Book Review: The Thief of Blackfriars Lane

The Thief of Blackfriars Lane by Michelle Griep
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Ah, one of my favorite authors (I don't even read the book summary anymore; I just grab it if it's a Michelle Griep novel), and my favorite historical time period and setting. Yes! I knew this book was a winner when I saw that beautifully Victorian cover.

If you are a fan of PBS Masterpiece, then I will tell you that this book has a vibe similar to Miss Scarlet and the Duke -- except that in this book, our heroine is a a bit of a thief, or at least gets her job done in slightly suspicious ways (and is not a lady detective by profession).

All in all, I am thoroughly pleased with the wild escapade I got to participate in by turning the pages of The Thief of Blackfriars Lane. Will definitely be picking up the sequel!

Content warning: For those with squeamish tendencies, there are a few sick scenes.

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Double Book Review: Myrtle Hardcastle series #newrelease #blogtour

Premeditated Myrtle
Myrtle Hardcastle Mysteries #1

by Elizabeth C. Bunce

 368 pages // published in 2020 // MG historical mystery

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Twelve-year-old Myrtle Hardcastle has a passion for justice and a Highly Unconventional obsession with criminal science. Armed with her father’s law books and her mum’s microscope, Myrtle studies toxicology, keeps abreast of the latest developments in crime scene analysis, and Observes her neighbors in the quiet village of Swinburne, England.

When her next-door neighbor, a wealthy spinster and eccentric breeder of rare flowers, dies under Mysterious Circumstances, Myrtle seizes her chance. With her unflappable governess, Miss Ada Judson, by her side, Myrtle takes it upon herself to prove Miss Wodehouse was murdered and find the killer, even if nobody else believes her — not even her father, the town prosecutor.

Ah. Myrtle Hardcastle. A young British girl with a nose for solving murder mysteries, it would seem.

Everything about Myrtle's life is all proper and quite British. But her brain is simply teeming with adventure and crime-solving. While she does everything that a Lady-in-training is supposed to do, and does elegantly well for her dear father's sake, she also does plenty that a Lady shouldn't be caught dead doing. Like spying on the neighbors via telescope.

Miss Judson, Myrtle's governess, is a novelty! She makes me wish that adults could have a governess. While she expertly guides Myrtle on rights from wrongs, like her job requires, she also plainly loves participating in Myrtle's investigations, like her job does NOT require. What a pair these two are, in cahoots with each other!

"'Now. Tell me about your Harrowing Adventure.' She [Miss Judson] made it sound that way, capitalized, like a story in a penny dreadful."

There are no girls her own age that Myrtle can truly call a friend. The girls in her neighborhood are too fashionable, too consumed with their own selves to think twice about any intriguing topic that Myrtle is interested in, like the sciences, and Observing the world... and murder mysteries.

She may be just 12 years old in 1893, but Myrtle Hardcastle uses every modern convenience at her fingertips to piece together the clues of the puzzle. Her telescope is her inanimate best friend, with her microscope at a close second. Myrtle is a fellow fan of Mr. Sherlock Holmes (like me), and she follows his methods of deductive reasoning whenever she can. Just another reason why I love Myrtle.

There are many endearing and memorable characters among Myrtle's family, friends, and... enemies too. A surprise favorite of mine is Mr. Blakeney, a young solicitor-in-training, who meets Myrtle in her investigation and attempts to guide her along. He even has a pet name for her -- Stephen. As crazy as that seems, it's just a part of their semi-comedic friendship together.

Overall, this series opener is an intricately and masterfully-woven plot! It kept me guessing at every turn.

For fans of Agatha Christie, Sherlock Holmes, and Flavia de Luce. Ages 9 to Adult (it has such an amazing and interesting plot, anyone could enjoy it.)

