This was a fun romp, and I laughed out loud at multiple parts. But I could see the gears and moving parts in action, and some of those movement were a bit creaky. In particular, I don't understand how Mrs. De Lacey somehow gets so easily bullied by so many people. Part of that is Elinor's willingness to let it happen, of course, but still. I didn't really buy that so many people saw their way to blackmail and extort promises from Mrs De Lacey so easily.