THE BETRAYAL OF THE BLOOD LILY, by Lauren Willig

6/series. Penelope Devereaux’s outrageous behavior finally caught up with her, and she has gone (she really had nowhere else to go, given her what society thinks of her transgressions) to India with her new husband, the completely indifferent and dissolute rotter Freddy Staines. Perhaps, in a decade or two when the furor has died down, she can return home... Click below for more of this no-spoiler review.
But Penelope finds India much to her taste, especially when the very serious Captain Alex Reid, resentfully escorting the Staines party to Hyderabad, enters the picture. Once again, Willig’s research gives us a tale with a lot of authentic detail. The historical accuracy doesn't get in the way of a rousing good plot and a whole passel of delightful characters. It’s a 5. The series is not only entertaining and original, but fun.