Murder at the Royal Palace by Verity Bright

 

Lady Eleanor is full of pride. An invitation to watch her husband being knighted is no small honor and she has promised herself to behave and not create any form of situation. But she is a magnet for strange situations, and a Royal guard collapses and dies a few feet away from where she is. When she and her husband are approached to investigate this death of a man known to have been very sick, and when it is strictly not official, you do know there is a mystery afoot.

The need for secrecy and for the Palace not to be even connected with the taint of murder and gossip is reminiscent of the times of King George, in comparison to present times where royalty is fair game and no one is bothered by it. Here the investigation is stealthy and under cover with Lady Eleanor acting as a journalist with her butler as a cameraman in order to get access to the Tower where they feel the secret to this death lie.

Apart from the investigation, the story is full of historical detail of the traditions of the tower, its inhabitants, the ravens, the archaic ceremonies and very important the hierarchy that operates this ancient place. However Royal the place, intrigue and corruption as usual is rife and this is what is uncovered.

An interesting story, more detailed than other books in the series.

Sent by Bookouture for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

Introducing Mrs Collin’s by Rachel Paris

 

This was a great spin off from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. It portrayed the staid Charlotte Lucas who went into the marriage with Mr Collin’s with her eyes wide open, from the slightly dull woman into someone who could fall passionately in love, who could throw caution to the wind, and become a woman in her own right.

I was cheering her on from her marriage to her romance and though I did not wish Mr Collins to die, I knew in that era there was no way to otherwise have a happy ending for Charlotte!

The story starting from her marriage to her move to Hunsford, the formidable Lady Catherine in the background, but someone who eventually became more humane, more softer than she ever could be imagined to be. All the characters are portrayed in the story here in varying degrees but it is definitely Charlotte’s story.

A delightful read.

Sent by Hodder & Stoughton for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

Death on a Scottish Train by Lucy Connelly

 

Emilia has moved continents and is settling in very nicely into the old world Sea Isle. Happy with neighbours and the community, she is begin to feel at ease. The Storyteller Train has been in the pipeline for a long period and is now getting off on its inaugural journey with a band of storytellers, one for each carriage each outlining the whimsical and magical tales of Scotland. Dr Emilia is a passenger on the train as well.

Discovering a body chucked into a closet was not how the first journey should be remembered but when it is apparent that it is murder, the investigation hits a snag. Literally dozens of people on the train are suspects, including the organisers. The victim was a private, dour man who has made enemies so detection was not going to be easy.

Unlike other bloggers I could not guess who the murderer was till almost the end. Interesting read as a cozy as well as depicting life in a small community.

Sent by Crooked Lane Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

Murder in Miniature by Katie Tietjen

 

It was only at the very end that I knew that the idea of making miniatures of a crime scene had been formulated by Frances Glessner Lee and that it is still used in forensic education as a tool.

The story here of Maple using these miniatures called “nutshells” was enlightening and educative. A young firefighter found burnt to death in his own house was inexplicable. His childhood friend was determined to find out why he was killed and in the process found out how deep a mobs roots could go. Even if one did not want to participate blackmail and fear for one’s family could swerve the most straight soul. 

The final outcome was totally unexpected and sad. A plan gone wrong and a friend dead at the end of it. A mobster caught not for murder, but for a massive robbery. It was an unusual twist to the story.

Sent by Crooked Lane Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

I am late on reading and reviews and trying to catch up as fast as I can. My apologies to the authors and to Netgalley who keep me still supplied with fabulous reads.

6.40 to Montreal by Eva Jurczyk

 

Agatha is on a book deadline with writers block in a big way. Her husband to help things along gifts her a first class ticket for a six hour journey from Toronto to Montreal to get her writing. Beautiful views, quiet surroundings, very few passengers. What could go wrong?

Start with a death. First thought of accidental. Then not so. Then snowed in, completely immobile because according to the car conductor, doors automatically sealed shut. No Wifi, all communications with the top brass through the conductor. A young man goes into a diabetic coma.  He or his mother have forgotten the insulin. The body count rises and everyone is still trapped.

Lots of different points of interest in the story, a twist (and rather unsatisfactory end) but still a very convoluted story.

Sent by Poisoned Pen Press for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

Perilous Journey to Freedom by Marion Kummerow

 

Two young women determined to live. One intrepid freedom fighter. Their common enemy the Gestapo slowly extending their hold on this remote corner of Montafon, turning people against each other, those who have lived as neighbors for generations. A question of survival by whatever means.

The story of two women, one with no experience of mountain climbing, one man who perishes, and the determination to succeed the grueling hike over the Alps, hard enough normally, now hit by a freak snowstorm and a avalanche. Beating the odds the two women escape and Felix has to return home to a Gestapo who is looking out for him.

Stories set with the theme of resistance are always brave adventures, so much of risks taken but the need to survive overtakes all. This was no exception.  Very well told.

Sent by Book Whisperer for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

A Carol for Mrs Dickens by Rebecca Connolly

 

It was acknowledged that in 1851 that it was Charles Dickens who had invented Christmas with all the magic and the emotion the festival brings. For his wife however it was not the same. She was an excellent hostess, an exemplary wife and mother but she did not enjoy the season the way she had in Christmass’s past. Eight children and heavily pregnant she was drained out.

A chance encounter with a cook in her kitchen brought a transformation, taking Catherine back to important stages in her life - when she was a young woman being wooed by Charles and even further back to her very happy childhood with her parents.

The story that shows the true spirit of Christmas comes when one opens one’s heart to love and giving to others - and not just materially but also of oneself. Catherine got true happiness from this so that Christmas became meaningful, rather than a description from a book.

One notable point however was that Charles and Catherine’s history was not idyllic and despite this being her tenth pregnancy, the marriage was on shaky ground. The couple separated. This is not reflected in the story in any way.

Sent by Shadow Mountain Publishing for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

A Ghost Hunter’s Guide to Solving a Murder by F H Petford

 

December 1914 Britain was on edge. They had the Great War to contend with. The young men recruited were dropping off like flies, the rumors of German spies was rampant but bombardment of Falmouth where the story was set had not begun.

Anna Timperley, having a mundane job inherits a hotel from an Aunt she was not aware of and an entire new chapter in her life opens. Her aunt ran a spiritual retreat for people who had lost loved ones, with two people who ran seances and who reached and contacted the dead. Anna’s aunt herself was a spiritualist and Anna has inherited the gift, though she has not actually used it for years.

Drawn into both running the hotel, and against her inclination drawn into the spiritualist side as well, Anna stumbles into a plot to destabilize Falmouth, when she realizes her hotel is being used by someone who is a spy.

The combination of the spiritualist aspect of the members in the hotel and the espionage that was taking place alongside the murder of two young women in this quiet town was an interesting mix of genres. Reminiscent of the times, it was also descriptive of the lifestyle and attitudes of people.

Sent by Hodder & Stoughton for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

Murder on a Scottish island by Lydia Travers

 

When Lady Proudfoot gets involved, there is always an element of surprise in the works. Going to Skye for a vacation, Lady Poppy did not expect to find a woman strangled in church but that is what happened and she makes sure that the handsome Inspector Mackenzie gets involved in her investigation.

What transpires is not a straightforward robbery and murder but a scam aimed at vulnerable women, lonely and preferably well heeled with an idea of robbing them of their wealth. If things got too complicated murder was also on the cards.

Set in an isolated location, the story unravels and is a wonderful cozy read. Similar to Verity Bright this was an enjoyable read.

Sent by Bookouture for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

The Perfect Murder by Amanda McKinney

 

This was complicated. SavinPortman was a debut author with a best seller. She was also unsettled and unraveling and for half of the book, one would presume it was the stress from her agent and publisher for a follow up story. Her draft of the follow up story seemed unreal, depicting events that happened soon after, even though it did not appear that Savi was in any of the scenes.

It is more than three quarters of the way through that the story of Savi comes through. Her mental state has disassociated herself from events in her life and created different persona acting out scenarios and followed up by reverting to the personality of Savi, totally unaware of what went before.

Trauma and grief are handled by people differently and Savi’s way was different and frightening. The fact that she had a wonderful family system in place to support and protect her was her good fortune. 

The book highlights mental health and so much of what is still unknown. It was fascinating reading.

Sent by Storm Publishing for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

Call of the Camino by Suzanne Redfearn

 

The story revolving around two women decades apart, and a host of supplementary characters all linked to the precarious and tiring pilgrimage of trekking five hundred miles to the Cathedral of St James at the end. 

One woman Reina is trying to walk the footsteps of her father, and Isabelle is trying to escape the horrors of a vendetta. 

The story goes week by week, each very descriptive. Each week outlines characters all part of the pilgrimage and each contributing much to the overall story. The grandeur of the setting whether flat desert land or steep mountains were vividly detailed and brought the scenes to life. It also highlighted frailties of humans who undertook the journey, if you were spiritual or not the journey changed you. The two timelines of the story were not jarring and worked well together. 

I enjoyed the entire story as a whole. Having read of the Camino and having seen the Cathedral the story brought the entire pilgrimage to life.

Sent by Lake Union Publishing for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley 

The Secret Christmas Library by Jenny Colgan

 

Set in the Scottish Highlands soon cut off from all, Mirren an antiquarian book hunter, with one book found which made her famous has now been set the task of finding a book which will enable the current Laird from getting buried in debt and having to sell the castle.

The clues are myriad and set in mazes and in poetry in rhyme, which makes no sense to anyone but Theo who is Mirren’s rival and the people who remain have to try to make sense of cryptic clues lying around.

You have to like treasure hunts, mazes, clues and falling down castles to like this story. But it’s a very likable one with lots of humour in a gorgeous setting.

Sent by Hodder & Stoughton for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

Murder in the Winter Woods by Katie Gayle

 

A cozy set in the idyllic town of Berrywick. Winter is upon the town and festivities planned for Christmas are in full swing. Julia on a walk did not expect to find a body, a victim of a hit and run apparently until proven otherwise. Julia discovers a pendant in the vicinity of the victim presuming it is his, until that too was proven to be not his. The second victim in similar circumstances, could not be a coincidence but trying to connect the dots and connections was a little complicated. One was a taxi driver, one was a bee keeper but like all good detectives, Julia begins to find the strands that will bring the story to a close. A third death by poisoning of a random (seemingly) woman, and the attempted poisoning of another makes it confusing for a while.

The final denouement was surprising and out of the blue.

Interesting story, mixed characters and very nice setting.

Sent by Bookouture for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

A Dark September Night by Patricia Smiley

 

The hit and run death of her Aunt Lydie was a shock to Emmeline. The circumstances of her death seemed suspicious to Emmy and she is appalled by the disinterest shown by the Police in following up her concerns. Having two weeks leave from her corporate job does not help either because when Emmy starts connecting the dots, she knows she is on the track to find out who killed her Aunt.

The story unravels slowly because it is basic detective skills and Emmy’s instinct and psychic sense that draws her on. The same sense that her Aunt possessed. The story was a good read delving into the bigger world of espionage and corruption, not merely a murder in a small town.

Sent by Level Best books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

Murder in Trafalgar Square by Michelle Salter

 

This story covers a period of history I particularly like. The suffragette era, the perilous journey which got women the vote in England. Which incidentally paved the way for us in Sri Lanka to get it with no battle cries at all.

Coral Fairbanks is one such suffragette, a feminist who also sits for artists nude. Not a stance which makes her popular with fellow feminists. Guy is a wonderful painter, who hides his talent as he is a Scotland Yard detective and his painting abilities will not go down well with the powers that be.

When a young woman is found murdered at the National Art Gallery and a painting stolen in broad daylight, the Yard is called in. This sets the investigation which looks into the suffragette movement, the appalling behavior of the cops at the instigation of Winston Churchill, a look at the behavior of the upper crust of English society and in the process unraveling a can of worms.

Described as a cozy, I’d say it’s much more than that. A very interesting read putting the genres of detection, mystery murder and history together.

Sent by Boldwood Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

Restitution by Tamar Shapiro

 

The story set against the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany is about the complicated relationship of Kate and Martin, both living in the United States but knowing very little of the lives of their mother and father and more so the secrets of their grandparents.

Like most immigrants the family kept secrets close to their hearts, worried that it would cause further disruption and unease amongst the children. They would prefer them to look forward and get on with their lives but in this case it could not be allowed to be forgotten. The visit back to Germany long after the fall of the wall, to places and homes owned by the family unravel very complicated and chequered histories. 

Things do not appear to fit the dialogue and stories related of their grandparents and it leads to uneasiness between the siblings, each hiding information from the other - in some instances not to unravel bitter experiences and disappointments faced by the family in the past. 

The story is very descriptive of each city of its setting. Leipzig, Grimma and Illinois. One could actually feel the places described. The siblings had a peculiar competitiveness especially Kate who sought her mothers approval and love, because she felt her mothers and fathers feelings were warmer to her brother. With that there was a undercurrent of vindictiveness and a certain meanness when she could hurt Martin in a very insidious way. The way she hid the information of her fathers last days, his demise and revealed it bluntly much later showed a mean streak because she was happy that she had the chance to see her father at the end though it was Martin that the father actually wanted. This was apparent on many occasions during the story. Martin himself took decisions which should have been shared, by himself. It did not make for a very warm relationship.

The story was slow but intense and emotional with its fractured relationships within one family.

Sent by Regal House Publishing for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

A Very Bookish Murder by Dee Macdonald

 

Absolutely idyllic setting. A tiny village in Scotland. Ally is playing host at her guest house to five woman. All writers one of them very famous. The rest of the group are in the posh hotel down the road. The retreat gets under way and on the very first day the famous author is murdered. The manner and circumstances of the killing leaves the field wide open for suspects. In the meantime Detective Rigby in charge, collapses at the scene of the incident and a dashing replacement arrives.

Ally and her partner Ross decide to investigate privately because they feel they are privy to more facts since they have the writers resident with them. Slowly surprises emerge of connections within the group of women, secrets hidden for decades and even more damning evidence against several writers.

The cozy gets complicated with a second murder taking place and the pace hots up, because the murderer is now determined to get away with it. The final denouement was surprising.

Sent by Bookouture for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.

Murder in the Soho Graveyard by Emily Organ

 

When the body of a wealthy widow is found in a disused graveyard, the two amateur detectives Penny and Emma get on the case because they realise the detectives are dragging their feet and trying to pin the murder on the unfortunate person who found the body.

London 1890 is not conducive for any lady to have any job and this detecting has to be carried out discreetly. They realise that though the lady was wealthy and contributed to many good causes, no one actually liked her and on investigation, Penny and Emma discovered why. This opened up the number of suspects greatly and it was up to them to whittle it down to the one person who had done this.

The story is a very good one, with strong female characters but it is the descriptiveness of the era, and the manner in which Emma and Penny had to work that drew my interest.

Sent by Storm Publishing for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.