Wherever Christopher Rowe goes, adventure—and murder—follows. Even a chance to meet King Charles ends in a brush with an assassin. All that’s recovered from the killer is a coded message with an ominous sign-off: more attempts are coming (Goodreads).
It was going to be difficult to follow up on the fantastic second book, but this third novel in Sands' historical mystery is really quite satisfying on many levels. A new setting is given to readers, this time exploring Paris instead of London, and the winding streets and secrets of the city give a good backdrop for the story. Christopher is, once again, very compelling, as are his two sidekicks, although it's becoming a bit Golden Trio, if you know what I mean. Tom especially branches out in this one, and provides good comic relief throughout. Sally, too, is fleshed out a bit more as well, which is great considering her character was a bit bland in the second book. Sands once again has readers on their toes throughout, giving several candidates for the main antagonist, but still giving a surprising twist at the end. The villains are adequately, well, villainous, but they are not developed quite as much as would be ideal, although the ending message could prove otherwise in the future. 8.1/10
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