They Do It With Mirrors (1952) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) Something about this book has never quite worked for me. I never quite feel I have a handle on anything, and some of the characters melt into each other. The mystery itself is interesting, but getting to the solution just felt a little off. The […]
A Pocket Full of Rye (1953) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) This is one of the stories that has always stuck with me–probably because of the rye mentioned in the title. Rex Fortescue dies in his office, and the police immediately suspect murder. “I gather you don’t think it was natural death,” he said dryly. “Not […]
Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories (1985) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) The first half of this edition is The Thirteen Problems / The Tuesday Club Murders, which I earlier. The second half has the following stories: From The Regatta Mystery and Other Stories (1939) “Miss Marple Tells a Story” first in Home Journal (1935) [“Behind […]
Master Wolf (2020) Joanna Chambers (Capital Wolves Duet) Set in Europe in 1820 with flashbacks. Gentleman Wolf ended with Lindsay all but being sent away from Drew. Master Wolf picks up thirty years later, as Lindsay has tried to stay away from Drew, and Drew has tried to come to terms with his wolf, and […]
Gentleman Wolf (2019) Joanna Chambers (Capital Wolves Duet) Set in Scotland & Europe in 1682 and 1788. Lindsay Somerville spent years as the prisoner of a man who turned and then tortured him solely because Lindsay looked like the man who turned him–a man he cannot disobey any more than Lindsay can disobey him. The […]
Slippery Creatures (2020) K.J. Charles (The Will Darling Adventures) Will Darling returned from the Great War at a bit of a loss. Will had gone to the War at eighteen, and come back five years later to find himself useless and unwanted. In Flanders he’d been a grizzled veteran, a fount of professional expertise who […]
A Pocket Full of Rye (1953) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) It was a normal day at work, when they took Rex Fortescue. Then he keeled over, and nothing made sense any more. Who could have poisoned Rex–and filled his coat pocket with grain? His much younger (and beautiful) wife, who has been carrying on with […]
They Do It With Mirrors (1952) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) When asked by an old school friend, Miss Marple visits Stoneygates to check that everything is fine with her friend Carrie Louise. “Me?” exclaimed Miss Marple. “Why me?” “Because you’ve got a nose for that sort of thing. You always had. You’ve always been a […]
A Murder Is Announced (1950) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) In Chipping Cleghorn, the local paper sports an unexpected advertisement: ‘A murder is announced and will take place on Friday October 29th, at Little Paddocks at 6:30 p.m.’ One of the bits I found particularly amusing was where people slowly show up for the announced murder–but […]
The Moving Finger (1943) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) Jerry and his sister Joanna have taken a house in Lymstock while Jerry recovers from a plane crash. This book is set at a time just as British society was changing. When we had settled in and been at Little Furze a week Miss Emily Barton came […]
Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories (1985) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) These stories were published between 1927 and 1957. “(S)o many people seem to me not to be either bad or good, but simply, you know, very silly.” The Thirteen Problems (previously published as The Tuesday Club Murders) (1932) The Tuesday Night Club (1927) The […]
The Body in the Library (1942) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) This was published in 1942, but does not really seem to actually be set during the war, although there are allusions to war. He did A.R.P. work, you know, when he was only eighteen. I suppose that makes the story feel even more timeless, although […]
The Murder at the Vicarage (1930) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) I was listening to Read or Dead and they were talking about Agatha Christie’s first book, which had been published in 1920–100 years earlier, and one of them mentioned her being a comfort read, and I was immediately, “YES. I need to re-read Miss Marple. […]
Murder in G Major (2016) Alexia Gordon (Gethsemane Brown Mysteries) Gethsemane Brown is stuck in Ireland. The assistant conductor job she was promised fell through, her luggage was stolen, and she’s out of money. If she doesn’t want to return to her family with her tail between her legs, she has get a job until […]
Lady Mechanika, Vol. 5: La Belle Dame Sans Merci (2019) Joe Benitez, M. M. Chen, Martin Montiel This… did not end particularly well. It wasn’t a cliff-hanger, but it also wasn’t clean. Also, the next volume doesn’t exist right now, which doesn’t help. So Mr. Archibald Lewis, Lady Mechanicka’s friend and Fred’s uncle, is a […]
The Body in the Library (1942) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) The second Miss Marple book has both Miss Marple and Sir Henry Clithering. One of the things I always loved Agatha Christie books is how descriptive they can be. The gay, laughing expression on his face was wiped off as though by a sponge from […]
