Tag: historical mystery

About the Book

England, 1598. Queen Elizabeth’s successor remains unnamed. The country teeters on a knife edge.

When a young heiress is found murdered at the theatre, the Queen’s spymaster Robert Cecil calls upon former agent Sophia de Wolfe to investigate.

A cryptic note found on the dead girl’s body connects to Sophia’s previous life as a spy, and her quest soon takes her into dangerous waters. Powerful enemies emerge, among them the Earl of Essex: the Queen’s favourite courtier and a man of ruthless ambition.

This is a murder that reaches directly into the heart of the court. And Sophia is concealing a deep-buried secret of her own. She must uncover the truth before her past threatens to destroy her.

Format: Hardcover (384 pages) Publisher: Hemlock Press
Publication date: 8th May 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction, Crime

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My Review

Traitor’s Legacy is the first in a new series featuring Sophia de Wolfe, former agent of Queen Elizabeth’s spymaster, Sir Francis Walsingham. We discover pretty quickly that Sophia has had an eventful life including a previous marriage, an illegitimate son given up for adoption and coming under suspicion of murder. In fact, so detailed is her back story I found myself checking that I hadn’t missed an earlier book in the series. That is until I realised she had featured (then going by the name Sophia Underhill) in some of the books in the author’s Giordano Bruno series which I read years ago. However, although new readers might find them wishing for more detail about her colourful past, it does mean you don’t need to have read the Giordano Bruno books to enjoy this one.

Sophia is now a widow with a stepson who resents the fact she has inherited her late husband’s wealth. Her stepson is a drunkard, a gambler and a spendthrift with a potential for violence. Although Sophia’s was a marriage of convenience arranged by Walsingham to ensure her safety, she developed a real affection for her late husband Humphrey, often recalling his wise and supportive advice. Having said that, widowhood has given Sophia a certain freedom. ‘One of the great advantages of being a widow with her own money is that, for the first time in her life, she doesn’t have to submit to any man telling her what she can and can’t do.’

Our first encounter with Sophia is during a duel with her fencing master, so we know from the off she’s someone to be reckoned with. She’s resourceful, intrepid and resolute. ‘Here you are, like some kind of truffle-hound, determined to sniff out the truth and dig it up.’ Sophia has faced many obstacles in her life but has never given up trying to overcome them. ‘She has been raging all her life, for as long as she can remember, at one thing or another (usually the actions of men.’

Following the discovery of the dead girl’s body, Sophia is reunited with Anthony Munday, now a playwright for Richard Burbage’s theatre company, but formerly a pursuivant hunting Catholic priests smuggled into the country. This involved him working for Richard Topcliffe, notorious for his brutal interrogations. Munday now has a wife and children but his attachment to Sophia means that when her connection to the death of the girl becomes very personal he can’t help but get involved. I enjoyed the tease of the relationship between Sophia and Anthony. They’re certainly comrades but could they become something more to each other?

The plot revolves around the question of what was the motive for the murder? Was it an act of jealous rage by a spurned lover? Was it for financial gain given the dead girl was a wealthy heiress? Or was there a political angle to the murder? Answering those questions means taking on the rich and powerful, and Sophia and Anthony both find themselves in risky situations as a result. As she says at one point, ‘I feel with every step we’re tangling ourselves deeper in something that can’t end well’.

The book is set in 1598 towards the end of Elizabeth’s reign when the question of the succession was in a lot of minds and there was turmoil in Ireland where Catholics were suspected of supporting the enemies of England, notably Spain. Alongside the fictional characters, there are real historical figures including the Queen’s favourite, the Earl of Essex, his wife Frances, daughter of Sir Francis Walsingham, and Thomas Phelippes, Walsingham’s cryptographer who deciphered the coded letters of the Babington Plot conspirators. There’s even a walk-on part for William Shakespeare.

Traitor’s Legacy has everything I look for in a historical mystery: a deliciously complex plot, an engaging main character, a varied supporting cast and lots of period detail. It moves along at pace and, most importantly as far as I’m concerned, the ending is all nicely set up for the next book in the series. If you loved the Giordano Bruno series or you’re a fan of historical mysteries I think you’ll enjoy this as much as I did.

I received an advance reader copy courtesy of HarperCollins via NetGalley.

