‘“When life itself seems lunatic, who knows where madness lies?”

In the attic, that is where.’

India Holton is one of my most favourite comfort authors. She’s a writer who can easily sweep her readers away to a world of magic, chaos, spicy romance and batshit crazy shenanigans, and I wholly appreciate her for it. 

The Secret Service of Tea and Treason is the third book in the Dangerous Damsels trilogy and it was everything I was expecting and more. 

When the Agency of Undercover Note Takers (A.U.N.T.), learn of a plot to assassinate Queen Victoria, they assign their two best agents on the case. Agent A, Alice Dearlove, and agent B, Daniel Bixby, are to enter a fake marriage and infiltrate a pirate castle party to retrieve a weapon rumoured to be the very one that will be used for the assassination. Alice has experience in all fields of her job, from spying on the notoriously wild witches to chaperoning pompous aristocratic women, she has a steel composure and always a plan or an escape route at the ready. Likewise Daniel too has much experience having spent a long time undercover as a butler to the shameless pirate, Alex O’Riley. Naturally, Alice and Daniel strive to be professionals, oh they may share a love for classic poetry and literature, they may both be pristinely precise when folding sheets, they may even start to have feelings for each other, but above all they are loyal agents. They can never break the rules and fall in love, right?

As with the previous two books in the Dangerous Damsels trilogy our two main protagonists start off as rivals who on the surface appear as though they are enemies but underneath harbour intense feelings for one another, usually lust. So yes, there is again an element of ‘insta-love’ but that was something I was expecting, and honestly it’s a strong part of what makes these novels so fun. Holton, without any preamble, lets the reader know that this is a tongue in cheek romance and there’s going to be copious amounts of outrageous hilarity but we also know there’s going to be warmth. Alice and Daniel’s chemistry unfolds beautifully, both having grown up in orphanages and being ill treated and moulded into highly efficient agents meant they lacked experience with love or even friendship, but were mutual in their love of reading and need of companionship. Alice’s character is autistic, finding many situations too much of a sensory overload, but Daniel’s awareness of this as an autistic person himself and his support towards her was so pleasing to see. In turn, Daniel is quick to lose patience and Alice is attuned to this and diffuses his irritation before any harm is done. Dr Snodgrass, who is an absolutely disastrous scientist, was saved from Daniel’s wrath many times! This dynamic between Alice and Daniel was so wholesome and though my favourite couple would still be Alex O’Riley and Charlotte Pettifer, who featured in book two, Daniel and Alice are definitely a close second. 

This instalment is definitely more character driven with a strong focus on the romance yet it is equally more batshit crazy than its predecessors, which I thoroughly enjoyed. If you  know me at all you’ll know I’m all in favour of a little chaos in books and once Alice and Daniel’s mission reaches Jane Fairweather and Frederick Bassingthwaite’s castle, everything turns into complete bedlam. A highlight here for me was how much more time we spend with the senior members of The Wisteria Society. Mrs. Rotunder, Miss Darlington, and Mrs Ogden in particular were absolute insane delights! Every scene with them ended in disagreements, thievery or  assignation attempts. My favourite was the ballroom chapter where Alice and Daniel had to dance through the room to the exit whilst the senior lady pirates tried to capture them. I also have to commend Holton for including all four of our main protagonists from the previous books, although each book can technically be read as a standalone I loved the way they were all brought together, it felt gratifying and heart-warming to have them all be friends.

“There is an order of mortal on the earth who do become youthful in their old age, and around whom everyone else is at risk of dying before middle age from sheer exhaustion. The Wisteria Society ladies were such an order —or, more accurately, disorder.”

Holton’s prose once again continues to impress me. Her ability to write with an unusual mixture of wit, elegance and absurdity, is something I’ve not come across many authors being able to execute well, but for me, Holton showcases it fabulously. At the beginning of many of the chapters we are treated to quotes from classical poetry, from William Blake to Shakespeare and I absolutely loved this touch. To inject a classical style and blend it with a Victorian-esque, whimsical, crazy world is honestly what I adore the most. I mean when you’re presented with a world of flying houses, women intent on robbing or politely killing one another, and magic that goes wrong more than it goes right, you cannot help but be entertained. Of course this style will be hit and miss for many readers, but all I can say is, if anyone is looking for a purely fun escapist read, these books are it. 

As a whole the Dangerous Damsels trilogy serves as peak reading for lovers of cosy fantasy, Jane Austen-esque characters, and books that are enveloped in love and humour. I very much look forward to more from this author. 

‘Daniel waited until Alice had opened the flight window, then he smiled. “Sorry I’m late,”

Alice gave him a pale, sober look. “Did you remember the bread and milk?”

“No. I can go back for them?”

“That’s fine,” she said. “I should probably save the world before having breakfast.”’

The Secret Service of Tea and Treason is available now. You can pick up your copy on Bookshop.org