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Review: Dark Road to Darjeeling, by Deanna Raybourn


Pages: 388

Original date of publication: 2010

My edition: 2010 (Mira)

Why I decided to read: Heard about this book through the author’s website and blog

How I acquired my copy: Amazon Vine, October 2010

Dark Road to Darjeeling is the fourth book in the Lady Julia Grey series. This time, Lady Julia and Nicholas, nine months married, are headed to India, where Julia’s sister Portia’s friend, Jane, has recently been made a widow. Jane suspects that her husband has been murdered, and so Lady Julia goes to investigate. Lots of people have reason to want Freddie Cavendish dead—and the child that Jane carries.

I love that Deanna Raybourn took Julia out of England for this one. India is always a stellar place to set a novel, and I loved the descriptions of Darjeeling and Calcutta. I was nervous about seeing what would happen now that Julia and Brisbane are married; but the tension between them is still alive and kicking (and Deanna Raybourn depicts their relationship much more deftly than Tasha Alexander does in her series). It turns out that not all is a bed of roses between them, and I think that it will be interesting to see how ttheir relationship plays out over the course of the series. What I love about this series is Julia’s “voice,” which Raybourn maintains quite well, even though this is the fourth book in the series. Julia is pert, funny, and always witty, which is what makes her such a great character to read.

The mystery itself was a bit of a letdown, however—there wasn’t quite the amount of tension and suspense that there was in some of the previous books in the series. But the identity of the murdered was a complete surprise to me, even if it wasn’t a welcome one. This is a very quick, easy and enjoyable mystery. I’m also glad that they did away with the cheesy romance cover-type cover for this book, as this cover is stunning. I can’t wait for the next book in the series to be published!

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Comments

Danielle said…
I still need to read the third book--I now have her three most recent books sitting on my pile--I'm thinking at least one will be vacation reading over the holidays. Glad to hear there is still good tension between the characters! I'm also behind in reading Tasha Alexander's books as well...too many crime novels for me this year, I guess.
November 22, 2010 at 1:53 PM
Joanne said…
I so agree -- Raybourn is doing a great job of keeping me interested in Brisbane and Lady Julia; however, Tasha Alexander's last two installments of Lady Emily and Colin were a bit of a let down for me.
November 22, 2010 at 6:04 PM
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