In the Shadow of Vesuvius: A Lady Emily Mystery

Tasha Alexander

Jan 2020 · Lady Emily Mysteries Book 14 · Sold by Minotaur Books

About this ebook

In skillfully intertwined storylines from the dawn of the twentieth century and the heyday of the Roman Empire, Tasha Alexander's In the Shadow of Vesuvius, the latest installment to her bestselling series, brings Lady Emily and her husband to Pompeii, where they uncover a recent crime in the ancient city.

Some corpses lie undisturbed longer than others. But when Lady Emily discovers a body hidden in plain sight amongst the ruins of Pompeii, she sets in motion a deadly chain of events that ties her future to the fate of a woman whose story had been lost for nearly two thousand years.

Emily and her husband, Colin Hargreaves, have accompanied her dear friend Ivy Brandon on a trip to Pompeii. When they uncover a corpse and the police dismiss the murder as the work of local gangsters, Emily launches an investigation of her own. She seems to be aided by the archaeologists excavating the ruins, including a moody painter, the enigmatic site director, and a free-thinking American capable of sparring with even the Duke of Bainbridge. But each of them has secrets hiding among the ruins.

The sudden appearance of a beautiful young woman who claims a shocking relationship to the Hargreaves family throws Emily’s investigation off-course. And as she struggles to face an unsettling truth about Colin’s past, it becomes clear that someone else wants her off the case—for good. Emily’s resolve to unearth the facts is unshakable. But how far below the surface can she dig before she risks burying herself along with the truth?

Ratings and reviews

I received a free electronic copy of this historical novel from Netgalley, Tasha Alexander, and Minotaur Books. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read this novel of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work. I am pleased to add Tasha Alexander to my must-read list. She writes a tight, exciting tale with interesting characters and a great background of details that take you there. We visit various sites at the Pompeii archeological site at the base of Vesuvius, some in AD 79, beginning just hours before the lastest of the frequent quakes and eruptions of Vesuvius becomes lethal. In the later time frame of 1902, we travel with Lady Emily, her husband Colin Hargreaves as they accompany Emily's best friend Ivy Brandon to this historic site. Ivy was invited to visit the site by causal friends, who are both employed at the Balthazar Taylor Dig at Pompeii. Siblings, Benjamin and Calliope 'Callie' Carter, are young and rather wild, promising an interesting visit for Emily and Ivy who are childhood friends in need of some special together time. Colin is guilted into accompanying the ladies by Ivy's husband, because it's 1902 and ladies don't travel around Europe without an escort and security. Colin normally works as security for the English King. Four days in, Ivy comments on the fact that one of the plaster castings of the victims of the Pompeii tragedy is wearing impressive sideburns, which doesn't fit the profile of manly fashion in '79 AD. This modern corpse encased in plaster is about a month dead, and Emily and Ivy are right in the midst of the action. It is really good that they brought security. But is one man enough?

About the author

TASHA ALEXANDER, the daughter of two philosophy professors, studied English Literature and Medieval History at the University of Notre Dame. She and her husband, novelist Andrew Grant, live on a ranch in southeastern Wyoming. She is the author of the Lady Emily mystery series, including And Only to Deceive and Uneasy Lies the Crown.