Refuge for Masterminds

Refuge for Masterminds is the latest installment of the School for Unusual Girls series and the best one yet. The hallmark of this series is that each book has a different POV- there are five girls training to be spies in Regency England- and this time the focus is on Jane. Each girl has a unique skill and Jane's strength is her ability to see several steps ahead in any situation- hence the mastermind of the title. Of the five she also seems to be the one that Emma Stranje, the headmistress, is grooming to succeed her someday.

Jane has secrets from her past (what good heroine doesn't?) but her secret is terrifying because it may affect her entire future. Nevertheless she is committed to the school and the other girls, and her talent for seeing the possibilities of future action are indispensable. The story continues here shortly after the events of the second book, with Napoleon threatening England and their nemesis, Lady Daneska, pulling the strings. Daneska is a fabulous villain because she is a former student of Miss Stranje and she knows how the school operates. In the last book she came dangerously close to infiltrating the school and achieving her objective. Here the intrigue intensifies as the action shifts to London and the social scene.

All the supporting players are here, including Georgie (one of  my favorites) and Alexander Sinclair, the brash America inventor who has stolen Jane's heart. Jane is no wilting flower though, she's sharp tongued and tough and I loved reading her perspective. As much as I liked Georgie's POV in the first book, I think this one is my favorite. The series seems to have hit a rhythm now and I'm left wondering who will pick up the narrative next- Sera or Maya? Both have intriguing abilities and would be fascinating to read about- but here the focus is squarely on Jane.

I liked the relationship between Jane and Sinclair a lot. There's just a whiff of scandal to it as they tiptoe around each other and their feelings- and again Jane's secret poses a huge hurdle to their possible happiness. I liked how this was handled, there's not a love triangle but there is another nobleman who has a past with Jane, and it didn't go how I expected. I always like it when someone you think you're going to hate earns your grudging respect. And I couldn't review this book without mentioning the Patronesses- three high ladies of society who fan themselves and preen but are tough as nails and not above packing a pistol or dagger in their reticule as need arises. They steal pretty much every scene they're in.

I noted a sequence on board a ship where I could almost smell the tar and feel the rocking of the boat, where a guttering oil lamp illuminates a shadowy cargo hold. I felt right there with her as she went through the ordeals and triumphs of her mission. This series keeps getting better and better and the author continues to show a fascinating alternative history where small changes in events could lead to vastly different outcomes. I am loving this series and the only problem I had with it was when it ended.