Death in the Bavarian Mountains!

Death by Misadventure (Lady Emily Mystery #18) by Tasha Alexander     

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It’s 1906. Colin and Emily Hargreaves have been invited to the opening of Baroness Ursula von Düchtel’s striking new villa in the mountains of Bavaria near Schloss Neuschwanstein, “mad” King Ludwig’s castle and retreat. They’d been invited through Emily’s friend Cécile du Lac.

Baroness Ursula is an extensive collector of art which she’ll house in this fascinating building. The collection is large enough to have had her hire a curator to catalogue all the treasures. Emily as a connoisseur and modest collector is entranced by the Baroness’s works.

Running alongside this story, beginning in 1868, is that of King Ludwig and his companions, including Niels von Schön.

Niels’ father, a baron, forces Niels into marriage with a woman Niels continues to refer to as the Valkyrie. The first time he sees her is in front of the Bishop. 

The lives of these three, Ludwig, Niels and the Valkyrie, will meld into that of drama and loss, in a searingly distressing way. A story that will hold significance for the now.

However in Colin and Emily’s times it appears someone is trying to kill Kaspar Allerspach, the Baroness’s boor of a son-in-law.

The awful mystery of who the murderer is, is finally revealed, but not without heartbreak and despair.

A somewhat dark and sobering addition to this absorbing series.

A St. Martin’s Press ARC via NetGalley.                                              

Many thanks to the author and publisher.