Masque

Masque

by W.R. Gingell

3.5 out of 5

Synopsis
Beauty met the Beast and there was . . . Bloody murder?

It’s the Annual Ambassadorial Ball in Glause, and Lady Isabella Farrah, the daughter of New Civet’s Ambassador, is feeling pleasantly scintillated.
In the library is Lord Pecus, a charming gentleman whose double mask hides a beastly face, and who has decided that Isabella is the very person to break the Pecus curse.
In the ball-room is young Lord Topher, who is rapidly falling in love with an older woman.
And in the card-room, lying in a pool of his own blood, is the body of one of Isabella’s oldest friends: Raoul, Civet’s Head Guardsman. The papers sewn into his sash seem to suggest espionage gone wrong, but Isabella is not so certain.
Lord Pecus, as Commander of the Watch, is of the opinion that Isabella should keep out of the investigation and out of danger. Isabella is of the opinion that it is her murder to investigate, and that what a certain Beast-Lord doesn’t know won’t hurt him. . . .
Will Isabella find the murderer before Lord Pecus does, or will she end her investigation as a bloody spatter on the parlour floor?



Review
Isabella is an ambassador for her country, negotiating a military merger, and she also has time to interfere with - I mean, investigate - a murder.

I downloaded this when it was free last month.
This is the first book I've read by Gingell, and it was a fun, light read, that mixed etiquette, mystery, and a fairy-tale re-telling.

Lady Isabella is an ambassador alongside her father, and a close friend to the queen of New Civet and her consort.
Whilst socialising at a masked ball in Glause, she stumbles onto a murder. The bright young woman (or, meek old maid, as Isabella calls herself) decides to investigate, as the death of her friend hints at espionage and betrayal - two things that will derail all of her work.
What she doesn't count on, is the mysterious masked Lord Pecus, leading the Glause investigation. The cursed noble is a commanding figure in Glause, in charge of policing it's streets.

This book is funny. It made me chuckle every other page, as Lady Isabella negotiates society, admirers, and a magical murderer who has a penchant for exploding heads. And she does so with the same carefree attitude and humour.
Isabella casually disregards what society expects of her, and does her best to enjoy every part of life.

The murder mystery was a very strong part of the plot. It keeps you guessing throughout, as Isabella and Pecus investigate every lead. I didn't guess the culprit until the end, and thought it was a good reveal.

The not-so-good.
For all that Lady Isabella is funny and independent; I honestly wasn't too keen on her. There were some sections that were naturally humorous, but a lot of the time I found her wit rather forced.
She's very bullish, headstrong, and often lacks any sympathy for others.
I get the feeling that Isabella is convinced she's smarter than everyone, and it came off as smug and annoying.

The world that Gingell has created was very promising, but I found it was left rather vague. It is established that the world is a alternate history, with magic and curses, in the fantasy land of Glause. There were tantalising hints, like the introduction of technology; but it never felt fully explored, and spent too much time on dresses!

I was a little disappointed at how quickly things were wrapped up. One moment, everything is in dire straits. The next, the big bad is overcome, and eternal-spinster Isabella is engaged.

Overall, this was a 3.5 out of 5 for me. I would be interested in reading the rest of the Two Monarchies books, to see if they expand in this creative world.

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