An historical re-enactment of a battle ends in tragedy when one of the participants falls from the ruins. Everyone thinks it is a terrible accident until Alex’s best friend convinces Flora and Jack to investigate…
Murder in an English Castle is the 10th book in the Flora Steele series of murder mysteries set in the 1950s.
Flora and Jack are enjoying the experience of the battleground when Alex falls. His best friend Hector is sure that someone pushed his friend and the amateur sleuths begin to agree that the circumstances are suspicious. Suddenly they expose a range of suspects with a variety of potential motives but things get more complicated when another body is found.
We are straight into the action at the battle site at the start of the book but it then takes some time for the death to be recognised as murder. Alex appears to have no enemies at first but gradually his issues with various characters come to light. On the personal side of the plot, Flora and Jack are still negotiating married life and their work schedules. As always, I enjoyed the historical context of the series and thought that the Sussex village was brought to life.
Murder in an English Castle is an enjoyable historical murder mystery.
Book Description:
It’s time to rewrite history with amateur detectives Flora Steele and Jack Carrington as they are called to a castle to unearth the clues of a murder most medieval…
Sussex, 1959. The sun is shining on the breathtaking castle as the Abbeymead Historical Society prepare their re-enactment of the Battle of Lewes. But the fun ends abruptly when council worker Alex Vicary falls to his death from the castle ramparts. A shadowy figure runs from the scene, but Alex was a beloved member of the community… who could possibly want him dead?
As Flora and Jack investigate further, they dig up troubles Alex kept buried from those closest to him. Perhaps he was pushed by his money-hungry landlord, Larry Morton, who was trying to sell Alex’s home? Or maybe his oldest and shiftiest friend, Bruce Sullivan, who gambled away the money Alex loaned him? Or could it be his wide-eyed new girlfriend, Diane Croft,who dodges questions about Alex’s death, and hides presents from another suitor?
But when Flora discovers an engagement ring among Alex’s possessions, she is stunned to learn that his relationship with Diane was more serious than everyone thought. With whispers of another man fighting for Diane’s heart, were the battle lines drawn for love?
Then the body of a second member of the society is found, and the pair realise time is running out. Will history repeat itself with yet another death? Or can Flora and Jack catch their killer before the medieval murderer bids them both adieu?
A totally compelling and absolutely charming cozy mystery novel. Fans of Agatha Christie, Faith Martin and Joy Ellis will adore this unputdownable series!
Author Bio:
Merryn taught university literature for many years, and it took a while to pluck up the courage to begin writing herself. Bringing the past to life is a passion and her historical fiction includes Regency romances, wartime sagas and timeslip novels, all of which have a mystery at their heart. As the books have grown darker, it was only a matter of time before she plunged into crime with a cosy crime series set in rural Sussex against the fascinating backdrop of the 1950s.
It has been a manic week of work, mainly mock exams but also 2 governor meetings as well as parent governor election prep.
The moon has been pretty spectacular this week too, apparently the last supermoon of the year. The cloud cover made it seem a bit spooky so I was glad to have the dogs for company!
A ghost directs Rylan Flynn to find a murder victim in the river. The body is that of Kenzie, the cousin of Rylan’s detective boyfriend. He isn’t allowed to investigate officially due to the family connection but Ford and Rylan decide to work together to bring Kenzie’s killer to justice…
The River Ghost is the 5th book in the paranormal murder mystery series featuring ghost hunter Rylan Flynn.
Rylan and Ford have only just moved from friendship to relationship but they already face their first crisis as they investigate the murder of his cousin Kenzie. Ford isn’t allowed to get involved in the official case and his partner has to team up with someone new. Luckily Ford trusts Rylan enough to work with her to track down the killer and he relies on her skills with ghosts to get added insights that normal detectives are not privileged to.
There is a wonderful side plot about a haunted bear and ghosts continue to pop up and interact with Rylan. Rylan’s hoarding and the emotional issues from her mother’s murder are handled sensitively and there is still the mystery of the dark entities at her home.
The writing is warm and there is some gentle humour but the supernatural side of the plot really shines. There is plenty of emotion as Ford deals with his family’s devastation at Kenzie’s death and this is balanced by the procedural elements of a police investigation. I really love this series of books and the way that the supernatural is portrayed which is akin to my own beliefs.
The River Ghost is a brilliant addition to an excellent series.
I’m Rylan Flynn. I hunt for ghosts and restless spirits, and solve the mysteries that make them haunt the living.
As I drive across an isolated bridge way out in the woods, a bright light blinds me. But it isn’t a car approaching. It’s a ghost, with a deadly secret to reveal.
I follow the spirit down to the river. There, below the water, I find the body of a young woman. A small square of skin is missing from her hip, and I’m certain she was murdered.
DetectiveFord Pierce rushes to join me. Our friendship is turning into something deeper, and there’s nobody I would rather have by my side.
But when Ford sees the body his face turns pale. The girl in the water is his cousin, Kenzie Cross.
As a family member, Ford is forbidden from investigating. But he’s determined to find the killer, and he wants my help. Even if that means working outside the rules.
When the police discover that Kenzie had a secret boyfriend from a strict religious family, they’re certain this is a simple case. But I find evidence that links Kenzie to another mysterious death—years ago, beneath the very same bridge.
I’ve never worked so closely with Ford before, and the danger of the case puts a strain on our new relationship. Can we learn to work together, before another innocent life is taken?
