Tag: mystery

Book Review: A Lovely and Deadly Dance, by Claire Andrews

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Title: A Lovely and Deadly Dance
Author: Claire Andrews
Genre: Historical fiction, mystery
Rating: 3.0

Something is stalking the queen of England, and Irene Adler is ready to find whatever monster may lurk behind this new gruesome string of murders—with or without the help of Sherlock Holmes.

Irene Adler and Sherlock Holmes were both sent away from Oxford’s All Souls class after uncovering a murderous plot on campus. But now Irene’s deductive skills have called her back to England. Someone is killing off the queen’s closest allies and leaving mysterious messages at every crime scene.

The people of London are frightened—and growing angry. Could the murders be Queen Victoria’s fault, or is she the one in the most danger? With Sherlock’s help once more, Irene will follow leads that bring her deep into the secrets held by England’s richest families. The spark between the pair ignites and burns ever hotter all the while.

But the closer Irene gets to finding the killer’s identity, it becomes clear that it’s not a truth she wants to face. To prove herself an Adler, not a Moriarty, Irene will need to overcome the worst betrayal of her life. Can she endure true heartbreak if it’s for the greater good?

I don’t know, this just felt off to me. Kind of erratic, kind of juvenile, kind of dark in spots, but nothing consistent throughout. I finished it, so it kept my attention somewhat, but I was glad to put it down. The story jumped from plot point to plot point, but there wasn’t any transition between events, so it felt clunky and didn’t flow.

Claire Andrews was raised in Alaska and Scotland. A Lovely and Deadly Dance is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Little, Brown Books for Young Readers in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies, by Kate Westbury

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Title: The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies
Author: Kate Westbury
Genre: Historical fiction, mystery
Rating: 4.2 out of 5

Oxford, England, 1951 – The Honorable Ginevra Bishop likes red lipstick, clever retorts, and earning top marks in her tutorials. She’s following her mother’s footsteps by studying at Oxford, eager to prove she’s more than a debutante.

Sidney Braithwaite likes brooding, Latin, and ignoring his nightmares. He’s determined to forge a new life for himself at Oxford, far from his childhood mining village and free from memories of the war.

Though Gin and Sidney have little in common, the British Security Service is keen to unite her charm with his espionage experience: there’s a Soviet spy at the university, and the agent tracking them down was poisoned. MI5 wants Gin and Sidney to pick up the trail and identify the informant before more sensitive information is compromised. As a team, the pair of undergraduates clash in personality, upbringing, and taste––but have a connection neither can deny. Gin and Sidney must unite their respective talents to follow the clues before they’re caught in the traitor’s crosshairs…if the sparks flying between them don’t blow up the operation first.

This felt a tiny bit slow at first, trying to get into the setting and time frame, but I ended up liking it a lot. I do love historical fiction, especially WWII historical fiction—which this isn’t, but it’s linked—and I definitely enjoyed the historical aspects of this. I really liked Gin and her friends. They were a  lot of fun. I also liked Sidney, although I wanted to smack him a couple of times. The two of them together were believable and a joy to read.

Kate Westbury teaches Latin. The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press | Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Night Songs, by Alli Dyer

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Title: Night Songs
Author: Alli Dyer         
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 4 out of 5

On the morning of Rhea’s eighteenth birthday, she makes a shocking discovery—her mother was the famed singer of some of country music’s most iconic tunes, the legendary Lulabelle “Belle” Powers, and she’s just inherited her massive estate. Eager to know more about this woman she barely remembers, Rhea travels to Nashville to retrace her mother’s footsteps. But as she gets to know Belle’s closest friends and learns more of her story, she can’t help but think something is being kept from her.

It isn’t until years later that her mother’s best friend Hess reveals the truth—her mother believed all the women in her family were cursed to die at thirty-three—Belle’s exact age when she passed away in a mysterious plane crash. Hess dismisses the curse as pure superstition, but Rhea feels something sinister stalking her, her own life beginning to mirror her mother’s as she gets closer to her thirty-third birthday. Desperate for answers, Rhea delves deeper into her mother’s music, uncovering Belle’s last unpublished album Night Songs, which leads her back to her roots in ways she never could have imagined.