BUY YOUR COPY!
hardcover // e-book // audio

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How to Get Away with Myrtle
Myrtle Hardcastle Mysteries #2

by Elizabeth C. Bunce

 352 pages // published in 2020 // MG historical mystery

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Before the train has left the station, England’s most accomplished new detective already is on a suspect’s trail, and readers will be delighted to travel along.

Myrtle Hardcastle has no desire to go on a relaxing travel excursion with her aunt Helena when there are More Important things to be done at home, like keeping close tabs on criminals and murder trials. Unfortunately, she has no say in the matter. So off Myrtle goes—with her governess, Miss Judson, and cat, Peony, in tow—on a fabulous private railway coach headed for the English seaside.

Myrtle is thrilled to make the acquaintance of Mrs. Bloom, a professional insurance investigator aboard to protect the priceless Northern Lights tiara. But before the train reaches its destination, both the tiara and Mrs. Bloom vanish. When Myrtle arrives, she and Peony discover a dead body in the baggage car. Someone has been murdered—with Aunt Helena’s sewing shears.

The trip is derailed, the local police are inept, and Scotland Yard is in no rush to arrive. What’s a smart, bored Young Lady of Quality stranded in a washed-up carnival town to do but follow the evidence to find out which of her fellow travelers is a thief and a murderer?

In Volume Two, what starts as Myrtle Hardcastle getting to assist "a real Investigator in the search for a jewel thief!" quickly escalates into Myrtle Hardcastle attempting to solve the crime of a murder!

In this story, Myrtle, Miss Judson (governess), and Aunt Helena are heading down the train tracks to go on holiday. Even Peony the cat has gotten packed into the luggage, ready for some relaxation and vacation. Suffice it to say, by chapter 5, the situation becomes Extremely Interesting. When the police handcuffs come out, they're being slapped onto the wrists of one of Myrtle's own inner circle. Gasp!

The larger-than-life settings and atmosphere, alongside the immensely colorful characters, make the story jump to life in my head like a movie. It will capture the attention of even the most reluctant readers out there.

Myrtle's life seems to me that it must be similar to a young Agatha Christie's (fictionalized) life. The other girls back home don't call her "Morbid Myrtle" for nothing.

Many times sprinkled throughout the book I'll just happen to find a wonderful turn of phrase that will make me simply stop and smile (both inwardly and outwardly) at the wittiness of it... and it keeps happening, extending my pleasure of the story itself.

For fans of Agatha Christie, Sherlock Holmes, and Flavia de Luce. Ages 9 to Adult (it has such an amazing and interesting plot, anyone could enjoy it.)

BUY YOUR COPY!
hardcover // e-book

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Elizabeth C. Bunce is the author of the new Myrtle Hardcastle Mystery series, beginning with Premeditated Myrtle.

Her first novel, A Curse Dark as Gold, won the inaugural William C. Morris Award for a young adult debut novel and was named a Smithsonian Notable Book. Her high fantasy Thief Errant series includes the novels StarCrossed, A Chicago Public Library Best of the Best book for 2010, and Liar's Moon, one of Kirkus Blog's Favorite YA Novels of 2011. StarCrossed and A Curse Dark as Gold have appeared on Oprah's Kid's Reading List. Her novels have been named to the ALA's Best Fiction for Young Adults list, and she is a three-time Kansas Notable Book winner. An accomplished needlewoman and historical costumer, Elizabeth lives in the Midwest with her husband, her cats, and a boggart who steals books.

Check out her website at elizabethcbunce.com.

Book Review: Murder on the Orient Express

Murder on the Orient Express
Hercule Poirot #10

by Agatha Christie

347 pages // published in 1934 // British crime mystery

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Just after midnight, a snowdrift stops the Orient Express in its tracks. The luxurious train is surprisingly full for the time of the year, but by the morning it is one passenger fewer. An American tycoon lies dead in his compartment, stabbed a dozen times, his door locked from the inside.

Isolated and with a killer in their midst, detective Hercule Poirot must identify the murderer – in case he or she decides to strike again.

