London, 1814. In one of the coldest winters ever is the body of a woman found in the snow by no other than Hero, the wife of Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin. She recognizes the woman as Jane Ambrose, a piano teacher to Princess Charlotte, the only child of the Prince Regent. Since Jane is connected to the royal house the investigation quickly shut down, but Sebastian and Hero will not let the murderer get away. The question is who would want to kill a piano teacher?

WHY KILL THE INNOCENT is book thirteen in the Sebastian St. Cyr series and Sebastian is once again trying to solve a mysterious murder. This time the murder investigation will take him straight to the royal family, or at least part of the royal family. I must say the Prince Regent has quite a dysfunctional family, but he's all to blame for that in the way he's treating his wife and daughter. As for poor Jane Ambrose, the last week in her life was pretty eventful and the suspect list grows as the story progresses.

As usual, C.S. Harris writes a book that is both well-written and well researched. This was one of the coldest winters ever and many froze to death all while the Prince Regent lived a luxurious life. There is one scene in this book that particularly moved me and that was the hanging of a young girl. It's the kind of scene that stays one after you have finished the book.

WHY KILL THE INNOCENT is a fabulous book and the whole series is a must read if you like historical mystery books. Sebastian and Hero have come a long way since the first book and there is still some thread of mystery surrounding Sebastian that I'm waiting to be addressed. If you have read the books you know what I mean, if you have not yet read the books, well, then you're in for a treat!

Book Summary

A brutal murder draws nobleman Sebastian St. Cyr into the tangled web of the British royal court in this gripping historical mystery from the national bestselling author of Where the Dead Lie.

London, 1814. As a cruel winter holds the city in its icy grip, the bloody body of a beautiful young musician is found half-buried in a snowdrift. Jane Ambrose's ties to Princess Charlotte, the only child of the Prince Regent and heir presumptive to the throne, panic the palace, which moves quickly to shut down any investigation into the death of the talented pianist. But Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, and his wife Hero refuse to allow Jane's murderer to escape justice.

Untangling the secrets of Jane's world leads Sebastian into a maze of dangerous treachery where each player has his or her own unsavory agenda and no one can be trusted. As the Thames freezes over and the people of London pour onto the ice for a Frost Fair, Sebastian and Hero find their investigation circling back to the palace and building to a chilling crescendo of deceit and death . . .