First Sentence: On
an evening in late March 1917, I climbed to the third floor of Lucius Grenville’s Grosvenor Street house in search of peace,
and found a lady weeping instead.
A
society matron implores Captain Lacey to locate her missing necklace in order
to provide the innocence of her maid. With the help of his friends, Lady
Breckenridge, Lucius Grenville and two of his staff, the path leads them to
scandals and secrets from the past, as well as in competition with the dangerous criminal,
James Denis.
Followers
of this wonderful series will appreciate this ten-chapter novella, set between “The Sudbury School Murders” and “A Body in
Berkeley Square. However, this story is also an excellent introduction for new readers.
Gardner
absolutely knows how to capture the reader’s attention from the very beginning. She
does an excellent job of capturing the flavor of speech from the period, without it being overdone, and the wry humor is
delightful. The descriptions of meals
are nearly painful to read due to their lusciousness and
ability to leave one nearly desperate to partake.
Gardner
is particularly adept at providing background details of each character, almost without seeming to. We even learn the particulars of Lacey’s past
injuries. The characters are fascinating, particularly with the
contrast of light—Granville—and dark—Denis. One
can’t help but enjoy the relationship between Lacy and Lady Breckenridge. Marianne is a treat and adds a wonderful twist to the
plot
“The Necklace Affair” is so well done with a very good plot twist and justice being served in a most satisfactory manner.
In addition to the stand-alone ebook, you may also obtain the story in the paperback or ebook antohology "The Necklace Affair: and Other Stories."
THE NECKLACE AFFAIR (Hist Myst – Captain Lacey –
London - 1817/Regency) - Ex
Gardner,
Ashley – Early in the series yet only recently published
Amazon
Digital Services, Inc. – January 2014
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