Lineage Most Lethal

By: S. C. Perkins

Narrated by: Madeline Maby

Length: 10 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's summary

In Lineage Most Lethal, the captivating second mystery in the Ancestry Detective series, Texas genealogist Lucy Lancaster grapples with a mystery rooted in World War II and espionage.

It's the week before New Year's Eve, and genealogist Lucy Lancaster is ready to mix work and play at the beautiful Hotel Sutton, enjoying herself while finalizing the presentation for her latest client, hotel heiress Pippa Sutton.

Freshly arrived at the hotel - and determined not to think about Special Agent Ben Turner, who went radio silent on her after one date - Lucy is stopped in her tracks when a strange man comes staggering toward her. She barely has time to notice his weak, sweaty appearance before he presses a classic Montblanc pen onto her hand, gasps, “Keep them safe”, and collapses at her feet, dead.

When Lucy shows the fountain pen to her grandfather, an avid collector and World War II veteran, she’s in for another shock. Not only does Grandpa recognize the Montblanc, he also reveals a secret: He was an Allied spy during the war, and the pen is both a message regarding one of his wartime missions and the key to reading a microdot left by the dead man.

On the microdot is a series of ciphers, some decrypted to form names. Could they be the descendants of Grandpa’s fellow spies? When two from the list end up murdered - including the chef at the Hotel Sutton - and Grandpa’s life is put in jeopardy, Lucy’s sure she’s right. And with Lucy’s and Pippa’s names possibly on the list, too, she’s got to uncover the past to protect those in the present.

With a secret Allied mission, old grievances, and traitors hiding behind every corner, Lucy must use her research skills to trace the list’s World War II ancestors and connect the dots to find a killer in their midst - a killer who’s determined to make sure some lineages end once and for all.

©2020 Stephanie C. Perkins (P)2020 Recorded Books

WW2 Mystery in the Present

Lineage Most Lethal by S.C. Perkins
I greatly enjoyed Perkins’s first book, Murder Once Removed so was happy to see a sequel out. Genealogist Lucy discovers that her grandfather worked in intelligence during World War II, and something from the past has reached into the present to cause the descendants of certain agents from the OSS (Office of Strategic Services), precursor to the CIA, to be in danger. What follows is a set of murders, and plenty of intrigue.

I like Perkins’s angle in making the protagonist a genealogist. This gives listeners an entree into the past, this time related to World War II. The mystery is fascinating and the book well-written.

The audiobook, narrated by Madeline Maby, is fun and well narrated. The only problem is that in at least two places, the recording repeats a line in each spot, making for a less than fully professional recording.

This audiobook gets 5 stars from me!

I LOVE LUCY

LOVED THIS BOOK! SOME HISTORY, SOME GENEALOGY, SOME ESPIONAGE, SOME MURDER, BUT LOTS OF LOVE AND LAUGHTER, AS WELL. LUCY IS AN INTELLIGENT CHARACTER, BUT ONE TO WHOM I CAN RELATE. I ENJOY HER RELATIONSHIPS WITH HER FRIENDS, AND I ADORE HER GRANDFATHER. THE TRUE TRAGEDY IS I FINISHED THE BOOK IN A DAY AND NOW MUST WAIT FOR THE NEXT.

More Genealogy Fun

Another relaxing story, good characters, I did have the villain nailed pretty early in the story.
One more in the series will see if I enjoy it.

This was horrible

The plot wasn't remotely believable. Agent Orange was not used in WWII. The fact that so many descendants of some WWII spies happened to have just ended up in the same place was asinine. The narrator turned bad dialog into something painful to listen to.

Pretty Good

Okay, I like this book even though the plot is a bit ridiculous. It's interesting and the plot is entertaining and over the top. However, Perkins does everything she can to dustract the audience and drag out the story. When grandpa admits to having information about the pen, he can't talk until they get inside the condo. The car isn't safe. When they get inside the condo, they spend too much time talking about the cat and how grandpa can do magic. Also, I seriously doubt that grandpa would a ssd pay at 19. It's really ridiculous. However, I did enjoy the book enough to finish it.