Upcoming Release: A Dangerous Affair by Caro Peacock

I am the first to admit that I am a sucker for a series, so when I heard that there was going to be a second Liberty Lane book. I read the first book in the series which was published in some countries under the title A Foreign Affair last year. Here is the blurb for the new book.

In Victoria’s England, there are perilous intrigues a proper young lady would do well to avoid…

Liberty Lane, still in her early twenties, is doing her best to make a new life for herself in London after being bruised by loss and treachery. But there’s no chance for her to settle down as a conventional young lady. First, a disturbingly attractive young politican, Benjamin Disraeli, wants her to use her contacts in the theatre world to find out more about a prima ballerina with a notorious love life called Columbine. He hints that some important interests may be at stake. Then Columbine is murdered in her dressing room, after an on-stage brawl with a younger and less successful dancer, who becomes prime suspect. Liberty is at the center of the investigation because one of her dearest friends, Daniel Suter, is convinced of the girl’s innocence and will put his own neck in danger to save her. Liberty’s determination to save them from the gallows leads her from the upper reaches of the aristocracy to some of London’s lowlife haunts, posing the question: how far would you go to save a friend?

Caro Peacock, the acclaimed author of A Foreign Affair, once again ingeniously blends history, suspense, and adventure, and returns an endearing and exceptional heroine to the fictional fold.

The book is due to be released on January 27 2009 in the US. It has already been released in the UK and Australia under the title Death of a Dancer. Somewhat strangely my library has ordered another book called A Corpse in Shining Armour, which they have catalogued as a Liberty Lane book, but there is no mention of this title on Caro Peacock's website. Fantastic Fiction has it as the third book. I'm confused! Either way, it seems as though there are a couple of Caro Peacock boosk out in the early parts of this year, and it seems that my library will have book number 1 and book number 3, but not number 2. I hate it when that happens.

Death at Dawn by Caro Peacock

Duelling, derring-do, and dastardly deeds are all in a day's work for Liberty Lane: a new heroine for fans of Matthew Hawkwood and Sarah Waters's Victorian novels.

June 1837. She should have remained in the care of her sour aunt, but Liberty Lane was never one to obey instructions. Eager to be reunited with her beloved father, she headed for Dover, only to receive an informing her that he has been killed in a duel at Calais.

Thomas Jacques Lane -- radical, romantic, scholar, republican, gambler and devoted father -had led an unconventional life. His movements in the days leading up to his death are a mystery, but of one thing Liberty is certain: he would never have taken part in a duel, for it went against everything he believed in. And if the author of the anonymous note expected her to swallow this lie and meekly obey his command to stay put, he had severely underestimated Liberty Lane.

With no resources bar her own wits, she immediately sets sail for Calais in pursuit of the truth - and her father's killer. And as the nation prepares to celebrate the coronation of young Queen Victoria, Liberty uncovers a treasonable plot which could lead to another vicious civil war...

Being a somewhat headstrong and impetuous young woman, when Liberty Lane receives a note telling her that her father has been killed in a duel in Calais, and that she should stay where she is, she crosses the channel and tries to find out exactly what happened to her father. She knows that he can not have been killed in a duel, as it is very much against her father's beliefs. Thomas Lane was something of a radical in his thoughts, following the beliefs of the French Revolution, hence his children are named Liberty and Fraternity! That being said, he was not one of those men who believed in any course of action to bring about a fulfilment of his cause.

In the course of her investigation, Liberty finds herself caught up in several strange situations, including being kidnapped. She also finds herself the owner of a new horse with impeccable breeding. along with the man that her father engaged to look after the horse in Paris. Having come into contact with several different people, Liberty finds herself sent to be spy in a household that has suspicious activities in it. Now Liberty must figure out who is on what side of the political divide and what it all has to do with the death of her father.

This was quite an easy read, and it did have a very interesting premise, which is all to do with the time just as a very young Victoria came to the throne. I have no idea if the kind of conspiracy theory that is suggested was really doing the rounds, but I guess it was a plausible storyline.

As always it is often more difficult to write a review of a book that was average than one that you either loved or hated! I am sufficiently interested in the character to want to read more in the series, although I am not sure how long I would keep reading without a little more to entice me! I am not sure if part of the issue for me is that I read the first book by Tasha Alexander which has a similar time frame, and is another young lady (although slightly older than Liberty in this book). There do seem to be several different mystery series around with a Victorian setting at the moment.

When I was trying to see if there was a website or anything for this author, I couldn't find very much at all, but I did find something that suggested that this is a new pseudonym for a writer who used to write under the name of Gillian Linscott.

Thanks to the First Look program at Harper Collins Australia for sending me this book for review!