Portrait of Peril by Laura Roh Jowland
Book 5 of the Victorian
Mysteries
Publication date: 12th Jan
2021
Genre: Mystery/ Thriller, Historical Fiction
3.8 Stars
The leading lady, Sarah Bain,
a crime scene photographer for Daily World, is getting married to Detective
Sergeant Thomas Barrett, her beloved. Right after the wedding, the dead body of
a ‘spirit’ photographer Charles Firth is found in the crypt. Who committed the
crime? Will Sarah and Barrett uncover the mystery? This forms the main plot of
the story.
Being a series, we also see a
strong subplot of Sarah and Sally’s (half-sister) father Benjamin Bain and the
crime he is supposed to have committed, the murder of a young girl Ellen. Sarah
and Sally are determined to prove his innocence even if it means they’ll have
to wake up the dead ghosts of the past.
Of course, we see only the
main plot coming to a conclusion while the subplot moves ahead just enough to
keep us interested and eager for the next book.
This is the fifth book in the
series and my first. Did it affect my reading? No. The references to the
previous cases don't bother much. The main plot doesn’t depend on those. We
have recurring characters, the homosexual friend Lord Hugh, his faithful valet,
and Mick, the 15-year-old orphaned photographer, all of whom are Sarah’s
friends and support system.
We also have Inspector Reid,
the typical villain within the police department who doesn’t like Sarah and
Barrett. He waltzes in and out of the story whenever Sarah needs to add another
problem to her overflowing list.
The main plot has a lot of
characters, from spiritualists to professors to models to an heiress, who is
determined to expose mediums and fake ghosts. The suspect list grows, and we go
from one clue to another, one piece of information to another.
Sarah talks, thinks, and
rambles (at times) in the present tense (yes, first-person, present-tense
narration) about the murder, her mother, her past, and how her life was hard.
While I needed to know the details as a new reader, I did find it becoming
repetitive towards the end. I’m not sure how the readers of the series would
take it, considering they’d have been reading about it in the previous four
books.
But there’s quite a bit of
action in the cold and foggy London streets and houses. It was refreshing to
read a story with characters who do not belong to the elite London society.
This is definitely more real and grounded.
There are predictable scenes
between Barrett’s mother, Sarah, and Barrett. Our leading lady is an
independent woman with fears and insecurities. There was drama, but nothing
over the top. That’s was a plus.
I did have an inkling about
who the killer(s) would be, so the revelation wasn’t much of a surprise. But I
am glad that the writer did not throw in an unexpected twist to give the story
an extra punch. It’s good to see the ideas and hints connect well and come out
as a proper piece.
Overall, this is an engaging
read and picks up pace after the first 70 pages or so. I noticed that my
reading speed increased in parallel. If you like Victorian mysteries that are
set in the middle class and lower-middle-class sections of London and a heroine
with spunk, you’ll enjoy this book.
I received an ARC copy from NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books.
#PortraitofPeril #NetGalley
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