Now, THAT is a murder mystery for the books! Whew! Agatha sure knew how to write 'em. Now I understand why this title is such a popular classic. (If you haven't read Murder on the Orient Express, you just should.) ... What a flabbergasting, jaw-dropping solution -- by none other than Mr. Hercule Poirot.

As is the case of many Christie plots... a murder takes place, an entire cast of witnesses and suspects is produced, and Poirot uses his little gray cells for all they're worth, until a suitable answer appears as to the murderer's identity. This murder event just happens to take place on a snowbound train in Europe. With no footprints in the snow leading away, it's safe to surmise that the killer is still roaming among the locomotive's society. (Except, of course, that's not safe at all, for the living!)

The book is set up in an ever-so-precise way of each chapter corresponding to an individual witness's report. It's done in a way of tallying up the evidence from every angle, very categorically. (It makes for a fun, yet strategic, read.)

Overall, this one is pretty amazing. Also, it's unforgettable.

BUY YOUR COPY!
paperback // hardcover // e-book // audio

Book #12 completed // Classic By A Woman




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Book Review: Anon, Sir, Anon

Anon, Sir, Anon

by Rachel Heffington

284 pages // published in 2014 // historical mystery

BOOK DESCRIPTION

The 12:55 out of Darlington brought more than Orville Farnham's niece; murder was passenger. In coming to Whistlecreig, Genevieve Langley expected to find an ailing uncle in need of gentle care. In reality, her charge is a cantankerous Shakespearean actor with a penchant for fencing and an affinity for placing impossible bets. When a body shows up in a field near Whistlecreig Manor and Vivi is the only one to recognize the victim, she is unceremoniously baptized into the art of crime-solving: a field in which first impressions are seldom lasting and personal interest knocks at the front door. Set against the russet backdrop of a Northamptonshire fog, Anon, Sir, Anon cuts a cozy path to a chilling crime.

I immensely enjoyed this book! It's on par with any YA/adult historical mystery best-selling book out there -- for anyone who enjoys a good old-fashioned British murder (with a splash of comedy). Definitely for fans of the Flavia de Luce series.

Author Rachel Heffington is obviously a lover of words, a grammar aficionado, and a learned student/fan of Shakespeare himself. Her writing style is brilliant, pithy, and keeps a lovely British banter going for ages. The wittiness of it all is divine.

Farnham himself pops off Shakespearean proverbs as if they provide Biblical wisdom in any and all instances. I can't help from seeing the Holmes and Watson type of similarities too, found in Farnham and his doctor friend, Breen.

It's such a cozy type story. I feel like I've truly met and talked with these characters, and feel like I've visited Whistlecrieg a few times in person -- and would be excited to go back.

I naively assumed there would be a sequel -- the characters lend themselves easily to the making of more stories about them. However, upon my online research, I found no such sequel. (Yet.) I will hold out hope that Miss Heffington will supply us with a sequel at a later date. Also, I'll be waiting on a future movie to appear -- because this would make for an entertaining movie, for sure.

Contains some grammatical errors, but I looooove the story so much, I can overlook that flaw.

Content: Fairly clean, with subtle hints at mature topics, hints of impropriety. Mild swearing/euphemisms.

Minimum age to read: 15 and up.

BUY YOUR COPY!
paperback // e-book

Book #11 completed




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Book Review: His Last Bow

His Last Bow

by Arthur Conan Doyle

301 pages // published in 1917 // crime, mystery

BOOK DESCRIPTION

'His Last Bow', the title story of this collection, tells how Sherlock Holmes is brought out of retirement to help the Government fight the German threat at the approach of the First World War. The Prime Minister himself requests Holmes's services to hunt down the remarkable German agent, Von Bork. Several of the detective's earlier cases complete the volume, including 'Wisteria Lodge', 'The Bruce-Partington Plans', and 'The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax'. In 'The Dying Detective', Dr Watson is horrified to discover Holmes at death's door from a mysterious tropical disease as his friend lays a trap for a murderer.

