A Proud Woman (Tabitha & Wolf Historical Mystery Series)
Having her husband die of a broken neck came as a huge relief for Tabitha, now Dowager Countess of Pembroke. After years of an abusive marriage, she is now free, even if she is presently being given the cold shoulder by high society—there are those who believe she pushed her husband to his death.
Tabitha’s life changes radically when the new Earl of Pembroke, her husband’s cousin, is finally found and comes forward to take up his inheritance. Jeremy—Wolf to his friends—is a very different man from her former husband. His father was disowned for marrying the wrong woman, and he has for years made his living as a thief-taker, as familiar with the underbelly of late Victorian London as Tabitha is with the salons of the rich and entitled.
Wolf requests that Tabitha stay to run his home and help him find his footing in this new life of his. She acquiesces, and when they undertake a common investigation of a murder, their friendship deepens into something else. In Wolf, Tabitha has found a man who actually sees her as a person. In Tabitha, Wolf has found a woman who challenges him.
Ms. Noel delivers a strong, twisting plot—untangling the murder of the Duke of Somerset turns out to be a very sordid matter—and several likeable characters. Truncated sentences, constant head-hopping and the interjection of modern expressions such as “I want to come with”, “what’s up” and “okay” detracts from the overall reading experience. Having said that, I must admit to being curious as to what will happen next for Tabitha and Wolf, indicating I am quite intrigued by Ms. Noel’s creations!