This was…a bit weird, not going to lie. I loved Rhea’s and Belle’s different storylines, but it felt very chaotic in places. (Which…makes perfect sense, considering, actually.) I like the characters and the behind-the-scenes look at life in Nashville. I just was never quite sure where this was going to end up.

Alli Dyer was born in Tennessee. Night Songs is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Atria Books in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: The Mortal Enemy Murder Club, by Gloria Chao

Image belongs to Harlequin Trade Publishing | Park Row.

Title: The Mortal Enemy Murder Club
Author: Gloria Chao             
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 4 out of 5

Kathryn Hu is not getting into the business of solving murders. Yes, she and her friends Olivia and Elle figured out who killed their cheating ex-boyfriend. But now Kat can get back to her usual, murder-free existence.

Then she gets an unexpected plea for help. Mandy Thorne has ruined countless lives through her revenge podcast. She also did her best to frame the girls. Now, she claims, someone is trying to kill her. And the girls are the only ones who can save her.

But can the trio and Mandy put aside their mutual contempt long enough to prevent a murder and solve this case? Can they become…the Mortal Enemy Murder Club?

I don’t think I enjoyed this one quite as much as the first one, but I did like it. Kat is so funny to me—and I don’t know how she puts up with her mother. Her open-mouth-insert-foot antics also made me cringe with sympathy. I never figured out the killer, I honestly couldn’t keep all the suspects straight, but that was more of a me problem than a problem with the book. I kept getting interrupted and distracted.

Gloria Chao is a bestselling author. The Mortal Enemy Murder Club is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Harlequin Trade Publishing | Park Row in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: The Story Keeper, by Kelly Rimmer

Image belongs to Harlequin Trade Publishing | MIRA.

Title: The Story Keeper
Author: Kelly Rimmer      
Genre: Historical fiction   
Rating: 4 out of 5

In the aftermath of a tumultuous year, Fiona Winslow finds solace in the decaying grandeur of Wurimbirra, the rambling family estate she once called home. Intent on restoring it, she discovers the keys to more than just the dilapidated mansion—beneath the crumbling plaster and dust are secrets that have been buried for a generation.

When a curious book, The Midnight Estate, catches her attention in her late uncle’s library, Fiona is plunged into a tale that mirrors her own—a story of love, loss and betrayal. But as the lines between fiction and reality blur, Fiona must ask herself: Is the true mystery the one hidden within the walls of her ancestral home, or is it within the pages of a book that chose her as much as she chose it?

I really enjoyed the story-within-a-story going on here. I was deeply invested in the book the character was reading, as well as the novel itself. There’s no way I’d move out to a big, empty house in the middle of nowhere by myself—the first stray noise would have had me abandoning ship. I ended up enjoying this read quite a bit, and I loved how everything tied together.

Kelly Rimmer is a bestselling author. The Story Keeper is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Harlequin Trade Publishing | MIRA in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Pretty Dead Things, by Kelsey Cox  

Image belongs to St. Martin’s Press | Minotaur Books.

Title: Pretty Dead Things
Author: Kelsey Cox             
Genre: Mystery/thriller  
Rating: 4 out 5

2000: Isabelle Whitmore vanishes at Sherman Ranch in Anhalt, Texas, without a trace.

2025: The annual Lone Star Princess Pageant looms, bringing long-standing grudges to the surface. Ingrid fled Anhalt in the wake of her sister Isabelle’s disappearance and has now returned, just in time for a construction crew to start digging up Sherman Ranch; the pageant brings up past traumas that Melanie can’t forget; Cat, newly sober, starts to feel threatened in ways that bring back old demons; and Sarah Lynn, who comes from a long line of pageant winners, knows that losing is not an option.

