Maud Blyth wanted an adventure as well as to help her brother unravel a magical conspiracy. She may have gotten more than she bargained for though when the elderly lady with a magical artifact that she’s escorting across the Atlantic is murdered. With a surprising ally in Violet Debenham, a magician and actress who’s returning to England to claim her inheritance, the two of them tackle a ship full of suspects with them hope of solving the murder and finding the artifact without ending up overboard themselves.
It was fun getting to see Maud take her turn in the spotlight. She was an interesting character in A Marvellous Light, and I’m glad to see more of her. I also really liked the addition of Violet. I wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy her at first, but she definitely grew on me. The whole book also had an Agatha Christie vibe which I enjoyed a lot. And I liked seeing Maud and Violet work out what they need from one another and how to be partners to one another. I’m a big fan of mysteries, and I enjoyed both how this one played out as well as getting to see Mrs. Navenby get to help solve her own murder. I will admit that while it probably is the wrong historical era, I was very much imagining Clue type shenanigans on the boat.
I did miss Robin and Edwin though. While Ross was a good addition to the cast, I didn’t enjoy Hawthorne that much. I’m sure that he has a tragic backstory that explains his behavior, and I appreciate he can be bullied into helping out, but I just find him frustrating and annoying. I will also admit to not being quite as enchanted with this book as I was with the first one in the series, though I can’t quite put my finger on why. Still, it was a great outing, and I’m looking forward to seeing how the series wraps up in the next book. Four out of five stars.
