Secrets in the Stones

A Dr. Thomas Silkstone Mystery, Book 6

By: Tessa Harris

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Length: 10 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's summary

Within the mysteries of the body, especially those who have been murdered, 18th-century anatomist Dr. Thomas Silkstone specializes in uncovering the telltale clues that lead toward justice.

Newly released from the notorious asylum known as Bedlam, Lady Lydia Farrell finds herself in an equally terrifying position - as a murder suspect - when she stumbles upon the mutilated body of Sir Montagu Malthus in his study at Boughton Hall.

Meanwhile, Dr. Thomas Silkstone has been injured in a duel with a man who may or may not have committed the grisly deed of which Lydia is accused. Despite his injury, Thomas hopes to clear his beloved's good name by conducting a postmortem on the victim. With a bit of detective work, he learns that Montagu's throat was slit by no ordinary blade, rather a ceremonial Sikh dagger from India that may be connected to the fabled lost mines of Golconda.

From the mysterious disappearance of a cursed diamond buried with Lydia's dead husband to the undying legend of a hidden treasure map, Thomas must follow a trail of foreign dignitaries, royal agents, and even more victims to unveil the sinister and shocking secrets in the stones.

©2016 Tessa Harris (P)2016 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Favorite narrator

Best narrator, Simon Vance. Beautifully writing. Incredibly well- researched historical fiction. Love this series. Listened sttaight through

exceptional

I enjoyed following her characters and felt like I was given an added bonus when she gave historical references at the end. very nicely done.

finally

Loved the many twists and turns .
ALso the smokey atmosphere of this story kept me reading and unable to "put it down." The two climaxes took my breath away. The narrator carried the story SO WELL. His ability to mimic different people kept the story moving.

As engaging as the other books in this series

Good characterizations, strong character development, a compelling story. Story unfolds nicely. Excellent narration. I've enjoyed every Thomas Silkstone book I've listened to.

Tied up in a Neat Bow

If you were frustrated by the past books- this one at least gives you some closure

Excellent, satisfying conclusion to the series.

Superb reader-performer, for all six books. A well written murder mystery, romance, and whodunit. Don't stress trying to figure it all out, tho, because while you may actually GUESS correctly at who the murderer really is this time as I did, one really doesn't have the key information to understand why until very close to the end; & by then it's just a footrace to the conclusion. I thoroughly enjoyed the story arc of all six novels from start to finish, for, despite the murders which are the excuse for the tale, it remains lighter fare than my usual reading diet. I only wish the author were still with us to pen a few more.

Saw This One Coming a Mile Away

I’m still committed to this series as I’m 5 books in BUT seriously unhappy about this personality transformation in Lydia who is now in Bedlam (yes, we all that one coming didn’t we?) Lydia has been put through the ringer as a character, love interest, and mother. She went from a strong, independent, intelligent woman to well BEDLAM. That would be bad enough but the personality transplant is just too much for me. As with every book in the series we are faced with a moral quandary of Victorian England—in this case, the ability of men to “put away” an inconvenient women. Inconvenient would be all the traits I LOVED about Lydia- intelligent, independent and strong willed. We get an education on the Court/Legal system and the enclosure act of Victorian England.
A star was lost because of this too radical of a personality change in an important character.

TBH it almost lost another star because it’s ends in a total cliffhanger AGAIN. But 5 books in—it’s more my bad for expecting anything different. I’m still invested in Thomas Silkstone…so onto book 6!

Narrator is as always excellent.

Finally

All I can say to the author is, "About time!"
Please if there are future Dr. Thomas Silkstone novels, please make Lydia's character not so silly and whiny.

Satisfying End to Series BRAVO!

Thank goodness! The author pulled it out at the last minute with the last book in the series, and those of us who dreaded we might face another disappointment, can rest at ease, Book Six is on par with the books at the beginning of the series. Plenty of twists and turns, not the least of which is Lady Lydia finding the slashed (nearly beheaded) body of Sir Montagu Malthus in the study. Seldom have I been so elated 😅 at such a gruesome death, but this one did it for me. I did hate that Lady Lydia became a suspect, but left that to Silkstone to untangle. Mysteries going back to Lydia's dead husband (who was no prize, after all) gave the authorities and Dr. Silkstone plenty of work to do. Very interesting to listen to all the ins and outs of the huge diamond from India that was buried with Lydia's husband, and all the nefarious characters connected to it. The duel between Silkstone and the former estate manager Nicholas Lupton, was another part that got my heart racing. Excellent conclusion to the series.

outdated love stories

The mysteries in each novel were excellent.
The dialogue between the characters as they considered all their options brilliant.
The addition of actual historical events being placed in this fiction wonderful.

I understand that the English nobility used to regard women as these delicate creatures that constantly needed rescuing and couldn't have an intelligent thought to save their life.
However, I I disagree with the choices written for Lydia's character to move the plot along. She's written as such, a daft idiot. My suspension of belief was thwarted every time the female heroine made another stupid decision.