Perhaps that impacted the quality of this story? I think I recall this book was much delayed by other projects. Where is the crackle and snap they had in the prior books? There are appearances by major characters from Parasol, but they are flatly drawn and wan. Rue is just so unflappable, you always know it will work out. The situations are as outrageous as the other series, but lacking any sense of danger or dread. Rue and Primrose have much less of the humor and dry wit that made Sophronia and Alexia so fun. Primrose is Dimity, as a more self-possessed adult. Percy is a doppelgänger for brother George of the Finishing School series and Quensel comes across as a blend of Soots and Felix. There was a some character "recycling", where people from other books turned up with new names here. E.g., Skipping the send off party was inconsistent with the obsession with etiquette and was just an awkward excuse for the convenient vehicle of the characters' ignorance of their situation.Ĭharacters were less intriguing in this book than I expect from this author. The plot starts out as muddled over some mysterious tea deal, with much cross purposes tossed in, interrupting the flow of the story. I kept putting the book down every dozen pages. I'm a big fan of the Parasol and Finishing School books, but I was bored with Prudence, sadly.
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