Death Among the Ruins

The latest in this excellent, historically rich series has a well plotted mystery, family drama, and considerable advancements in the main characters’ lives. As always, Calkins imbues the books with rich historical detail that are convincingly woven into the stories. There are relatively few series set in the late 17th century, so I always enjoy learning from these books. Lucy is drawn into yet another murder mystery when a ragpicker finds a woman’s body in the ruins of a church. As always, Lucy works to help the constabulary work out the truth, although in this entry she is also coming to terms with her own looming life changes. Followers of the series will find the ending very rewarding.

The brutal murder of a maidservant is a the center of this intriguing and very entertaining whodunit full of family secrets, lies and violence, a terrific murder mystery set in London at the end of the 1660s.

As usual with this wonderful series the plot is superbly choreographed and the ensemble cast is exquisitely drawn and the author offers us a magnificent fictional portrait of London after the Great Fire of 1666.

This is historical fiction at its best and it deserves to be enjoyed without any moderation whatsoever!

Many thanks to Severn House and Netgalley for this terrific ARC!

Death Among the Ruins is a fantastic historical mystery taking place two years after the Great Fire of London, in which Lucy Campion finds herself involved with a murder mystery - a body found in an area of fire ruins - through interactions with people in the general area where she lives and her "in" with the local constable. Within the main storyline, there is a secondary storyline involving Campion's personal life.

As the story goes, we find out the in and outs of what British society was like in 1668 as well as what such things could lead to of all things - a murder!

This book flows and the end - I didn't see it coming! It was fantastic! An absolutely must read! I cannot wait for another book!

It wasn't easy for a young woman to navigate life in London in 1668- and this is especially true for young Mercy, a rag picker who is fortunate enough to meet Lucy, a printers apprentice and ace solver of mysteries. This has murder, issues of class, romance (sort of), and a look at life, I've only read one of the preceding novels, making this more or less a fine standalone for me- and I'll look for the next one. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read for fans of historical mysteries.

Having read all of the previous books in this series, I can definitely say that Death Among the Ruins is a solid historical mystery. The plot is well-crafted and filled with complexities. Caukiins core characters are, as always, interesting and engaging.

An entertaining addition to a wonderful series.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Severn House for this Advanced Reader Copy and the opportunity to review “Death Among the Ruins.” All opinions and comments are my own.

Printer’s apprentice Lucy Campion, our plucky heroine through seven books now, has her hands full in “Death Among the Ruins.” She gets involved in the case of a dead servant girl wearing her mistress’s clothing, all occasioned when a ragpicker is caught wearing the dress. Ah, grave-robbing, such a wonderful (but lucrative) business. And so, Lucy becomes caught up in the dead girl’s death, taking us on a journey of murder, ill-treatment of servants, and family secrets that ends in a shattering fashion. At the end Lucy will have a new story to set out for Master Aubrey, one that will sell many a copy.

Our secondary story centers around Lucy’s wedding. She’s still concerned about the social disparity between herself and Adam Hargrove, her fiancé. The author plays this up well, because this could be a real problem. Her soon-to-be father-in-law, the magistrate, assures her that all will be well, that she will be accepted into their family with no problems. Well, that is as may be, but what will other members of our English society say? (And don’t forget, Lucy is also a “working woman.”) It will be interesting to see how this is handled in future books.

Readers will find that “Death Among the Ruins” has a skillful reveal, and certainly paints a picture of 17th century London wonderfully. Another worthy effort from Susanna Calkins.

Excellent, well plotted mystery with plenty of twists. I love this author and this book is up to her standards. Fantastic read. Thank you publisher and netgalley for this arc in exchange of an honest review.

This murder mystery really gives the reader a sense of the time period. The book really gets into Lucy's personal life as well.

This book is written well since it takes you through a lot of twists and turn, but you also feel the emotions and empathy Lucy feels as the story progresses.

I haven't read a bunch of books in this time period. I felt like this book really paid attention to those details without losing the character development. This is the first book I picked up in the series and am hoping to read others.

Thank you to Severn House and Netgalley for providing me a copy of this ARC for my honest review.

Susanna Calkins places Lucy Campion in Death among the Ruins. In 1668 printer's apprentice Lucy is involved in getting Mercy, a ragpicker, off arrest for stealing clothing from a corpse; the ragpicker later reports a dead body of a young woman who is found wearing a gown not her own. Effie the servant is tracked to the Mobley household where many secrets are hidden. Lucy seeks to find the murderer; more die. Read an excellent historical mystery.