Where She Solves Several Mysteries

The Secret of the Lost Pearls by Darcie Wilde
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the sixth book in the series, and it's another winner. 4 stars.

(4.5 if I were allowed.)

Like all the series, we have an excellent protagonist, an engrossing mystery, some intrigue, some romance, some excellent sleuthing, and a satisfying conclusion. The author may (or may not--I'm no expert) take some liberties with the Regency setting, but it seems to me that she's done a good job.

Rosalind Thorne is surviving as a useful woman, moving from drawing room to drawing room helping other women with tricky domestic details, earning her living without seeming to be earning a living, which was key. She threads the needle (the author does, in her writing, and so does her protagonist within the story) by being active in solving the mystery without being too active, too much like a modern heroine. She is, in fact, a lot like a modern heroine, though she fits in fine with this setting by making sure she appears proper. She sneaks around, but apologizes for being caught in the wrong place; she passes tasks off to others who can move around more freely; she uses contacts via correspondence to track down details. It all works to make her a detective without her looking like one.

My quibble with the novel is the rather unnecessary complexity, especially at the end. It's such a tangle with so many young women the same age and so many uncles and cousins who've gotten involved that it takes a lot of concentration to sort them out. Murder mystery, jewel theft, art scam, revenge, hidden families--it's a lot. She makes it work, but it was a little extra.

Still--great series. Lots of fun. Love the main characters. Recommended, along with the whole series.

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Where Rosalind Has Too Many Choices

A Lady Compromised by Darcie Wilde
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a good book in a very good series. I think I've given mostly 5s, and maybe I liked this one just a touch less, but I still enjoyed it and recommend it.

Rosalind, who's been hanging on the edges of society since her father, a forger, deserted the family, has a chance here to connect again with the young gentleman she was once engaged to. He's the new Duke of Casselmaine after the death of a brother, and despite the distance between them shows he still wants her before anyone else. Interfering in that plan are two things, not in order: 1, Rosalind isn't sure how she feels about the Bow Street Runner who she has also fallen for; and 2, there's a mysterious death, possibly murder, possibly suicide, that she is increasingly pressured into investigating, though it involves everyone in the duke's circle.

It's an interesting plot with nicely arranged revelations, though the sheer number of relevant people who are connected by engagements and family history makes it very hard to keep clear who has what motivation. (I sometimes have this concern with mysteries--maybe it's only my issue.) After awhile I give up on keeping straight which of the Vaughns or Mirabeaus was with which of the Corbyns and at what time and had the right motivation to do the thing--and instead just let the story go.

Anyway, there are a lot of characters to like and cheer for here, which I enjoy, and the story advances the overall arc of the series, which is how I like my stories to go, so this is a win. I don't know who I want Rosalind to end up with, but I do know I want her to continue investigating.

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Where Rosalind Solves Another One

A Purely Private Matter by Darcie Wilde
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Second in the series. I really liked it.

This series has a great main character in Rosalind Thorne--round, complex, interesting, capable but not unbelievable--and the author has a very clear, confident voice. The Regency setting is nicely realized and the mystery plot is well managed.

Jane Austen's name is evoked here and there when people talk about this series, and I can absolutely see that and appreciate it, but this is a more worldly world than you find on most of the pages of her novels. That's not a criticism of either--there's a lot to admire and enjoy in both. But Rosalind is herself a lot more worldly than any Austen heroines, which she'd need to be to investigate murder and blackmail and adultery. It might be fun to see Emma or Elinor or Lizzie investigate in that way (though Fanny would be hopeless, I fear), and I'd read that book, but Rosalind has had a lot more practice facing the seamier side of life without freaking out or losing her composure. The series still has a dignified and proper tone, but it's much more aware and accepting of the broader society.

The point is that I'd label this series more Austen-adjacent than Austen-like.

Anyway, it's a fun mystery with excellent characters that I'm eager to see again in book 3. Recommended for readers of historical mystery. And Austen folks, for sure.

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Where Rosalind Is Made of Stern Stuff

A Useful Woman by Darcie Wilde
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I had never heard of this series until I ran onto it the other day. It has lots of the things I really love--Regency setting, historical mystery, Jane Austen vibes--and I hoped it wouldn't let me down.

It didn't. I thought it was great.

The writing feels very confident, very self-assured, and though we experience with the main character the difficulties of dealing with life's harsh realities, there is still a lot of hope in the story and in Rosalind. She had a lot of setbacks through no fault of her own, but she's treading water at least, and maybe doing a bit better than that. I like that she is recognized as being good at many things, enough that she's sought after by society people despite living on the edge of disgrace. And I like how she holds her own when facing those glowering and posturing people who want to overawe her and take advantage of her. No crumbling. No weeping. No apologies.

I like her. She's a good character.

I also like Honoria, who is salty but fun. And the Bow Street runner character is unusually round, full of possibilities for future novels. I'm looking forward to seeing some of that.

The plot is soooo Regency it's almost funny, but it totally works. In one way or another, everyone in the story is trying to stay as close to the top of society as they can get, and it makes some of them do foolish things.

I really like a good mystery, but it struck me that it could almost have worked just as a novel of manners without the tragic events at Almack's. The mystery just makes it that much more fun to read.

I already have the second book on hand, which is good, because I'm eager to see more.

Recommended for Austen people (most of them) and every Regency mystery type.

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