The Countess Conspiracy (2013) Courtney Milan (Brothers Sinister) Set in England in 1867. Violet Waterfield, Countess of Cambury, has been keeping secrets all her life. But this secret belongs also to her best friend, Sebastian, and he is done with this secret. He’d agreed to this charade years ago, when he hadn’t understood what would […]
The Heiress Effect (2013) Courtney Milan (Brothers Sinister) Set in England in 1867. Miss Jane Fairfield has just one goal–to not get married until her sister comes of age. So far, she’s succeeded. Poor Miss Fairfield. She had the opposite of conversation, the opposite of taste. They were going to rip her to shreds, and […]
Who Speaks for the Damned (2020) C.S. Harris (Sebastian St. Cyr) Set in London in 1814 I have loved this series since the start, and generally adore her writing. However. Third Person Omniscient POV does NOT WORK if you are hiding a person’s gender. It just DOESN’T. It is stilted and kludgy and what you’re […]
A Kiss for Midwinter (2012) Courtney Milan (Brothers Sinister) Set in England in 1863 I re-read the previous book in this series because I was wanting to re-read this story. Dr Jonas Grantham wanted more than anything to become a doctor. Right before he left for medical school, he followed the town doctor around to […]
The Duchess War (2012) Courtney Milan Set in England in 1863 Minnie has spent her adolescence learning how to be quiet. Unnoticed. Unexceptional. When she was taken in by her great aunts, she agreed with them this would be the best path for her, but now she has reached the point where she needs to […]
Dead in the Shop (2018) Dahlia Donovan (Grasmere Cottage Mystery) Valor and Bishan are struggling after the events of the last book. Someone is trying to kill them–has killed people around them–and they don’t understand why. And that’s one of the interesting things about this story–that there isn’t really a good why. Don’t get me […]
Dead in the Garden (2018) Dahlia Donovan (Grasmere Cottage Mystery) This is a cozy mystery, set in England, and is both adorable and has an amazingly diverse cast of characters. Valor and Bishan are shocked and distressed to discover a dead body in their yard. But it becomes even more distressing when Bishan is arrested […]
Lady Mechanika, Vol. 4: Clockwork Assassin (2018) Joe Benitez, Peter Steigerwald, Mike Garcia The longer this series goes on the better I like it. Although I think some of the outfits she wears are ridiculous, I have accepted the, because she does use the more ridiculous outfits to fight and generally kick ass. A man […]
The Guilt of Innocents (2006) Candace Robb (Owen Archer) Set in England in 1372 Although this story is about the murder of a dockworker, beneath and beside that the story is about children. It’s about Jasper, Lucie & Owen’s adopted son, who is finally coming to accept Lucie and Owen as his parents, even while […]
A Stroke of Malice (2020) Anna Lee Huber (A Lady Darby Mystery) Set in Scotland in 1832 Kiera and her husband Sebastian Gage are spending the holidays at Duchess of Bowmont’s Twelfth Night party, when a group stumbles upon a dead body. Although it’s suspected that the decayed body is the husband of the Duchess’s […]
Rivers of London: The Fey and the Furious (2020) Ben Aaronovitch, Andrew Cartmel, Lee Sullivan I find the comics for this series frustrating. I found the story interesting, but the execution wasn’t all I wanted it to be, I mean, why precisely, were the fey doing all this? It didn’t make a lot of sense […]
The Lost Letter (2017) Mimi Matthews Set in England in 1860. Sylvia Stafford now works as a governess. The suicide of her father left her destitute, abandoned by society and her friends. So she is shocked when a young lady appears, asking her to come to the country. Sebastian Conrad, once a colonel in India, […]
Band Sinister (2018) KJ Charles Set in England in the early 1800s A lot of us are struggling right now, so this is a good time for comfort reads. If you’ve read Georgette Heyer’s Venetia, you’ll be familiar with this story: younger sibling is hurt and has to stay at manor of notorious (and wealthy) […]
Death in Kew Gardens (2019) Jennifer Ashley (Kat Holloway) Set in London in 1881 Kat Holloway and the rest of the staff have been working hard, since Lady Cynthia’s aunt keeps refusing to hire a new housekeeper. Unfortunately, the woman she finally hires is a complete nightmare. When the gentleman next door is murdered, everything […]
The Cross-Legged Knight (2003) Candace Robb (Owen Archer) Set in York, England in 1371. The Bishop of Winchester, William of Wykeham, failed to bring home Sir Ranulf Pagnell from France, so how he has to bring home the knight’s heart–and deal with the family accusing him of stealing part of the ransom and other improprieties. […]
A Dangerous Madness (2014) Michelle Diener (Regency London) Set in London in 1812 Miss Phoebe Hillier has been prepared to follow her father’s dying wish and marry Sheldrake, but when he tells her he is ending their betrothal and leaving the country she is as much relieved as she is horrified. “No. I’m . . […]
Scandal Above Stairs (2018) Jennifer Ashley (Kat Holloway Mysteries) Set in London in 1881 Kat Holloway is still cook at Lord Rankin’s house, even though he has retired to the country, Lady Cynthia remains, and to give her countenance, her aunt and uncle are living with her. Kat and the rest of the staff may […]
