The usual elegant story. Characters I've come to know matter more than the solution of the mystery or the villains.

Such a great series set in 1800's London. I can't believe this is the 10th in the series. I've enjoyed every one and hope the series continues! I enjoyed learning a bit about Charles' early school days.

"When an old school friend sends a letter to Charles Lenox, the two are back on to the path of an investigation they’d started thirty years before. The friend’s mother has died under mysterious circumstances, and in order to uncover the truth, they’ll have to discover the identity of an anonymous benefactor who may have something to do with it. Meanwhile, Lenox continues his work as Parliament’s house detective and his life with his charming wife, Lady Jane, and their daughter."

I am such a sucker for detective novels, although there aren't that many I actually like. This one had glowing reviews on the jacket when I found it on the B&T shelf at the library, plus it's set in 1870's London, so maybe some historical fiction (my favorite) mixed in. Alas, the historical fiction part was almost entirely a bust. I'm not saying it wasn't accurate, it probably was, it's just that the feeling I got from the setting was much more contemporary. The detective story was also so-so. I have yet to put my finger on exactly what I'm looking for in a detective novel (other than an easy read suspenseful page-turner), but this book didn't have it. I don't like it when the solution seems to just come out of thin air, in a direction that was never indicated in the book. Seems like sloppy story telling to me.

I'm sure I've mentioned this before in a review of another book in this series, but what I love most about Lenox is that he seems so real. We may be separated by time space and realms of fiction vs. reality, and still I am surprised sometimes reading the books that I can never meet Charles Lenox. In my experience, books with characters like these are the ones that stick with me the longest. Details of the mystery may blur, but I remember what the characters did, how they felt and how I watched the progression of their lives through hundreds and hundreds of pages.
"The Inheritance" case brings an old friend back into Lenox's life, and old friend, but a new case. As the title would suggest, the story centers around a mysterious inheritance, but also a mystery of their shared school days at Harrow, dubious East End gangs and the Royal Society.
This book, like all the others in this series, is packed with historical detail (I always feel I learn a lot about Victorian life through Lenox), beautiful language and characters I have grown very fond of, as mentioned above. I was happy for Dallington to have a substantial role and for McConnell to be doing much better than he had in some of the previous books. I also very much appreciate that time, in this series, actually moved forward and the protagonist grows older and develops with the changes life throws at him.
As for the mystery itself, there were plenty of red herrings to make me guess who the culprit might be, but the resolution did end up being a surprise, which I always value in a mystery. The only criticism I have is that I will have to wait another year to find out what is happening next with my old pal Lenox and his memorable coterie!

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Full of feints, friends, foes and old mysteries the most recent Charles Lenox doesn't disappoint. You can feel the history of Charles' school days and the friend who has reappeared these many years later. You can also feel that Charles is feeling his age more and more, an over all enjoyable addition to the series.

Old friend from school shows up in London and somebody tries to kill him. Dual mysteries involved who paid for Leigh's schooling back then and who is trying to kill him now. I hate flashbacks, and they are used, but they don't quite ruin the story. The "current time" portions of that one and the main mystery, involving science of the time, make up for it -- mostly.