Flora and Jack head to France in response to family matters. She believes she might have finally identified the location of her parents’ graves and he is summoned by his mother who thinks her friend was murdered in her stead.
Murder in a French Village is the 7th book in the Flora Steele cosy murder mystery series set in the 1950s.
Both of our main protagonists have family issues at the forefront on their minds. Flora’s parents died in a car crash in France but she has never been able to say a final goodbye at their graveside. Jack’s mother saw her new friend killed in a hit and run but thinks she may have been the intended victim as someone also tampered with her pills.
We met Jack’s father in an earlier book and his relationship with his mother is just as fraught. Sybil is quite self centred and often difficult to like. Her new relationship with an Italian count has been unpopular with his daughters and ex wife so she suspects they may be trying to get rid of her.
The change in setting, new characters and relationship progress provides a refreshing dynamic. Jack and Flora move from Paris to the French countryside as they investigate their family mysteries. They are comfortable and confident with each other and I couldn’t help wanting their romance to warm up a bit quicker.
Murder in a French Village is an enjoyable cosy murder mystery.
Book Description:
Join bookshop owner Flora Steele and handsome writer Jack Carrington as they set off on a French adventure and solve a chilling crime!
Jack is stunned to receive a call from his estranged mother, Sybil, asking him to drop everything and come to France. Together with Flora, his fellow sleuth, they pack their suitcases, dreaming of fragrant lavender fields and freshly baked pain au chocolat. It’s only when they arrive that they discover the shocking truth – Sybil’s friend was killed on a street in Paris, and she is desperate for their help.
The case leads them to a picturesque village in the south of France where life should be rosé, but even the bright blue skies can’t hide the fact that something is very wrong. And the mystery only deepens when Flora discovers that Sybil was in fact the intended target. Who would want her out of the way?
Perhaps Sybil’s relationship with wealthy Italian count Massimo Falconi has something to do with it. His darling daughter Allegra, ruthless business partner Pascal and his jealous estranged wife Isabella all have reasons for revenge…
Then when another person in the small French town dies in suspicious circumstances, Flora is convinced the two untimely deaths must be connected. Just when the case seems impossible to crack, a chess box provides an unlikely clue.
Can Flora discover the truth before Sybil meets her end? Or could trouble in paradise spell a final au revoir for the detective duo?
A completely addictive cozy crime novel. Perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, Faith Martin and Joy Ellis!
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.
Merryn lives in a beautiful old town in Sussex with her husband. When she’s not writing, she tries to keep fit with adult ballet classes and plenty of walking.
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A murder mystery society at university resulted in one student disappearing. Now twelve years on, the remaining members are invited to return for one last murder mystery over the Christmas holidays. Can they find out what happened to Karl and can they survive when a real killer attacks…?
The 12 Days of Murder is a mix of psychological and crime thriller, a real murder mystery within a murder mystery game. There are two timelines as we see scenes from the past that resulted in Karl’s disappearance as well as the developing real life murder mystery in the present day.
I admit that I found it a little hard to get into this book. The characters seemed to have no redeeming features so were difficult to like at first and the dual timeline slowed down the pace of developments. However, by a quarter of the way through I had warmed to Charley and a third of the way through I was hooked as the murders start!
Charley has always been on the edge of the group and was further rejected when she was accused of theft. I felt sorry for her as she deals with the cruelty of the others. All of the characters have unpleasant secrets and act suspiciously in the past and present plus there is uncertainty as to whether Karl vanished of his own volition or was killed by a so-called friend.
The group is cut off from the outside world by being at a remote location in Scotland and having no phone connection. There is a claustrophobic atmosphere at times which is intensified by the sinister deaths that then start to occur. The murders are clever and match the Christmas theme for the murder mystery party. I was kept guessing until the end although I did note a couple of relevant clues.
The 12 Days of Murder is an entertaining and intriguing murder mystery and I liked the Christmas theme.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Looking for a good mystery this Christmas, Andreina Cordani’s Twelve Days of Murder is the book for you!
