Veronica Speedwell is finally free from her spinster aunts! Not that she is rejoicing in their deaths or anything but she has longed to be free to travel the world in pursuit of butterflies and a few romantic liaisons. She is not just an amateur butterfly collector, but a scientist, lepidopterist, and lover of natural science in particular.
When a mysterious German baron shows up on the day of her aunt’s funeral proclaiming that it is a matter of life and death that she come with him to London, she agrees but not because she is afraid for her life but because he promises a free ticket to London.
When they arrive in London, the Baron leaves her in the care and custody of a washed up scientist named Stoker….supposedly only for the night but when the Baron is murdered Stoker and Veronica are forced together into a mystery that’s resolution could alter the course of English history. Pursued by persons unknown, they know that their lives are in danger, but the question becomes who can they trust?
Continue reading “Review: A Curious Beginning (Veronica Speedwell Mystery #1) by Deanna Raybourn”

Sophia is a talented artist and writer. Her well known Salem family has discouraged her from pursuing traditional women’s roles such as marriage, in favor of pursuing her creative and educational talents. Plagued by debilitating headaches, Sophia spends a lot of time in bed and her parents even send her to Cuban in hopes of curing her headaches.
Intense is about the only word I can use to describe this novel!
If you like Southern Gothic novels and ghost stories then this is the perfect novel to curl up with on a chilly fall night!
German attorney Sven Fiedler and his girlfriend, Antje, move to the Cayman Islands, where he hopes to escape a culture of materialism. On the Cayman Islands, Sven hopes things will be simpler and more relaxing….less of a rat race, which is exactly what Sven finds. Basically, life couldn’t be better for Sven and Antje.