A Royal Affair is another solid and enjoyable installment in the Sparks and Bainbridge mystery series by the pseudonymous Allison Montclair. I enjoyed the first book in the series sufficiently to leap at a chance to get my hands on a digital advanced copy of this book, and was so excited to be approved. And, despite having a terrible time getting any reading done mid-pandemic, A Royal Affair was one of the few books I was able to pick up and read all the way through in just a few days. It transported me to a different place and era, one to which I’ve never given much consideration, with interesting and often likable characters. And the writing is a masterclass on how to catch the reader up with information from the first book without being obvious, clunky, or boring.
I will admit that was initially disappointed when I saw that this next book in the series dealt with the royal family, because I thought that might detract from the story for me. Real history and famous individuals wove into fictional narratives often distract me from the focus of the story, because I’m trying to parse out what is true and if the real people would act as they were written. I’m happy to say this worked out better in this book than I expected, partly because of minimal interaction with actual famous royals. It’s still not my favorite plot, especially since the prince they’re tasked to fictionally investigate turned out to be a rotten husband and father in real life, so it’s difficult to root for him. But it didn’t distract me sufficiently from the story to diminish my enjoyment, and during a difficult time, when I wasn’t able to read much, that was quite an accomplishment. And I did enjoy seeing a bit of how the Windsor’s household worked behind the scenes.
What I prefer about this series, over any royal drama though, is learning more about and getting a feeling for the characters’ WWII and post-WWII experiences. Sparks and Bainbridge, with their remarkably different lives and social circles, have had significantly different experiences of both eras, and their extended circle, including clients, broaden that perspective even more, from the bellowing female client deafened by her time as an “Ack-Ack Girl” shooting artillery at planes during the War, to Gwen’s increasing confidence and recovering mental health, to Sparks’ haunting secrets from the War, her resulting PTSD and loss of faith, and the relationships that sustained her through that time into her present. There’s also the suggestion of burgeoning romantic relationships for both of the main characters, which I enjoy, but also appreciate that they are not the focus of the story.
There are some excellent lines in this book, snappy dialogue and witty turns of phrase. Gwen, for instance, speaking of her mental health issues to a relative, says, “And now I quite like myself again. I’ve grown quite fond of me, in fact. I’ve decided that I’m going to stick with me for the long haul.” Or the time Sparks asks Gwen what they should do, since she’s “the one with the moral compass.” When Gwen protests, Sparks asks, “Have you recently become immoral without letting me know?”
This is very much a book about white London at the time. I don’t remember any ethnic diversity.
There is at least socioeconomic diversity represented, strong feminist themes, and acknowledgement throughout of the different ways disability manifests itself in the lives of survivors of trauma like WWII. There was also some implication of LGBTQ+ relationships, I believe. Not an extremely diverse book, but thoughtful for what it is.
I really have no excuse for having taken more than six months to review one of the “hero books” that got me through the pandemic summer of 2020, other than that my reviewing abilities recovered even more slowly that my reading ability. And trying to review a book this long after the fact, even with my Kindle notes, will never fully do it justice. So the best I can say is that I’m grateful I had it, to keep me reading, even just for a few days, that I enjoyed it, and that I look forward to the next installation in this series, whenever it becomes available. The historical and cultural elements of the story were fascinating, the mystery was engaging, and the characters were complex and life-like, as well as generally likeable. Thank you to #NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for granting me a free digital advanced copy of #ARoyalAffair to enjoy and review.
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