Novella Review: A Voyage of Vengeance by Sarah E. Burr (Court of Mysteries #3)

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Great characters in a good mystery

Cons: Stories appears to wander a bit at the beginning

The Bottom Line:

Sailing on a ship

Jax finds another myst’ry

In fun novella

Sailing with a Killer

I’ve reached the third novella in the Court of Mysteries series.  This is also the last novella before the series changes to full novels.  A Voyage of Vengeance is another read that pulled me into another world.

These stories are set in a slightly fantastical world.  What do I mean by that?  We’ve heard of none of the countries or kingdoms involved and they live in a Medieval type world.  But, we aren’t relying on magic or anything like that.  There aren’t even any references to mythological creates in this one.  The focus, as always, is on the mystery and characters, so if you are looking for a mystery with a slightly different setting, this is a series to check out.

This book finds Duchess Jacqueline Arienta Xavier, aka Jax, joining the maiden voyage of the Rose of the Sea, a luxury sailing ship.  The voyage coincides with the birthday of her dear friend Lady Carriena, the future ruler of Isla DeLacqua, an ally of Jax’s own kingdom of Saphire.

When Jax arrives with her usual attendants, she is surprised to find the odd assortment of people who will also be on the voyage.  It’s more about the politics for Isla DeLacqua than it is a true birthday celebration.  However, Jax is prepared to make the best of it for her friend until odd things start happening around the ship.  Can Jax figure out what is going on?

We have a core group of characters in these stories, and it makes sense that all of them would be traveling with Jax.  And I’m glad to see that because I love them all.  I also love seeing how their relationships are continuing to grow as the stories unfold.  It just great spending time with them.

It was also nice to see that the events of the previous stories are impacting our characters as they investigate their newest case.  This does mean this story comes with a bit of a spoiler warning.  They are minor, but still, if you want to go in completely unspoiled, read the two earlier stories first.

I was a little worried when we met the new characters, aka the suspects, in a group scene since I often find that makes it hard for me to remember them as the story unfolds.  Yes, I did have to work on it, but I found I was able to remember who they all were as the story unfolded.  They are different enough, that it really helped.

The mystery felt a little slow in the beginning, probably because I wasn’t seeing how what was happening was going to be important to the story.  But by the time we got to the logical climax, I was impressed once again with the plotting.  And this was a plot appropriate for a novella.  What do I mean by that?  I didn’t feel like the ending was rushed and we got some nice twists along the way without feeling like they were crammed in either.

I’m still working my way through the audio versions I won several months ago.  These are narrated by Melissa Green, and she makes them fun.

I’m anxious to see how this series translates to full novels.  I’m also looking to spending more time with these characters when I do pick up the next story.  For those just starting the series, A Voyage of Vengeance is another short introduction they will enjoy.

Sail away with the rest of the Court of Mysteries stories.