annieb123's Review of Who Cries for the Lost (Sebastian St. Cyr Mystery, #18)

by C S Harris

Sebastian St. Cyr must confront a savage killer and save his closest friend from the hangman’s noose in this heart-pounding new historical mystery from the USA Today bestselling author of When Blood Lies.

June 1815. The people of London wait, breathlessly, for news as Napoleon and the forces united against him hurtle toward their final reckoning at Waterloo. Among them is Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, frustrated to find himself sidelined while recovering from a dangerous wound he recently received in Paris. When the mutilated corpse of Major Miles Sedgewick surfaces from the murky waters of the Thames, Sebastian is drawn into the investigation of a murder that threatens one of his oldest and dearest friends, Irish surgeon Paul Gibson.

Gibson’s lover, Alexi Sauvage, was tricked into a bigamous marriage with the victim. But there are other women who may have wanted the cruel, faithless Major dead. His mistress, his neglected wife, and their young governess who he seduced all make for compelling suspects. Even more interesting to Sebastian is one of Sedgewick’s fellow officers, a man who shared Sedgewick’s macabre interest in both old English folklore and the occult. And then there’s a valuable list of Londoners who once spied for Napoleon that Sedgewick was said to be transporting to Charles, Lord Jarvis, the Regent’s powerful cousin who also happens to be Sebastian’s own father-in-law.

The deeper Sebastian delves into Sedgewick’s life, the more he learns about the Major’s many secrets and the list of people who could have wanted him dead grows even longer. Soon others connected to Sedgewick begin to die strange, brutal deaths and more evidence emerges that links Alexi to the crimes. Certain that Gibson will be implicated alongside his lover, Sebastian finds himself in a desperate race against time to stop the killings and save his friends from the terror of the gallows.

Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

Who Cries for the Lost is the 18th Sebastian St. Cyr mystery by C. S. Harris. Released 18th April 2023 by Penguin Random House on their Berkley imprint, it's 352 pages and available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

Despite being the 18th book in the series, the author manages to strike a fine balance between providing a twisty and engaging mystery, while still delivering a satisfying read featuring the characters with whom readers have a long and enduring history. The strength and intelligence and synergistic delight of seeing Hero, her husband Sebastian, their growing family, and even his carriage "tiger", Tom, interacting and supporting one another is worth the read alone, but the author has wrapped the heart of the characters inside a historical plot which is so skillfully interwoven around real Regency history that it's not always clear where reality becomes fiction. There is an engaging and very well constructed mystery, but also a great deal of apt and perceptive social commentary which will resonate.

This is one of my favorite ongoing historical mystery series and I always look forward to new installments with anticipation. Although it's the latest of 18 books in the series, it works reasonably well as a standalone and new readers won't have any trouble following the story. With so many volumes extant in the series, it would make an excellent choice for a long binge or buddy read.

Five stars, a worthy addition. Highly recommended for public library acquisition, home use, or gift-giving.

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

Reading updates

19 May, 2023: Started reading

19 May, 2023: Finished reading

19 May, 2023: Reviewed