There is something cozy about these books. They continue to deliver the goods and therefore remain one of my very favorite series of historical mysteries. Maybe it is the keen manner in which John goes about his investigations, his cheerful ménage or the cracking pace of the plots themselves. For a story involving sex, syphilis and sin, a good-humoured glow hovers over it all, rendering it highly readable and wonderful escapist stuff. By book twelve the characters are old friends, and one of the joys about long running series is that each new story allows the reader to catch up, soap opera wise, with their daily lives. Rose has a new governess, Nicholas has a new girlfriend and Samuel is back on the scene, all adding to the general air of bonhomie and giving the tales a more well-rounded character. Long may the series continue to delight.