This time the book seemed to me to be a bit fumbling like its main protagonist, who did not know which way to go looking for the culprit. The only thing that gives me hope for the future is the turn the relationship between Alexi and Paul has taken. A book that is almost an interlude, I hope toward some new arc that is worth following as it has been so far.

Stavolta il libro mi é sembrato un po' brancolante come il suo protagonista principale, che non sapeva da che parte mettersi a cercare il colpevole. L'unica cosa che mi fa ben sperare per il futuro é la piega presa dalla relazione tra Alexi e Paul. Un libro che é quasi un intermezzo, spero verso qualche nuova arc che valga la pena seguire com'é stato finora.

In this one, Hero is pregnant again while she and Sebastian try to figure out who is killing a few aristocratic sons at the same time Napoleon is marching from Paris to Waterloo. The only things holding back the story from five-stars is the story of Gibson and his morphine is getting old and the tying of Alexi into everything. Both have gone on for too long, but hopefully now that the war's over both those side-stories can move forward.

Review originally posted at https://smexybooks.com/2023/04/review-who-cries-for-the-lost-by-c-s-harris.html

Who Cries for the Lost picks up right after the events of When Blood Lies, Sebastian and Hero are back in London, breathlessly waiting for news from France. Napolean sits on the throne and England is on the verge of war. Sebastian is recovering from his leg injury suffered while in France and is frustrated with the injury at a time when so many young men are poised to join the battlefield. Readers will recognize the buildup to Waterloo.

This book brings back several familiar faces, Gibson, Alexi, and Kat Boleyn. When a body is fished out of the Thames, mutilated and unrecognizable, only one person can identify the body and that’s Alexi Sauvage, Gibson’s lover, and the dead man’s bigamous wife. Sebastian is called in to investigate and as he slowly uncovers Major Miles Sedgewick’s past, he must decipher if his death was because of his secretive dealings on behalf of the government, his lecherous behavior, or something else.

As always, this newest release in a much beloved historical mystery series moves the plot along at a steady clip. Readers discover more of Alexi’s backstory, which has been a mystery up to this point. Her experiences in wartime and what led her to move to London. Gibson is still struggling with his opium addiction, but there seems to be light at the end of that tunnel, with his willingness at the end to let Alexi try some of her experimental therapies.

As Sebastian investigates he quickly realizes that there are more bodies showing up in Gibson’s surgery, and that they may be associated with Miles Sedgewick’s death. He just has to piece together how. It’s a plot with many threads, and it was fascinating watching them all come together as the killer is revealed.

It was nice reconnecting with Kat, although I would like to learn more about her current circumstances and relationships. The little timeouts with Hero and Sebastian are always lovely. Hero does help in this investigation, maybe not as much as in teh previous book, but she remains a constant, steady helpmate and partner.

Who Cries for the Lost is another solid, well-researched installment in this series. Now that Napolean is dethroned once again, and the war is over, I wonder where Sebastian’s story will take him next. Will we learn more about his father? How will Hero’s new pregnancy affect the family and her research? Will Sebastian’s best friend Gibson finally find peace? I look forward to finding out.

Grade- B

This 18th novel in the Sebastian St. Cyr series takes place in the two weeks before Wellington defeated Napoleon at Waterloo in June 1815, so it nicely dovetails in some actual history-- along with the usual murders and wolf-eyed Devlin's masterful deductions and physical prowess. Then, too, in this one his old war injury causes him significant grief and pain, so he isn't depicted as supernatural in any way, despite his feral yellow eyes, extraordinary night vision and acute hearing.

I especially appreciate the author's descriptions of the strength of women in major roles here, particularly as shown in: Devlin's 6-foot tall, "Junoesque" wife Hero (described as not at all beautiful but handsome in a masculine sort of way), who interviews the poor and publishes information designed to make the ton acknowledge their lives, along with Alexi Sauvage, a war-weary, hardened doctor trained in Italy because England doesn't allow women doctors in 1815, Devlin's actress friend Kat Boleyn (his stepfather's natural born daughter) who'd been a spy for Napoleon in hopes of freeing Ireland from Britain's firm grip, and Phoebe, whose daughter is ripped from her arms and disappeared--leading the authorities to charge her with the baby's murder and imprison her to be hanged--as so many women of the day were imprisoned and executed when their babies died of hunger. (Fashion descriptions are incidental but also appreciated.)