Twelve years ago, eight friends ran an exclusive group at university: The Masquerade Murder Society.
The mysteries they solved may have been grisly, but they were always fictional – until their final Christmas Masquerade, when one of the group disappeared, never to be seen again.
Twelve years later, the remaining members of the group receive an invitation to a reunion masquerade, to be held in a beautiful and remote hunting lodge in Scotland. When they arrive they are each assigned a new identity themed around the Twelve Days of Christmas – they become Lady Partridge or Mr Gold; Lord Leapworth or Doctor Swan. The game begins, and it feels just like old times.
Until the next morning, when Lady Partridge is found hanging from a pear tree.
It quickly becomes clear that in this game, the murder will be all too real, and the story is bringing long-hidden secrets to the surface. If they hope to win the game and survive the festive season then they will need to face the truth about their history together, who they have become – and what really happened on that fateful night twelve years before.
TRIGGER WARNING: drug use, addiction, suicide
A retreat to reset your life. What makes a person attend one? Lots of different reasons! Frances is a formerly succesful writer but her latest book has been rejected. Napoleon, Heather and Zoe are mourning the loss of their son and brother. Carmel feels drab after her husband leaves her for a younger woman. Ben and Jessica’s relationship is in crisis after winning the lottery. Lars and Tony both feel unfulfilled and lost. And finally Masha is the owner of the retreat: can she genuinely change lives?
Nine Perfect Strangers is a psychological thriller with plenty of drama. It has been made into a TV show but I have not seen it (yet!)
There are some BIG issues covered in this book. Masha is a workaholic an she suffers a heart attack. This leads to an out of body experience and the determination to change her life and share her revelation with others. A diverse group of people arrive at her retreat but her methods are more unusual and extreme than they have been previously.
I found an emotional pull to most of the characters. Ben is haunted by his sister’s addiction and has not found happiness with his huge lottery win. Jessica is unhappy with her appearance but the more plastic surgery she has the more it drives a wedge between her and her husband. Frances and Carmel are older women who feel that they are on the scrapheap after personal and professional rejections. I felt the most emotion about Napoleon, Heather and Zoe’s back story as they struggle to cope with Zac’s suicide. Each of them feels guilty but are trying to stay strong for the others.
The book is a slow burn for the first half of the book as we are introduced to the characters and their back stories. Masha’s methods are unorthodox but gradually become more extreme and dangerous. The final chapters of the book show the changes that have happened in the characters lives and there are more twists here!
I am getting addicted to audiobooks and I liked the use of the accent to distinguish Masha’s voice which didn’t feel like a caricature.
Nine Perfect Strangers is a dramatic, engaging and emotional psychological thriller.
Book blurb
Could ten days at a health resort really change you forever?
These nine perfect strangers are about to find out…
Nine people gather at a remote health resort. Some are here to lose weight, some are here to get a reboot on life, some are here for reasons they can’t even admit to themselves. Amidst all of the luxury and pampering, the mindfulness and meditation, they know these ten days might involve some real work. But none of them could imagine just how challenging the next ten days are going to be.
Frances Welty, the formerly best-selling romantic novelist, arrives at Tranquillum House nursing a bad back, a broken heart, and an exquisitely painful paper cut. She’s immediately intrigued by her fellow guests. Most of them don’t look to be in need of a health resort at all. But the person that intrigues her most is the strange and charismatic owner/director of Tranquillum House. Could this person really have the answers Frances didn’t even know she was seeking? Should Frances put aside her doubts and immerse herself in everything Tranquillum House has to offer—or should she run while she still can?
It’s not long before every guest at Tranquillum House is asking exactly the same question.
Combining all of the hallmarks that have made Liane Moriarty’s writing a go-to for anyone looking for wickedly smart, page-turning fiction that will make you laugh and gasp, Nine Perfect Strangers once again shows why she is a master of her craft.
