ARC Review: A Fatal Illusion by Anna Lee Huber

A Fatal Illusion
Author: Anna Lee Huber
Series: A Lady Darby Mystery (Book 11)
Publication: Berkley (June 20, 2023)

Description: New parents Lady Kiera Darby and Sebastian Gage look forward to introducing Sebastian’s father to his granddaughter, but instead find themselves investigating an attempt on his life...

Yorkshire, England. August 1832. Relations between Sebastian Gage and his father have never been easy, especially since the discovery that Lord Gage has been concealing the existence of an illegitimate son. But when Lord Gage is nearly fatally attacked on a journey to Scotland, Sebastian and Kiera race to his side. Given the tumult over the recent passage of the Reform Bill and the Anatomy Act, in which Lord Gage played a part, Sebastian wonders if the attack could be politically motivated.

But something suspicious is afoot in the sleepy village where Lord Gage is being cared for. The townspeople treat Sebastian and Kiera with hostility when it becomes clear they intend to investigate, and rumors of mysterious disappearances and highway robberies plague the area. Lord Gage’s survival is far from assured, and Sebastian and Kiera must scramble to make the pieces fit before a second attempt at murder is more successful than the first.

My Thoughts: The eleventh book in the Lady Darby historical mystery series has Kiera, Gage, baby Emma, and their staff rushing to the site of an accident that almost killed Gage's father. They find him recovering slowly from an attack by highwaymen that killed one of his staff and badly injured him.

Gage and Kiera and the others begin to investigate and find a town filled with secrets. It doesn't help that Lord Gage is being less than truthful about what he knows about the attack and the attackers. It also doesn't help that Henry, Lord Gage's natural son, is also part of the group that rushed to his aide. Lord Gage is angry that Gage has made Henry part of his family and refuses to acknowledge him. 

They have quite a wide assortment of enemies of Lord Gage who are all possible suspects. It could be politically motivated sing the recent passage of the Reform Bill had his fingers all over. Or it could be some enemy from his days as an inquiry agent. Or it could be something from the past Lord Gage won't talk about. 

I enjoyed this emotionally charged story. Gage is at the stage of almost being willing to write his father off as any part of his life. He is angry that his father wants to control his life. He is also angry at the betrayal of his mother that he sees when he learns about his father's philandering. Kiera is also angry at Lord Gage both because he tried to oppose her marriage to Gage and because of how much his attitude hurts her husband. However, she also doesn't want to write him out of his granddaughter's life. She sees glimmers of a different man when he interacts with baby Emma. 

The plot was a twisty one with quite a few secrets uncovered. Fans of the series won't want to miss this episode. 

Favorite Quote:

One could feel both profound relief and dread at the same time, just as one could love someone and still feel fiery anger, disappointment, and disgust. And those were only a handful of the complicated emotions his father provoked in both of us. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.