Eighteen books later and I'm still as enthralled with Viscount Devlin as I was when I first met him. What draws me to these books? I love crime. I love historical fiction. I especially love historical fiction when the author weaves fiction around fact. Don't get me wrong. I don't mind a bit of embellishment, but I think this genre works best when most of the information is true.

Devlin is still limping from an injury from a previous book. His wife, Hero, is heavily pregnant with their second child. Hero's stepmother is also pregnant. Cringe much? Speaking of cringe, no one is more so than Jarvis. I said what I said.

I am less enthralled with Alexi Sauvage in this installment, although this book relies heavily on her past. Nothing like a little bigamy to add to a story, yeah? In any case, I felt like the reveal and the ending moved a little fast. It was still a great story. I want to go back and reread the first seventeen. Do I have time for this? Probably not. Am I going to do it anyway? Maybe.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher.

Another engaging murder mystery in the Sebastian St. Cyr series. The characters are always well-developed with descriptive depth. Harris keeps us guessing about who the murderers are and still carries authenticity in historical episodes in England's Regency period. It's all here with all the details ~ Romance! Intrigue! War! Regalia and gowns! History! Geography! And, of course, MURDER!

Who Cries for the Lost picks up right after the events of When Blood Lies, Sebastian and Hero are back in London, breathlessly waiting for news from France. Napolean sits on the throne and England is on the verge of war. Sebastian is recovering from his leg injury suffered while in France and is frustrated with the injury at a time when so many young men are poised to join the battlefield. Readers will recognize the buildup to Waterloo.

This book brings back several familiar faces, Gibson, Alexi, and Kat Boleyn. When a body is fished out of the Thames, mutilated and unrecognizable, only one person can identify the body and that’s Alexi Sauvage, Gibson’s lover, and the dead man’s bigamous wife. Sebastian is called in to investigate and as he slowly uncovers Major Miles Sedgewick’s past, he must decipher if his death was because of his secretive dealings on behalf of the government, his lecherous behavior, or something else.

As always, this newest release in a much beloved historical mystery series moves the plot along at a steady clip. Readers discover more of Alexi’s backstory, which has been a mystery up to this point. Her experiences in wartime and what led her to move to London. Gibson is still struggling with his opium addiction, but there seems to be light at the end of that tunnel, with his willingness at the end to let Alexi try some of her experimental therapies.

As Sebastian investigates he quickly realizes that there are more bodies showing up in Gibson’s surgery, and that they may be associated with Miles Sedgewick’s death. He just has to piece together how. It’s a plot with many threads, and it was fascinating watching them all come together as the killer is revealed.

It was nice reconnecting with Kat, although I would like to learn more about her current circumstances and relationships. The little timeouts with Hero and Sebastian are always lovely. Hero does help in this investigation, maybe not as much as in teh previous book, but she remains a constant, steady helpmate and partner.

Who Cries for the Lost is another solid, well-researched installment in this series. Now that Napolean is dethroned once again, and the war is over, I wonder where Sebastian’s story will take him next. Will we learn more about his father? How will Hero’s new pregnancy affect the family and her research? Will Sebastian’s best friend Gibson finally find peace? I look forward to finding out.

The year is 1815 and the people of London anxiously await the new about Napoleon. Among those waiting is Sebastian who is frustrated being sidelined from recovering from an injury. But when a corpse surfaces, Sebastian finds himself investigating the murder that threatens one of his dearest friends. With no shortage of suspects, Sebastian delves deep into his friend’s life. Will he be able to solve the murder before the killer comes for him?

This was such a fun mystery. I’ve read several books set in this timeframe lately and am really enjoying. Its such an interesting time-period to me and this book did not disappoint. I really enjoyed learning about the British society and it’s shortcomings. This book is part of a series and I would be interested in reading more not only in this series but by this author. The characters are well developed, and the time is well researched.

Make sure to check this one out April 18th.

