Cozies

Quick Review: “Princess Elizabeth’s Spy” by Susan Elia MacNeal

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I grabbed this novel from Net Galley as it seemed like the type of historical cozy mystery I would like: it’s the early 1940’s, and Maggie Hope, young British spy and former secretary to Mr. Churchill, takes on a mission as math tutor to Princess Elizabeth (today’s QEII) in order to keep an eye on things at Windsor Castle. Maggie has no shortage of folks that seem suspicious, and she starts to have feelings for a few of the men she comes to know. There is plenty of back story here as this is the second novel in a series. Maggie struggles in her spy training. She is looked down on for being a woman. She has a fiance who is missing in action. She has a complicated relationship with her father (whom she always thought was dead). She questions her mother’s death in an accident. There’s even more going on in these books that I won’t go into — but I really enjoyed the period, the details, the plotline, and the fast-paced writing. It kept me reading until the end (which I had figured out in advance, but oh well!). They reminded me of Rhys Bowen’s “Her Royal Spyness” series.

Thanks, Net Galley and Bantam Press for my copy!

Review: The Body in the Boudoir by Katherine Hall Page

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If you read my blog, you know I love, love, love the Faith Fairchild mysteries! The latest came out in May – The Body in the Boudoir – and I read it this rainy Hurricane Sandy weekend. In this installment, Faith is preparing for her wedding when her uncle’s housekeeper is mysteriously murdered. At the same time, Faith’s sister, Hope, is being blacklisted at work. All the while Faith is dealing with the emotions and chaos that are involved in moving from NYC to Massachusetts and marrying her beloved.

I just love this series! I have read them all and particularly enjoy how they take place near to where I live. I also like how several of Faith’s recipes are included in the back. It was an interesting take for Page to jump back twenty years for this story, and I really enjoyed it. I recommend it to those who are fans of the series, or even if it’s your first time!

I got mine from the library, where you can get yours!

Review: “Aunt Dimity and the Village Witch” by Nancy Atherton

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Unbeknownst to me when I chose it from Net Galley, this book is the seventeenth in a series featuring “Aunt Dimity”, a ghost detective in the Cotswolds of England. Lori Shepherd is a young mother of twins who lives with her husband in England. Her beloved “aunt”, Dimity, has passed away but still communicates with Lori through a notebook (mysterious writing appears from Dimity). Together they solve (cozy) mysteries.

In this installment, which I believe can be read out of line in the series (since I did it!), a new neighbor, Mrs. Amelia Thistle, has arrived in the small village of Finch. Lori realizes that Mrs. Thistle is really a famous artist (who has a rather crazed group of fans chasing her). Amelia has come to Finch to solve a mystery related to her ancestors, and Lori and a small group of entrusted friends join forces with her to solve the mystery of “Mistress Meg”.

This was a satisfying read and a fun cozy to figure out. It reminded me a bit of Agatha Raisin (probably the Cotswolds). I did wonder whether Aunt Dimity was actually necessary to the story as Lori seemed just capable of being an amateur detective on her own; however, given this is the seventeenth in a series, she apparently is integral to its success!

Thanks, Net Galley and Viking Adult Publishers, for my copy.

Review of the latest ‘Her Royal Spyness’ Cozy: “Naughty in Nice” by Rhys Bowen

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Last month while at the library I noticed a new release of the latest Royal Spyness mystery: Naughty in Nice. If you read me, you know I love this cozy series, centering on the likable but less-than-perfect Georgie (related to royalty) in 1930’s England. This time around, the Queen herself has sent Georgie on a mission to retrieve a “borrowed” snuff-box, and Georgie is sent to Nice, France – winter playground of the wealthy. Before Georgie can get the box back, her neighbor is murdered; and after floundering her way through a fashion show of Coco Chanel’s line, the priceless necklace Georgie is wearing is stolen. Now she must find two items and solve a murder!

Love this series!

Quick Review: The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection by Alexander McCall Smith

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I received the new No. 1 Ladies book for Mothers’ Day (and I’m seriously delinquent in posting about it!). This thirteenth addition to the series is just as enjoyable as its predecessors. This time Fanwell, the apprentice, is in trouble and Precious is determined to help him;  Grace and Phuti are building a house, which has issues of its own; and Mma Potokwane has been mysteriously dismissed from her position at the orphanage. In addition, the very illustrious Clovis Andersen shows up and helps Precious and Grace with their work.

I enjoyed this novel from start to finish!

Review of the latest Gaslight Mystery – “Murder on Fifth Avenue” by Victoria Thompson

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I love, love, love this historical cozy mystery series, set in New York at the turn of the century. Sarah Brandt, midwife and daughter of a wealthy family, pairs with Irish cop Frank Malloy to solve murders and mysteries in the city. Thompson pays great attention to historical details and her books are really a delight to read.

