An Enteretaining Escape
Dollycas's Thoughts
Crossing the Atlantic from Southampton to New York Jane and Mr. Redvers are working together on an assignment to identify a pair of German spies traveling with them to America. To do so, they are traveling as husband and wife, "The Wunderlys", and sharing a stateroom. Jane wants to prove she is a worthy asset as an investigator while trying not to fall hard for Redvers' charms.
Shortly after the voyage begins, a wealthy socialite Vanessa FitzSimmons asks for help finding her new husband. She married Miles Van de Meter in Monte Carlo but she hasn't seen him since they boarded and now his luggage is missing too. Redvers and the captain feel she is just looking for attention and that there is no husband, but Jane saw her and a man board together. Can she help Vanessa find her husband and flush out two German spies? She has until the ship pulls into New York to find out.
___
Jane Wudderly is a strong intelligent woman who doesn't back down. She and Redvers make a great team. They are the only characters that return from previous books and I must say I liked that. We get to know more details about Redvers past and that enabled their personal relationship to move forward as did sharing a stateroom. Their interactions didn't always feel right though and I didn't like that they investigated many times on their own only coming together to share information and make plans for their next steps. I also didn't like that Jane doubted herself so much, she has great instincts and needed to follow them.
Several new characters were introduced, other passengers, crew, and the captain. Each was uniquely created and their actions reflected the time period very well. One woman was really over the top and I was happy to see that Revers and Jane could escape from the woman and her party a few times.
I enjoyed the setting of the ship. The author sets the scenes excellently from Jane sitting on the chilly deck under the blankets, to the formal dining room and ballroom, to Jane and Redvers stateroom, and more. It was very easy to envision everything.
The mysteries were very interesting. Jane and Redvers had a great plan to uncover the spies and messages received from Redver's contacts helped firm up their theories. The missing husband was a little more complicated and put more people at risk including a crewmate working with "The Wunderlys". The captain was also doing something shady which added to the intrigue. All were well-plotted and written. I was surprised that I was right about one of the mysteries early on. My amateur sleuth skills ferreted out a clue that could have easily been discounted but I hung on to it tightly. Another had my jaw dropping when the final scenes played out.
Danger on the Atlantic is a very enjoyable addition to this series. The characters are well-crafted and the mysteries are captivating. Ms. Neubauer adds humor with a precise hand and captures the time period nicely. I am looking forward to reading Intrigue in Istanbul soon. It sounds like Jane is going to have her hands full.Ã?
