Silent In The Grave

Deanna Raybourne's Silent in the Grave, is a hard to put down Victorian mystery, both suspenseful and humorous in its details, that unmasks the consequences of that society's moral, gender and class codes upon individuals within society.

Silent in the Grave is a mystery rich in well-researched historical details but also a fast-paced read as each clue unmasks another mysterious layer. Infused with sadness, Silent in the Grave provides humorous relief as the clues lead the reader into an ever increasing dark reality hidden by the masks of Victorian society.

The unmasking of the villain leads to ever increasing shocking details. Murder will out, not only the deed but all the dark truths behind the deed. An exceptional emotional and riveting read!

I am definitely a fan of Deanna Raybourn. I have read both of her books, this one and Silent in the Sanctuary. Both are filled with suspense. You think you have it figured out, and oops, it goes a different direction. You can hardly put it down. So many other good reviews tell about it content. I will just say, buy it and enjoy!!!!! Look forward to future books from this author. Met her at the booksigning in Houston and hope to see her again when her third book is released.

I read a LOT of mysteries. I read them for relaxation as well as entertainment, so I'm not going out of my way to solve the murder before the writer tells me. When I do figure it out, I'm always a little disappointed, and that's what happened with "Silent in the Grave". In this case - the unmistakable clue was on page 310 of a 534 page book. As the book is a little wordy, lots of talking to herself, for example, this made the last half of the book a little tedious. Not a bad read, though; it's just not a super read. I like historical mysteries, but I like them to be decently true to the times. In this case, this book let me down a little, too. The protaganist, a docile aristocratic widow in the 1880's, finds her independence including instant acceptance of an intelligent prostitute and traipsing off to a gypsy camp in men's clothing. This does a disservice to the true independent women of the time (and there were many) who trudged through jungles, etc., while wearing their petticoats - an altogether more amazing and believable scenario than that which the books depicts. But, that said, this was a nice first effort by Deanna Raybourn. I read it because I decided to always start out with the first-in-a-series when approaching a new author.

Silent in the Grave tries too hard. The mystery is forced; the hero is obnoxious; the author makes some very strange decisions about Brisbane, including making him psychic. (Brisbane's servant is not, as a previous reviewer indicated, Thelonious Monk - he is Theophilius Monk.) The book declares in several places that Lady Julia is the height of elegance, including in the description of the typeface used. I did not find this to be the case; she was awkward, fumbling, selfish, thoughtless, and many other things, but I would not call her elegant.

This is not to say that I did not read the book in a sitting, and that I am not eagerly reading the sequel. I feel about Deanna Raybourn as I feel about Barbara Hambly. I love the worlds they create. I am enthralled with Raybourn's March family, and I enjoy reading about her siblings, her father, her home, her social opportunities, her pet raven, her choices in clothing, etc. It's all wonderful. It is only not wonderful when the author feels compelled to have Lady Julia turn herself into an investigator. If it was just Lady Julia, I'd adore the book. I felt the same way about Barbara Hambly's New Orleans series. I loved Ben January and his world, although I could have done with a bit less moping about his long-dead wife. But when he began investigating, in every book, it got old. I would have been happy to just hear about his opportunities and life and attempts to make a future with Rose.

So I would recommend reading the book, but keep in mind that the entire mystery is completely ridiculous. But Lady Julia's world is worth enduring a bit of ridiculous, even if it does feature a psychic violin-playing tortured anti-hero.

I became acquainted with both this author and her debut novel when I saw that it won the RITA award at the RWA conference last summer in San Francisco, for Best Novel with Strong Romantic Elements.
Since my reading leans much more toward contemporary women's fiction, I wasn't sure if I'd like it. From the first page, I was captivated. Great characters and plot and spot-on authenticity for the time period.
Somebody here mentioned this story not being a "mystery" and I don't agree. No...it's not your typical "cozy" or suspense mystery, but I have to say when I got to the end of the novel, I was quite surprised. Not only that, but I found myself trying to figure out the killer from the first page. In my opinion, that's the definition of a "mystery."
Excellent and well written story and now I'm glad I'd also purchased Silent in the Sanctuary. I love finding new authors to read.