Book: Murder at the Wedding
Author: Helena Dixon
Pub Day: Oct 6th 2021
My Rating: 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟
About the Book:
’Till death do us part may come sooner than they thought… 1934. Kitty Underhay steps out of the battered Rolls Royce and onto the gravelled driveway of Thurscomb Castle in deepest Yorkshire. She’s honoured to be a bridesmaid at her cousin Lucy’s wedding to the reluctant Lord Rupert Woodcomb, but as family and friends gather for welcome drinks, Kitty dodges intrusive questions about her own marital status by taking a stroll about the castle grounds. As she passes through the manicured gardens, a fatal shot rings out… The valet, Evans, is dead. And Kitty can’t help but notice how rattled the man standing next to him seems. Could Rupert’s best man, The Right Honourable Alexander ‘Sandy’ Galsworthy, believe the speeding bullet was meant for him? When she discovers that Sandy has been receiving blackmail notes, Kitty suspects that one of the assembled guests has plans to make good on their threats. The local constabulary won’t act on Kitty’s hunch, so, busy with her bridesmaid’s duties, she asks her beau, ex-army captain Matthew Bryant, to help. The ceremony passes without a hitch. But when an anxious Sandy slips away during the dancing, Matt follows, only to make a hideous discovery: Sandy is dead, flattened on the terrace by some falling masonry. Now the duo are sure that there is a murderer within the castle walls. But can they untangle Sandy’s final hours and catch this killer before they strike again, or will the wedding bells be replaced by a death knell for Kitty herself…? A completely charming and unputdownable cozy historical Golden Age murder mystery! Perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, T.E. Kinsey and Lee Strauss.
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'Murder At The Wedding' by Helena Dixon.
Read and reviewed via NetGalley for Helena Dixon, Bookouture publishers and Bookouture anonymous
Publication date 6th October 2021.
This is the third book I have read by this author. It is also the seventh book in the 'Miss Underhay Mystery' series but can be read as a standalone. I have previously read 'Murder On The Dance Floor' (book 4 in the series) and 'Murder At Elm House (book 6 in the series) which I also highly recommend.
I was originally drawn to this book by its eye catching cover and its intriguing synopsis and title. The synopsis stated that this book is 'Perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, T.E. Kinsey and Lee Strauss. ' I am a huge fan of Agatha Christie so am looking forward to seeing if this lives up to this statement. I am also a huge fan of Helena and if this is half as good as 'Murder In The Dance Floor' and 'Murder At Elm House' it is sure to be a page turning read. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Bookouture. I have yet to read a book published by Bookouture that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).
This novel consists of a prologue and 24 chapters. The chapters are short to medium in length so possible to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!
This book is based in Plymouth and Yorkshire, UK 🇬🇧 . I always enjoy when books are set in the UK as I'm from Wales and have sometimes visited areas mentioned in the book. This makes it easier to picture where the scenes are set at times. I have in fact visited both on many occasions so am looking forward to possibly recognising name places.
This book is written in third person perspective and the protagonist being Kitty Underhay. The benefits of third person perspective with are that it let's you see the bigger picture of what's going on and you get to know more characters more, what they are thinking and what they are doing. It feels like you get to see the whole picture and not miss out in anything.
This book was very well written and I do believe some research went into it as everything linked correctly in with the era it was set in. It is a real bug bear for me when I read a historical novel and the author hasn't done their research and gets basic information mixed up so well done Helena!! It was very well written and I found the synopsis and the cover fitted the storyline perfectly, The descriptions were great and it really felt as if I was in the story.
The storyline was very interesting and quite fast paced. I absolutely loved the atmosphere and the surroundings of the plot being set in a castle per say, very spooky and a perfect book to read with Halloween coming up especially with the ghost storyline in the background as well as the main plot. I really enjoyed that it was set in the past and the storyline really suited that. It really is a nice cozy mystery that will keep you guessing throughout. At no point did I suspect who was doing what or why so a huge well done there Helena!!! I have read many a mystery and find that I am working out the killer/perp quicker every time and there's nothing worse than working out who did what when your need even half way through a book. Not only is this quite a suspense and action filled mystery but there was just the right amount of quirkiness, laughter and romance to give it a nice mix!!! Although this is the seventh book in the series I had absolutely no problems reading it without the others. Any details or events that have previously happened are mentioned in just the right amount of detail to let a new reader know what has happened and yet not too much to bore a previous reader.A fun, addictive, unputdownable cozy crime mystery.
I am really invested in the characters and really enjoyed Kitty and her fantastic and quirky personality!!! In fact all of the characters had their own individual personalities which worked really well with each other. The only fault I did find is that sometimes the characters first names were used and at other times their surnames, as there are quite a few characters this did cause me some confusion at times. I especially enjoyed getting to know Matt, Alice and more. However, I am looking forward to meeting them all again in the next 'episode' of Miss Underhay's adventures which I'm sure will be just as exciting as this one!!
Congratulations Helena on yet another successful cosy crime. Looking forward to the next book in this fantastic series 🥂
Overall a perfect mix of mystery, crime, romance, laughter and quirkiness which kept me turning the pages late at night!!
Genres covered in this novel include Historical, Cozy Mystery, Murder Mystery and Crime among others.
I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans of anyone looking for a nice easy mystery to read while curled up in front of the fire.
277 pages.
This book is just £2.99 to purchase on kindle or free in kindle unlimited via Amazon which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!
Rated 5 /5 (I LOVED it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook.
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@HelenaDixon @Bookouture @Bookworm1986 @bookworm86
Author Bio
Helena Dixon was born and continues to live in the Black Country. Married to the same man for over thirty years she has three daughters, a cactus called Spike, a crazy cockapoo and a tank of tropical fish. Helena was the RNA winner of the Romance Prize in 2007 and Love Story of the Year 2010. Social Media
Twitter: https://twitter.com/NellDixon
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/helenadixonuk
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