This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend. Read the full disclosure here.
Book: “A Ruse of Shadows” by Sherry Thomas
Publishing Info: Berkley, June 2024
Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+
Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat
Book Description: Charlotte’s success on the RMS Provence has afforded her a certain measure of time and assurance. Taking advantage of that, she has been busy, plotting to prise the man her sister loves from Moriarty’s iron grip.
Disruption, however, comes from an unexpected quarter. Lord Bancroft Ashburton, disgraced and imprisoned as a result of Charlotte’s prior investigations, nevertheless manages to press Charlotte into service: Underwood, his most loyal henchman, is missing and Lord Bancroft wants Charlotte to find Underwood, dead or alive.
But then Lord Bancroft himself turns up dead and Charlotte, more than anyone else, meets the trifecta criteria of motive, means, and opportunity. Never mind rescuing anyone else, with the law breathing down her neck, can Charlotte save herself from prosecution for murder?
Previously Reviewed: “A Study in Scarlet Women” and “A Conspiracy in Belgravia” and “The Hollow of Fear” and “The Art of Theft” and “Murder on Cold Street” and “Miss Moriarty, I Presume?” and “A Tempest at Sea”
Review: Better late than never! (Though it can be assured that I would eventually get to the latest “Charlotte Holmes” mystery novel!) As much as I love reading new releases, it does become a challenge trying to make sure to leave review room for my beloved on-going series. And at this point, this is probably one of the longer running series that I’m reviewing that is currently still be added to! And, while there have been ups and and downs throughout this series, there have never been any true duds. Indeed, the series has been on a bit of an uptick recently, so I was excited to check out this latest entry!
While those familiar with the series will find many familiar aspects to this story (all of our favorite characters, a return to England, and the use of tried-and-true villains from the past), one of the primary things that stood out about this book was how fresh it felt! And for the *checks notes* 8th book in a mystery series, that’s quite something! There are two primary factors, I believe. First, and to a lesser extent, the first real mystery the reader is introduced to is one in which Charlotte herself is the primary suspect. This is, of course, a rich setup for the story. And while this subplot isn’t really the primary plot of the book, it does provide a unique framing for the entire story, one in which Charlotte is on the other side of the interview, the subject rather than the investigator. No one is surprised to find that she shines just as well in this setting as in her regular role
But the second change was the broken up manner in which the story is told. The book shifts back and forth from various time periods. One being the aforementioned interview in which Charlotte is being questioned about her role in this murder. But the second follows all of the events that lead up to this situation, with a few smaller jumps around in time found within. And, of course, by the time we get to the end of the story and the pieces start falling in place, the reader (and many other characters!) realize that Charlotte, as always, was playing a much deeper game the entire time, with a wholly separate timeline of events playing into the how and why of everything that happened throughout the story. This all lead to a very compelling mystery. There were simply so many layers to the story that every time I began to feel as if I had some theories about one mystery, we would shift focus to the next layer and I would be as befuddled as ever! It was a very “onion-like” read in all of the best ways!
Perhaps less new was the cast of characters, though here too the book shone! While I enjoy Livia Holmes and the important role she plays in Charlotte’s life, there have been times throughout the series when I felt that her chapters felt unnecessary to the larger story. Here, we still follows her story for a few chapters here and there, but I felt like the balance between her smaller subplot and the larger story as a whole was better handled. I also really enjoyed seeing some familiar faces pop up in very unexpected ways! There were a few call-backs to characters from several books ago who ended up playing much larger roles in this book. And, of course, Bancroft is always a good time in all of his snobby glory!
And, of course, I still very much enjoy the slowly developing relationship between Charlotte and Lord Ingram. Some of the more floundering books seemed to struggle to know where to take this relationship, but in these last few stronger entries, this relationship feels more steady and as if its progressing in a natural manner. It’s the slowest of slow burns, but in this way, it still feels very true to a character like Charlotte who understands her important relationships with other people in both a much deeper, but also more difficult to communicate, manner.
Overall, I really loved this one! In fact, it’s probably one of my favorites out of the entire series! The central mystery was compelling, the balance of characters felt right, and we once again were able to revel in all that makes Charlotte Holmes such an intriguing character to follow. If you’re a fan of these books, this one is a solid entry in what I hope continues to be a long-running series.
Rating 9: Successful in every way I could wish, this was a perfect balance of mystery, character work, and a fantastic central character!
Reader’s Advisory:
“A Ruse of Shadows” is on this Goodreads list: Can’t Wait Books of 2024
The Library Ladies 