2 Bloggers 1 Series - Veronica Speedwell

 

So Stormi and I are at it again with one of our favorite series. This one has pretty steadily released a new book each year and it's one we always make a point of reading together.  I know Stormi and I looked forward to this one so much so read on to see my thoughts and then  hop over to Stormi's at  Books, Movies, Reviews! Oh My! to see what she thought as well.

TITLE: An Impossible Imposter (Veronica Speedwell #7)

AUTHOR: Deanna Raybourn

PUBLISHER: Berkley Books

PUBLISHING DATE: February 15, 2022

PAGES: 336

SOURCE: D-ARC

FROM GOODREADS: London, 1889. Veronica Speedwell and her natural historian beau Stoker are summoned by Sir Hugo Montgomerie, head of Special Branch. He has a personal request on behalf of his goddaughter, Euphemia Hathaway. After years of traveling the world, her eldest brother, Jonathan, heir to Hathaway Hall, was believed to have been killed in the catastrophic eruption of Krakatoa a few years before.

But now a man matching Jonathan's description and carrying his possessions has arrived at Hathaway Hall with no memory of his identity or where he has been. Could this man truly be Jonathan, back from the dead? Or is he a devious impostor, determined to gain ownership over the family's most valuable possessions--a legendary parure of priceless Rajasthani jewels? It's a delicate situation, and Veronica is Sir Hugo's only hope.

Veronica and Stoker agree to go to Hathaway Hall to covertly investigate the mysterious amnesiac. Veronica is soon shocked to find herself face-to-face with a ghost from her past. To help Sir Hugo discover the truth, she must open doors to her own history that she long believed to be shut for good.

MY THOUGHTS:  This is the 7th book in the series so let's be honest, it's hard to review without giving a lot away.  So I'm really not going to go into much plot detail.  However, let's just say this book frustrated the hell out of me.  

I have been in love with these characters since day one and come on, Stoker is the closest I'd ever come to saying I had a "book boyfriend" because that concept always makes me shake my head.  But in the book, I really wanted to shake Stoker.  This book is filled with technical and scientific stuff around eery turn and my use of the work stuff should tell you I quickly grew tired of it.  If I had to see Stoker lust after his elusive taxidermied thylacine one more time, I might have screamed!  For reference, THIS is a thylacine, aka a Tasmanian Tiger.

And we also learn more about Veronica's past which made me shake my head.  I know there has to be more character development as time the series progresses and it did add some extra substance to the plot, I just wished it hadn't gone in that direction.

Don't get me wrong, I still enjoyed this book to give it 4 stars.  We get to see some of our favorite side characters and get to meet a few more whom I would not be surprised to see pop up again in the future.  And the ending does give us a hint at the direction of the next book which I appreciated.  I also must admit the book probably earned an extra star just because there are some cute dogs in it - surprise surprise.  

I am sure people who love this series will love this book.  I was just a tad disappointed and reading it was a much slower process than the previous installments. Still, a disappointing read with a 4 star rating is still pretty impressive right?

RATING: 4 Paws