I loved this latest addition to the Lord Petteril Mysteries series. The characters are very likable and quirky and the mysteries (yes, more than one) are interesting and the resolution is surprising. I will mention that I believe you should read the books in this series in the order they are published rather than starting in the middle. There are character developments you need to follow as they happen to fully understand the characters.

Piers Withan, newly elevated Viscount Petteril, has spent the first few months in his new title dealing with family issues and visiting the various properties – and solving mysteries along the way. He and his assistant April are on their way to one of those properties, Sillitrees, but first, they will stop by the home of his good friend Sir Peter Haggard (Haggs) because there is a small mystery to solve.

A portrait of Haggs’s father has been defaced and Haggs has asked Lord Peteril to discover who did it. Luckily, the artist who painted the portrait, a Frenchman named Claude St. Etienne, is also there to paint a portrait of Haggs. The artist can repair the picture, but why would anyone deface and damage the portrait in the first place since Haggs’s father was beloved by all who were in attendance?

Solving the mystery of the portrait doesn’t take long at all – but then there is a murder. Oops! Did the person who defaced the portrait also commit the murder? Surely not! If not, who else might it have been and were the two things related?

This was a fun, entertaining read with two lovely mysteries and equally lovely characters. I would have liked to see more progress in April’s language skills after several months, but there doesn’t seem to be a lot happening there nor in her ladylike behavior. So, it will be interesting to see what happens in the next book, Petteril’s Wife, which will be released later this spring. ( )