An Extravagant Duplicity

Beatrice Hyde-Clare Mysteries, Book 11

By: Lynn Messina

Narrated by: Jill Smith

Why, yes, the former Beatrice Hyde-Clare is distracted. Having settled comfortably into marriage to the duke of Kesgrave, she is nevertheless surprised to find herself in an interesting condition. And it has to be that—the unsettling prospect of motherhood—that causes her to overlook the obvious clue that Roger Dugmore had indeed been killed in his sleep. Summoned to the scene of the supposed crime by his grandson, a preening viscount from the country desperate to establish himself in society, she assumes he is trying to draw the attention of Mr. Twaddle-Thum, London’s most rapacious gossip.

Disgusted, she dismisses the absurd lordship and his concerns.

But the duke does not.

Oh, no, he notices something is slightly off—the angle of the table, the position of the bed—and a horrified Bea begins to fear that the birth of her child will mean the end of her brilliant career as an investigator.

It is not the most pressing concern, of course, not with a murderer on the loose, and she struggles to put it out of her mind as she grapples with an even more daunting possibility: that this peacocking nodcock might be her most diabolical opponent yet.

©2022 Lynn Messina (P)2023 Lynn Messina

An Extravagant Duplicity

Another good mystery, as is typical of this series. I actually enjoyed this one more than the last couple books because there was less tension between Bea and Kesgrave to make me uncomfortable. There was some progression of Flora’s storyline, which I appreciated. I have become rather invested in her development over the course of the last few books.
I received a free Audible copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

I love Bea

Not my favorite book in the series, but I love Bea & her duke! Bea’s paranoia/insecurity were a bit distracting in this story, but not so distracting that I couldn’t enjoy the story.

Hope this isn't the last one in the series?

I've listened to this series several time, enjoying each time. Looking forward to the next.

Excellent, as always!

I can’t wait for the next book! I love Bea and Damian’s relationship and the twists and turns of the investigations. Now that the Verity Lark books intertwine with Bea’s, they are even more fun!I love reading them, but I live listening to them even more because the narration is so good.

love!

I can not wait untill the next one ! I loved this one so much, I hope we find out what happens between flora and Mr.holcroft.

How long before next one?

Yes it is a mystery , an enjoyable one but I appreciate the most is the humour.

This is an excellent series

I love this series! The research and worldbuilding completely immerses you. The growth in the various characters has been a great part of the journey. I've not been disappointed by a single book out of 11 so far. I've been invested in these characters for years now so I was frustrated at what was supposed to be Beatrice's internal struggle. I found it overly repetitive. Here's a mostly self educated woman, with a husband who respects her intelligence and her gift of detection. I need that Beatrice back in books 12,13,14 & 15. I can't wait to see where this family is headed on their next adventure.

Continues To Be A Favorite Series

This is definitely staying in my favorites. If you are new to these books you'll want to go back and start at book 1. They really should be read in order for the best experience.

I find it sad when a series dies shortly after the couple finds each other and gets married, and I worried early on in this series that it would happen here as well... but so far it has not and isn't showing signs that It will. I love the relationship that Bea and the Duke have and the humour goes a long way to make these books more enjoyable. Experiencing the character growth and watching their journey is just such fun and I look forward to hopefully many more. I stick by my description of this series being the best mixture of an Agatha Christie mystery with the era and writing style of Jane Austen - really what could be better?

Without giving too much away I did enjoy this one with the nod back to some personally haunting memories of Bea's early childhood. It showed a side that those with childhood trauma can identify with and seeing her stubbornly push through with the Duke's help was sweet. The mystery as always has a tangle of twists that keep you on your toes and is very engaging for the reader.

Parents- PG13 - high school and up readers
Language- none
Violence- PG- murders are kept free of overly graphic detail
Sexual Content- PG13- there is just a matter of a week or two between books so they are still very much newlyweds and while there are no actual sex scenes there are a lot of make-out scenes with some pretty steamy lead-ups to the door closing, them adjusting clothing back into place, and teasing each other about better uses of time and the like

The narrator is as always top-notch and one of the few that I can't listen to sped up because she's just that good. She just fits the characters so perfectly, has phenomenal differentiations, and is simply a lot of fun to listen to. In my book, Jill Smith is up there with narrators like Jim Dale who have ruined me for the lesser skilled narrators.

Another winner from Messina & Smith

I love these books and find them incredibly relaxing. It’s easy to fall into the world and is a perfect cozy mystery for rainy days

Love the new book

Love the story and how Beatrice figure things out.

So much words, though. What will happen next.