Review: India Black by Carol K. Carr (Rating 4 Wine Glasses)

From Goodreads:  When Sir Archibald Latham of the War Office dies from a heart attack while visiting her brothel, Madam India Black is unexpectedly thrust into a deadly game between Russian and British agents who are seeking the military secrets Latham carried. 

Blackmailed into recovering the missing documents by the British spy known as French, India finds herself dodging Russian agents-and the attraction she starts to feel for the handsome conspirator.

Review Copy from Publisher

What I Loved:India was such a lovable, quirky, funny, smart, and off-beat lead character.  She is definitely unique and her way of handling whatever gets thrown out her makes you laugh out loud then go hmm. It seems that every time she is thrown something new, dangerous, or slightly annoying (aka some of the people that work for her) — she just rolls with punches with style that is all her own.  She ranks as one of my favorite to read characters of all time!

2 of my favorite India-isms: 
My name is India Black.  I am a whore.  If those words made you blush, if your hand fluttered to your cheek or you harrumphed disapprovingly into your beard, then you should return this volume to your shelf, cast a cold glance at the proprietor as you leave, hasten home feeling proper and virtuous.

Now when you’re caught red-handed, with your skirts up (or your trousers down, as the case may be) and all your cards showing, the best thing to do is run a bluff, for it’s a known fact that the more you bluster and blather, the less likely someone is to ignore what’s staring him in the face and accept the fact that you weren’t lifting the old girl’s purse, just helping her across the street.

What I Liked: You know it was the actual espionage storyline that I felt didn’t quite measure up to the brilliance that is India.  I did enjoy the storyline and the situations it got India in to.  I really liked all the settings, descriptions, and the attention to detail used.  I also thought the pacing and story arch were very well done.

Complaints: None

Why I gave it a 4:  I would say India was a 5 and the espionage storyline was a 3–so I just averaged them.  Overall it was a very enjoyable book! It is a very quick read despite its length—it flows very well!

Who I would recommend it too:  Fans of Historical Fiction.  This is not a romance but it is a very fun romp in History.

Author Website: http://www.carolkcarr.com/

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