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Type of bind: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
Format: Bargain Price
Label: NAL Hardcover
Manufacturer: NAL Hardcover
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 352
Printing Date: November 06, 2007
Publishing house: NAL Hardcover
Sale Popularity Level: 9704
Studio: NAL Hardcover
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Product Description:
It's September 1811, and someone is killing the wealthy young sons of London's most prominent families. Partially butchered, with strange objects stuffed into their mouths, their bodies are found dumped in public places at dawn. When the grisly remains of Alfred, Lord Stanton's eldest son are discovered in the Old Palace Yard beside the House of Lords, the local magistrate turns to Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, for help.
Ranging from the gritty world of Thames-side docks to the luxurious drawing rooms of Mayfair, Sebastian finds himself confronting his most puzzling--and disturbing--case yet. With the help of his trusted allies--young servant Tom, Irish doctor Paul Gibson, and his lover Kat Boleyn--Sebastian struggles to decipher a cryptic set of clues that link the scion of a banking family to the son of a humble Kentish vicar. For as one killing follows another, Sebastian discovers he is confronting a murderer with both a method and a purpose to his ritualized killings, and that the key to it all may lie in the enigmatic stanzas of a haunting poem...and in a secret so dangerous that men are willing to sacrifice their own children to keep the truth from becoming known.
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Rated by buyers 
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There's lot going on in this installment of the Sebastian St. Cyr mysteries. Other reviewers cover the plot nicely, but I can't emphasize enough that this one is layer upon layer of relationsips, deceit, and complications. There are some surprising twists, which will impact future installments. As with the previous efforts by Harris, this delivers a tight, complex yet not obtuse mystery plot with enough side plots to bring the characters to life.
Rated by buyers 
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I have been loving these Sebastian St. Cyr mysteries. The characters are interesting, sympathetic and believable. The setting, England during the Regency, is detailed and evocative. I find the language satisfyingly reminiscent of Jane Austen. The plots are massively complex. I can always sus out some of it, but it's never obvious. I haven't much patience with authors like Anne Perry, because the plot seems obvious after fifty pages. That is certainly not the case here. I didn't enjoy this one quite as much as the very first two, however. It's particularly grisly and I'm beginning to find Sebastian's inability to sort out his love life a little tedious. Despite this, I look forward eagerly to reading the fourth book. Even the weakest link in this series beats most of the mysteries out there.
Rated by buyers -
I usually avoid mystery books and read romance/dramas, but this book has opened my eyes. This story was so well written and intrigueing that I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Rated by buyers -
I had "What Angels Fear" in my TBR stack for months before I picked it up. Now I am three St. Cyr books in, and just finished Why Mermaids Sing. In this book the background deceptions in Sebastian St. Cyr's own family, hinted at in previous books, become a little clearer, while in the foreground is a crackling good mystery with the rules of the survival at sea, ultimate retribution, and a surprise ending. The missing 5th star is due the the unsatisfactory (to me) conclusion between St. Cyr and Kat Boleyn. The author allows us to know a fact that the main characters do not.
Rated by buyers -
C. S. Harris's very first Sebastian St. Cyr mystery, What Angel's Fear, was the book that Kindle helped me to discover. Interesting characters, a plot that moves at a cracking pace and a prose style that propels the story along - I was in heaven. Some very first in a series books are weighed down by exposition - not What Angel's Fear. Others are so clearly a labor of many years that the following books can't help but be lesser works - thankfully, that's not the case for Why Mermaids Sing. If you loved the very first two books of this series, you'll love this one.
The mystery is compelling in its own right, the supporting characters continue to interest without becoming either obnoxious or unwieldy, and Harris ties up a few multi-book plotlines while carefully laying the groundwork for more. There is one plot point that comes a bit out of left field but Harris keeps things moving at the right pace and didn't overdo it so what would have creaked in another author's hands plays decently here. Yes, Harris is clearly setting things up for more obstacles for her main characters but that's par for the course in many a mystery series.
This is a book to lose yourself in and while the central mystery is a tad gruesome (Harris, again, doesn't overdo the details, letting a few pointed hints convey the horror) it's also fun to read. If you love historical mysteries check out this series, but start from the beginning!
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