Portrait of Peril: A Victorian Mystery

Sarah Bain, a crime scene photographer, is finally marrying Detective Sergeant Thomas Barrett. But will a murder investigation threaten their marriage before it even gets started? A dead man is discovered in the crypt of the church where their nuptials just took place. Sarah recognizes him as a fellow photographer with whom she had previously done business. Rumors circulate that a ghost is the murderer. As the case unfolds Sarah finds herself at odds with the man she thought she knew and secrets that are revealed, but who the murderer is, is an even greater mystery. S. Bain Photographer and Company are led into the underworld of spiritualists and fraud as they work to solve this case.

This is the fifth installment of the Sarah Bain Victorian Mystery series, and it does not disappoint. A great stand-alone novel with an ending that is left open for the next book, but also has a satisfying resolution for the case at hand. I love the characters in this series and the twists and turns that kept me guessing until the end. Also, the evolution of the characters’ relationships and the internal conflicts that Sarah endured was well written. I would recommend this series to anyone who likes historical mysteries.