The Woman in the Veil: A Victorian Mystery (Victorian Mystery, #4)

by Laura Joh Rowland

Award-winning author Laura Joh Rowland is back with the fourth in her critically acclaimed Victorian mysteries where the case of a mutilated "Sleeping Beauty" washes ashore in London.

London, June 1890.

Sarah Bain and her friends Lord Hugh Staunton and Mick O'Reilly are crime scene photographers for the Daily World newspaper. After solving a sensational murder, they're under pressure to deliver another big story. On a foggy summer night, they're called to the bank of the river Thames. The murder victim is an unidentified woman whose face has been slashed. But as Sarah takes photographs, she discovers that the woman is still alive.

The case of "Sleeping Beauty" becomes a public sensation, and three parties quickly come forward to identify her: a rich, sinister artist who claims she's his wife; a mother and her two daughters who co-own a nursing home and claim she's their stepdaughter/sister; and a precocious little girl who claims Sleeping Beauty is her mother. Which party is Sleeping Beauty's rightful kin? Is someone among them her would-be killer?

Then Sleeping Beauty awakens--with a severe case of amnesia. She's forgotten her name and everything else about herself. But she recognizes one of the people who've claimed her. Sarah is delighted to reunite a family and send Sleeping Beauty home--until one of the claimants is murdered. Suddenly, Sarah, her motley crew of friends, and her fiancé Detective Sergeant Barrett are on the wrong side of the law. Now they must identify the killer before they find themselves headed for the gallows.

• ISBN10: 1643852418
• ISBN13: 9781643852416
• Publish Date: 7 January 2020
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Crooked Lane Books
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 304
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9781643852416

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

The Woman in the Veil is the 4th book in Laura Joh Rowland's Victorian mystery series featuring an ensemble cast of crime scene photographer Sarah Bain and her associates. Due out 7th Jan 2020 from crime imprint Crooked Lane Books, it's 352 pages and will be available in hardcover and ebook formats.

Set in London in 1890, Sarah is called out to photograph a crime scene and finds a horribly mutilated nude woman who isn't actually dead. Dubbed 'Sleeping Beauty' by the press, they struggle to identify the woman as well as tie up other crimes simultaneously with their complicated private lives.

This is a well written book with appealing and (mostly) believable characters. It's a historical procedural cozy and as such, there are quite a number of secondary characters who are a bit two dimensional and feel ever so slightly like window dressing inserted to move the plot along. There is a strong romance element and some secondary drama from those plot elements (Lord Hugh and his on/off lover Tristan as well as clandestine groping between Sarah herself and her fiance, policeman Thomas Barrett). The language is relatively clean, with an occasional mild curse, there is also some consensual sexual content.

The climax and denouement were the weak points for me. The mystery of the injured woman's true identity develops well, with three possible identities each of which is problematic for one reason or another. The final chapter and epilogue were completely over the top and somewhat unrealistic. It didn't ruin the book for me or anything, this is a well written and entertaining read, but especially the actual climax was very choppy and awkwardly written. It felt as though the end could have benefited from a ruthless edit and rewrite.

Three and a half stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes