The Lady Emily series has been one I have followed since its inception. I number it among one of my favorites, but I find myself rather disappointed with the latter books. 
 Don't get me wrong, I absolutely adore Lady Emily and her husband, the valiant, gorgeous, charming, and altogether impeccably perfect Colin Hargreaves, but there is a time for a series to make a graceful end, and as sad as I am to see the demise of a series, it's about time. I would rather see a series I love make an elegant bow rather than to watch it succumb to absurdity as it continues. 
 I liked this book, I didn't love it, and my love for the series as a whole very much factors into my enjoyment of this book. I am biased, I love this series, and it shows. The act of reading this book is a familiar, comforting one. It is the revisiting of beloved, well-known characters, in which I have invested significant amounts of time in the past (I have reread book 1 countless times), and this has definitely colored into me rating this book a 4. For someone not as enamored with this series as I have been, this book would more likely rate a 3. 
 Lately, this series and its mysteries has gone more towards the realms of the improbable, and the sensationalistic. I enjoyed it, but even I have my doubts when it came to the plot. 
 Lady Emily and her husband, Colin, are now comfortable settled in Anglemore Park, Colin's estate in England. It has been over a year since their last adventure in Italy, and they are now a family of 5---when we last saw Emily, she was newly pregnant, and I have to admit, I'm thankful that this story didn't take place during her pregnancy---that would have stretched the borders of imagination, given the preposterousness of a woman---much less a pregnant woman sleuth in Victorian times. 
 During a dinner party, horror of all horrors, the Marquess next door stumbles in, bloodied, and soon, dead. Colin and Emily set out to resolve the mystery, all the while under the very disapproving gaze of Emily's overbearing mother, on an extended visit. That woman would try the patience of a saint. 
 The narration is a little different this time around, because it incorporates the use of alternating "Upstairs," "Downstairs," chapters. The "Downstairs" chapters are from the service staff's points of view, most from a very young maid named Lily. The mystery itself is interesting and fun to read. It unwinds in a rational way, there's no James Bond-ish stunts, there's no Sherlock Holmes deduction, it's just pure deduction and good old fashioned footwork. Clues and trails are followed, useful or not. Such is the Victorian way of detecting, there's no technology here, just pure brainpower. 
 My main complaint of the book lies in the subplot, that of the one involving Lily and a potential suitor. It is completely, utterly unrealistic, as open-minded and socially advanced as Emily and her group can be. The nature of the relationship itself is incredibly, given her absolute innocence and her suitor's age and worldliness. It makes me uncomfortable, and it feels rather creepy, considering her very, very young age and naivete. 
 Other parts of the book were tremendously fun. I loved reading about the investigation and the lighthearted flirtation between Emily and Colin. I loved the love/hate bickering between Matilda and the new Marquess. The book itself was light, enjoyable, easy to read. 
 I do not like how the mystery was eventually solved. I think it was unrealistic, given what we know of the culprit since the beginning of the book. I will not spoil the book, but I'm very unsatisfied with the ending. 
 Good book, not great. As much as I love this series, it's time for it to draw to a close.