In this installment (apparently number 14 in the series – I’ve read them all but lost track), Sarah’s father, the rather pompous Felix Decker, has called upon Malloy and Sarah to investigate the mysterious death of a friend from his club. It appeared that victim had been stabbed by a small sharp object, didn’t realize he had a mortal wound, and was going about his business until he died in his chair. The victim, Chilton Devries, was a wealthy businessman but truly a horrible and abusive man, and there are no shortage of suspects. Sarah and Frank must work together to figure out who had the means and motive, and then bring the killer to justice (even though most folks were relieved by Devries’ death).

I love this series, and while I loved this installment, I felt it took a good fifty pages to “get going”. There was a lot of time devoted to Mr. Decker asking Frank, and Sarah, and even Sarah’s mother to help out, and then the subsequent conversations between the aforementioned individuals. I also missed the “personal” piece that often figures in this book: Sarah and her daughter, Sarah and Maeve, and – most importantly – Sarah and Frank! I also didn’t like that near the end, the murder weapon was revealed to be a different murder weapon than previously thought. However, all in all, it was another enjoyable read in the series!

I got mine at the library.

Review of the latest Molly Murphy mystery: “Hush Now, Don’t You Cry” by Rhys Bowen

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If you read me, you know I read all the Molly Murphy and Her Royal Spyness cozy mysteries from Rhys Bowen. I was excited to see on the new release shelf at the library the latest Molly Murphy story. This time Molly and Daniel are married and on their delayed honeymoon, visiting at a mansion in Newport, Rhode Island. They’ve hardly arrived when their guest, whom they haven’t seen yet, is found dead at the bottom of a cliff. Their host is lying where his young granddaughter was also found dead four years earlier. Daniel then becomes deathly ill with pneumonia and Molly is left to unravel the mystery, which includes all sort of twists, subplots, and suspects.

I always enjoy a Molly Murphy historical mystery, and I especially liked the setting for this one: beautiful Newport. Did I guess the murderer? Yes. Did I guess a motive. Yes, once I guessed the murderer. But I enjoyed it nonetheless. I have to say, though, that I still find the character of Daniel irritating. He’s so focused on Molly as “the little woman” that one must wonder if their marriage will last (and if it does, will this series?). He always seems a little out in left field to me in regards to the mysteries, too. If I was writing this series, I just might kill him off.

Anyhow, if you like these stories, I think you’ll enjoy the latest!

Quick Review: Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death by James Runcie

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Coming out this week, I received this book, the first of the “Grantchester Mysteries” from Net Galley. I just loved the character of Sidney Chambers, a man of the cloth who lives simply yet solves murder and mysteries in his small English town in the 1950’s. These are cozy-type mysteries, similar to Agatha Christie tales, but they are short and there are several different vignettes in this book. I really enjoyed reading them and loved the character of Sidney: attractive and young, yet a bit set in his bachelor ways. There is certainly a lot of directions that this series could take, and I look forward to reading more of it!

Thank you Net Galley and Bloomsbury USA for my copy!

Quick Review: The Revenge of Kali-Ra by K.K. Beck

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During the 1990’s, I read several cozy mysteries by the female writer K. K. Beck. I particularly liked her novels set in the 20’s with alliterative titles (e.g. “Death in a Deckchair”; “Peril under the Palms”). I hadn’t seen anything by her at the library in a long while and was pleased to come across this novel in a library in a nearby town (yes, I frequent several different libraries!).

“The Revenge of Kali-Ra” is a bit of a parody of pulp fiction. A beautiful but somewhat witless Hollywood actress, Nadia Wentworth, has discovered the Kali-Ra novels by Valerian Ricardo from the 1920’s. She wants to turn them into a movie with herself as the star. A copyright battle ensues, Ricardo’s wacky widow gets into the middle of things, his estranged great nephew becomes involved, and a strange and ethereal young woman links herself to this unlikely group. Antics ensue at Nadia’s Hollywood manor, where a few more memorable characters are included (including a binge-drinking British writer and a wanna-be mafioso).
All ends happily in this light and enjoyable read

While I enjoyed this quick read, I do enjoy some of K. K. Beck’s other cozy mysteries (set in the 1920’s) more.

This one was published in 1999. I’ll continue to look for more by her!

Quick Review of a Kindle Freebie: Still Life with Murder – a Nell Sweeney Mystery – by P.B. Ryan

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I’m always on the lookout for a good Kindle freebie, so I was excited to find this cozy on Kindle for *free*! This is the first of the Nell Sweeney historical mysteries by P B Ryan. Nell is a feisty young Irish woman, living in Boston just after the Civil War. Nell becomes the governess to the wealthy Hewitt family and helps their opium-addicted eldest son – once believed dead but now accused of murder.

I liked this historical cozy – though I felt it dragged at times in the middle of the novel. I always like a strong heroine and, living near to Boston, I enjoy reading about the city. This is the first in a series (formerly called the “Gilded Age Mysteries”).