Murder and Misdeeds

The Berkeley Brigade #2

by Joan Smith

Another mystery and, perhaps, another chance at love . . .

Once again the indomitable Berkeley Brigade, a group of daring young aristocrats, returns to the scene of the crime--and to affairs of the heart. As the dashing Marquess of Luten and the beautiful Corinne deCoventry make love and war, they become embroiled in a dastardly kidnapping scheme.

The victim is Susan Enderton, a close friend of Corinne's who is perhaps even closer to Luten (or so Corinne fears). Susan's disappearance lures them out to the country--and into a tangle of highwaymen, dark designs, and murder!

Genres: Mystery, Regency, Romance

220 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published August 30, 1997

About the author

Joan Smith is a graduate of Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, and the Ontario College of Education. She has taught French and English in high school and English in college. When she began writing, her interest in Jane Austen and Lord Byron led to her first choice of genre, the Regency, which she especially liked for its wit and humor.
Her favorite travel destination is England, where she researches her books. Her hobbies are gardening, painting, sculpture and reading. She is married and has three children. A prolific writer, she is currently working on Regencies and various mysteries at her home in Georgetown, Ontario.
She is also known as Jennie Gallant

Reviews

[Anne Patkau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard to read out of order. The fun keeps me returning to Smith. Amusing brigade don't change: Lord charges in first; oddball tries to follow, may slip sideways; wimp lags last or 'guards' home; Lady follows unasked, may rescue. Villains act unexpectedly.
Typos? c11 p10-2 beef, mutton interchange

[D.w. · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Berkeley Brigade Mysteries I first began to enjoy many years ago. Reading the first in the series, and thinking that I wanted to read the rest. But as publishing cycles go, I missed the release of the later books in the series when they came out.

The Internet and now the connections to look for out of print material has made things much easier to trace and complete ones series with holes. And so, success. I have begun to not only find these books, but they are also available for our modern technologies (which means an ebook that does not take up space can also be had.)

So I was able to delve back into the series that reminds me of Georgette Heyer. We have fun engaging characters and a mystery, that may have a little of a modern forthright woman within stirring the pot. However as per usual, there is a body!

And our adventurers become ever more sleuthly as they work to discover not only their initial predicaments solution, but those that are added along the way. So much so, that their own term for themselves does become quite warranted, and we are carried along for all the fun.

Now that I have found Ms. Smith's books again, I intend to pursue all of them in this series and look for more of a similar kind. Mysteries that evoke Heyer, what could be better!