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anaidelawless's review against another edition
4.0
I love Beatrice and Kesgrave and I enjoyed Flora a lot in this. I also liked reocurring characters such as Holfcroft's cousin or even Ms. Norton. The mystery was okay, but I am in this for the characters mostly.
dawn_marie's review against another edition
2.0
A Malevolent Connection was my least favorite offering in Lynn Messina's usually enjoyable Beatrice Hyde-Clare Mysteries.
In this volume, Bea learns that Kesgrave's uncle is planning to murder her, hoping that her death would leave Kesgrave so grief stricken that he would not marry and produce heir, thereby inheriting the dukedom. But alas, the uncle's plot is thwarted when he, himself, is murdered.
The murder plot itself was rather straight forward and follows Ms. Messina's pattern of laying out all the clues - plus a few red herrings - so that the reader and Bea can solve the murder.
I normally find Bea an interesting character, but not in this volume. While I understand that after a lifetime of being told she is "worthless" that Bea would still hold some of those thoughts, however it felt that these thoughts have become Bea's defining characteristic. I really do not need to spend an entire chapter in Bea's head where she laments whether or not Kesgrave truly loves and respects her or if she is worthy of her new position just because Kesgrave made a decision without her. Or how many times do we need to hear that Bea's first season was ruined? These extremely lengthy self-directed diatribes interrupt the flow of the narrative and lessen my overall reading enjoyment.
In this volume, Bea learns that Kesgrave's uncle is planning to murder her, hoping that her death would leave Kesgrave so grief stricken that he would not marry and produce heir, thereby inheriting the dukedom. But alas, the uncle's plot is thwarted when he, himself, is murdered.
The murder plot itself was rather straight forward and follows Ms. Messina's pattern of laying out all the clues - plus a few red herrings - so that the reader and Bea can solve the murder.
I normally find Bea an interesting character, but not in this volume. While I understand that after a lifetime of being told she is "worthless" that Bea would still hold some of those thoughts, however it felt that these thoughts have become Bea's defining characteristic. I really do not need to spend an entire chapter in Bea's head where she laments whether or not Kesgrave truly loves and respects her or if she is worthy of her new position just because Kesgrave made a decision without her. Or how many times do we need to hear that Bea's first season was ruined? These extremely lengthy self-directed diatribes interrupt the flow of the narrative and lessen my overall reading enjoyment.
emilybordelovewrites's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
nevclue's review against another edition
4.0
These hit a really nice sweet spot for me. Light, fun, a bit of romance, a pleasant mystery. I apparently accidentally skipped book 8 but will go back and read it immediately.
librarian_janet's review against another edition
Increasing amounts of exposition, decreasing amounts of action
beachburgmom's review against another edition
4.0
What a fun cozy mystery read, I love the way this series reads, the author does a great job of bringing the characters to life and I found myself laughing at some of the chaos and situations. They are a quick read and if you are a lover of cozy mysteries you’ll love reading this one and the previous 8 books in the series. It’s a great book to sit by the fire this fall with a nice cup of tea and lose yourself for awhile all the while wondering why does Beatrice hate pineapple so much .
I received a free copy of this book through NetGalley and Book Whisperer. All opinions are my own. I would recommend this book or the entire series to friends or my book club.
I received a free copy of this book through NetGalley and Book Whisperer. All opinions are my own. I would recommend this book or the entire series to friends or my book club.
rainelle_barrett's review against another edition
3.0
He’s and the Heiress had a very lengthy conversation that at times was entertaining. I was able to follow what they were discussing. I thought the story provided a lot of background information of previous issues in the past. The book is a bit of a page turner. The characters seems witty and entertaining.
klew's review against another edition
5.0
A great addition to this series….Duchess Bea does it again! Newly married and attempting to overcome her questions about her place in the world, Bea continues to become accustomed to her “marriage of partners” with The Duke of Kesgrave, encounter dead bodies and solve crimes. Bea will not be cowled by the constraints of women’s’ roles in Regency England or the opinions of others….she is her own woman. This is a fun historical mystery/romance book series and I know I’ll read the next installment as soon as it comes out!
Thanks to #netgalley for the ARC.
Thanks to #netgalley for the ARC.
thenovelbook's review against another edition
3.0
This latest addition to the Beatrice Hyde-Clare series will be enjoyed by fans who have been following her since the beginning. In the first half of the book in particular, the relationship between her and the Duke of Kesgrave seems to come full circle, as the focus shifts from the troublesome past of Beatrice's family to the troublesome past of the duke's.
The premise of having Bea's archnemesis, the woman who obliterated her chances of social success in early years, suddenly come groveling with outlandish gestures to gain forgiveness, is a fresh plot line and probably the most amusing and fun part of the book.
The mystery itself didn't grab my attention, especially in the last half, as it seemed to be mainly a revolving question of which suspects knew what facts at what point and I couldn't bring myself to care who was actually the culprit, so I found myself skimming through some of the hypothesizing.
Thanks to NetGalley and The Book Whisperer for this digital review copy!
The premise of having Bea's archnemesis, the woman who obliterated her chances of social success in early years, suddenly come groveling with outlandish gestures to gain forgiveness, is a fresh plot line and probably the most amusing and fun part of the book.
The mystery itself didn't grab my attention, especially in the last half, as it seemed to be mainly a revolving question of which suspects knew what facts at what point and I couldn't bring myself to care who was actually the culprit, so I found myself skimming through some of the hypothesizing.
Thanks to NetGalley and The Book Whisperer for this digital review copy!