Five children spot a flash of light in the sky and head into the woods to investigate. Can they save their town from a deadly invasion…?
Shiver Point: It Came From The Woods is the first book in a new children’s series aimed at ages 9-12. I was transported back to my tween and teen years when I devoured Point Horror books and can’t wait to share with my own kids in the lead up to Halloween.
Alex is struggling to adjust to his new town. His mum is working long hours and he is lonely as he has made no friends. One night he spots a light streaking through the sky and hopes to find something valuable so his mum can stop working and spend time with him. In the woods he finds 4 other children who have followed the light trail and their friendship offers hims something just as treasured.
Each of the children is unique and a misfit at school. They represent a range of ethnicities and family dynamics. Their strength as a team comes from their unity despite their differences. The dedication to their family, their community and each other drive them to be brave.
The slimy slugs and creepy atmosphere are sinister and without being too scary. As an introduction to the horror genre, this is pretty much perfect. Obviously I am a middle aged woman (42 ?! 🙁 ) so not the intended audience but I can see the appeal for younger audiences and there is a good level of spookiness and unease.
Shiver Point: It Came From The Woods is an entertaining and engaging horror story for children.
Welcome to SHIVER POINT, home of spooks, screams and small-town horror! Enter if you dare…
Shiver Point is boring. Nothing interesting ever happens there and there’s never anything fun to do. At least that’s what Alex has always thought. Until one night, in the dead dark, he spots what looks like a meteorite plummeting into Howlmoor Forest.
Intrigued, Alex goes to investigate. But little does he know, four other kids have also spotted the strange streak in the sky: ‘troublemaker’ Oli, studious Sophia, curious Mo and budding engineer Riley. What they discover is far beyond their wildest dreams – in fact it belongs in their nightmares. Can the gang work together to save the town from the bloodthirsty bodysnatcher that’s arrived with the meteorite before it’s too late?
One thing’s for sure: Shiver Point will never be the same again.
Packed with chills and thrills, SHIVER POINT is a hair-raising new horror series for middle grade readers.
A queen imprisoned in an abbey for 15 years. Her husband and daughters die and she prepares to escape…
Learwife is the fictional account of King Lear’s wife, derived from the Shakespeare play. The plot begins where the play of King Lear ends and centres around his estranged and exiled queen.
I studied King Lear for A Level and was happy to be re-immersed in the plot alongside the characters. Lear and his daughters are dead. But one member of the family remains alive in secret. Lear’s wife and queen has been kept almost prisoner in an abbey but now hopes for her freedom to allow her to grieve for her husband and children.
Learwife is full of raw emotion, love and passion, grief and pain. I was swept up in the main character’s life experiences in the past and present. Politics and faith also play a key role in the drama of the book as Learwife struggles for power within the convent as the country at large adjusts to the upheaval of Lear’s downfall.
The author appeals to the senses and emotions of the reader through poetic prose. The writing style is flowery and almost overly descriptive. Shakespeare would definitely approve as some of his lines are included. Juliet Stevenson’s narration is perfectly matched to the text and characters.
Learwife is a captivating historical novel for Shakespeare and literature fans.
Book blurb:
Taking inspiration from two lines in Shakespeare’s King Lear, J.R. Thorp spins an unforgettable story about love, motherhood, grief and power.
Set in medieval Britain, Learwife gives voice to one of the most famous female characters ever written out of literary history. Lear’s queen has been exiled in an abbey for 15 years, since the birth of her youngest daughter, for an unknown offence. After hearing the devastating news of the deaths of her husband and daughters, the queen enters into a spiral of grief. To occupy her troubled mind, she encourages the women of the abbey into a competition for her approval, a contest that quickly devolves into savagery. Her narrative is interwoven with her memories, as a queen and mother who conceived a family plagued by madness, deceit and tragedy.
Learwife is a thrilling, exquisite and audacious literary debut about a woman thwarted, a woman forgotten, a woman fighting back.