THE ADVENTURE OF WISTERIA LODGE:
A bleak tale with ominous clues leading up to the solution -- including a pail of blood. Indeed.

THE ADVENTURE OF THE BRUCE-PARTINGTON PLANS:
One of my favorites! Includes death by train in a particularly peculiar fashion.

THE ADVENTURE OF THE DEVIL'S FOOT:
In which Holmes and Watson willingly replicate the method by which other persons have expired. (Thrilling, no?) Also, we see Holmes' moral philosophy in rare form.

THE ADVENTURE OF THE RED CIRCLE:
A lodger with a secret. A fun mystery.

THE DISAPPEARANCE OF LADY FRANCES CARFAX:
A classic trail of clues -- which only the Great Detective himself could trace.

THE ADVENTURE OF THE DYING DETECTIVE:
Ah! A definite favorite of mine! Holmes, ever so sneaky, so clever, so true. A memorable tale.

THE ADVENTURE OF THE CARDBOARD BOX:
A gruesome little story. One of the highlights for me was Holmes' deductive mind reading. How does he do it?

HIS LAST BOW:
A story like no other. From the first sentence... It's just so sinister!

BUY YOUR COPY!
paperback

Book #2 completed // 20th Century




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#Christmas Short Story Review: Letters Home

My 1st review is here for A Literary Christmas reading challenge! And I have been SOOOO excited about this NEW RELEASE! It just came out today -- and it's only $0.99.

"Letters Home" is from the Steadfast Love series, which I definitely recommend the whole trilogy & this new short story to readers who enjoy inspirational romance...


>>>>> Grab your e-copy now! <<<<<






Letters Home: A Christmas Short Story
Steadfast Love Series

written by Rachelle Rea Cobb

35 pages // published in 2018 // inspirational historical romance

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Since the Steadfast Love series came to a thrilling conclusion, readers have clamored for more from Cade and Margried. This Christmas, that wish is granted in this charming epistolary short story (about 6,000 words) that reveals more about Margried--and her family.

In the year 1566, she fled from an arranged marriage to a convent by the sea. Then a political and religious uprising shattered her plans to remain sheltered there, and she found safety only through an unlikely rescue.

See the events of the Steadfast Love series unfold through Margried’s eyes—and meet the sister never mentioned in those books but with whom Margried longs to reunite… if she will ever write her back.

Ah! What an excellent companion/prequel story to The Steadfast Love series!

I love that this even feels like a spin-off -- the same story I already love, but filled with newness, narrated by a different character this time. (It also makes me wonder if more similar tales could follow?!) 'Letters Home' is from the point-of-view of Margried, who is one of Gwyn's companions in the trilogy. We now can watch Margried's side of the story reveal itself, as she writes heartfelt letters to her sister. Their story is a moving one. Margried has escaped from an entrapping life, one complete with an arranged marriage; her one constant hope, the object she is fixated on, is to rescue her sister from the same kind of life.

"I abandoned you. How you must feel it! First Mama left us -- though not of her choice -- and now I have gone. Dear sister, can you ever forgive me?"

If you happen to read this short story before the trilogy, it will probably just make you eager to jump into the rest of the books. Trust me, what 'Letters Home' touches on in the overall plot is barely the tip of the iceberg; there's so much more goodness waiting for you! I love how Mrs. Cobb intertwines this story with the plot of the trilogy -- adding just a bit more of paths crossing paths, making connections we didn't know existed before.

"For the first time in my twenty years, I crossed the ocean. It was exhilarating and exhausting, and I do not recommend the experience."

And to anyone who has already enjoyed the trilogy... What are you reading this review for? Just start reading the new story already!