Thank you to the publisher Berkley Publishing, @berkleypub, and Netgalley @netgalley for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Complex mystery with good twists and solid characters. Fast paced and lots of action make it compulsively readable. Long time fans of the series will be delighted while new readers will get quickly pulled in.

Sebastian St. Cyr mysteries are always a favorite of mine and Harris has hit another one out of the park. This series is such a pleasure to read as Harris is excellent at weaving both small and large events in history into her excellent murder mysteries and it is a joy to try and figure out the who and why before Sebastian does. As usual, Sebastian is assisted by his amazing wife Hero, his tiger Tom, and Lovejoy in trying to solve some gruesome murders amidst the building war in France and Jarvis' machinations. Don't skip the author note in the book either, as it provides further details on the real-life stories that are intertwined with the mysteries. I look forward to recommending this book and the St. Cyr series to everyone. Thank you to Berkley Publishing and NetGalley for the early access to this title for my honest opinion. 4.5 stars

4 stars for book 18 in an excellent historical mystery fiction series, set in Regency Britain. This book opens just prior to the battle of Waterloo. Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin and heir to Lord Hendon, a member of the British cabinet, has been offering his help to the British authorities in solving murders throughout this series.
This book opens with Devlin going to his friend Paul Gibson to witness a postmortem on a body pulled out of the Thames river in London. The man's face has been partially shot off and his penis and testicles have been cut off. Devlin starts investigating w/o pay and raises hackles from the killer, who hires assassins to first warn him off, and then try to kill him. Devlin getting attacked and always surviving is a recurring theme in this series. More murders occur before the killer is identified by Devlin in a satisfying ending. Devlin is independently wealthy and does not have to worry about money.
Some people who are involved in helping solve the murders:
Sir Henry Lovejoy, Bow Street Magistrate, in charge of the investigation. In Book 1 he was Devlin's enemy, and was convinced Devlin was a murderer. But now they are old friends who rely on each other .
Hero, Devlin's wife, and daughter of Lord Jarvis, cousin to the Prince Regent, and one of the most powerful men in Britain.
Alexi Sauvage, companion to Paul Gibson. She was an accredited doctor in Italy, but is reduced to midwife status in Britain, because woman doctors are not allowed. She hates Devlin, because he killed her French lover several years before.
Tom, Devlin's tiger, i.e. a teenager who stays with Devlin's curricle(carriage) while he is questioning people.
The author describes some of British society shortcomings, including the practice of hanging poor women whose babies die of malnutrition. She also has spent time researching the clothing worn by the people of the period.
One quote: Earl of Bathurst "He was dressed, as always, in the height of fashion with an elaborately knotted cravat, a dark blue tailcoat with large gold buttons, and tight pale pantaloons."
#WhoCriesfortheLost #NetGalley.
I read this book in 2 days and will continue reading the series. I recommend it to historical mystery fiction fans.
Thanks to Berkley Publishing Group, for sending me this eARC through NetGalley.

Another great entry in this series. I’d like to start seeing more on-page time from Gibson and Kay Boleyn. They’re both interesting, and seeing snippets of their characters is frustrating at times. It’s hard to give as much time to all the characters as I would like without straying too far from the action. Always well-researched, I learn a lot of interesting details, and they’re not of the mannerly variety. I’m ok with that, but this series focuses on the darker aspects of Regency England, and it’s a real treat.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC
4.5 / 5
I am a big fan of this series by C.S. Harris - the author grounds her characters in very well researched historical events and immerses the reader in those events, and the locations her characters inhabit.
All of England knows that Wellington and Napoleon are about to have a decisive battle for the fate of Europe. With this background, Sebastian and Hero in London get involved in what looks like a series of gruesome murders - are they connected to the politics playing out on the continent, or is there a supernaturally influenced serial killer wandering London?

Fans of realistic historical fiction will enjoy this series; would recommend that readers start much earlier in the series to get all the nuances; the only downside is that after 10+ books, there will be certain assumptions that the reader will be familiar with the whole cast of characters.