A Murderous Charade

About the Book: 

A timeless villainy, a growing love, and the couple who battles them both . . .

Miss Marianne Beaumont, a spinster, and her younger sister are on their way home from a night at the theater when they come upon a townhouse fire. They stop to help the victims, including Mr. James Harcourt, a confirmed bachelor, and his parents Sir and Lady Harcourt. Although Mr. Harcourt distrusts the beau monde, he accepts Marianne’s ministrations. That should have been the end of their association, but then a folded piece of paper shaped like a chameleon slips out of his mother’s sleeve. It’s an ornament Marianne has come across only one time before—next to her father’s dead body.

Recognizing that ornament—an orikata—might at last help her catch her father’s killer, Marianne joins forces with Mr. Harcourt. He has a penchant for solving mysteries and has been searching for the elusive criminal who uses that identifier.
Together—with a chaperone, of course—their investigations take them from one baffling clue to another. But the closer they get to finding their answers, the more they discover that all isn’t as it seems, and the dangers are more sinister—and personal—than they’d realized.

 

My Review: 

Spinster Marianne Beaumont has only one goal in mind and that is to see her sister, Amy, avoid the same fate as her and marry an eligible bachelor. Having been passed over by suitable bachelors for several years has afforded her the opportunity to critically observe people and evaluate circumstances. She makes the perfect partner for James Harcourt as he and his family try to root out and eliminate an ancient British order whose purpose is to cause chaos and destruction. 

Things I enjoyed reading about were: 

* Being a part of the sleuthing team as they follow the trail of the thieves and murderers.

* The clever use of origami chameleons that are left behind the crime scenes.

* The crime fighting Harcourt family and how they adopted James and then took Marianne into their confidence.

* Plot twists 

*Hope for future cases.

I was given a complimentary copy of the book and was not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.