Her Majesty the Queen Investigates #3
I love this series. When I tell people about it, that the books have Queen Elizabeth II as the detective, there are many skeptical raised eyebrows. The wonder of the books: the plots are wonderful; there’s diversity in the characters – the Queen’s foil is her aide, Rozie, a London born Nigerian – and the respect for the Queen, by all accounts a practical and dutiful woman, shines on every page in the nicest possible way. The books allow you to imagine that it might have gone this way if the Queen really was a secret detective, guiding the police and Scotland Yard to solutions she’s already figured out, with Rozie’s help. There’s also a shining thread of feminism underneath all the stories, celebrating women’s strength in the many forms that strength takes.
The action in this third installment takes place in 2016, entirely at Sandringham, where the Queen and Prince Phillip spend the Christmas and New Year holidays. It’s at the nexus of Trump’s election and the reality of Brexit; and unfortunately, shortly before the Queen’s arrival, a hand in a plastic bag is discovered washed up on the beach. When Rozie shows the Queen a photo, she recognizes the hand – she knows the signet ring and a missing fingertip. It’s the hand of her sometime Sandringham neighbor, Ned St. Cyr.
When some other events surround the hand – a drowning, and a hit and run – the Queen and Rozie put their heads together to try and figure out what’s going on. Unlike the police (or the Chief Constable in this story, a very traditional village mystery) they are sure the events are connected. The Queen has a network of former female aides who have helped in her investigations – one of them lives near Sandringham and is a help to Rozie in understanding the local lay of the land. Of course, the Queen has that bit covered.
Ned’s family owns a nearby stately mansion, Ladybridge, and the chatelaines (the Ladybridge chatelaine is recently deceased) shared a love of gardening, back when the Queen’s mother was in charge of the Sandringham gardens. The gardens play into the plot, but everything this author does is smart and well planned. There’s a reason for each detail she includes, so overlook no detail, readers! These books are nothing if not enjoyable reads, but the author also makes a demand that the reader keep up and pay attention.
I love the friendship between the Queen and Rozie. I love that the Queen knows she can trust Rozie, and that Rozie’s confidence is growing as the series goes forward. As the book begins, Rozie is slightly annoyed that she’s not spending her holiday in the St. Bart’s sunshine, but by the end of the book, she’s as much in love with North Norfolk as the Queen. The tone of these reads is sweet but not saccharine; smart but fully engaging; and best of all (to me) a terrific back stage look at the workings of the royal family. Fictional or not, it feels authentic. These are books not to be missed. — Robin Agnew