Deanna Raybourn continues to recognize women’s skills and abilities in Veronica Speedwell’s eighth adventure, A Sinister Revenge. Angry that Veronica didn’t trust him enough to tell him about her past, at the conclusion of An Impossible imposter, Stoker left to wander Europe alone. Now, six months later, Stoker’s brother, Tiberius, needs help.
Veronica hadn’t looked for him before, but she knew they’d find Stoker in Bavaria. Tiberius, Viscount Templeton-Vane, needs Stoker and Veronica to cooperate because someone is threatening him. Twenty years earlier, Tiberius was part of a group of wealthy young men who called themselves The Seven Sinners. One of them, Lorenzo d’Ambrozio, died when he was fossil hunting at Cherboys, the Templeton-Vane estate. Recently, several other members of The Seven Sinners have died, and someone is sending newspaper clippings to the survivors. Those clippings indicate there will be more deaths, and those deaths will be “Vengeance for Lorenzo.”
Tiberius invites the surviving Sinners and their spouses to Cherboys. When one of the guests dies, Veronica, Stoker, and Tiberius find their suspicions confirmed. The killer is part of the group. A dead man’s journal and hidden connections from the past lead Veronica to confront the killer and put herself in danger.
A Sinister Revenge is quite different from Raybourn’s bestselling Killers of a Certain Age. Fans of the Veronica Speedwell series will not be disappointed with the humor and ongoing sexual tension in this compelling historical mystery. And, none of us will be disappointed that Stoker and Veronica are back together.
Deanna Raybourn’s website is https://www.deannaraybourn.com/
A Sinister Revenge by Deanna Raybourn. Berkley, 2023. ISBN 9780593545928 (hardcover), 320p.
FTC Full Disclosure – I read a galley supplied by NetGalley so I could review the book for a journal.
