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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
Set in Brighton in the 1960s, this story is about gender roles, family drama, murder and mayhem. There's a new female private eye firm in town, operated by Emma Holmes and Sam Collins. Emma is married to Edgar, the police chief, which causes interesting waves. Meg is a novice policewoman who is willing to learn and adds her own flavour. And then there's flamboyant Verity Malone who in the past was a darling of the stage with no use for ruinous TV or cheating husband. She engages the investigators to discover who killed said philanderer. One of her three sons is a suspect. But so is she. In fact, there are loads of suspects.
Jonathan's antics are what makes this book for me! Subtle witticisms abound, too. Glimpses into home life add bits of reality which is an excellent balance to the criminal side of things. The overlap between policing and detecting is done very well. Talk about potential for future books as well!
Those who prefer their cozies with injections of grit ought to read the seamlessly-written Brighton Series. Elly Griffiths certainly does have a way with words!
My sincere thank you to Mariner Books and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this fun book.
Jonathan's antics are what makes this book for me! Subtle witticisms abound, too. Glimpses into home life add bits of reality which is an excellent balance to the criminal side of things. The overlap between policing and detecting is done very well. Talk about potential for future books as well!
Those who prefer their cozies with injections of grit ought to read the seamlessly-written Brighton Series. Elly Griffiths certainly does have a way with words!
My sincere thank you to Mariner Books and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this fun book.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review. I feel like I've been waiting such a long time for this title! I know Griffiths has the other series, so I haven't been bereft, but I was worried the long wait might make me forget some things. Luckily, Griffiths does a nice job of subtly catching readers up on the connections of the characters and how they all inter-relate to each other. It's so fun to see Emma and Sam strike out on their own! The whole story was good, parts of it felt a bit lackluster or rushed, but overall: it was an extremely enjoyable read, and the plot twists were enough to keep me completely engaged. Given the ending of the book, I am EXTREMELY interested to see where Griffiths takes this story next!
I sort of missed it being the guys, but was happy to hear more from the ladies.
Set in the 1960s in Brighton, this murder mystery focuses on the theatre performers of the variety shows of yesteryear, pre war, and the two world wars. So by the 60s they're all getting on a bit. But someone's still up for murder. Old actor/theatre performer/businessman/all-round womaniser and creep Bill Billington is found dead in his chair. All looks natural until it turns out that he was poisoned with rat poison. And one of his sons suspects his mother.
So the police come in, and the mother, an old stage performer herself, hires private detective duo Emma and Sam to solve the case and assumedly prove her innocence. This seems to be the sixth in the series, so I guess there's been a lot of build up of Emma and Sam's backstories. It worked as a stand alone fine enough though. Although I have to admit I often forgot it was set in the 60s, and thought it was set in more recent times.
At one point they even have to leg it up north to Whitby to interview a couple of actors who are working on a Dracula film.
So the police come in, and the mother, an old stage performer herself, hires private detective duo Emma and Sam to solve the case and assumedly prove her innocence. This seems to be the sixth in the series, so I guess there's been a lot of build up of Emma and Sam's backstories. It worked as a stand alone fine enough though. Although I have to admit I often forgot it was set in the 60s, and thought it was set in more recent times.
At one point they even have to leg it up north to Whitby to interview a couple of actors who are working on a Dracula film.
DNF 1/4 of the way through. i don’t know why i read this when i did not read any of the other books in the series? was very boring and dry though
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I liked the idea behind this one, with the switch to the female narrator and focus on the female characters. But it felt like the schoolhouse rock version of feminism, as if the author read "this is what feminists read/did/said in xyz year" and then replicated that for the characters without making anything fit their existing character traits. So the retconning continues here, for me, and madness this feel flat and dull. I know this author can write strong women because she does in other series, but trying to mash them into this existing series and onto these existing characters didn't work for me.
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Elly Griffith writes perfect mysteries. Her characters are strong and resilient, navigating complex crimes and the perils of human relationships at the same time. This is a fantastically entertaining series!