cover image Damp Whisper

Damp Whisper

Gabrielle F. Culmer. Vantage (www.vantagepress.com), $14.95 paper (254p) ISBN 978-0-533-16405-9

Amelia Mullbury is a wealthy woman in London, with a handsome fianc%C3%A9, a supportive family, and a healthy real estate career. While she recently lost her mother, she's not letting that stop her from planning the wedding of her dreams. But her plans are briefly stymied when thieves steal her dead mother's identity and attempt to sell millions of dollars worth of art belonging to the family. However, the thieves are soon caught, and Amelia is able to go on to marry Lars in the perfect wedding at her grandparents' estate in Bermuda. Readers will be frustrated by Culmer's sluggish second novel and have difficulty remaining engaged with a heroine who never faces any major struggles or displays significant inner life. Even the whiff of the criminal plot is quickly dismissed, with no consequences, and Amelia's greatest challenge seems to be convincing her fianc%C3%A9 to move in with her. The plot is scanty, the prose stilted, and the characters flat and interchangeable.