A Curious Beginning by Deanna Raybourn

London, 1887. As the city prepares to celebrate Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee, Veronica Speedwell is marking a milestone of her own. After burying her spinster aunt, orphaned Veronica is free to resume her world travels in pursuit of scientific inquiry—and the occasional romantic dalliance. As familiar with hunting butterflies as with fending off admirers, Veronica wields her butterfly net and a sharpened hatpin with equal aplomb, and with her last connection to England gone, she intends to embark upon the journey of a lifetime.

But fate has other plans, as Veronica discovers when she thwarts her own abduction with the help of an enigmatic German baron who has ties to her mysterious past. Promising to reveal in time what he knows of the plot against her, the baron offers her temporary sanctuary in the care of his friend Stoker, a reclusive natural historian as intriguing as he is bad-tempered. But before the baron can deliver on his tantalizing vow to reveal the secrets he has concealed for decades, he is found murdered. Suddenly Veronica and Stoker are forced to go on the run from an elusive assailant as wary partners in search of the villainous truth.

The Reason

I enjoy historical fiction and mysteries with female detectives at the helm, so of course I had to try this one.

The Quotes

“I abhorred weakness of any kind but most particularly in my tea.”

“That is the hallmark of a good partnership, you know – when one partner sees the forest and the other studies the trees.”

“One cannot innovate new improvements without understanding old failures.”

“I have often regretted my speech, never my silence.”

The Characters

I want to like Veronica and Stoker, but I don’t think that they are likeable characters and I can’t decide if that’s by design. Veronica is outspoken, intelligent, and courageous, and she appears cool and calm on the outside, but then there are moments when she seems completely foolish and immature. I feel like I would’ve thought it brilliant if it was by design and Veronica was able to see her faults and own to them, but it doesn’t seem that way.

My Thoughts

This was a really great story and I loved how smart it was. I also really loved how the story unfolded and the secrets that were revealed. It was a little slow at the middle, and I’m not completely sure the traveling show part was necessary at all except as a plot point for the “fake dating”, but it got really intense near the end.

My Feels

I’m missing the feels for this book. I like the story and the idea. I love the way the information was deduced, I love the little tidbits of knowledge about butterflies and other stuff Veronica and Stoker were well-versed in. And while I’m not completely in love with Veronica and Stoker, I thought they were interesting characters. I just don’t like them enough to continue with the series.

My Rating

3/5 stars. This is a solid good book. Just not for me.

Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?