Book Description:
When Maud McIntyre and her lady’s maid Daisy travel into the Scottish Highlands, the last thing they expect to find is a body on the train… Will these keen amateur sleuths stop a murderer in his tracks?
Edinburgh, 1911: When Maud McIntyre receives a letter from a maid called Rose, sharing her suspicions that something strange is happening in the house where she works, she and her assistant Daisy immediately travel to the Highlands to investigate.
But as they are changing trains, the body of a man falls from the carriage right in front of them, a bullet in his head. Maud and Daisy can’t believe it – they’ve waited ages for a new case, and now one has literally landed in front of them! And when the local police rule the death as a tragic accident, the pair have no choice but to investigate what they believe is a murder…
Arriving in the Scottish village, Maud and Daisy go undercover to begin their hunt for the murderer, while also investigating the strange behaviour of Rose’s employer, a local art dealer. As they begin to piece together the chain of events, Maud and Daisy wonder whether the cases might be linked. Is it possible the man on the train was killed to cover up something in the village? And, if so, who would do such a thing?
When a local artist is found murdered, Maud and Daisy become convinced the two cases are connected. Searching for the link between the deaths, will Maud and Daisy solve the case before another mysterious murder takes place?
A page-turning historical whodunnit, perfect for fans of the mysteries of Helena Dixon, Verity Bright, T.E. Kinsey and Catherine Coles.
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'Murder In The Scottish Hills' by Lydia Travers.
Read and reviewed via NetGalley for Lydia Travers, Bookouture publishers and Bookouture anonymous
Publication date 25th May 2023.
This is the second book I have read by this author. It is also the second book in her 'Scottish Ladies' Detective Agency'' series. I have also read 'The Scottish Ladies Detective Agency (book 1 in the series) which I would also highly recommend. It can also be read as a standalone.
I was originally drawn to this book by its fantastic eye catching cover and its intriguing synopsis and title. The synopsis stated that this book is ''A page-turning historical whodunnit, perfect for fans of the mysteries of Helena Dixon, Verity Bright, T.E. Kinsey and Catherine Coles.' I am a huge fan of both Helena Dixon and Verity Bright so am looking forward to seeing if this lives up to this statement. I am also a huge fan of Lydia and if this book is half as good as 'The Scottish Ladies Detective Agency' it is guaranteed to be a page turner! 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 30 chapters. The chapters are short to medium in length so easy to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!
This book is based in Edinburgh, Scotland 🏴, UK 🇬🇧. The bonus for me of books that are partly or fully based in the UK is that I live in the UK and have sometimes visited places mentioned in the book which makes it easier to picture. I have actually holidayed in Scotland many time so am intrigued to see if I recognise places based on anywhere I visited while there.
This book is written in third person perspective and the main protagonist is Maud McIntyre. The benefits of third person perspective 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.
A HUGE CONGRATULATIONS TO LYDIA ON A PAGE TURNING SUCCESSFUL ADDITION TO AN ADDICTIVE SERIES!!
This book is a successful unputdownable cosy mystery by the very talented Lydia Travers. I'm always a bit dubious with books based historically as I worry about not being able to 'deal' with the language used but I absolutely love how Lydia has written her books. The language used is perfectly suited to the era whilst being easy to read and making it quite humorous on several occasions. The atmosphere and descriptions were perfect. The synopsis and cover also suit the storyline.
Lydia takes us on another adventure with Maud and Daisy which is just as action packed, funny and addictive as the first book in this series 'The Scottish Ladies Detective Agency', if not better!!! This is a fantastic addition to what has quickly become an addictive series and I cannot wait to get stuck in to the third book in this series which is 'Mystery In The Highlands' and is published on the 26th July which can't come quick enough!!! In this page turning story we meet Maud McIntyre and Daisy Cameron again, who set up their detective agency in Edinburgh in 1912. Their Scottish Ladies Detective Agency' has become quiet after the initial caseloads came piling on after they solved their first cases in 'The Scottish Ladies Detective Agency' which you can read.more about in book one. Maude is offered a job writing up an advice column for the local newspaper which she takes to help their financial situation. When a lady calls Rose writes to the newspaper for advice as she thinks her employer is acting strangely and something isn't quite right in the house. Maud and Daisy meet up with Rose to get more information and decide to help her by investigating her case pro bono. However,what they don't expect is for a murdered man to, literally, drop in front of them on the train on their way to Edinburgh. Maud and Daisy now have two investigations on the go but will there be more? Will Maud and Daisy end up putting their own lives in danger again? With several suspects from those who were travelling on the train with them plus many more who could the killer be? Did the teacher teach the man a lesson by killing him? Was it done out of love or revenge? Is the widows tears of grief or happiness? To discover the answers to this and many more questions grab your copy of this amazing book today!!! One of the things I love the most about this fantastic series is how Lydia incorporates the Scottish dialect into her storyline which ensured every thing I read mentally came out in a Scottish accent making it all the more realistic for me. I even had lots of fun learning new words and sayings in Scottish Gaelic which will come on handy when I do head back to Scotland on holiday!!! In this book we also have the addition of Maud's new hobby of Indian Clubs as well as the fact that she has now got herself a new car which will definitely help their investigations!!
