Kensington Books

Catherine Lloyd: Miss Morton and the Missing Heir

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Miss Morton #4

Not so long ago, Caroline Morton lost everything when her titled father died, leaving only debts and forcing her into service. Her employer, Mrs. Frogerton, treats her as a member of the family, however, and she likes being in control of her own fate. That free lifestyle is threatened when a claimant to the Morton earldom steps forward. In this fourth installment of the Regency set series by Catherine Llyod, Miss Morton and the Missing Heir, things get complicated quickly.

Mr. Scutton, the claimant, and his family arrive in town and want to meet Caroline. Caroline would rather have nothing to do with the Morton estate, as she can’t inherit anything herself anyway, but the Scuttons are immediately quite interested in her. Mrs. Scutton asks after her personal life, Mr. Scutton is much too interested in her marriage prospects and who she is friends with, and both are not the most polite. Even when Mrs. Frogerton offers to let them stay in her house to get to know Caroline so they don’t have to stay in a hotel, as the Morton home itself is run down and uninhabitable. read more

Darcie Wilde: The Heir

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Series debut

I’ve read many books by Darcie Wilde (aka Sarah Zettel), but this may be my favorite.  The writing and pacing are crisp and the character development seems to utilize all the things Wilde must have learned writing her other books.  It’s exquisite.  While this is a pretty familiar story to a history buff, like any good historical novelist, Wilde shines a new light on history, illuminating the facts with her perceptions of the characters in the story.

The main character, Queen Victoria – Princess Victoria at the time of this novel – is living under the “Kensington System,” an elaborate and restrictive set of rules that governed Victoria’s life until she became Queen.  She never had a moment alone, had to sleep in her mother’s room, and every movement and thought she had was determined by her mother and her mother’s aide, Sir John Conroy. The result in both fact and fiction was that Victoria wanted nothing more than to shed the rules imposed on her and to try and evade them. read more

Dianne Freeman: A Daughter’s Guide to Mothers and Murder

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Countess of Harleigh #8

A Daughter’s Guide to Mothers and Murder is the eighth book in Dianne Freeman’s series about the American-born Frances, Countess of Harleigh, and her second husband, George Hazelton, a secret investigator for the British government.  The series is set in the late 1890s/early 1900s, usually in London, but this book and the previous one take place in Paris during the 1900 Exposition (World’s Fair).  Frances and George have recently returned to Paris from their honeymoon, which was delayed at least twice because of murder, and are awaiting the arrival of Frances’ mother.  Frances and her mother have not had the best of relationships, to put it mildly.  She finds her mother overbearing, and her mother is always criticizing her and her sister.  Frances’ mother has spent much of her daughters’ adulthood trying to marry them off, much like Mrs. Bennet in Pride and Prejudice. read more

Colleen Cambridge: A Fashionably French Murder

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An American in Paris #3

A Fashionably French Murder is the third novel in Colleen Cambridge’s An American in Paris series, set during the years following World War II, featuring Tabitha Knight, the fictitious best friend of Julia Child.  Tabitha, the daughter of a French mother and an American police officer father, was a Rosie the Riveter during the war, and came to Paris from the Detroit suburb where she grew up, to live with her French grandfather and his life partner, Oncle Rafe.  She is not a very good cook, so how lucky is she to have Julia Child as a neighbor.  At the time this book takes place, in 1950, Julia is attending classes at the Cordon Bleu, the famous French cooking school, during the day, and cooking mouthwatering meals for Tabitha and her “messieurs” at night.  She is teaching Tabitha to cook, even though Tabitha is still pretty hopeless in the kitchen without Julia’s help.  The two previous novels in the series have introduced the reader to French food and wine.  This one brings readers into the world of haute couture. read more

