Book Review: The Duke's Agent by Rebecca Jenkins

My regular book reviews have tailed off in the last couple of weeks, for which I offer my apologies. It always happens at the beginning of November, when I take on the challenge of National Novel Writing Month and flog myself to a standstill in an attempt to write 50,000 words and the first draft of a novel. 

The 50,000 are done, now, though the draft has still to be completed, but it does mean I can take the foot of the pedal a bit and get back to reading and reviewing. So here's a review of the first of two books I've read recently on long train journeys. 

The Duke’s Agent, by Rebecca Jenkins, is a good book. It isn’t perfect, but it kept me reading all the way to London and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It’s set somewhere in the north/north east of England during the Napoleonic Wars, among towns and villages that hint at reality — it’s a landscape of deep dales and woods and towns and villages with rushing rivers and the rough and unforgiving lead mining industry behind it.

Into this scene comes a veteran of Wellington’s Peninsular Army, Raif Jarret, land agent to the Duke of Penrith, come to oversee the running of the Duke’s estate. Raif stumbles on an abandoned house where a man has recently died and there are signs of theft. In his attempt to pursue justice, and the interests of his employer, Raif soon finds himself on the wrong side of the local crooked magistrate and when someone else dies — an apparent murder — his life is at stake. 

There’s a lot to like about this book. The characterisation is excellent throughout, with Raif a strong and fascinating protagonist; the dialogue is almost flawless; the setting is tremendous; and the historical detail sets a fascinating background. Writing-wise I thought it was a bit overwritten and there was a bit of head-hopping that kept taking me out of the characters, but these aren’t serious issues.  

The problem for me was that, though it started off so well, the second half of the book felt weaker than the first. I can’t really say too much without giving away spoilers, so you’ll have to bear with me, but the stakes build early until, at about half way, they can’t get any higher. It’s far too soon. And after that, the pace slows, the tension slips off a bit and the whole thing feels as if it’s dragging on. This is the point at which the writing held it back a bit, too, as if the balance between writing and action wasn’t quite right in the second half. 

I also felt that the conclusion of the mystery was a little bit tame, though again I can’t tell you why without giving away the plot. Let’s just say that I thought Jarrett should have had more of a hand in it than he did. 

There are one or two things left unresolved — we learn early that Raif is some kind of relative to the Duke, and we don’t find out the story behind the bracelet of plaited blonde hair that he wears around his wrist — but these don’t matter. They’re stories for another day, and I’ll be reading on to find out.

Thanks to Netgalley and Sapere Books for a copy of this book in return for an honest review.