A clean inspirational read.

e-book

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Book Review: Village School

Village School
Fairacre series, #1

written by Miss Read

239 pages // published in 1955 // British cozy literature

BOOK DESCRIPTION

The first novel in the beloved Fairacre series, Village School introduces the remarkable schoolmistress Miss Read and her lovable group of children, who, with a mixture of skinned knees and smiles, are just as likely to lose themselves as their mittens. This is the English village of Fairacre: a handful of thatch-roofed cottages, a church, the school, the promise of fair weather, friendly faces, and good cheer -- at least most of the time. Here everyone knows everyone else's business, and the villagers like each other anyway (even Miss Pringle, the irascible, gloomy cleaner of Fairacre School). With a wise heart and a discerning eye, Miss Read guides us through one crisp, glistening autumn in her village and introduces us to a cast of unforgettable characters and a world of drama, romance, and humor, all within a stone's throw of the school. By the time winter comes, you'll be nestled snugly into the warmth and wit of Fairacre and won't want to leave.

It is simply a joy to sit down and get lost in the little village of Fairacre. I am completely transported to 1950's England by Miss Read. It's like a mini-vacation to just sit down and listen to her woes, her thrills, her triumphs in life as a schoolmistress (though little triumphs it feels like to her, I'm sure).

This particular novel, the very first of the Fairacre lot, takes us on a journey of a normal year in Miss Read's classroom, and her interactions with the other townspeople during the year.

She's such a talented writer, I must say. Her descriptions are just so delicious, it's amazing. Her vocabulary? I'm in awe of. I never knew before that one could “run scrunchily”… or that one can eat “craggy slices of bread”!

The narrator of the story, Miss Read, leads with a charming voice – ever so sweetly pointing out the ironies of village life and the fun bits of happiness in her days, usually with some highlights of comedic episodes. Yes, and sometimes the bits of sourness too, when necessary – especially with certain dour-faced children are in the picture.

Overall? Absolutely, positively wonderful.

Favorite quote:

"'Are you alright? Can I fetch you some water?' inquired a kindly headmaster near the door. I felt inclined to tell him that I was on the verge of an apoplectic fit, brought on through exasperation, and that nothing less than a full pot of tea could even begin to help me -- So I merely thanked him and escaped into the market square."
(Chapter 18, The Music Festival)

Buy the book!

paperback // hardcover // e-book

This is book #7 for me in the Back to the Classics 2018 challenge.
[CATEGORY: Classic by a Woman Author]




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Book Review: The Valley of Fear

The Valley of Fear
Sherlock Holmes series

written by Arthur Conan Doyle

224 pages // published in 1915 // classic crime fiction

BOOK DESCRIPTION

'There should be no combination of events for which the wit of man cannot conceive an explanation.'

In this tale drawn from the note books of Dr Watson, the deadly hand of Professor Moriarty once more reaches out to commit a vile and ingenious crime. However, a mole in Moriarty's frightening criminal organization alerts Sherlock Holmes of the evil deed by means of a cipher.

When Holmes and Watson arrive at a Sussex manor house they appear to be too late. The discovery of a body suggests that Moriarty's henchmen have been at their work. But there is much more to this tale of murder than at first meets the eye and Sherlock Holmes is determined to get to the bottom of it.

Admittedly, this is a creepy story (or rather the second half is). Part I is greatly enjoyable -- a basic Sherlock Holmes mystery (had plenty of intrigue, and utilized the same pattern that most of the canon follows). However, Part II? I'm not crazy over it, that's for sure. The cult following in Vermissa Valley kept reminding me of the R.L. Stevenson's The Suicide Club (perhaps because I just read that one a month ago), based on it's cult conspiracy level. It's deep. And dark. Of course, it helps you to finish putting the puzzle pieces together from Part I of the story, but still... whew!

Anyways, I'm glad to have this novel under my belt. Not sure if I'll be especially eager to re-read this one later on -- but you never know!

Available on Amazon in hardcover, paperback, paperback, and (FREE!) ebook format,
starting at $6.99.

This is book #3 for me in the Back to the Classics 2018 challenge.
[CATEGORY: Classic Crime Story]





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