Cathy C. (cathyskye) -
M.J. Lee's Jayne Sinclair series has to be my favorite mystery series that focuses on genealogy. He's created a strong female lead in investigator Jayne Sinclair. A former police officer, she doesn't stumble into dangerous situations blindly. She knows how to take care of herself, and she still has plenty of friends on the force if the need arises. She's also a first-rate investigator, and readers can actually learn about the resources available to those who want to work on their family trees.
Lee also does an excellent job of weaving together two different timelines in these books. The older timeline which concerns the ancestor that Jayne is trying to find usually ties into a fascinating (if sometimes painful) historic event. In The Merchant's Daughter, readers learn about the treatment of women in 1840s England and the importance of the slave trade to Liverpool, England-- a topic that may come as a surprise to many. I was aware of Liverpool's role in the slave trade, but I was unaware of how slave traders were eventually persuaded to put an end to it all.
The mystery in The Merchant's Daughter isn't the strongest in this series. It was relatively easy to deduce, and what little violence there was seemed tacked on and not really necessary. I also wasn't shocked at the lengths that some people will go to in order to cover up "blemishes" on their family trees. After all, my own grandmother refused to do any further research on our Mudd ancestors on the off chance that she'd find out we were related to Dr. Samuel Mudd who was implicated in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.
So... if I thought the mystery was easy to deduce, why did I enjoy The Merchant's Daughter so much? Because of the characters. Jayne is one of my favorites-- smart, determined, intuitive, and full of common sense. However, the character who shone the brightest in this book was the merchant's daughter herself, Emily Roylance. Her voice as she told me her story and what she had to endure kept me hooked, kept me firmly in her corner, and kept me hoping that things would turn out all right for her.
Do they? You'll have to find out for yourself. Is this a series that you have to begin at the beginning and read in order? Not really. The Merchant's Daughter works well as a standalone. Just don't be surprised if you read this book and find yourself wanting to read more of Jayne's investigations.
Lee also does an excellent job of weaving together two different timelines in these books. The older timeline which concerns the ancestor that Jayne is trying to find usually ties into a fascinating (if sometimes painful) historic event. In The Merchant's Daughter, readers learn about the treatment of women in 1840s England and the importance of the slave trade to Liverpool, England-- a topic that may come as a surprise to many. I was aware of Liverpool's role in the slave trade, but I was unaware of how slave traders were eventually persuaded to put an end to it all.
The mystery in The Merchant's Daughter isn't the strongest in this series. It was relatively easy to deduce, and what little violence there was seemed tacked on and not really necessary. I also wasn't shocked at the lengths that some people will go to in order to cover up "blemishes" on their family trees. After all, my own grandmother refused to do any further research on our Mudd ancestors on the off chance that she'd find out we were related to Dr. Samuel Mudd who was implicated in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.
So... if I thought the mystery was easy to deduce, why did I enjoy The Merchant's Daughter so much? Because of the characters. Jayne is one of my favorites-- smart, determined, intuitive, and full of common sense. However, the character who shone the brightest in this book was the merchant's daughter herself, Emily Roylance. Her voice as she told me her story and what she had to endure kept me hooked, kept me firmly in her corner, and kept me hoping that things would turn out all right for her.
Do they? You'll have to find out for yourself. Is this a series that you have to begin at the beginning and read in order? Not really. The Merchant's Daughter works well as a standalone. Just don't be surprised if you read this book and find yourself wanting to read more of Jayne's investigations.
