney's books, and this was by far the worst. The main character doesn't stay in character, and is annoyingly inconsistent. The villains are so poorly developed that the end scenes almost make no sense, especially as they been irrelevant to every other part of the book. The use of photography as it is done in the book is historically inaccurate, and the little sidebar of the king of England visiting his mistress was pretty nasty and gag-able, it really didn't fit the book.

Overall, it is hard to tell if this was meant to be a mystery, a period piece or just a sappy romance.

This story was such a weak effort from Beaton/Chesney that I take it as a sign this writer is past due for retirement.

I love M.C. Beaton and I love period novels. This was a fun read. I wish she would add more to the series.