Title – A Treacherous Curse (Veronica Speedwell #3)
Author – Deanna Raybourn
Publisher – Berkley
Genre – Mystery, Historical Fiction
My Rating – 4/5
London, 1888.
As colorful and unfettered as the butterflies she collects, Victorian adventuress Veronica Speedwell can’t resist the allure of an exotic mystery—particularly one involving her enigmatic colleague, Stoker. His former expedition partner has vanished from an archaeological dig with a priceless diadem unearthed from the newly discovered tomb of an Egyptian princess. This disappearance is just the latest in a string of unfortunate events that have plagued the controversial expedition, and rumors abound that the curse of the vengeful princess has been unleashed as the shadowy figure of Anubis himself stalks the streets of London.
But the perils of an ancient curse are not the only challenges Veronica must face as sordid details and malevolent enemies emerge from Stoker’s past. Caught in a tangle of conspiracies and threats—and thrust into the public eye by an enterprising new foe—Veronica must separate facts from fantasy to unravel a web of duplicity that threatens to cost Stoker everything. . . .
I received an e-ARC of A Treacherous Curse by Deanna Raybourn from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
When I requested A Treacherous Curse, I didn’t realize that it was the third book in the Veronica Speedwell series. I had some doubts about reading it without reading the first two, but the book works pretty well as a standalone too.
That being said – this was such a great read! Veronica Speedwell is a female character in Victorian times and yet she stands out BRILLIANTLY! She has quickly risen to be one of the top characters in my favorite female protagonist lists. She’s smart, savvy, witty, sarcastic and stands out as a self-made woman in a time of Lords and Ladies. She’s a woman in a man’s world and somehow reminds me of Kate Beckett from the show Castle.
As far as the mystery goes, the story was quite predictable. That’s not to say that it was full of cliches, but there were no big shocks for me. The more interesting part of the book for me was the references to archaeological digs, Egyptian mummies and lost diadems! It read like an action packed adventure and Veronica and Stoker complimented each other so very well.
The entire book is written in Victorian English which made it slightly difficult for me to keep up with it in the beginning but it soon grew on me and I started finding the writing almost charming. I really did end up learning a lot of new words so thank you dictionary on the Kindle! I may even read the other books in the series solely for more Veronica!
A Treacherous Curse by Deanna Raybourn comes out on 16th January 2018. You can check it out on Amazon here.
And that’s all for today! Hope you have a great day! Until next time –