This storyline is based in a time when it is uncommon and practically unknown for a female to participate in detective work and is also set during the suffragette movement. The fact that Lydia has done her research shines through the storyline. It is one of my pet hates when an author does not do enough research on the topic they are writing about as it can lead to unnecessary mistakes which can spoil the storyline for me so a HUGE CONGRATULATIONS LYDIA on researching your history well!! I thoroughly enjoyed disappearing into the past and it felt like I was on a beautiful holiday to Scotland losing myself in the fresh air and the Scottish dialect. I became completely hooked and every time I would tell myself one more chapter and then I will get on with something else each chapter ended in a way I just had to carry on reading and in the end I completely devoured it in several hours! Lydia's evocative writing skills ensures the reader is completely captivated throughout. is ram packed with friendship, lies, murder, crime, mystery, history , tension, suspense and everything you could ask for in a cozy mystery. Lydia had me laughing, shocked, angry at the lack of respect fior women and absolutely hooked throughout!! This is definitely one of those books that can be read in front of a fire, on a beach or relaxing in the garden and it sweeps you away to the beautiful Scotland in times gone by. The storyline had me hooked immediately and I love the way that Maud and Daisy go about their detective work. There was so much going on that it kept me entertained thoroughly throughout with mystery after mystery and clue after clue. It was filled with suspense, mystery, laughter, murder, clues, deceit. tension, suspense and so much more!! The atmosphere was perfectly suited to the mystery. One of the things that I loved the most was that although this is predominantly a crime book is that it has plenty of moments of humour throughout which lightens up the atmosphere and had me giggling away one moment and shocked the next! An absolutely perfect start to what promises to be a fantastic and addictive cozy mystery series and I cannot wait to get stuck into the next book especially after reading the teaser chapters at the end of this one!!
Although this is the second book in the series I had would have 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.
I absolutely loved meeting these larger than life and fun characters again which are all realistic, well rounded, have a mix of personalities and each work their part perfectly in the book! Thanks to Lydia's evocative writing skills they all jump out of the pages and come to life before the readers eyes. They are all larger than life, realistic and a complete breathe of fresh air. Maud is an amazing and very likeable character, strong willed and made me laugh on several occasions, she is absolutely unique as well as a very strong female lead which is a great bonus for myself being female. She is keen to follow in the footsteps of fictional detectives that include Sherlock Holmes and uses his techniques in her own discovery work which included sleuthing and disguising herself! It would not have been easy trying to make a name for herself in a time where the main roles were predominately filled by men and there was the Suffragette movement ongoing but Maud and Daisy held strong and made themselves known. She is determined and when she does make mistakes she ensures that she learns from them. I absolutely love her calm determination and strong personality and I really cannot wait to see what she gets up to next!! I especially enjoyed seeing the hints of potential romance between Maud and Lord Hamish Urquhart who I first met in The Scottish Ladies Detective Agency but who definitely didn't make a good impression on Maud with his lack of faith in the two female detectives. There is a flirtatious atmosphere between them both, after Maud's initial horror at seeing him again, and I am looking forward to seeing if this continues to develop or possible lead anywhere in 'Mystery In The Highlands'.
Daisy is another loveable lead character who I adored. She made me laugh on several occasions also and is cheeky, loveable and funny. She is definitely a woman that I would love to be around when I'm doing my work!! They are both young women with Maud being 25 and Daisy being 24 and in a "mans world" where woman are taking a stand and these are two fantastic women to have around at the time! They both take their investigations seriously but also have some fun ways to get the information they need which included several lots of fancy dress items!! I loves the fantastic dynamic between them and enjoyed watching their characters and friendship develop. They both complimented each other and worked perfectly together sometimes not even having to talk to know what the other needs/wants making them a great, strong female duo! I would absolutely love for these to be real women as they would make absolutely amazing women!! I loved meeting them along with several other characters that we come across in this fascinating funny page turner.
I cannot wait to meet them all again and see what they get up to in their next adventure in 'Mystery In The Highlands'!!!!
Love, love, love this fantastic and explosive addition to this fantastic series that I cannot wait to get stuck back into!!
An absolutely explosive addition to an amazing series! This is exactly why you are one of my favourite cozy mystery authors! A page turning and unputdownable success! Here's to looking forward to your next book 🥂
Overall a fun and easy to read page turning cozy murder mystery with the perfect amount of crime and humour that will keep you turning the pages.
Genres covered in this novel include Historical Romance, Historical Mysteries, Romantic Fiction, Cozy Mystery, Thriller, Murder, Mysteries, Suspense, Historical Romance, Cozy Crafts & Hobbies Mystery, Cozy Culinary Mystery, Romantic Suspense, Women's Detective Fiction, Romantic Comedy, Amateur Sleuths, Cozy Animal Mystery, Historical Fiction, Historical Thriller, Romance and Crime amongst others.
I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans of T E Kinsey, Agatha Christie, Verity Bright, Helena Dixon, Catherine Coles, Lee Strauss and anyone looking for a very easy, addictive, page turning and fun read.
323 pages
This book is just £1.99 to purchase on kindle, free on kindle unlimited and £7.99 in paperback at time of review via Amazon which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!
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Author Bio:
Lydia Travers was born in London. She moved progressively north until settling with her husband in a village on the edge of the Scottish Highlands. She has raised children, bred dogs and kept chickens; and for as long as she can remember has written for pleasure. A former legal academic and practitioner with a PhD in criminology, she now runs self-catering holiday accommodation, sings in a local choir and is walked daily by the family dog.
Lydia also writes as Linda Tyler and her first novel under that name, Revenge of the Spanish Princess, won a 2018 Romance Writers of America competition for the beginning of an historical romance. Her second novel The Laird's Secret was Commended in the 2021 Scottish Association of Writers' Pitlochry Quaich competition for the beginning of a romantic novel. Mischief in Midlothian won the 2022 Scottish Association of Writers' Constable Silver Stag trophy. She has had a number of short stories published in magazines, journals and anthologies in the UK, the USA and Australia.
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