Sebastian has finally tracked down his mother - only to come upon her dying and a mystery left behind. Set during the return of French royals and the escape of Napoleon from Alba, there is a larger scene of conflict that serves as the backdrop for the murder of Sophie. ( )

I disliked the new narrator for the audiobook. The story involved an array of characters barely distinguishable from each other because of the generic French accent that started even muddying up every character, save for one or two outbursts from Tom just to remind us some of these characters were English. Hero was also sidelined for too much of the story for my taste. ( )

When Blood Lies is the next book in the long-running Sebastian St. Cyr mystery series. This one resolves a long-running subplot, the search for Sebastian's mother, and the journey takes us to Paris after the fall of Napoleon. I have always enjoyed these books for the rich historical details, and this one is no exception. The books are always well-written, full of extensive research, but is there a point where the research overshadows the mystery? Absolutely, and this is exactly what has been happening with the latest books in this series, of which this one falls victim as well.

Having a history background, I love the historical information, but there really is a point where too much is really too much. There was just some information thrown in that was not necessary to the plot and actually bogged it down. Fine for a historical novel, but not so good when reading a mystery novel that depends on a certain level of tension and ruins the emotional moments of the plot.

Overall, the plot wasn't horrible, but I was incredibly disappointed with the death of Sebastian's mother simply because so many previous books had this subplot leading to their reunion and this is not how I imagined it would go down. And while trying to work out the mystery, something that was not too difficult if you have any understanding of French history during this time period, I was fervently hoping it wouldn't go down the road that it did, but unfortunately, it did. I was fervently hoping for something a little bit different, something less global. And to be honest, I get tired of Jarvis showing up everywhere as I don't think it's necessary. And Sebastian and Hero's investigations are sort of repetitive to previous books. He investigates while constantly being told not to intervene and ruffles some feathers, and naturally, at some point, he will be attacked. Hero will interview the destitute and magically come across some tidbit of information that will give a huge clue to solving the case, and Jarvis will threaten everyone if they continue investigating. Same old, same old. And now we are left with another mystery, details surrounding Sebastian's actual father.

Verdict
When Blood Lies was a bit of a disappointment, but I have been too invested in Sebastian's story to give up at this point. I would have liked a different solution for his reunion with his mother as I felt the mystery in this one was rather weak and rambling, solely to incorporate the historical events of the time into the book. I also feel that a mystery that has had fans involved for sixteen books also deserved a much better reward than the one given in this book. I did like the historical details sketched out in this book as it showed the extensive research by the author, but they did overshadow the mystery and made any attempt to develop empathy for the characters difficult. And now we are left with another mystery, Sebastian's actual father. Who exactly is this man? ( )

Sebastian finally finds his mother floating in the Seine by the Ile de Cite. His search for her killer and why are complicated by her Royal and Napoleonic connections. A good mystery set in a perilous and exciting time as Bonaparte returns from his Elba exile. ( )

Different setting (in France) when Bonaparte has been imprisoned (and then escapes). Enjoyable although a bit unsatisfactory in the aspect of St. Cyr looking for his mother. Hero's involvement throughout the story was a diverting adventure which 'made' the novel for me. ( )