Donna Lea Simpson – More Mystery Please

By Victoria Hamilton

Some Touch of Madness, the second book in the A Gentlewoman’s Guide to Murder series not only picks up where the last left off but the story’s pace as well.

Victoria Hamilton, AKA national bestselling author Donna Lea Simpson with her protagonist Emmeline St. Germaine hits her stride as our heroine voluntarily goes to the Coleman Institute for Women rather than live under the thumb of her bombastic brother, as well as furthering her mission to aid the helpless, abused and victimized.

Though Emmeline chose to enter the facility for “uncontrollable” women seeking to find out the circumstances of her sister’s death there six years earlier and at the bequest of a woman concerned for her daughter also committed to the institute, Emmeline finds her brother has committed her indefinitely.

Though the plot and setting emphasizes the hold men have held over women’s lives through the centuries, Emmeline’s strength and determination to overcome her constraints is strengthened when one of her roommates is murdered.

I recommend Some Touch of Madness for anyone who enjoys historical fiction mysteries.

I received a free egalley of Some Touch of Madness courtesy of Beyond the Page Publishing, through NetGalley. This review is fair and impartial.

Order online or buy now at your favorite independent bookstore. Mine is Sellers Books and Art in Jim Thorpe, PA.

By Victoria Hamilton

Stories of masked avengers sweeping to the rescue of the unfortunate bring to mind swashbuckling heroes and adventure as they take down dastardly fiends. A genteel young woman in London circa 1810, as such, makes the premise all the more intriguing.

Victoria Hamilton’s A Gentlewoman’s Guide to Murder delivers adventure amid the most treacherous of characters.

Our protagonist, Miss Emmeline St. Germaine and a like-minded group of women set out to rescue young scullery maids from the hands of their lecherous employers, at a time when women had little voice or power in Regency society.

After a masked Emmeline rescues one such child just as her employer – a well known knight – is about to rape the youngster, she becomes an unnamed suspect in the man’s murder.

Emmeline’s investigation into finding the real murderer(s) are paramount before she and her mission are exposed. The investigation and subsequent discovery will change her life forever.
This is no cozy lighthearted read. It’s sad and at times difficult to read not just because of the subject matter but also the pace, which can drag on at times.

The first in a new series from Hamilton, AKA national bestselling author Donna Lea Simpson, I’m hopeful the next installment isn’t quite so heavy.

I received a free egalley of A Gentlewoman’s Guide to Murder courtesy of Beyond the Page Publishing, through NetGalley. This review is fair and impartial.

Order online or buy now at your favorite independent bookstore. Mine is Sellers Books and Art in Jim Thorpe, PA.