Packed with mysteries, hauntings, shocking twists, and slow-burn romance, the Rylan Flynn series is a paranormal adventure perfect for fans of Noelle W. Ihli, Heather Graham, and Wendy Wang.
Author Bio
Dawn Merriman writes creepy small town murder mysteries from her small farm in northeast Indiana where she lives with her husband and college-age children. You can often find her with muck boots on her feet and a story in her head. She enjoys animals, auctions, snorkeling and archaeology.
Dawn Merriman grew up a small-town farm girl, on a small-time pig farm in Indiana. She spent her young adulthood sitting on her bedroom floor scribbling stories in notebooks. She won the “Northeast Indiana Young Writers” award as a sophomore in high school.
Dawn has published over 20 mystery and thriller novels, most set in small towns in Indiana.
William Shakespeare is trying to establish himself in the theatrical world and stumbles across an astonishing story. 40 years earlier a woman was burned to death following a trial for the murder of her husband. It sparks his creative energy and he sets to work on his first ever play…
Arden is an historical depiction of a new theory about a Tudor play and the legal case that inspired it.
Will is in trouble in his local area and feels unfulfilled helping in the family glove-making business. He joins a band of actors and finds a talent for amending plays, inspiring him to write his own. The story of Alice Arden captivates his interest. She shares the same surname as his mother and he is fascinated to unpick the truth behind the crime.
The book is written in two timelines to show Will’s experience in the 1580s and Alice’s life in the 1540s as she faces life’s struggles which unltimately lead to a murder and her own execution. Both characters are trying to negotiate their way throgh a dangerous world. Alice has the extra difficulty of being a woman, constrained by the gender conventions of the era. Politics and class affect both their lives too.
I felt that both timelines were equally well developed and I was immersed in the Tudor world. It is wonderful to get an insight into the potential truth of the mystery years of Shakespeare before he became famous. The new research that the the author has undertaken was extensive in my opinion and I thought that the fictional write up was very effective. I enjoyed the exploration of the murder and motves with the personal dimension of Alice’s story from the primary sources.
Arden is an engaging and enjoyable historical novel.
Arden
Alice Arden, idealistic and wealthy beauty, burnt at the stake for killing her husband, the former mayor of Faversham in Kent. But was she really the one responsible for the most scandalous murder of the sixteenth century?
William Shakespeare, England’s greatest playwright, born thirteen years after Alice’s execution. Why does his first-ever play, written about this murder, not bear his name?
This is a story of two people – one reviled, one revered – whose fates become linked in a tale of corruption, collusion and conspiracy. Based on historical documents and recently published academic research, Arden unveils shocking new evidence about the murder of Thomas Arden and reveals, for the first time, a remarkable new theory about Shakespeare’s early years.
I have written four novels in the last eight years under the penname GD Harper.
My last novel, The Maids of Biddenden, the imagined biography of real-life conjoined twins born in 12th-century Kent, was featured on BBC TV News and was the winner of the Next Generation Indie Book Awards in the historical fiction category, shortlisted for the 2022 Selfie Award at the London Book Fair, and shortlisted or longlisted for five other awards.
It has over a thousand ratings on Amazon UK and Goodreads, with an average score of 4.3. Across the major Amazon markets, it reached number sixteen in overall paid-for e-book sales, number two in historical fiction and number one in medieval historical fiction.
An abandoned pub is set alight and a man is reported missing. The man’s wife asks Libby to investigate and she finds his murdered body in a barn. Is there a connection to the arson at the pub?
Murder at the Crooked Horse is the 26th book in the Libby Sarjeant series. There are references to past cases and events, and I believe that the characters and relationships have developed over the series of books.
The Crooked Horse pub has been closed and is waiting for redevelopment. Locals are shocked to hear that someone has attempted to burn it down. Luckily no one was injured but someone is missing and Libby is asked to investigate. She finds his body in his own barn but she has suspicions that the murder could be related to the pub, smuggling, an ancient treasure trove, or possibly all three!
There is plenty of mystery for Libby to uncover and I liked the respectful and reciprocal friendship she has with the police characaters. She has to find links between several plot strands but I felt that some of the revelations and clues were convoluted, based on assumptions not evidence. For this reason, I didn’t find the conclusion particularly satisfying.
The writing style is quite dialogue led. The use of dialect and language brings the spoken parts to life. There is very little description and almost nothing about the forensics of the case. There are a lot of peripheral characters and I found it difficult to keep track of everyone and their relationships. I think I would benefit from reading this series from the start.
Murder at the Crooked Horse has plenty of mystery and the characters are brought to life through a dialogue driven narrative style.
Murder at The Crooked Horse
After learning of a suspicious attempt to burn down a beloved old pub, The Crooked Horse, Libby Sarjeant and her friend Fran reluctantly agree to investigate.
But when a local antiques dealer mysteriously disappears after apparently taking out his boat, it appears there are dark and sinister forces at play.
Can Libby and Fran uncover a connection between the fire and the missing man? And will unravelling a deadly case put them in terrible danger?
Author Bio – Lesley Cookman writes the Libby Sarjeant Murder Mysteries and the The Alexandrians, an Edwardian Mystery Series. She lives on the south east coast of England, and is a former model, actor, and journalist. Her four adult children are all musicians and writers.
