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This Side of Murder (A Verity Kent Mystery)
by Anna Lee Huber - A couple years ago I happened on a mystery series starring a woman artist in the 1800s, and I quickly decided the author, Anna Lee Huber, was a new favorite of mine. I faithfully read that series, and followed the author's fan pages, so when I found out that she was starting a new series I went ahead and pre-ordered the first novel. Even though I knew it would be set in the twentieth century, which is outside the historical era I generally read.
This Side of Murder was not my usual in some ways, and yet I devoured every page and am already looking forward to the next in the series.
Set in 1919, immediately after the Great War, this novel features Verity Kent, a young war widow. Unknown to even those closest to her, Verity also worked in the Secret Service during the war, so when she received anonymous messages from someone claiming to have knowledge of her activities and hinting that her late husband had been involved in treason, she couldn't ignore them. She is sure that Sidney would never have done anything treasonous, but whoever sent the notes knows something about Verity that she thought even her husband didn't know. Therefore, she accepts the invitation to Umbersea Island to celebrate the engagement of one of Sidney's closest war buddies.
Upon arrival, she finds an unusual assortment of guests - Sidney's surviving fellow officers and a few others - and another communication from her anonymous correspondent. Verity believes the notes are coded and is determined to break the code and clear Sidney's name. She quickly realizes that her correspondent must be someone on the island, and that she can't trust anyone until she figures out who it is. Soon other secrets begin to emerge, and then there's a murder, and Verity cautiously chooses one of the officers that she decides to trust with at least some of the information she has. Someone among them is a murderer and a traitor and Verity must discover who it is in order to answer the mounting questions. What secrets did Sidney keep from her? Was Sidney really killed by an enemy bullet or by someone trying to silence him? Who were the real traitors?
Verity is the narrator of the story, and remains cool and level-headed most of the time, thanks to her Secret Service training, but she has also been trying to deal with her grief by indulging in drinking and revelry. And she is certainly rattled by what is happening at the increasingly uncomfortable house party. The mystery has many layers and the story takes several twists along the way to the conclusion. It kept me turning pages late into the night on a couple occasions and I'm eagerly anticipating what adventures await Verity in the next installment.
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