FACE DOWN BENEATH THE REBEL HOOVES

In her latest mystery featuring Susanna, Lady Appleton, Emerson offers an intriguing look at one of the many attempts to replace Protestant Queen Elizabeth I with the Roman Catholic Mary, Queen of Scots. Sad to say, the plot gets thoroughly muddled and falls on its face. The beginning is straightforward enough—it is 1569, and Susanna is visiting Hamburg with her lover when an old friend asks her to impersonate his wife and infiltrate a plot to overthrow Elizabeth. Reluctantly, Susanna agrees. Her arrival in England bearing a packet of coded letters sets off a series of events that leaves the reader bewildered. What starts as clever plot-counterplot and an unmasking of conspirators ends up in such confusion that one doubts whether the author herself can unravel the tangled web of deceit. The little period details are sometimes successful (the frustration of having to get the "points" on the clothing tied when Susanna is hurrying to dress), sometimes less so ("Dragon water!" as an expletive just sounds silly). Unfortunately, certain big period details are missing: Emerson fails to evoke either Susanna's devotion to Elizabeth or the religious fervor that fires the conspirators. The characters move woodenly against a stage set, lacking both motivation and credibility. Instead of wondering who has masterminded the plot and how it can be foiled, readers are left wondering, "Who cares?" (Aug.)

Forecast:The thinness of the last two or three books of what started as a solid historical series suggests the author has lost interest and is just churning them out; readers will continue to lose interest as well.