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42 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another Excellent Entry to the Sebastian St Cyr Series, November 5, 2009
C. S. Harris has crafted another excellent mystery detailing darkly charismatic hero Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, seeking the answer to a murder by investigating every echelon of Regency London society. The mystery itself is clever, requiring, as it does, Sebastian to seek answers to both a recent murder and one which happened thirty years before and tied to the American Revolution. However, the book's strongest points arrive via the series' overarching mystery, that of Sebastian's past, and that of his family, and in fact overshadow the mystery of the main plot. Some of the questions which have haunted him (and readers) since the first book (What Angels Fear) find answers (and more questions) here. This book also continues (and complicates) the situation between Sebastian and Miss Hero Jarvis which began in the fourth book (Where Serpents Sleep). Further, the murder mystery also stirs up an enemy from Sebastian's more recent past from his time with the army on the Continent. All of the series regulars take part, to varying degrees, including the aforementioned Hero, but also Jarvis, Sir Henry Lovejoy, the Earl of Hendon, Kat Boleyn, Tom, Paul Gibson, and St. Cyr family members Amanda and Henrietta.
I highly recommend that everyone already acquainted with Sebastian pick up this installment immediately. (Readers unfamiliar with the series should start with book one, What Angels Fear, and read through all five!!) It's a fast, absorbing read that is difficult to put down once you start. The prose is delightful, the atmosphere beautifully rendered, and the characters are expertly delineated.
(Also, the old saying about judging books by covers goes triply here. Note that the cover, while lovely, is completely unrelated to this book... Sebastian is still the protagonist, and at no time does a barefoot heroine stumble about old stairways.)
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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
engaging Regency mystery, November 5, 2009
In 1812 Sebastian St, Cyr, Viscount Devlin is reestablishing a relationship with his father. Their rift was caused by a secret that came to light leading to the son ending his relationship with his beloved actress Kat Boleyn; whom he intended to marry. Now he wonders if his one night with Hero Jarvis, the daughter of his father's mortal enemy resulted in a child although she refuses to verify it one way or another.
Escaping his female woes, Sebastian is asked by the Archbishop of Canterbury to investigate the deaths of two men decades apart in an ancient crypt in a church. One of the victims is Sir Nigel, who vanished decades ago. The second corpse is the Bishop of London Francis Prescot, Sir Nigel's younger brother. Sebastian assumes the deaths are connected beyond the sibling link and believes the association harks back to the American Revolution. St. Cyr is taken aback when he finds a tie to his family. His father, Sir Nigel and Lord Jarvis went to the colonies to see if pursing the war would end up in England's triumph.
Viscount Devlin is a brooding hero in the tradition of Lord Byron as he distrusts everyone starting with his father who has kept a seemingly zillion secrets from him. His investigative methods are similar to that of a twentieth century police detective as he follows clues to wherever they lead. C. S. Harris has written a wonderfully constructed Regency mystery filled with concealment, red herrings, and misunderstanding that keeps the lead protagonist going down wrong lanes, but never giving up.
Harriet Klausner
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Wonderful Frustration, December 5, 2009
As with all of the other intallments in the St. Cyr mystery series, I was left supremely frustrated when I finished What Remains of Heaven. Frustrated because I WANT TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT. NOW! As always, Harris creates a terrific and engrossing mystery that moves along at a fast (but not too fast) pace. This one focuses on two murders, one recent, one thirty years old - but both connected. More mystery unfolds (and more bodies pile up)ultimately winding together the New World and the Old. I didn't feel, as some other reviewers did, that the mystery took a backseat to the personal relationships that always form an important part of the St. Cyr books. But there is no doubt that Sebastian St. Cyr's personal story is a critical element of this series and that story is really what makes this book more than just an engrossing mystery. These characters seem real and Harris writes believable dialog and makes the characters act in ways that are believable without being predictable. These books are not just Regency romances pretending to be mysteries (as many, many other books are) and the relationships featured here go well beyond the traditional romantic ones. St. Cyr's relationships with his friend Gibson, his servants (especially Tom), the Earl, his aunt, the Bow Street detective - even Jarvis are all more deeply developed here. Of course, it's the relationships with Kat and (yay)Hero that we all watch and all I will say is that things are definitely getting interesting there. Quite a few loose ends from previous books are tied up - but more secrets and complications arise (hmm, how about the younger yellow-eyed highwayman that is mentioned in passing...) And trust me, when you finish the last few lines of this book you'll realize why I say I am frustrated. St. Cyr books are just about the only books I buy in hardcover (Amazon and Harris smile) because I cannot wait to find out what happens next. (Although as a fan, Hero is my hero!) Buy this book!
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