Review of Dark and Stormy by Suzannah Rowntree (Miss Dark’s Apparitions 3)
BlurbA murdered ballerina…a family of vengeful vampires…and a glittering coronation in Imperial Russia.
Moscow in the springtime is an unhealthy place for a fugitive Grand Duke like Vasily Nikolaevich Romanov. But Molly Dark has been learning to trust the ex-vampire prince, who hasn’t betrayed her quite as often as she expected.
Besides, there are plenty of good reasons to visit Russia this year.
There’s the missing ballerina whose unquiet ghost demands justice.
There’s the new tsar’s spectacular coronation, which every royal monster in Europe is scheduled to attend.
And there’s the irresistible opportunity to get the secret police off Grand Duke Vasily’s trail once and for all.
It could even go well… if Vasily wasn’t bent on stealing back at least some of his lost fortune out from under the noses of his family, who in addition to being bloodthirsty vampires, are all completely bonkers.
Never mind about the resentful ex-fiancee he forgot to mention…
The royal monsters are back with a vengeance in Dark & Stormy, a rollicking historical fantasy heist perfect for fans of Leverage and The Parasol Protectorate! Be the first to follow Miss Dark to the deadly palaces of Imperial Russia
This one starts nearly where the previous book ends, with the crew on their way to Russia where they intend to investigate the murder of Anna, a ballerina friend of Mimi whose shade has appeared to Molly and won’t leave her alone. Russia is full of dangers for Vasily and for Mimi, but what they don’t know is that the Russian police is after Alphonse Schmidt as well.
Secrets about Alphonse’s past is catching up to them, and even more Vasily’s. Vasily has every intention of getting back his previous position in life, but his family isn’t about to let him back into their graces so easily.
Molly is caught between wanting to let Vasily go for his own good and holding him back, again for his own good. Her own growing feelings for Vasily makes everything even more complicated. The mystery of Anna’s death seems to point at Vasily’s father, which adds another layer of complication.
This was entirely too gripping and I loved all the different facets of characters that were revealed in this. Molly stays an unreliable narrator, and Vasily seems to think he doesn’t have to do the work to be accepted by her.
Nijam and Alphonse has their own travails with Alphonse’s missing past which he doesn’t want to know about and the dangerous secrets there that only Nijam knows.
If you love paranormal and supernatural suspense, well defined and morally grey characters, mysteries, and historical fantasy, you will love this book.
You can get the book here!
