If you're interested in the period start with the beginning of the series, it is excellent. Once again Hambly puts Benjamin in harm's way, and not just him this time, but all his relatives and his children. I thought Veryl was a bit too naive, you'd think he would have learned a thing or two considering the numbers of scheming female relatives around him, but it worked for the plot. (Actually, now that I think about it, it still happens today...) Hambly gives such a detailed view of the society of the time you are really immersed in it. The descriptions of the landscape, the towns, the river and especially the weather contribute to the excellent sense of place. The supporting characters have smaller parts this time - we don't see Shaw at all, and Hannibal and Rose are sent out of danger for most of the book. While I still think it's a little odd in a book like this for Olympe to have such accurate supernatural powers, I do like how voodoo is believed by most even if they won't admit it. I didn't guess the murderer although the clues were there. Another good entry, and there are at least two more in the series as I write this.