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WHEN GODS DIE
by C. S. Harris
NAL, November 2006
352 pages
$23.95
ISBN: 0451219686


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

A beautiful young woman is discovered dead in the Prince Regent's arms. She was married to an elderly Marquis and was not supposed to have been in Brighton that day. England is willing to believe that the Prince is the murderer as madness runs in his family. Sebastian St Cyr, Viscount Devlin, is asked to investigate after the success he had in WHAT ANGELS FEAR.

Sebastian has no desire to be involved, yet he finds himself compelled to investigate after he notices the necklace on the woman's neck. This necklace was the one his mother was wearing the day she drowned. If it is still in pristine condition, it is possible that the past is not as he remembers and that his mother did not die.

While attempting to discover the truth about his mother and his past, Sebastian finds himself investigating a conspiracy against the throne. England, in 1811, is full of political intrigues and this murder falls into the middle of one. In addition, Sebastian discovers that the victim was having an affair and was pregnant. He must discover the role her lover played in her death, who her lover was and how it fits into this conspiracy. Time is running out as those close to him are threatened. If Sebastian cannot discover the killer quickly, the killer might escape and the plot against the King must be successful.

I should like WHEN GODS DIE as it has a lot of things I really enjoy in my historical mysteries. The book provides an adequate explanation of the time and culture as well as the roles society places on the characters. This book also has a good story line and moves smoothly. In addition, most of the characters are well rounded and have some depth to their personalities.

I think the reason I do not like this book is that the book foreshadows problems to come. The way it is written it implies that things will not work out for the protagonist, that ultimately his future will be full of heartache and disappointment. While these emotions can enrich a story or a character, it is rather depressing to foreshadow. I spent all of my time while reading this book worrying that whatever bad event is going to happen will happen in this book or whether it will not happen until the next book. There are enough horrible things in the world that I do not need to anticipate them in a fictional book as well.

Reviewed by Sarah Dudley, December 2006

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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


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