In three words: Compelling, intricate, fast-moving
Try something similar: Viper in the Nest by Georgina Clarke

About the Author

S. J. Parris is the pseudonym of Stephanie Merritt. It was as a student at Cambridge that Stephanie first became fascinated by the rich history of Tudor England and Renaissance Europe. Since then, her interest has grown and led her to create her series of historical thrillers featuring Giordano Bruno.

Stephanie has worked for a variety of newspapers and magazines as well as radio and television. She currently writes for the Observer and the Guardian and lives in Surrey with her son.

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About the Book

It is spring in Baker Street, and London is preparing itself for the wedding of the year. It will be an international spectacle in which the young and popular Count Rudolph Absberg, a political exile from his native land, will take the hand of the beautiful and accomplished Princess Sophia Kubinova. A lot depends on the marriage, for it is hoped that the union will ensure the security and independence of their homeland.

When the princess subsequently disappears in dramatic circumstances, members of the British establishment are quick to call on Mr Sherlock Holmes. He, in turn, needs the gifts of long-standing housekeeper Mrs Hudson and her able assistant, housemaid Flotsam, to solve this puzzling case on which rests the fate of nations.

Format: Hardcover (352 pages) Publisher: Allison & Busby
Publication date: 20th February 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery

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My Review

Mrs Hudson and the Capricorn Incident is the seventh book in the author’s series featuring the redoubtable Mrs Hudson and her illustrious employer. I haven’t read any of the previous books but that certainly didn’t affect my enjoyment of this one although that does mean I’ve missed out on the back story of some of the characters, especially housemaid Flotsam. As a fan of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes, I enjoyed the little nods to the original stories such as the references to bizarre previous cases – the Brabham Hall poultry affair, the case of the Brazilian opera singer, the string of pearls and the trained marmoset – and Holmes’ bravura observations about newly arrived visitors to 221B Baker Street.

It turns out Mrs Hudson is almost the equal of her employer when it comes to observation and the solving of conundrums. But while Sherlock Holmes is often dashing about the country with Dr Watson in his wake, Mrs Hudson is calmly seated at the kitchen table using her vast network of contacts to put two and two together. She has a willing and able pupil in Flotsam who is the narrator of the story and also does a lot of the running around.

Whilst the troubles of the House of Capricorn, rulers of the Grand Duch of Rosenau, involving a turn of events that could cause an international incident, is the main focus of Sherlock Holmes’ attention – by Royal command, no less – Mrs Hudson and Flotsam investigate a number of cases of blackmail which share a common modus operandi. And one name keeps cropping up but who is the individual behind it?

Their investigations take them back and forth across London, from the houses of the wealthy to dingy alleyways. Flotsam mingles with members of high society and theatrical stars of the day but also street urchins and market traders. That doesn’t mean, however, that Flotsam escapes the household chores that Mrs Hudson sets her. Those stair rods won’t dip themselves after all. However at the back of Flotsam’s mind is the absence of her friend Scraggs, who’s humble beginnings in life were similar to her own. But could he be something more than a friend? (There is a delightfully tender scene at the end of the book.)

Look out for all the features of a classic detective story – clever disguises, mysterious escapes from locked rooms, last minute dashes, dangerous encounters and basketfuls of red herrings.

Mrs Hudson and the Capricorn Incident is a delightfully entertaining historical mystery that captures the essence of Conan Doyle’s characters and the ingenious nature of Sherlock Holmes’s methods but doesn’t take itself too seriously. It’s the perfect escapist read that will leave you alternately scratching your head and chuckling at the gentle humour.

I received an advance reader copy courtesy of Allison & Busby via NetGalley.

In three words: Engaging, intriguing, playful
Try something similar: Sherlock Holmes & the Singular Affair by M. K. Wiseman

About the Author

Martin Davies is a writer and media consultant based in the UK. He is the author of eleven novels, including international bestseller The Conjuror’s Bird which was a Richard and Judy Book Club selection. The Unicorn Road was chosen as one of The Times/WH Smith top paperbacks of the year, and Havana Sleeping was shortlisted for an Historical Dagger award by the Crimer Writers’ Association. Martin Davies’ books have been translated into ten languages. (Photo: Author website)

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