Emily Sullivan: A Death on Corfu

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Minnie Harper #1

This lovely, sparkling book is set on Corfu in 1898.  It’s the story of widowed Minnie, raising two kids on her own.  Minnie is British but her husband chose Corfu for them, and the family was very happy there together.  His dying request was for Minnie never to send the children back to England.  While Minnie’s son, Tommy, is young and more than entranced by the copious insect and amphibian population, her daughter Cleo is a teen who has reached the eye rolling stage.  I doubt that’s what it was called in 1898, but you know what I mean.  Cleo is longing to go away to school. read more

Erica Ruth Neubauer: Homicide in the Indian Hills

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Jane Wunderly #6

Homicide in the Indian Hills is the sixth full-length book in Erica Ruth Neubauer’s Jane Wunderly series set in various locations around the world in the 1920s.  Jane, an American war widow, has recently married the enigmatic Englishman Redvers, and this represents their first case as a married couple.  The couple met in Egypt, in the first book in the series, Murder at the Mena House, and so far their adventures have taken them to Istanbul, a Scottish island, a transatlantic voyage on the sister ship of the Titanic, and several other places.  Redvers carries out secret operations for the Crown, and usually these lead to a murder which Jane and Redvers solve. read more

Patrice McDonough: A Slash of Emerald

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Dr. Julia Lewis #2

This new series featuring a female doctor in Victorian England is one to enjoy.   Protagonist Dr. Julia Lewis began the first book called out on a criminal case, and by this one, the second,  the police have quickly learned that although she may be female, she can help them solve difficult problems.  Of course she also has a regular practice,  but the focus of the books is her work with the authorities, specifically one very attractive yet damaged Inspector.

While I loved the first installment, it was jam packed, as are many scene setting series debuts,  while this sequel benefits greatly from a more focused plot.  As the story opens, Dr. Julia is called in to perform a pelvic exam on a woman who was assaulted while walking close to an army barracks.  Under British law at the time, the woman was required to be examined for infectious disease, while the man was not, and Inspector Tennant asks Julia to perform this exam, thinking it will be easier for the victim when conducted by a member of the same sex. She agrees. read more

Kemper Donovan: Loose Lips

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Ghostwriter #2

I really enjoy this quirky new series featuring a nameless ghostwriter as the main character.  In the first book, the writer trailed a Hilary Clinton-esque figure and wound up solving a crime with her.  In this follow up, she’s now an established professional after publishing an account of her previous adventure and is recruited for a private cruise for wannabe writers.  She’s the “mystery writer” instructor, along with a poet, a memoirist, and an ultra successful romance writer.  We eventually learn her pen name, Belle Currer, which certainly makes things simpler from a logistical point of view. read more

Nicholas George: A Lethal Walk in Lakeland

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A Walk Through England #2

This series, one of the sweetest around, centers on Widower Chase, a retired policeman, who, enthralled by the beauty of the British countryside, goes on frequent walking tours.  This is the second book in the series and so far every time Chase goes on one of these journeys, someone gets murdered.  In the first one, he met a man, Mike, a coroner in the UK (Chase is American) and sparks flew.  In this installment they will be reunited, but Chase’s walk through Lake Country is the real focus, and the pair don’t even get together until nearly the end. read more

January and February Book Clubs

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We’ll be meeting on zoom this winter, all are welcome to join us.  Our next meeting is Sunday, January 19 at 2 p.m. (E.A. Poe’s birthday) to discuss Katie Tietjen’s wonderful debut, Death in the Details.  Ms. Tietjen will be joining us.

For February we’ll be reading Kemper Donovan’s humorous and clever The Busy Body, about a ghostwriter working with a Hilary Clinton-esque figure.  The two of them, along with working on a memoir, team up to solve a murder.  This is a delightful first mystery.  Mr. Donovan is the force behind the All About Agatha podcast and a giant devotee of the golden age, especially of Ms. Christie.  His book is a homage to that style of writing.  We’ll be discussing the book on Sunday, February 23 at 2 p.m.  All times Eastern. read more