THIS SIDE OF MURDER (September 26th 2017 by Kensington) is the first novel in the Verity Kent Mystery series by Anna Lee Huber.
The Great War is over, and Verity Kent is trying to find a place for herself as a young war widow. When her husband’s friend and his fiancé invite her to an engagement party, Verity is reluctant to accept until she receives a cryptic message insinuating that Sidney might have committed treason before he was killed while fighting in the trenches. Verity travels to Umbersea Island to attend the engagement party and to delve deeper into the slanderous claims against Sidney. Also in attendance at the party are a number of men whom Sidney served with. Two of these former soldiers turn up dead – and someone who everyone thought was dead turns out to be alive. As a storm ravages the island and keeps the revelers trapped, Verity investigates what really happened in the trenches and is forced to confront the fact that her husband might not have been the man that she thought he was.
I was absolutely captivated by THIS SIDE OF MURDER. Verity Kent is a strong female lead, and she is very likable and relatable. I feel like we have only seen the tip of the iceberg with her character. As a former Secret Service agent, there is so much to still learn about her character. She got to experience both sides of the war – as a wife and sister waiting for her men to come home as well as a Secret Service agent who knew more about the war than the average citizen.
The storyline was very complex and (mostly) had me guessing up until the end. There were a number of exciting twists and turns throughout the novel. The fact that the motive for the murders goes back to the war and involves treason and betrayal was fascinating. Huber did a fantastic job bringing to life the time period by including the lingo, fashion, and facts about the war.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
TREACHEROUS IS THE NIGHT (September 25th 2018 by Kensington Publishing Corporation) by Anna Lee Huber is the second novel in the Verity Kent Mystery series.
Verity Kent is reluctantly attending a séance when the medium passes along a purported message from one of the spies she worked with during the Great War. When the medium dies in a mysterious fire the next day, Verity decides that she must travel to Belgium to seek out her former associate, Emilie. Despite his reluctance to return to the scene of the war - and the fragile state of their marriage - Verity's recently returned husband, Sidney, agrees to accompany Verity on her mission. With help from some of her former associates in the Secret Service, Verity transverses the war torn country as she follows clues and narrowly escapes assassins.
TREACHEROUS IS THE NIGHT is a magnificent follow up to THIS SIDE OF MURDER. The second novel picks up a few weeks after the first one ended, and it continues with the reconciliation between Verity and Sidney. Their relationship is in a very fragile state, and they spend the novel reconciling and getting to known each other again. Their marriage is a wonderful portrayal of the countless relationships that were affected by the war.
The reader also learn much more about Verity's assignments with the Secret Service during the Great War - particularly work she did with the intelligence network known as La Dame Blanche, as well as her collaborations with an agent who was working undercover in the German army. The more I learn about Verity's secret war work, the more fascinating she becomes.
Huber also brings the characters, the locations, and the time period to life through her rich prose. The imagery that Huber creates within the novel is intensely vivid and descriptive. It is clear that she did a lot of research into... well, everything related to the Great War and the aftermath. Huber portrays the repercussions of the Great War, and the toll it took on the people and the landscape, in a very realistic and sympathetic manner. The reader gets to experience Sidney's anguish as he returns to the Western Front, as well as the suffering of the people of Belgium and France who lived near the trenches. The Great War may have ended, but it will take a long time for the people and places to recover and repair from the devastation.