Defend and Betray (William Monk Series #3)

by Anne Perry

Overview

After a brilliant military career, esteemed General Thaddeus Carlyon finally meets his death, not in the frenzy of battle but at an elegant London dinner party. His demise appears to be the result of a freak accident, but the general’s beautiful wife, Alexandra, readily confesses that she killed him–a story she clings to even under the threat of the noose.

Investigator William Monk, nurse Hester Latterly, and brilliant Oliver Rathbone, counsel for the defense, work feverishly to break down the wall of silence raised by the accused and her husband’s proud family. With the trial only days away, these there sleuths inch toward the dark and appalling heart of the mystery.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780345513960
Publisher:	Random House Publishing Group
Publication date:	05/26/2009
Series:	William Monk Series , #3
Pages:	464
Sales rank:	363,959
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.90(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Anne Perry was the bestselling author of two acclaimed series set in Victorian England: the William Monk novels and the Charlotte and Thomas Pitt novels. She was also the author of a series featuring Charlotte and Thomas Pitt's son, Daniel, as well as the Elena Standish series; a series of five World War I novels; twenty-one holiday novels; and a historical novel, The Sheen on the Silk, set in the Byzantine Empire. Anne Perry died in 2023.

Hometown:

Portmahomack, Ross-shire, U.K

Date of Birth:

October 28, 1938

Place of Birth:

Blackheath, London England

Website:

http://www.anneperry.net

Read an Excerpt

1
(Continues…)

---

Excerpted from "Defend and Betray"
by .
Copyright © 2009 Anne Perry.
Excerpted by permission of Random House Publishing Group.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

---

Editorial Reviews

Engaging and sharply observed.”—New York Times Book Review

“A richly textured and timeless novel of suspense. Anne Perry’s Victorian England pulsates with life and is peopled with wonderfully memorable characters.”—Faye Kellerman

“Marvelous . . . a totally absorbing novel that completely hooks the reader. The storyline is a heartbreaker, and only the most hardened reader will have a dry eye at the end of this tale.”—Rave Reviews

“In this wonderful novel, master storyteller Anne Perry moves closer to Dickens as she lifts the lace curtain from Victorian society to reveal its shocking secrets.”—Sharyn McCrumb

“Rich period detailing, masterful characterizations, subtle romantic subplots, disturbing flashbacks, and powerful courtroom drama.”—Library Journal

From the Publisher

In Perry's third mystery set in Victorian London, military hero Thaddeus Carlyon falls from the top of a staircase and is impaled on a suit of armor below--an ignoble end to a distinguished career and a definite damper to the dinner party he had been attending. When his death turns out to be a murder, his wife takes sole responsibility and is quickly arrested. But Carlyon's sister believes the widow innocent and enlists the help of her friend Hester Latterly, a nurse, who soon brings in her associates from The Face of a Stranger and A Dangerous Mourning : barrister Oliver Rathbone and troubled former policeman, amnesia victim and dogged investigator Thomas Monk. The quietly feminist Latterly, the gentlemanly Rathbone and the seemingly cold Monk (who discovers hidden aspects of himself as readily as he does clues) advance the narrative in tandem. Unobtrusively creating a richly detailed period atmosphere, Perry leads readers gradually through a case involving Carlyon's traumatized son and vengeful daughter, revealing social and moral nuances in the grand tradition of the Victorian novel--even though the finale relies on a plot device badly overused in current crime fiction. ( Oct. )

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Veteran author Perry offers another wonderful retreat to a rematerialized London of strict but hypocritical mores viewed through the eyes of sensitive and intelligent protagonists. A proud nurse and a brilliant lawyer team up with former policeman William Monk to defend a sympathetic upper-class woman who confesses to murdering her much-respected husband in a fit of jealousy. Rich period detailing, masterful characterization, subtle romantic subplots, disturbing flashbacks, and powerful courtroom drama recommend this to all fiction collections. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 6/15/92.

Library Journal

YA-- Professional lawyer, private investigator, and amateur sleuth unite to investigate not ``whodunit'' but why. Mrs. Carlyon has confessed to murdering her husband, the General Schwartzkopf of London society in 1857; her friends realize that the motive must have been significant for such a mild-mannered lady to have committed the deed. Halfway through the book, they learn her reason, but then must find admissible evidence to prove it in court. There are many characters in the story, differentiated by personality traits within a family or by rigid class structure. The latter is especially evident in the speech patterns. Because there is so much dialogue, the pacing is rapid. Readers discover much about the condition of women in Victorian England, i.e., as the husband's pawn with no rights or property of her own. Inspector Monk was introduced in an earlier novel; a secondary mystery relating to his amnesia is disappointing as it builds and then fizzles out. YAs will identify more with Hester, the sleuth. Enlightening historical fiction/mystery. --Claudia Moore, W. T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, VA

School Library Journal

Victorian London society is shocked by the bizarre killing of General Thaddeus Carlyon during a dinner party at the elegant home of Maxim and Louisa Furnival. Even more shocking is the admission of Alexandra, the General's wife, that she had murdered him in a jealous rage. Meanwhile, Carlyon's sister Edith is convinced that Alexandra had another motive, one powerful enough to save her from the gallows. She enlists the help of stalwart friend Hester Latterly, who brings into the case famed lawyer Oliver Rathbone and ex-police officer Thomas Monk (The Face of a Stranger, A Dangerous Mourning). Together, they delicately probe the lives of the Carlyon family—Thaddeus's father, a retired colonel; his daughter; forbidding mother Felicia; high-strung daughter Isabella, and young son Cassian. The uncovering of Alexandra's secret is slowed by repetitious interviews, constant underlining of the period social mores, and Monk's tortuous exploration of his own past, lost to amnesia after an accident some time back. But the pace quickens as Alexandra's trial draws near, and the story ends in a courtroom drama loaded with vigor, tension, and poignancy—ample reward for the patient reader. Overall: another winner in this fine series.

Kirkus Reviews

Perry’s third entry in her Inspector Monk/Hester Latterly series (set in 1850’s London) finds the pair investigating the murder of a military hero. His wife has freely confessed, but there’s more to this tragedy than surface appearances indicate. Davina Porter’s narration employs a variety of accents (of geography, as well as social class) and is as richly textured and complex as Perry’s engrossing story. Perry’s stories immerse the reader in the period, and Porter enhances this experience through her attention to vocal characterization. Listeners looking for detailed plotting, authentic period detail and superb narration will find it all here. M.A.M. Winner of AUDIOFILE Earphones Award ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine

OCT 96 - AudioFile