Review: Silent on the Moor, Deanna Raybourn

Determined to find out once and for all what is between her and Brisbane, Lady Julia heads to the moors of Yorkshire with two of her siblings despite Brisbane’s admonitions to stay away at all costs.  She didn’t expect to find the former owners of Grimsgrave still in residence.  Lady Allenby and her daughters Ailith and Hilda are the remains of a proud, old family who claim descent from the Anglo-Saxon kings of England; the kind of family which disdains diluting their blood with lesser mortals.  Neither does Julia expect the mysteries she starts to uncover when she begins cataloging the Egyptian artifacts of the late Allenby heir, Redwall.  All in all, something suspicious is afoot, and Julia once again must get to the bottom of it.

I gushed about the first two novels in this series.  It shouldn’t surprise anyone that I’m about to gush about this one too.  Regardless, before you read on please note that you should check out Silent in the Grave and Silent in the Sanctuary before going near this review!

This book is most intriguing because unlike the first two, there is no murder, only attempted poisoning.  So the victim lives to tell the tale, but I have to say that the mystery here was fascinating.  I was compelled to read on, to figure out what was going on.  You can just ask Keith, who was with me while I was in the thrall of this book, to tell you how much I wanted to get back to it.  It was a constant draw.  The Allenby family is like a car wreck you pass on the highway.  You don’t want to keep looking but you can’t turn your eyes away.  And I don’t like mysteries.  

There is just something I love about this series though.  It may be Deanna Raybourn’s exquisite, witty writing.  It may be the plots that I can actually follow through to conclusion and find myself wrapped up in, not confused by missing hints or sudden conclusions.  It may be the characters who keep developing and growing as each book goes by.  It might be the romantic tension between Julia and Brisbane, or the quirky March family, or the intense atmosphere and setting captured in each book.  Or it could be all of those things.  They combine to make compelling, wonderful reading that I just can’t tear myself away from.

I also really appreciated that this one had something of a resolution at the end.  Deanna Raybourn has said that she will be writing more Julia Grey books, but I’m sure there will be quite a wait.  I’m glad the characters are temporarily static in my mind, and perhaps even more, that I will have the opportunity for a re-read.

Do I recommend these books?  Absolutely.  I think they’re fantastic.  Possibly not for everyone, but if you’re looking for a mixture of mystery and romance with a side of great prose, look no further.  I know that I’ll be buying the next Lady Julia Grey book the instant it hits the shelves.

Buy Silent On The Moor on Amazon.