Member Review

After getting sent to the past, modern-day homicide detective Mallory Atkinson is quickly getting used to her new life in Victorian Scotland thanks to the relationships she's developing, particularly as assistant to undertaker Dr. Duncan Gray and Detective Hugh McCreadie. When a trip to the Scottish Highlands for McCreadie's younger sister's wedding ends with a dead guest and too many questions, it'll be up to Mallory and her friends to figure out who the real culprit is.

There are so many twists and turns, with even darker revelations coming to light at each chapter, that you'd think it would be a very dark story, yet there is always a throughline of love and connection that keeps things light. I appreciate the thin line Armstrong had to toe to achieve this. A story that could have gotten very dark is saved by sweet, romantic, and entertaining moments that add to the plot without diminishing the seriousness of the crimes.

It's the fourth book in the series, which is why I have a ton of questions about what happened before. However, Armstrong does a great job of setting things up so that you can understand the important details and follow along with no problem. I'm definitely picking up the previous volumes to catch up and looking forward to whatever comes next.

Delighted thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the excellent read!