The Time of Murder at Mayerling

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining, but I couldn't quite believe it
Review: I have not read the other books in this series, but it's difficult for me to see why Segalla would worry about other characters remarking that there have been much earlier records of a Segalla unless he's either immortal or incredibly long-lived. Certainly he doesn't spend any time worrying about how to get back to the future if the jig is up. (If he's so smart, why hasn't he had the good sense to change his name as needed through the centuries?) I wish the author hadn't used the word "teased" when she did -- it was so inappropriate to the situations that I had trouble believing in Segalla. "Jested" would have been a better choice. Part of my problem with this book is that I was raised mostly on Victorian and early 20th century-through World War II books. We didn't have much money and those books were just "old junk" then. I have the styles of those periods engraved in my brain. If a modern author wants me to feel "transported into the past", s/he needs to get the "feel" of the period. For me, Ms. Dukthas failed. Her solution really bothered me because there was no actual bibliography appended. What an author does with the characters s/he invented is his/her own business. If you're going to write a novel based on actual history, I think it only decent to try to portray figures of history as close to life as can be known of them. I know that if I were ever to become involved in what would become a famous unsolved mystery, I'd hate to have someone twist my character to fit his/her theory. I finished FEVER SEASON by Barbara Hambly last night and I appreciated the afterword in which she explained about the historical events used in her book. I'd have felt much better about this story had Ms. Dukthas done the same. However, if you aren't picky about the nuances of the English language and have no scruples toward the possibly unjust blackening of the name of someone who isn't alive to fight back, you should be able to enjoy this novel without the reservations that I have.

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining, but I couldn't quite believe it
Review: I have not read the other books in this series, but it's difficult for me to see why Segalla would worry about other characters remarking that there have been much earlier records of a Segalla unless he's either immortal or incredibly long-lived. Certainly he doesn't spend any time worrying about how to get back to the future if the jig is up. (If he's so smart, why hasn't he had the good sense to change his name as needed through the centuries?) I wish the author hadn't used the word "teased" when she did -- it was so inappropriate to the situations that I had trouble believing in Segalla. "Jested" would have been a better choice. Part of my problem with this book is that I was raised mostly on Victorian and early 20th century-through World War II books. We didn't have much money and those books were just "old junk" then. I have the styles of those periods engraved in my brain. If a modern author wants me to feel "transported into the past", s/he needs to get the "feel" of the period. For me, Ms. Dukthas failed. Her solution really bothered me because there was no actual bibliography appended. What an author does with the characters s/he invented is his/her own business. If you're going to write a novel based on actual history, I think it only decent to try to portray figures of history as close to life as can be known of them. I know that if I were ever to become involved in what would become a famous unsolved mystery, I'd hate to have someone twist my character to fit his/her theory. I finished FEVER SEASON by Barbara Hambly last night and I appreciated the afterword in which she explained about the historical events used in her book. I'd have felt much better about this story had Ms. Dukthas done the same. However, if you aren't picky about the nuances of the English language and have no scruples toward the possibly unjust blackening of the name of someone who isn't alive to fight back, you should be able to enjoy this novel without the reservations that I have.