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3.29 AVERAGE
3.29 AVERAGE
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Overall, I had fun with this book. It’s all very light and easy to get through. I enjoyed Faith’s writing style which I thought was fun, despite a few frustrating things. The characters although not super fleshed out were overall enjoyable, but I’m not sure I loved any of them.
There are also some big issues with the book, and I will start with the biggest.
The mystery, other than the motive, is too easy to guess. This isn’t helped by the title of the book, the artwork on the front cover, and the blurb on the back of the book. There are things written in the blurb that are revealed some time into the book, so the reveals are ruined. Sometimes the set ups in this book were also to easy to see coming, for example the gag with the name of the boat being misheard over the phone, it was obvious that this would be used to wrap up the end of the story the moment the scene happened.
There were also moments where I felt Faith might have gone a bit overboard with the descriptive words. For example, the word “lackadaisical” made an appearance about four times in the book. That’s three to four times more than it needed to be for me.
Despite the complaints, I finished the book and still had a good time. There were moments where I did doubt my guess to who had committed to murder, which I thought was great, but I really wanted those doubts to be realised with a proper twist to prove me wrong. While I maybe wouldn’t read the book again, I’d possibly check out the sequel to see if the where the characters go.
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Easy reading cosy mystery
I know this book won’t be out for ages (next year!) but the premise sounded so interesting (and the cover was so pretty!) that I had to sleuth it out immediately! “Murder by Candelight” is a delightful ode to all the great amateur sleuths, to whom we can now add Arbie (reluctant debut author) and Val (the vicar’s daughter). Bickering all the way (as only two people who will undoubtedly be set up in future novels can!), they try to uncover who murdered [spoiler] amidst a gossiping village, a possible ghost, and a slew of suspects. I thoroughly enjoyed my reading of this story and look forward to more installments.
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion. “Murder by Candlelight” comes out on January 4, 2024!
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion. “Murder by Candlelight” comes out on January 4, 2024!
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
So dull!
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Minor: Pregnancy, Alcohol
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Well this is just the ticket for a cosy autumn evening, murder and a locked room mystery at that!
The Cotswolds, 1924. Lady of the house, Amy Phelps has been discovered dead at the Old Forge, in the quiet village of Maybury-in-the-Marsh. A seemingly impossible crime, with all the windows and doors to her room locked from inside.
Arbuthnot ‘Arbie’ Swift, celebrated author of The Gentleman’s Guide to Ghost-Hunting finds himself in the unlikely position of detective.
With old friend Val, these two amateur sleuths uncover plenty of motives for murder. When events take another sinister turn, Arbie must find the killer, fast. And to do so will mean cracking a most perfectly plotted crime…
It has the perfect twenties setting, a quaint English village, ghostly goings on, murders and characters that walk right out of the page as you read.
Highly entertaining, an easy style to read and an ingenious plot to tease those little grey cells!
I loved Val, gung-ho and just wades right in, a modern woman who takes Arbie in hand. He reminds me a bit of Bertie Wooster but less dim
It has a Father Brown/Midsomer vibe and obviously a police detective who needs assistance.
It’s a jolly read and I worked out the how, but not the who and looks forward to more sleuthing adventures for Arbie and Val.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No