Review: A Deceptive Composition by Anna Lee Huber

 

A Deceptive Composition (Lady Darby #12) by Anna Lee Huber

Publication Date: June 18th 2024 by Berkley

Pages: 384

Source: Publisher & Purchased Audio Book

Rating: ★★★★½

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Libro.fm | Audible | Kobo | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

A Deceptive Composition is book twelve in a series best read in order.

 

Lord Gage, Sebastian’s father, receives an urgent request to come home when his uncle is found dead and his great aunt suspects murder. Lord Gage has been estranged from his family since a scuffle with the law led to tragedy for him and his best friend at the tender age of eleven. A tragedy that could’ve been avoided had his family not sent him out in peril!

 

It’s obvious from the start no one is being straight with Kiera, Gage and his father, exasperating them all! Lord Gage’s family were something else, and not in a good way. Getting the history of what happened to Lord Gage at eleven and getting acquainted with his family as they tried to find the truth shed a new light on Lord Gage, making it easier to understand his gruff and cruel behavior in the past. I’ve been enraged by his behavior more than a few times over the course of the series, but I had a softening towards him after all was revealed.

 

My heart was in my throat by the end with the danger a few of the characters faced in the final scenes! I wonder how this will affect how Kiera and Gage investigate in the future. It certainly would give me pause. This installment wrapped up abruptly after that intense standoff. Kiera’s last words whet my appetite for the next story!

 

I’ve loved this series from the beginning and recommend it to anyone who enjoys well written historical mysteries with a bit of romance! The audios with Heather Wilds performing are excellent!

4.5 Stars

Book Description:

Lady Kiera Darby and her dashing husband, Sebastian Gage, hope they’ve finally found peace after a tumultuous summer, but long-buried family secrets soon threaten to unravel their lives . . .

October 1832. Kiera is enjoying the slower pace of the English countryside. She, Sebastian, and their infant daughter have accompanied her father-in-law, Lord Gage, home so that he can recuperate from the injuries he sustained in a foiled attempt on his life. But as the chill of autumn sweeps across the land, they receive a summons from an unexpected quarter. Lord Gage’s estranged uncle—a member of the notorious Roscarrock family—has been murdered, and his family is desperate for answers. Despite Lord Gage’s protests, Kiera and Sebastian press on to Cornwall to assist. 

It isn’t long before they discover that almost nothing is as it seems among the Roscarrocks, and they’ve been lured to their isolated cove under false pretenses. There are whispers of a lost treasure and frightening allusions to a series of murders stretching back decades that touch the lives of the family personally. Kiera and Sebastian are left with no choice but to uncover the truth before the secrets of the past threaten to destroy them all.