Here we glimpse Hero's usefulness to Devlin's investigations, and her progressive humanity:

"'For a man who just lost his dearly beloved younger brother, he strikes me as far more angry than grief-stricken. What do you think?” Hero reached out to take another sip of his brandy. “He does, yes. But in my experience, anger is one of the few emotions most men are comfortable with. So when they feel frustration or anxiety or even grief, it all simply gets translated into anger.” “Oh, really?” said Sebastian. Hero’s eyes crinkled with amusement. “Yes, really.'”

"'There’s a chance that she might agree to receive me,” Hero said thoughtfully. “Not today, surely, but perhaps tomorrow. I wouldn’t say I know her well, but we’ve met each other often enough over the last nine or ten years. And she’s one of those women one might politely describe as ‘socially ambitious.’ ” “I wonder if she’s come to regret her marriage to a mere younger son.” “I’ve no idea. I do know she’s become quite religious of late. And I don’t mean in a quiet, devout way, but in that smug, ostentatious, self-righteous fashion that so often teeters dangerously close to fanaticism.” “Interesting. I’m surprised she fell for a man like Sedgewick.” “Well, he was a very handsome man, and he could be charming. When she first came out it was expected that she would do quite
well; she was pretty enough in a pale, unassuming way, and her dowry was impressive.'"

“'Someone was just telling me that he thinks of evil as the ultimate selfishness—the elevation of one’s own needs and desires above all else.” She considered this a moment, then shook her head. “It’s more than that, I think. It’s a deliberate, conscious rejection of all that is good and right.'”

"'It’s been over a week now, so unless he gave the baby to a woman who had breast milk, it’s surely dead. But I’m still looking, because if I can’t find out what he did with it, they’re going to hang Phoebe for murdering her child.” “You think they will?” “They hang women all the time when their babies are stillborn or simply die in their sleep. Of course they’ll hang Phoebe.” She gave a faint shake of her head. “Although the truth is, I’m not convinced she’s going to survive in that prison long enough to even stand trial.'”

"'Poor Phoebe. She lost her baby, and now the Crown is going to punish her for her poverty and her
powerlessness by taking her life.” She was silent for a moment, her gaze on the fire. “Will it ever change, do you think?” “Perhaps. Although to be honest, I sometimes wonder.” She looked up, meeting his troubled gaze. “So do I.'” (N.B.: with Roe v. Wade, it HAD changed--but is now reverting back again, as women's health care rights are being erased, and now MAGAs are attempting to restrict women's interstate travel and eliminate no-fault divorce laws--men always targeting women to ensure the patriarchy by sheer force of will.)

In this book, I also learned about the island of Cabrera, a little known tragedy deliberately perpetrated by England and then quietly relegated to the backburners of history. After Napoleon's first defeat, when he was exiled to Elba, Spain was due to release 25,000 French soldiers back to France. The British were horrified that these Frenchmen might resurrect an army to reinstate Napoleon, so Britain forced Spain to abandon these men and all their retinue, the camp followers of armies, their women who were wives and/or prostitutes, their children, along with cooks and the rest, to an inhospitable island called Cabrera, where there were no sources of water or food, nor any possibility of establishing food sources, and no shelter from the elements. In the first few months thousands died, and some resorted to cannibalism. It's yet another of Britain's many gross felonies history has left in the dust.
In her afterword, Harris writes: "I have based much of the account here on Denis Smith’s The Prisoners of Cabrera: Napoleon’s Forgotten Soldiers, 1809–1814. It makes for harrowing reading."

As with most murder mysteries, in the end the most unlikely character will prove the villain of the piece, a tradition allowing mystery writers to skirt around finding new plots and twists for something old and reliable. Minus one star for that.

An excellent addition to the series! My only complaint is I wanted it to be longer.