Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE: His Lordship’s Folly

SERIES:  His Lordship’s Mysteries

AUTHOR: Samantha SoRelle

PUBLISHER: Balcarres Books

LENGTH: 271 pages

RELEASE DATE: December 17, 2024

BLURB:

Alfie and Dominick can’t wait to return to Balcarres House. After the year they’ve had, a little peace and quiet in the Scottish countryside is just what they need.

They’re completely unprepared for the chaos that awaits them or the sinister threats that soon turn violent. With more eyes on them than ever before, Alfie struggles with the weight of an earldom and Dominick can’t risk being seen helping him without putting both of their lives in danger. Even an attempt to enjoy some of their wealth turns sour when their decision to build a folly overlooking the manor leads to a vicious murder.

Or does it?

When the corpse disappears into thin air, the whispers about the strange new earl only grow louder and the need for discretion becomes even more vital if Dominick is going to stay by his lover’s side. As the autumn nights get darker, so do the events unfolding around them. Soon it becomes clear that someone wants them gone… one way or another.

His Lordship’s Folly is the fifth novel in the His Lordship’s Mysteries series.

REVIEW:

Note:  This is the fifth book in this series that builds on the previous adventures of Alfie and Dominick.  As such it these books should be read in order.

Alfie and Dominick return home from their adventure in searching for Dominick’s family to a bit of chaos at Balcarres house.  Mrs. Hirkins, Alfie’s childhood cook and housekeeper in London,  and her granddaughter have taken up residence and literally they walk in as her granddaughter is giving birth.  What a welcome!  Things get even more bizarre though.

Gil, Alflie’s overseer makes them aware of all the work that needs to be done on the estate and all the things Alfie needs to address.  It’s a bit tedious and dry so both men need some fresh air.  While they are out on an impromptu picnic, they have a bit of a strange encounter with a local farmer.  Soon thereafter, there are severed sheep’s heads that show up which Dominick deals with but is concerned about.  Naturally they jump to the conclusion and someone knows about their real relationship and it’s a warning that they don’t like it.

While setting the estate to rights is a top priority, there is talk about building a folly overlooking the properties and the sea.  Given the large staff and so many visitors to the estate, Dominick would REALLY like this as an escape for the two of them that will guarantee some level of privacy.  So they embark on a plan.

Soon they hire and architect and he and his wife arrive with some smashing plans.  They’ve begun the work and eventually that means even more people in and around the estate, much to Alfie and more importantly Dominick’s chagrin.  The gardens are being brought back from total disarray and overgrowth and the folly is under construction.  Then the architect and his wife move into Balcarres House as well.  Until it seems there is a murder.  And then the corpse disappears before the doctor or the constable can arrive.  This starts even more rumors about the house.  Workers do not want to continue.

When Alfie and Dominick suffer a near miss that is obviously NOT an accident, they decide to try to figure out what has happened to the body.  They need to figure out the reason behind the murder and who the target really is and why since things don’t really seem to be settling down.  On Samhain, they see an opportunity to try to suss out what is going on while making nice with the locals.  Let’s just say the motives and culprits are far from obvious 😉

I absolutely adore this series!  The stars are really Alfie and Nick.  Their relationship continues to evolve and they clearly depend on each other completely.  They are still best friends as well as lovers.  They have to keep their relationship secret (although their are those who know and have been entrusted with their secret) and so they have to balance their support for each other with propriety and decorum.  Sometimes this goes a little out the window though 😉  Eccentricity in the peerage is a bit more tolerated, but still they must be very careful.  Hence the need for the Folly.  I really enjoyed the mystery as well and I thought it was very well done.  One of the best things about this series is the clear head for research this author has and the tidbits of historical events and the many period details are a delight.  The secondary characters – particularly Gil and Mrs. Hirkins are wonderfully drawn and they add a great sense of time and place.  It’s such a different world to today and it’s just a fun romp to have this glimpse into the past.  Very well done and highly recommended.  I’m so glad there will be more stories with this delightful couple and their incredibly interesting lives and times.  Bravo!

RATING: 

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