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A review by ellelainey
A Death at His Majesty's by David C. Dawson
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
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
5.0
** I WAS GIVEN THIS BOOK FOR MY READING PLEASURE **
Reviewed for Divine Magazine
~
A Death at His Majesty's, by David C. Dawson
A Simon Sampson Mystery, Book 3
★★★★★
280 Pages
3rd person, dual character POV
Themes: murder mystery, theatre, friendship, found family, religion
Genre: LGBT, Murder Mystery, Cosy Mystery, Historical
Triggers: mentions of 1920's homophobic laws and attitudes, murder, religious views
~
I've loved the Simon Sampson Mysteries, so far, so when I knew that there would be a prequel story – showing us how Bill and Simon came together – I couldn't have been more excited. Somehow, David C. Dawson manages to outdo himself with every book in this series. I remember being impressed when Book 2 was just as good, if not better, than Book 1. Well, he's done it again. This book could very well be the best in the series, yet. And I sincerely hope there's more to come. I could read about Bill and Simon's adventures forever. I hope they'll still be a crime-solving duo well into their nineties, because even then I'd still want to read about their escapades.
First off, I want to commend Dawson on making this an extremely female-centric novel. Not only do we get heavy amounts of Bill's POV, which was awesome, but the entire book is littered with timeline and well-written, well-researched honesty about the things women experience on a daily basis. These issues aren't just relevant to the historical timeline but also to modern women, because nothing has changed. I won't go on about all the scenes that made my heart race with anticipation or how I knew how Bill felt, whenever she thought there was danger, because that's something every woman knows. The thought process and reactions that Bill went through were phenomenally honest, heartbreaking, endearing and real.
Simon was adorable in this book. I loved the perfect meet-cute of how he first met Bill, then the little slivers of journalistic snark, how the shark inside came out when he realised he had a good source, but that he also knew how and when to draw the line between journalistic endeavour and friendship.
Bill was – as always – incredible. She's such a strong, feisty woman but it was lovely to see a softer side of her, in this book. To see her experiencing love, having a tender heart, and still ball-busting was so much fun.
While I can't say much about the plot itself, because anything I say would probably be a spoiler, I will mention that we get the unusual – but brilliantly executed – journal entries of the killer! This was so much fun, because there were tiny little snippets in those entries that gave us hints and clues towards the killer without ever pointing out just one person. So, we were able to follow the clues that Bill and Simon found, but add on the ones that only we knew about, to try to figure out who the killer was.
As always, the cast of secondary characters was full of life, colour and vibrancy. The story was immensely clever, well executed, and kept me guessing from the start. I was always on the edge of my seat, trying to work out who was liked to who and how. I adored Calvin and sincerely hope we get to see him again, and Aunt Cynny was wonderful! Bill's acerbic wit was like the cherry on top of a clever mystery and an adorable budding friendship.
All in all, a standing ovation for A Death at His Majesty's. It's been the highlight of my week, and I look forward to more from Bill and Simon.
~
Favourite Quote
“Noël insisted on bringing you in for this London run. God knows why. The only thing he knows about you is that you've been at the opera house. What did you do there? Make the tea?”
Reviewed for Divine Magazine
~
A Death at His Majesty's, by David C. Dawson
A Simon Sampson Mystery, Book 3
★★★★★
280 Pages
3rd person, dual character POV
Themes: murder mystery, theatre, friendship, found family, religion
Genre: LGBT, Murder Mystery, Cosy Mystery, Historical
Triggers: mentions of 1920's homophobic laws and attitudes, murder, religious views
~
I've loved the Simon Sampson Mysteries, so far, so when I knew that there would be a prequel story – showing us how Bill and Simon came together – I couldn't have been more excited. Somehow, David C. Dawson manages to outdo himself with every book in this series. I remember being impressed when Book 2 was just as good, if not better, than Book 1. Well, he's done it again. This book could very well be the best in the series, yet. And I sincerely hope there's more to come. I could read about Bill and Simon's adventures forever. I hope they'll still be a crime-solving duo well into their nineties, because even then I'd still want to read about their escapades.
First off, I want to commend Dawson on making this an extremely female-centric novel. Not only do we get heavy amounts of Bill's POV, which was awesome, but the entire book is littered with timeline and well-written, well-researched honesty about the things women experience on a daily basis. These issues aren't just relevant to the historical timeline but also to modern women, because nothing has changed. I won't go on about all the scenes that made my heart race with anticipation or how I knew how Bill felt, whenever she thought there was danger, because that's something every woman knows. The thought process and reactions that Bill went through were phenomenally honest, heartbreaking, endearing and real.
Simon was adorable in this book. I loved the perfect meet-cute of how he first met Bill, then the little slivers of journalistic snark, how the shark inside came out when he realised he had a good source, but that he also knew how and when to draw the line between journalistic endeavour and friendship.
Bill was – as always – incredible. She's such a strong, feisty woman but it was lovely to see a softer side of her, in this book. To see her experiencing love, having a tender heart, and still ball-busting was so much fun.
While I can't say much about the plot itself, because anything I say would probably be a spoiler, I will mention that we get the unusual – but brilliantly executed – journal entries of the killer! This was so much fun, because there were tiny little snippets in those entries that gave us hints and clues towards the killer without ever pointing out just one person. So, we were able to follow the clues that Bill and Simon found, but add on the ones that only we knew about, to try to figure out who the killer was.
As always, the cast of secondary characters was full of life, colour and vibrancy. The story was immensely clever, well executed, and kept me guessing from the start. I was always on the edge of my seat, trying to work out who was liked to who and how. I adored Calvin and sincerely hope we get to see him again, and Aunt Cynny was wonderful! Bill's acerbic wit was like the cherry on top of a clever mystery and an adorable budding friendship.
All in all, a standing ovation for A Death at His Majesty's. It's been the highlight of my week, and I look forward to more from Bill and Simon.
~
Favourite Quote
“Noël insisted on bringing you in for this London run. God knows why. The only thing he knows about you is that you've been at the opera house. What did you do there? Make the tea?”
Content Warnings
Minor: Homophobia, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Grief, Sexism, Violence, Stalking, Police brutality, Murder, Misogyny, Religious bigotry, Outing, Death, and Lesbophobia