India Black and the Gentleman Thief Author: Carol K. Carr | Language: English | ISBN:
B00DMCV1PQ | Format: EPUB
India Black and the Gentleman Thief Description
India Black’s double life operating a high-class brothel and running high-stakes espionage for Her Majesty’s government can take its toll. But there’s no rest for the weary—particularly when an international conspiracy comes knocking…
India Black is one of Victorian London’s most respected madams—not a bloody postmistress. So when Colonel Francis Mayhew forwards a seemingly innocuous shipping bill to her address, she’s puzzled. And when three thugs bust down her door, steal the envelope, and rough up both her and fellow agent French…well, that’s enough to make India Black see red.
The veteran spies soon discover that Mayhew has been butchered in his own bedroom. An impromptu investigation leads them to London’s docks, where India makes a startling discovery she can’t bear to tell the rakish French—she has a history with their chief suspect, the gentleman thief who once stole her heart…
- File Size: 1262 KB
- Print Length: 321 pages
- Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0425262480
- Publisher: Berkley (February 4, 2014)
- Sold by: Penguin Group (USA) LLC
- Language: English
- ASIN: B00DMCV1PQ
- Text-to-Speech: Enabled
X-Ray:
- Lending: Not Enabled
- Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #35,110 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
- #66
in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Historical Fiction > Scottish
- #66
in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Historical Fiction > Scottish
Madam Espionage of Victorian England herself is back along with that glorious cast of characters that create a Victorian England that assuredly would shock Queen Vicky out of her black underbritches. India Black, the madam-turned-spy is attempting to solve the mystery of her own family while aiding French in a dogged pursuit of an international smuggling ring. She soon finds more than she bargained for when she's reunited both with an ex-flame (if you haven't read "India Black and the Rajah's Ruby - do so!) and that troublesome, yet somehow endearing, Dowager Marchioness of Tullibardine.
The story has the all the action, drama, and wit that readers have come to expect from India and her companions. I am continually impressed by the many nicknames India uses to refer to the Almighty (my favorite currently being the "Great Hairy Chess Player"). However, one thing that is different is the realization that the work India does and the people she works with (those not being her...um...employees) are starting to have effects on her. It's up to the reader to decide if they are good effects or bad; India herself seems conflicted.
India is starting to have a vulnerability about her that hasn't been present in previous books. Her feelings (yes...feelings! She can deny it all she wants!) and dependence on French are giving her less of an edge. She's still independent, she's still very much a tough, self-sufficient woman. She still does have a long way to go as certain incidents with that rapscallion, Vincent, will show (you'll know them when you see them). However, she's learning to care for others besides herself - something she really hasn't done since her mother died. Also, she's realizing that she just may not be what French wants (how little she knows!
(Maybe 3.5 stars?) This is a good entry in the series. It's an enjoyable read, has an interesting mystery for French and India to solve, and the French-India relationship continues to evolve. But I was a tad disappointed in India. I felt like she had lost a bit of her backbone, bite and sass, things I love about her, and I also didn't find as many of her chuckle-worthy, cynical observations about people and life in this story.
On the other hand, I did enjoy learning a bit more about her parentage and background and her relationship to the Dowager Marchioness of Tullibardine (Remember her from India Black and the Widow of Windsor (A Madam of Espionage Mystery)?) and the French connection also there. And those of you who have been trying to guess French's first name along with India will finally find out what it is. But French's past still remains a bit murky to India and their "romance" is still just creeping along, in this book advancing a bit only to retreat.
As for the mystery, India, French, and that loveable street urchin Vincent uncover some international arms dealings, possibly involving British army personnel, with arms shipments to a province in India (the country) involved in uprisings against British control. This investigation leads India (the woman) to a re-connection with a former lover, Phillip, from India Black and the Rajah's Ruby (A Madam of Espionage Mystery), who's the "gentleman thief" of this book.
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