Georgian historical mystery novels around Alec Halsey by Lucinda Brant - a refrehsing choice of historical setting

Normally the Regency era or the Victorian times are popular settings for historical mysteries but this series is set in the 1760-ties. Men and women wear wigs and pastels, lace and embroidery are popular. The hero of the novels is different. He wears his own hair without powdering it and dresses mostly in black velvet.

Alec Halsey is a career diplomat who is just returning from a posting in Paris. There is a bit of a cloud around his parentage as although a son of a duke he was not raised by his parents but by an uncle. 

The murder in the country house is a well known detective story setting. Here is is the 1700dreds and Alec has just returned from a posting in Paris to find his brother who hates him engaged to the woman he wanted to propose to and also hears he killed Alec's friend in a duel.

During the engagement festivities many secrets of the guests come to light and the dead guests start dropping down.

Alec Halsey is an interesting main character. A handsome tall guy with exotic looks who is the brother of a duke but lacks the powdered dandy look of those days.

Many minor characters like a hanging judge and his nympho wife, the sour sister, the closeted gay etc etc.

A long read and a nice one. And I did not flush out the killer.

5 stars out of 5

 

 

When Alec attends a dinnerparty the vicar he is talking to drops down dead and rumours start to surface that this nobleman whose brother also died under mysterious circumstances might be involved again. A good story with fully fleshed out secondary characters although less good as book 1 because I figured out who did it quite early on and it was just the how and what to discover next. But the whole personal setting is interesting. 4 stars out of 5 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 There are two sequels that I still have to read.