Death Comes to the Rectory
3 Stars

In this final installment, Lucy and Sir Robert investigate the murder of the obnoxious Basil Northam, who was, unfortunately, stabbed in the rectory making Lucy's father, the rector, the prime suspect.

While I have enjoyed this series immensely and count Lucy as one of my all-time favorite historical mystery heroines, this particular addition is not of the same caliber as the previous books.

To begin with, the mystery itself is rather uninspired. The victim is completely deserving of his fate; the suspects lie incessantly, and the investigation is tedious and repetitive. By the time the culprit is revealed, it is difficult to care one way or the other, especially considering the selfish nature of her motive.

Lucy and Robert's interactions are also missing the wit and spark that has characterized their relationship thus far. Moreover, the book ends rather abruptly, and it could have done with an epilogue to provide closure for the Kurlands and their friends.

Overall, it seems that Lloyd has run out of steam with regard to this series, so perhaps it is for the best that it has come to an end. ( )

Tedious. While I’ve enjoyed this series up until now – enough to re-read a few of the books – I found this one tedious.

If I’m being completely fair, I imagine some of this is because I’ve just come off a re-reading binge of Deanna Raybourne’s Lady Julia Grey series, and the tone and writing are altogether different from the Kurland St. Mary series. It would probably have been better to cleanse the reading palette in between.

Even if I’d had, I’d still have found it tedious to a degree. The author over plays her characters: her villains are entirely too villainous; her suspects entirely too cryptic, the clues completely chaotic. The tension between the two MCs was altogether irritating.

Buried beneath all this unfortunate tediousness is a rather clever murder plot though. I almost DNF’d the book early on because I was certain the murderer was too obvious, and all due credit to Lloyd, she completely fooled me until I got much closer to the end.

I’m not completely turned off the series, but I have to admit my enthusiasm is diminished. Whether or not I read another book (should one be forthcoming), will come down to my mood and my memory. ( )

1826 At Kurland St. Mary it is time for the christening of Elizabeth, second child to Sir Robert and Lady Lucy Kurland. The guests have started to arrive, invited and otherwise but soon one of the guests is discovered dead. Will there be more deaths and what could the motive be, Robert and Lucy investigate.
Unfortunately the last in the series of this delightful historical mystery series with its wonderful characters and well-written mysteries.
An ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. ( )

I've enjoyed this series although this book wasn't as good as some of the others. Lucy & Robert's daughter is about to be christened and they and her father, the rector have a group of family and friends staying with them and at the rectory. During the service, a man is murdered in the rector's study and it appears that the rector is the murderer. Lucy is beside herself. There's a nasty cast of characters with lots of secrets, lies and coverups before the Kurlands can figure out "who done it." ( )

Death Comes to the Rectory by Catherine Lloyd
Kurland St. Mary Mystery #8

Coming in on the last book of a series is probably not the wisest way to read a series but this book did manage to stand alone, introduce the characters easily and give enough background to follow the story without difficulty.

What I liked:
* The story felt of the time period
* There were plenty of potential murderers
* I didn’t mind that the person who died was killed because he was reprehensible
* The relationship between Robert and Lucy seemed well established and healthy
* That the rector and his new bride seemed to care about one another – and were expecting a baby though older
* The twists and turns
* The way the clues were eked out
* That the murderer and motivation were eventually determined

What I didn’t like:
* Many of the characters: Northam, Henrietta, the Earl…and others
* Not sure it is a dislike but I am curious enough to find out what the sentence would be for the person who admitted to murder to see if google might tell me.

Did I enjoy this book? Yes
Would I have enjoyed it more if I had read the entire series? Probably
Would I read more books by this author? Yes

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for the ARC – This is my honest review.

3-4 Stars ( )