His Lordship's Return His Lordship’s Mysteries #3
Historical Romance, Regency Romance, Gay Romance
Balcarres Books LLC
August 23, 2022
Kindle
225
Amazon
For Dominick and Alfie, it feels like they've only just settled into life at Balcarres House when an urgent letter from an old friend has them racing back to London. However, they're not returning to Alfie's swirling ton of money and nobility, but to the dark underside of the city that Dominick knows all too well.
In a desperate race against time, they'll have to walk streets that Alfie barely remembers and Dominick hoped to forget. Their return brings up terrors better left in the past and for one of them, the strain may be too much to bear.
Under the shadow of the workhouse, they'll have to act quickly to stop a killer or the lives lost may be their own.
Reviewed by Linda Tonis
Member of the Paranormal Romance Guild Review Team
This was the first book in the series that I read and happily it was a wonderful read that I loved. I know that I probably missed a lot not having read book one and two, but the author managed to keep me updated as to what happened previously.
Dominick (Nick) and Alfie have settled into life at Balcarres House in Scotland, and everything is good other than the food made by the housemaid they recruited to take over the kitchen. Alfie’s housekeeper and amazing cook, Mrs. Hirkin remains in London. A letter from Mrs. Hirkin informing Alfie that her husband is very ill is the only thing that would bring Alfie and Nick back to London, a place filled with bad memories. Mrs. Hirkin was like a mother to Alfie, so he is determined to find a good doctor to treat her husband unfortunately by the time they arrived in London Mr. Hirkin had died. Alfie is filled with guilt, blaming himself for not doing more.
Alfie and Nick never expected to get involved with murders or to have to relive their past. Arriving at Mrs. Hirkin they accompany her to her husband’s funeral along with their granddaughter Agnes who is pregnant out of wedlock. Once back home they find Agnes’s fiancé Larry dead. Determined to find who murdered Larry to give Agnes and Mrs. Hirkin closure means returning to the place where Nick was known as Nick Tripper, a bare-knuckle-boxer and prostitute and not the distinguished gentleman now known as Dominick Trent.
To find the killer Nick finds himself returning to his old haunts and the memories are very painful. Although Alfie grew up with Nick in the same workhouse Dominick decided to give his opportunity of being adopted by an Earl to Alfie, saving him from the life Nick had to live. Nick didn’t have much difficulty fitting in with those from his past and discovered the existence of a club the Box Club where men and women are paying dues and guaranteed burial with the other members of the club attending, which is mandatory.
Larry is not the only one murdered, apparently there are many more and they all lead back to the Box Club. Alfie follows Nick into danger rather than be left behind worrying and the danger is very real and their search for a killer could lead to their own deaths. Of course, I was trying to figure out the killer, but I was not even close.
I loved this book and Alfie and Dominick and although I didn’t read the first two books, I am happy I found this series and look forward to more.