The Emperor’s Conspiracy (2012) Michelle Diener (Regency London) Set in London in 1811. Charlotte Raven was rescued as a child, and although she leads a somewhat unorthodox life, she tries very hard to be the perfect lady for Lady Howe, who saved he from the stews. This always surprised her, Catherine’s willful habit of seeing […]
Banquet of Lies (2013) Michelle Diener (Regency London) Set in England in 1812. After reading Death Below Stairs I wanted to re-read a favorite of mine that also features a woman working as a cook in historical Britain. Every time I read this I love it a little bit more–there is just so very much […]
Death Below Stairs (2018) Jennifer Ashley (Kat Holloway) Set in London in 1881. I read the novella A Soupçon of Poison awhile ago, and when I didn’t find a novel immediately, forgot about it. Kat Halloway has just taken a position as cook for Lord Rankin. She is relatively young for her position, but sought […]
Work for It (2019) Talia Hibbert (Just for Him) The world is making me feel out-of-sorts, so I decided to re-read a book I very much enjoyed. The first time around I read this book before the rest of the series (this is essentially the last book) so re-reading it after having read about the […]
A Spy for the Redeemer (2002) Candace Robb (Owen Archer) Set in Wales and York in 1371 Owen is still in Wales seeing over the tomb of his father-in-law. But when the sculptor is killed, Archdeacon Rokelyn all but demands that Owen look into the death, which leads Owen to further wonder where his loyalties […]
Mating the Huntress (2018) Talia Hibbert Luke Anthony is a werewolf. Chastity Adofo comes from a family of Huntresses, although she herself is forbidden to hunt. twenty-five years ago, on the day of Chastity’s birth, some batty old oracle had rocked up to the delivery room and told her parents— in typically dramatic fashion— that […]
False Value (2020) Ben Aaronovitch (Rivers of London) The 8th Rivers of London book. It’s been two years since the last book about Peter (although there have been comics) and although I was impatient, I didn’t mind, because my assumption was it was taking a long time so he could get it right (rather than […]
A Gift of Sanctuary (1998) Candace Robb (Owen Archer) Set in Wales in 1371 Owen, Geoffery Chaucer, and Michaelo are accompanying Sir Robert, Owen’s father-in-law, in pilgrimage to St. David’s in Wales. Owen and Chaucer are to also going to Wales for the Duke of Lancaster to determine if the steward at Cydweli Castle is […]
The Winter Companion (2020) Mimi Matthews Set in England in 1860 This is the 4th book of The Parish Orphans of Devon series, and about the most complicated of the four men. Neville Cross has spent as much time as possible with animals, rather than people, after the accident that almost killed him, and permanently […]
The Riddle of St. Leonard’s (1997) Candace Robb Setin England in 1369 The plague has come again to York, and people are taking whatever measures they can to protect themselves. Aromatic fires burned everywhere to ward off the pestilence, creating a fog in some of the passageways. Continuous Masses were said for the people, and […]
The Gentleman’s Guide to Getting Lucky (2019) Mackenzi Lee This is not a boinking book, although it is a book about boinking. Henry “Monty” Montague and Percy Newton are mostly over the events of The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue, and are beginning their lives together, except that they haven’t yet done it yet, […]
The Art of Theft (2019) Sherry Thomas Charlotte Holmes has been taking a break from consulting after her last case. But when Mrs. Watson’s old friend asks for help, Charlotte, Livia, and everyone else is drawn into a heist. I’ve had a request for this from the library since it came out, so when it […]
Get a Life, Chloe Brown (2019) Talia Hibbert Chloe Brown has been all but a recluse because of her chronic illness. But a near-death experience convinces her she needs to change things up: so she makes a list. “Excuse me, universe,” she whispered to the kitchen floor. “When you almost murdered me today— which was […]
The King’s Bishop (1996) Candace Robb Set in England in 1367. We see that Owen still struggles with his allegiance to Thoresby. “Why did you accept the posts if you meant to go into a rage whenever he called upon you?” Owen met Lucie’s eye and said simply, “It seemed an honour at the time.” […]
The Night Raven (2018) Sarah Painter (Crow Investigations) Lydia Crow has returned to London for a bit, after a case she was investigating turned uglier than expected. But she liked being on her own, and doesn’t want drawn back into the family, yet she turns to Uncle Charlie for a place to stay, which draws […]
Merry Inkmas (2017) Talia Hibbert Bailey Cooper is working her way through school as a barrista, and the highlight of recent weeks has been the hot guy who comes in to order coffee and flirt with her. Cash Evans has been watching Bailey for months–wanting what he can’t have and doesn’t deserve. And now she […]
The Nun’s Tale (1995) Candace Robb Set in England in 1365. Joanna Calverley, a young nun, disappeared from her convent–taking part of an ancient relic with her. Archbishop Thorsby isn’t pleased to discover that Dame Isobel had neglected to tell him this–until the nun returns, claiming to have been resurrected. Owen was sent out to […]