Montmorency's Revenge, Book 4

It wasn't so much that I disliked the book, but more that I was disappointed by Montmorency...(*mild spoiler alert* if you haven't read the book...though I'm assuming that most of the people reading these reviews have..actually, my review won't make any sense unless you've read the book.:)) Anyway, the reason I gave this book a rating of 4 stars is basically that I was disappointed by how Montmorency's character turned out. I mean, first of all, Tom. I was incredibly disappointed by how Montmorency handled the situation once everyone was aware of his and Tom's relationship, namely that they are father and son. The fact that he repeatedly forgot about Tom was, honestly, kind of pathetic. I mean, even if he hadn't been his son, forgetting that he existed twice was kind of bad. Also, I was kkind of dissappointed that we didn't get to see Montmorency and Tom's reunion after they finally both knew the truth. I thought that Montmorency had matured throughout the book, learned from his mistakes, and was turning out to be a halfway decent man. Instead, he not only forgets about his son, but let's Frank repeat all of his own mistakes as Scarper, and allows a desire for revenge to not only cloud his thinking but also posses Frank. And that brings me to my second issue- Frank. His character by the end of the book is....not good. At all...he has transformed from a charming young man, into....Scarper. And all that is done to resolve this is for Montmorency to tell Tom to handle it.... I mean, I kind of liked the idea of Tom being Frank's George, but at the same time, the fact that he let things get this far, especially when he KNEW how Scarper's negative influences had affected his life was not pleasing. Lastly, I was disappointed as to Montmorency's relationship with Mary... I was rooting for a relationship with Vi, a well rounded character who we knew, versus Mary...a woman who Montmorency, contrary to appearances, really doesn't know that well. That being said, I think that a lot of my issue will be rectified if Ms.Updale writes another book......but I also have to bring up the fact that I haven't seen mention of a 5th Montmorency book anywhere. If there isn't one, then I will have to say that I was really disappointed with the ending, but if this isn't the end, then overall, I thought that it was an engaging book. I wanted to know what was going to happen next, I didn't have to force myself through the book. Basically, in conclusion, I though that it was a pretty good read, and I REALLY hope that she writes another book, if only because I need her to tie up the loose end left in this book ( another one of which is what happens to Vi).((though I have to admit that I would enjoy reading another installment in the series just to find out what happens to Montmorency after that huge cliffhanger at the end. :) ))

I have read all four books in the Montmorency series and loved them all! I literally couldn't put the book down. I really hope Eleanor Updale churns out another one very soon:)

Eleanor Updale's MONTMORENCY'S REVENGE tells of Montmorency's determination to exact revenge on killer who have destroyed Queen Victoria - but before he can do this he must stop one Doctor Farcett's slide into insanity - and handle the grief of others. This is the fourth Montmorency adventure about the gentlemen thief, and is a powerful tale of revenge and recovery.