Love and Death Among the Cheetahs

Set in 1935, bestseller Bowen’s disappointing 13th Royal Spyness mystery (after 2018’s Four Funerals and Maybe a Wedding) finds Lady Georgiana Rannoch, a distant relative of the royal family, finally married to Darcy O’Mara, who performs shadowy work on behalf of the British government. After an enjoyable honeymoon in England, Darcy reveals plans to extend the post-wedding celebration in Kenya, where he has been asked, as he admits on arrival, to find the jewel thief responsible for “several daring and spectacular burglaries in London” targeting high society. The community of expats provides a pool of suspects. Darcy’s investigation takes a more serious turn when he and Georgiana come across a body that has been mauled by wild animals, which he believes is that of a murder victim. Much of the humor in previous volumes originated with Georgiana’s inept and clumsy maid, Queenie, who remains offstage. As in her Molly Murphy series, Bowen struggles to transition her lead into married life without detracting from what made that lead memorable. Fans will hope for a return to form next time. [em]Agent: Meg Ruley, Jane Rotrosen Agency. (Aug.) [/em]