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Summary: An Absolute Page-Turner!
Review: There were two instances in this book where I nearly dropped it from excitement, disbelief and admiration for an author who continues to keep her readers guessing. This Anne Perry mystery is absolutely one of her top ones. I was completely unprepared for the twists and turns that she took. Her knowledge of the Victorian era is so vast that I almost believe she has a window to the past.... Hester, Monk and Rathbone do not disappoint--a definite page turner. I can't believe I have to wait monthes for the next one!!!!!!!
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Summary: Twists and Turns Galore
Review: Twists, turns, and surprises make this one of her best. With a more vivid illustration of three very interesting characters-- including an illumination into the enigmatic Monk, readers will be treated to a divinely layered story with the smells, sights, and sounds identified with Anne Perry books.The only possible improvement could be a less-hurried finish with two of the major storylines still left open. Give us the fun of watching the self-righteous receive their dose and restoring the fallen! By the way, if you're interested in period mysteries-- be sure to check out Caleb Carr. Very hearty reading for a cold winter's night-- just remember to lock the door! :)
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Summary: Another good read from Perry
Review: With "A Breach of Promise," Perry has once again presented us with an excellent portrait of mid-19th century life. Unlike her last few books, in which the mysteries took second place to the denunciation of social evils, she has kept the preachiness to a minimum and concentrated instead on the characters.
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Summary: Anne Perry gets better and better with each novel.
Review: A Breach of Promise exemplifies everything wonderful about Anne Perry's work: complex characters, a detailed plot driven by those characters, and a rich, historical setting. Whenever I finish one of her books, I feel I have learned something new about the human psyche and its darker side. Hester, Monk, and Rathbone, with all their tension and awkward friendship, are fascinating, and watching them grow as people over the course of this series has kept this reader immensely satisfied. Add to that satisfaction the interest and complexity of each "case" the three have worked on together, and you will understand why Anne Perry has so many devoted fans.
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Summary: Quintessential Perry
Review: A Breach of Promise begins slowly as Anne Perry sets her scene in the courtroom drawing us into Oliver Rathbone's latest and perhaps most frustrating case yet. Ms. Perry is a master manipulator of her audience and despite the rather plodding nature of the first hundred pages or so the reader is so completely joined in Rathbone's simultaneous frustration and determination, that one must see the case through with him. The pace picks up, however, as soon as Monk and Hester enter the story, their peculiarly intense interaction having always driven this series beyond the bounds of most Victorian mysteries. But despite the fact that Breach is quintessential Perry, with the requisite stunning twist in the main plot, and a moving subplot involving the household in which Hester is currently employed, the nature in which the two plots become connected struck this reader as somewhat contrived considering the usually tight and highly individual manner in which Perry handles her material. Ultimately though, Perry's amazing talent for conveying emotion through the details of place and character enable her to rise above a slight thinness in plot. A Breach of Promise is an emotionally satisfying tale, and in addition, a powerful social commentary on not only the Victorian era's valuing of beauty and marriage, but on our own culture's preoccupation with these issues as well.
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Summary: A thinking woman's romance, plus spell-binding whodunit.
Review: A Breach of Promise is the first novel of Ann Perry's that I have read, and I cannot wait to read more. She combines the best of historical romance, unpredictable whodunit and charming character development. A very satisfying read.
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Summary: Perry's best!
Review: "A Breach of Promise" is Perry's best work ever. This book was such a satisfying read, from start to finish. I'm a big fan of Perry's & I'm particularly fond of her Monk series. In fact, the book that introduced me to her novels was "The Face of a Stranger",the first Monk book. I highly recommend all of Perry's books, especially her Monk series.
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Summary: Definitely worth waiting for!
Review: This is the best Monk yet! After devouring the first eight books, I was determined to get my hands on this one as soon as possible. Not expecting it until October, I was thrilled to find it out sooner. I usually don't buy hardbacks, but just couldn't wait. It was worth every penny, and every minute of waiting. Plot twists are totally unexpected, and all answers aren't revealed until the last page. If you feel you personally know Monk, Hester, and Rathbone, and care about their evolving relationship, you certainly won't be disappointed.
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Summary: One of Perry's best
Review: _A Breach of Promise_ is like a breath of fresh air in the William Monk series by Anne Perry. I have read all of her Victorian mysteries and had been rather disapponted by _The Silent Cry_, the immediately preceding book, thinking that perhaps Miss Perry had mined out her mid-Victorian setting and that we would not have any more excellent books such as the first book in the series, _The Face of a Stranger_. I was totally wrong. This book is fantastic. The premise of a breach of promise suit didn't seem to be all that interesting before I opened the book, but Perry captures the emotions and the fears and the lives of the characters wonderfully, including some secondary characters, a Lt. Gabriel Sheldon and his wife, Perdita, who have their own problems which play against the main plot in a masterful manner. I recommend this book to any of Perry's fans and say that you won't be disappointed.
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Summary: Another tour-de-force from Anne Perry!
Review: Anne Perry has done it again! "A Breach of Promise" is the best yet in the William Monk/Hester Latterly/Oliver Rathbone series, and Perry succeeds brilliantly in portraying the fog-bound hypocrisy of Victorian England. The atmosphere of cold, foggy and drizzly Victorian London can be almost be felt and the attitudes and behaviour of the English aristocracy of the time are harshly, yet compassionately, portrayed. And if that is a contradiction in terms, read the book to find out why. The plot itself is well thought-out although the denouement fell curiously flat, almost as though Perry ran out of stamina. And the relationship between William Monk and Hester Latterly is growing by leaps and bounds - I look forward to see how Perry will develop this theme in her subsequent books. I feel that Monk and Latterly are a more hard-edged couple than Perry's other creation of Thomas and Charlotte Pitt - although both William Monk and Thomas Pitt are examples of people from outside the charmed social circles who carry considerable loads of cynicism and angst.
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