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3.8 AVERAGE
3.8 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
The publisher's blurb is an on-target hook for me. As a retired nurse in the US, I am well aware of our ingrained critical thinking, and both inductive/deductive reasoning is easily applied to sleuthing and other sneaky pursuits. Miss Hortense and Blossom are a somewhat mismatched team but make for a lot of sly humor. Nice twisty cozy with a dramatic ending. Loved it and looking forward to more!
I requested and received a temporary uncorrected digital galley from Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor | Pantheon courtesy of NetGalley. Pub Date Jun 10, 2025
#AMurderforMissHortense by @mel_pennant @aaknopf @pantheonbooks @vintagebooks
#mysteryfiction #cozymystery #retirednurse #britain #investigation #debutnovel #jamaicanculture #cozymysteryseries #womensleuths #recipes #moneyschemes #suspense
I requested and received a temporary uncorrected digital galley from Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor | Pantheon courtesy of NetGalley. Pub Date Jun 10, 2025
#AMurderforMissHortense by @mel_pennant @aaknopf @pantheonbooks @vintagebooks
#mysteryfiction #cozymystery #retirednurse #britain #investigation #debutnovel #jamaicanculture #cozymysteryseries #womensleuths #recipes #moneyschemes #suspense
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
emotional
The murder mystery about a Pardner that you didn’t think you needed to read
Miss Hortense is a retired Jamaica nurse who emigrated from Jamaica from the 1960s and never looked back. She has a beautiful garden and lives on a quiet street in Birmingham in a house she bought after working for years and saving all she has in a pardner. After living in England she became a part of a Jamaican community and was the banker of their Pardner until they kicked her out. While she still hold a grudge, she decided to put it all aside when her long time enemy dies under mysterious circumstances. She decides to start investigating the case- nothing could prepare her for the outcome!
The editor letter says that the publishing house does not usually do mystery but they had to take this one on because of how unique it was and I have to agree. Miss Hortense is a formidable character, she is one you don’t want to mess with, and someone you can’t help but cheer for. I loved how the author took us into this community, and how she showcase how people long for home, and what they will do when their security is threatened.
Something that stood out for me was how Miss Hortense, even after forty years, still continues to make Jamaican food lol.
I thoroughly enjoyed this one.
Miss Hortense is a retired Jamaica nurse who emigrated from Jamaica from the 1960s and never looked back. She has a beautiful garden and lives on a quiet street in Birmingham in a house she bought after working for years and saving all she has in a pardner. After living in England she became a part of a Jamaican community and was the banker of their Pardner until they kicked her out. While she still hold a grudge, she decided to put it all aside when her long time enemy dies under mysterious circumstances. She decides to start investigating the case- nothing could prepare her for the outcome!
The editor letter says that the publishing house does not usually do mystery but they had to take this one on because of how unique it was and I have to agree. Miss Hortense is a formidable character, she is one you don’t want to mess with, and someone you can’t help but cheer for. I loved how the author took us into this community, and how she showcase how people long for home, and what they will do when their security is threatened.
Something that stood out for me was how Miss Hortense, even after forty years, still continues to make Jamaican food lol.
I thoroughly enjoyed this one.
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I just couldn't get to care about the characters enough.
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Miss Hortense is an interesting character to read about. Having emigrated from Jamaica, she has lived her life here in the greyness of the UK, working as a nurse for over thirty years, and helping her community through the pardner. I'd never heard of pardner schemes before the book, so it was interesting to learn about how it worked, and still works, as a way of helping communities build up funds.
There is quite the cast of characters, and it was sometimes difficult to keep track of who was who (especially when they weren't who everyone thought they were...) But I mostly managed to keep up! I liked hypochondriac, talkative Blossom. And the book builds a real sense of the community that Miss Hortense has been living in for so long. You get a sense of each person as you read, and the slang helps build the picture and feel of the community too.
I would have liked perhaps a little more Miss Hortense herself - she is a little like Sherlock in that we see some of the things she does, but we're not privvy to all the thinking and working out she is doing. I had no idea what was going to play out in the book, and it finishes with rather a grand all-in-the-room reveal (a la Christie) where the plot was layered upon layer. If you asked me to explain what had happened, I'm not sure I'd give a very clear account of all of the ins and outs, because it did keep twisting and turning. But I don't think that matters too much! It was enjoyable to read, and I'd very happily come back to see what mystery Miss Hortense solves next.
With thanks to Net Galley for my copy.