When old resentments and new confrontations reach their boiling point, temperatures drop to deadly degrees as a record-setting storm brings down the state’s power grid. With everyone trapped under one roof, scores will be settled, and more than one person will end up dead.

Not going to lie: the portrayal of pageant culture (especially pageant moms) felt pretty spot-on. This was an engrossing read, and I enjoyed both the present-day scenes and the past scenes. The characters were all quite vivid and there were enough twists and turns that I kept changing my mind about who the killer was—and I never actually did figure it out.

Kelsey Cox lives in the Hill Country. Pretty Dead Things is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press | Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review.)

   

Book Review: The Secret Thread, by Eve Chase

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Title: The Secret Thread
Author: Eve Chase     
Genre: Mystery/thriller  
Rating: 4 out of 5

Even the darkest secrets unravel in time. . . .

2024: Jo O’Mara, a young writer, lands a job working for Mimi Mott, a wealthy style icon and legendary founder of a decorating empire. Newly widowed and in her seventies, Mimi is preparing to auction off her possessions, through them finally telling the story of her early life. Famously private, Mimi has kept her past shrouded in mystery. Jo doesn’t dare reveal how closely it touches her own.

Tasked with collecting the untold tales behind each auction lot, Jo peels back the layers of Mimi’s origin story and discovers it’s far darker than anyone ever suspected.

1969: Mimi and her sister, Pamela, live in a cramped, musty staff cottage on the grounds of Rushwood, an idyllic English country estate owned by the Caswell family, their demanding new employer. Working alongside their gardener parents, the girls have been raised with their hands in the soil and know only a traditional, simple life—but spirited Mimi hungers for more.

When the Caswells’ adult children, Nancy and Lawrence, arrive at Rushwood for the summer, the sisters are drawn into a privileged, intoxicating world, unsettling their own, and passions spark under the blazing sun—until a shattering death at Rushwood’s high-society party tears Mimi and Pamela apart.

Now time is running out. Jo discovers both a missing auction piece and a missing sister and vows to find them no matter how dark the secret they expose—or the cost to herself.

This was a fascinating read! I loved Miriam’s/Mimi’s POV in the ‘60s, and I also loved Jo’s timeline in the present day. I did not much like younger Pamela, however older Pamela was great. I was pretty much enthralled with this from the very beginning, through its twists and turns, its dark days, the glimmers of hope and sunlight. Everything woven together until the complete pictured merged together in the light of the present.

Eve Chase is a bestselling author. The Secret Thread is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Ballantine | Ballantine Books in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Dungeons and Danger, by Elizabeth Penney  

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Title: Dungeons and Danger
Author: Elizabeth Penney     
Genre: Mystery/thriller  
Rating: 4 out of 5

As Halloween approaches, Ravensea Castle is bustling with excitement as Nora Asquith welcomes the fall season guests to her family’s newly converted bed and breakfast. A historian studying the movements of the Vikings has traced their exploits to Ravensea. A certain Viking woman, known as the Red Maiden, landed here and the historian believes she buried a treasure hoard before the castle was built. He is hopeful he can find the hoard now. Nora can’t help but wonder if the enigmatic castle ghost she’s always referred to as the woman in red could be this very Viking?

Meanwhile, a team of four ghost hunters is coming to stay at Ravensea for the filming of Britain’s Got Ghosts. Former students of the historian, the group arrives with their own rivalries and baggage. They try to see who can make the most paranormal contacts and end up getting more than they bargained for.

When the historian is murdered during a Viking festival on castle grounds and his notes go missing, Nora can’t help but wonder if the treasure was why he was killed . . . and could it be connected to the visiting ghost hunters? Additional “accidents” befalling the hunters raise the stakes as Nora races to find the killer—and the treasure—before another death occurs.

This is the second book in this cozy mystery series, and it’s a pleasant series to read. The Asquith family are fun to read about, and the secondary characters are solid, too. There were several red herrings in this read, but they were handled well without being heavy-handed. I really enjoyed the Viking festival and the historical snippets. This is just a sweet, fun read you don’t have to put too much thought into.

