Title: A Pretty Deceit
Author: Anna Lee Huber
Series: Verity Kent Mystery #4
Great but unremarkable
I would like to thank Anna Lee Huber, Kensington Books, and NetGalley for allowing me to read a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Not much to say. This was a great book, but not exactly noteworthy. Quickly but steadily paced, the story moved along from one thing to the next with no dinking around, which was really nice. Verity remains a likable, relatable, and admirable protagonist, and her husband Sydney continues to grow on me, though his behavior at the beginning of the series is a stain on his character in my eyes. The mystery/plot was rather mundane and a tad predictable. I would have liked more been done with the Ancient Roman aspects. Huber weaved the one-off mystery and the overarching mystery together well, but I was more interested in the Ardmore business. I gave zero craps about the whiny, self-interested aunt almost the moment I met her, and I kept waiting for more to happen with Reg, but he served his purpose, I suppose. It was nice to see Max, though part of me wants to put him behind us; if you’re going with Sydney, then go with Sydney and cut the crap. At that, tossing Alec into the fray stretched my patience. It doesn’t help Verity as a character to have all the guys want her. Take a biiiiiiig step back from that, Huber. Overall, I still don’t like this series as much as I like the Lady Darby series, but that’s not this book’s fault, and that’s not to say it isn’t a good series. It is; I just like Lady Darby more. (And I’d like the Gothic Myths series even more than Lady Darby, I suspect, if Huber would ever write them like she’s promised. But, you know, life.)
