Golden Cargoes by Fiona Buckley

Golden Cargoes
by Fiona Buckley

ISBN-13: 9781448309221
Hardcover: 256 pages
Publisher: Severn House
Released: August 2nd 2022

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
May 1589. Being the queen's half-sister and occasional secret agent, can take its toll, which is why Ursula Stannard is looking forward to the simple pleasure of attending the wedding of her tenant's daughter. But on arrival, Arabella the bride-to-be is refusing to marry her intended. Ursula tries to reason with Arabella on behalf of her mother, Joan Mercer, but she senses all is not well with her betrothed, or within the Mercer household. The family have gold and jewels beyond their means, and Ursula suspects they may not have gained such riches legally.

Then the strangled corpse of local herbalist and suspected witch is found. Ursula also learns through her connections at Court that English vessels are being plundered by a trio of mysterious ships. Is someone willing to kill to protect their secrets and a bounty of golden cargo? Can she uncover the culprits, save the reluctant bride, and remain unscathed herself?


My Review:
Golden Cargoes is a mystery set in 1589 in England. It's the 21st book in a series. You don't need to read the previous novels to understand this one, and this novel didn't spoil the whodunit of the previous novels. It did spoil some major events from past books, though, so you may wish to read them in order.

Ursula didn't want to get involved with her tenant's troubles, but she noticed or overheard some odd things while visiting them for the daughter's wedding. An old woman accused of witchcraft was murdered, but Ursula left that for the locals to (not really, since no one cared) investigate. But then she's officially asked to go back and look for treasure that certain pirates had stolen as they're suspected of living in the area. Ursula and her servants searched for the treasure and asked questions until someone who knew the answers decided to help them. It's not really a 'guess whodunit' mystery as the reader knows so much more than Ursula. It's more of a mild suspense--will they get caught as they poke around? will they catch the pirates? will Arabella have a happy ending?

The characters were interesting and acted in realistic ways. The historical details were woven into the story and gave it a distinct sense of that time and place. There were only a few uses of bad language. There were a few vaguely-described sex scenes. Overall, I'd recommend this enjoyable historical mystery.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.