Elizabeth Penney lives in New Hampshire. Dungeons and Danger is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur books in exchange for an honest review.)

  

Book Review: The Primrose Murder Society, by Stacy Hackney   

Title: The Primrose Murder Society  
Author: Stacy Hackney     
Genre: Mystery/thriller   
Rating: 4 out of 5

Lila Shaw stopped trusting anyone the minute her husband went to jail for white-collar crime, taking their country club lifestyle with him. Now Lila is broke, friendless, and losing her house—and to make things worse, her true-crime-obsessed daughter, Bea, was just expelled from fourth grade. Desperate for a fresh start, Lila agrees to temporarily move in and clean out an abandoned junk-filled apartment in Richmond’s palatial Primrose building. The luxurious Virginia landmark is filled with retirees who start their days early drinking bourbon and gossiping, in that order.

Soon after Lila’s arrival, the Primrose is thrown into chaos. The owner of the building’s splendid penthouse has died and in his final days he set up a two-million-dollar reward for any resident who helps to solve the 21-year-old murder of his granddaughter at the Primrose. A fan of all detective stories and true-crime podcasts, Bea is inspired to investigate. They really could use the reward money, so Lila reluctantly agrees, in a questionable attempt at family bonding. She’s certain the killer is long-gone after all these years anyway. That is, until another resident is murdered… and Lila becomes the prime suspect.

Now Lila needs to solve both murders to avoid jail, and even worse, losing her daughter to her snobby in-laws. To catch a killer and clear Lila’s name, she and Bea must rely on their elderly neighbors—Jasper, a shy former detective, and Evelyn, an opinionated socialite—along with Nate, a good-looking reporter who keeps appearing at the most inconvenient moments. As the amateur sleuths expose the truth about the Primrose, Lila hopes she can also unravel the trickiest parts of her own life and start fresh.

This was a cute read! Lila has been through a lot, although some of it was because she chose to ignore some glaring red flags. At the beginning of this, Bea was such a brat and needed a spanking (or two) to help get her sorted out, but she eventually settled down—when Lila stopped being so passive.

The residents of the Primrose were such a hoot! I truly enjoyed their antics, although a couple of them were just plain ugly people. The interactions between Bea and Lila were believable, and Jasper and Evelyn added both humor and a foil for the docile Lila.

Stacy Hackney lives in Virginia. The Primrose Murder Society is her first novel for adults.

(Galley courtesy of William Morrow | William Morrow Paperbacks in exchange for an honest review.)

   

Book Review: The Bookbinder’s Secret, by A. D. Bell

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Title: The Bookbinder’s Secret
Author: A. D. Bell            
Genre: Historical fiction   
Rating: 4 out of 5

Lilian (“Lily”) Delaney, apprentice to a master bookbinder in Oxford in 1901, chafes at the confines of her life. She is trapped between the oppressiveness of her father’s failing bookshop and still being an apprentice in a man’s profession. But when she’s given a burned book during a visit to a collector, she finds, hidden beneath the binding, a fifty-year-old letter speaking of love, fortune, and murder.

Lily is pulled into the mystery of the young lovers, a story of forbidden love, and discovers there are more books and more hidden pages telling their story. Lilian becomes obsessed with the story but she is not the only one looking for the remaining books and what began as a diverting intrigue quickly becomes a very dangerous pursuit.

Lily’s search leads her from the eccentric booksellers of London to the private libraries of unscrupulous collectors and the dusty archives of society papers, deep into the heart of the mystery. But with sinister forces closing in, willing to do anything for the books, Lilian’s world begins to fall apart and she must decide if uncovering the truth is worth the risk to her own life.

I enjoyed the parts of this about bookbinding, and the mysterious hidden letters and story hidden in the bindings of the secret books. I did not enjoy Lily’s penchant for doing absolutely stupid things all the time. I was honestly more invested in the story from the past than Lily’s story, as I was not convinced she’d ever make a good decision.

A. D. Bell lives in Oxford. The Bookbinder’s Secret is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)