Lady of Ashes is a historical fiction book about a woman who learned to be an undertaker from her husband in Victorian England. I was enchanted by Violet Morgan who never was interested in staying at home and managing the household. After she learned the business, she was better than her husband, being gentle and respecting the corpses and grievers more. In contrast, her husband was more interested in making money and getting revenge on the United State for the ill treatment of his father. Violet knew that he was involved in something nefarious but he refused to share it with her. I found myself rapidly reading about Violet but slowing down when it came to her husband

Violet accidently meets Prince Albert and consents letting him watch the prepation of an acquaintaince for a funeral. Violet discovered a bedraggled girl sleeping in one of the coffins at the business. Susannah, had lost her mother and was given to a workhouse with poor food and living conditions so bad that Violet decides it would be horrible to return the runaway girl to that terrible life.

The tale about Violet kept me reading, the book is first book of a series. I didn't to continue because I felt saturated with the embalming part. There are a lot of parts. One of the best was mystery of the serial killer. I was not able to guess it was and that pleased so much, there is abusive husband and a little bit of romance, a little humor and much weaving in of historical events. It was a very satisfying book to read. ( )

This book had too much going on for it to be truly enjoyable. Female undertaker in Victorian London? Sounds amazing! A serial killer? Sure, why not? American Civil War? Okay... Train accidents, crazed husbands, murderous rhinoceroses, runaway orphans, etc.? Now you've lost me.

If the heroine had interested me more, perhaps this would have worked, despite the inanities. Unfortunately though, I found myself rooting for no one, and only reading for the actual historical tidbits. It's a shame really: I had high hopes for this one. ( )

Violet Morgan and her husband Graham are undertakers in Victorian London. By complete luck Violet meets Prince Albert a few weeks before his death and so becomes involved in his funeral arrangements. Her husband unknown to her becomes involved in smuggling arms to the southern states of America, and by accident she comes across some suspicious deaths in her work as an undertaker. I was hoping the book would concentrate on the deaths - the crimes of a serial killer - rather than the other stories which really were not that interesting. ( )

Way too many unnecessary plotlines and historical details stuffed in for no apparent reason. ( )

This is the first book in the series, had I read it first I would never have read any more in the series....

Violet Morgan is working in her husband's funerary business as an undertaker. Violet discovers Susannah, a child of 9 sleeping in one of the coffins...

Susannah has run away from a workhouse after the death of her mother. Violet takes Susannah back to the workhouse but is so appalled by the attitude of the Matron & the conditions of the place that Violet adopts Susannah and begins teaching her the funerary business.

Violet & Susannah are on the train back from the workhouse, when Susannah comes across a woman, whom she fears, from her past. While on the train there is a terrible accident; Violet suffers a badly mangled arm and Susannah disappears.

Violet's verbally abusive husband Graham & his brother Fletcher have embarked upon a shady business deal, which will eventually be their undoing, with Samuel Harper, a lawyer from Colorado. Samuel becomes enchanted w/ Violet & Susannah and endeavors to protect them from Graham's undoing.

The Adams (not Addams) family, along w/ Samuel Hunter is working w/ the British government to contain the Confederacy and put a halt to British privateers intent on slipping through the blockade.

Violet meets Albert, the Prince Consort, while attending to the remains of a former Admiral (?) and is later requested by Albert to handle his funeral, which Queen Victoria reluctantly agrees to.

There is also a serial killer on the loose; noted throughout the book by cryptic journal entries, which eventually reveals that Violet has been targeted.

This was just all too much for me.... and to make matters worse, there were 4 additional long side stories as well....

The parts about Violet's husband's illicit business dealings w/ Sam Harper & the tie-in to the Adams family and American-British politics during the American Civil War was flakin' tedious, boring, & exhausting, which for me was the deal-breaker, so much so that I finally skipped over most of it.

I continued with the book in order to make the full connection between Violet & Sam, which continues throughout the rest of the series...

My suggestion is do not judge the rest of the series by this first book.... In fact, had I known, I would have skipped this one all together. ( )