If you like Victorian era mysteries, you’ll enjoy this book by Patricia Marcantonio. Felicity Carrol, a blue-stocking female, is determined to become a detective in the 1870’s. She is spunky and tenacious. This book isn’t the usual Victorian heroine attending teas, balls, and the debutante season, all while looking for a well-heeled, good-looking spouse. In the beginning, she blows up a wing of her house and causes a fire as she tries to replicate a battery.
The book is well-researched—and it’s obvious. Though Felicity teaches herself to become a detective, the references to the study she puts in is at times overwhelming and over-the-top. I’m not sure the average reader needs the full details of fingerprinting through the centuries. As a King Arthur fan, I enjoyed those aspects that are threaded through the story.
There are a few historical inaccuracies and anachronistic words, but I was able to suspend disbelief despite them. At times I found the author’s use of metaphors and similes to be a bit much and sometimes, not tied to the story (such as a sailing metaphor in a land-based book). This is definitely a case where less would have been better than more. When using details, I feel, an author should aim for coherence, not fragmentation. For coherence, details should matter in some way, and frankly all the detail did not really matter. The writer should know how they matter, that is, the effect they have on the story and ultimately on the reader.
The story did me keep me glued through to the last page.
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Felicity Carrol and the Perilous Pursuit: A Felicity Carrol Mystery is available through:
