Ooh! Such a delicious addition to the Veronica Speedwell mystery series from the pen of gifted and most imaginative writer, Deanna Raybourn.

The year is 1889; the setting - the Bishop's Folly estate in London's Marleybone district just south of Regent's Park. Our dynamic duo are focused on their duties of repairing and classifying Earl Rosemorran's collection of curious objects. Just when there is not one more inch of space to place another find, in through the door comes a large crate containing a perfectly created wax figure, a la Madame Tussaud. It was a gift to the Earl's daughter and wouldn't it be simply delightful if Stoker could add a small motor to the figure to make it appear as if it is breathing. That shouldn't be too difficult. That is, not until Stoker got into the project and encountered some rather alarming irregularities. Justice must be served and Veronica and Stoker are back at it.

Ms. Raybourn has done an excellent job of weaving concurrent historical events into the continuing storyline of our undaunted Veronica and her beloved Stoker. The dialogue is spectacular and witty. The mise en scène is superb as it formulates a world drawing on all of the reader's senses. The tension runs high, the pacing is excellent and just when you think all is tied up in a pretty bow, there's a new twist which heightens the tension a bit further. In the end, all is drawn to a successful conclusion leaving any armchair sleuth fully satisfied.

As much as I thoroughly enjoyed this story, I would be remiss if I did not mention the adult nature of some of the material contained within it. Although never graphic, there is dialogue and innuendo of a sexual nature and a bit of gore. It is tastefully proffered and at times, quite amusing.

Can you read this as a stand alone book? Certainly, by why would you want to when the entire series is fabulous and there are five other adventures which lead up to this one? I recommend them all.

Publisher:‎ Berkley
Publication Date:‎ March 12, 2024
No. of pages: ‎ 336
ISBN:‎ 978-0593545959 ( )

Stoker and Veronica are up to all kinds of craziness again along with their friends Mornaday and JJ. Stoker is asked by Lord Rosemorran to refresh a life-size wax doll purchased for his daughter as a gift with a clock mechanism to appear she’s breathing. Of course it doesn’t take long to discover that there’s a real dead woman underneath all the wax. This is the start of their investigation to find out who she is and what happened to her. Storyline is preposterous but Veronica and Stoker are a joy. ( )

This was fantastic! I have a huge soft spot for this series and look forward to each new release so I was eager to pick up this newest book. I went into this book with high expectations, and am happy to report that they were all met. The mystery kept me guessing until the very end and there were some tense moments worked into the story. Veronica threw herself into solving the mystery, just as I expected, and Stoker may have made me swoon a time or two. Overall, this was a highly entertaining story.

Stoker is asked to make Lord Rosemorran’s new acquisition, a wax woman, look more lifelike by adding a mechanism to make it look like she is breathing. When he cuts into the wax, he learns it is a real corpse instead of a wax model. Stoker and Veronica feel compelled to discover the identity of the woman and learn how she died. They find themselves in several unusual situations, and some danger, as they work to solve this mystery.

I listened to the audiobook and thought that Angèle Masters did a great job with the narration. This is the second time I have listened to a book in this series and I think she captures Veronica’s personality through her reading incredibly well. I wasn’t completely sold on the voice that she uses for Stoker but that is probably because the voice that she uses doesn’t match the voice in my head. Her voice was very pleasant, and I wanted to listen to this story for hours at a time.

I would highly recommend this book to others. I recommend reading the series in order if possible since some events from previous books are mentioned in this story, and the relationships between the characters grow and develop throughout the series. I had a great time with this book and cannot wait to see what adventures Veronica and Stoker may find next.

I received a review copy of this book from Berkley Publishing Group and Penguin Random House Audio. ( )

I loved this historical mystery filled with lots of witty words and some action. I love how Victoria and Stoker work together. I really enjoyed all the time we get to spend with J.J. and Mornaday. I loved how fast paced the story is and I loved Wilfred. I received a copy of the book from the publisher for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.. ( )

Veronica and Stoker are back. This time they have come into possession of what they believe to be a wax figure which, besides viewing at the popular Madame Tussauds, are also used as teaching tools. It soon becomes clear, however, that Veronica and Stoker's figure is real and not wax. Right away, they're pulled into finding out who this woman was and what happened to her while also figuring out the how she has been so preserved.

After the almost fraught precedence of the previous couple of mysteries, I was happy to find Veronica and Stoker so at home with one another. To see them at ease in their personal lives was kind of nice and comforting and really allowed the mystery itself to form with ease.

It felt, for me, like the mystery aspect wasn't as heart-poundingly dire. It was more intriguing and less high stakes which was a nice change of pace to go for this one. For lack of a better word, I'd almost describe this one as "lighter" than the previous books. Of course dealing with someone's death is never a light topic, but it just didn't feel weighted like the last book. I think it of course all stems from the fact that Stoker and Veronica are at a good place personally. When they're on the same page, it almost takes away a layer of dread because there's more assurance that everything will work out ok as long as they're together.

The story also had quite a few comic relief moments. I actually found myself, if not laughing out loud, then emitting a delightful snort a time or two as they would go about their business. While their adventures usually take a turn for the zany a time or two, depending on the lengths that Veronica will go to get information, I just don't remember being as taken aback by how funny it was (this does have me going back in mind rethinking each book and wondering if a huge re-read needs to happen).

From the first page of the first book, I've enjoyed this series. It probably makes me a little biased, but Deanna Raybourn writes Stoker and Veronica so well and puts such good work into crafting a compelling mystery for them to solve. This one just happens to keep them in London and doesn't seem (at least at this point, who knows what could come later) to have much overarching influence on the story arc in general. It almost felt like we were doing a bit of resetting before going off on another adventure that will include elements that stretch across multiple books. I honestly am content with all of this. So to that I say...Excelsior! ( )