eyes.2c Reviews

A Shroud of Snow  (Bradecote & Catchpoll Mystery #14)   by Sararh Hawkswood                   ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Worcester’s finest, Serjeant Catchpoll, Underserjeant Walkelin and Undersheriff lord Bradecote, face the puzzling murder of a merchant, Hamelin Isenmongere from Gloucester. As well as that the woman who kept house for Hamelin was raped and killed. Catchpoll boards the riverboat that’d  brought Hamelin to Worcester  to interview the  Captain and crew, and finds himself sailing away on the river, back to Gloucester before he’s aware of it. Back in Worcester Walkelin and lord Bradecote take up the search and begin to uncover what looks like treason in the midst of all the HooHaa! Various citizens come forward to help including a young woman forced into prostitution rather than starve. I love the way Walkelin has developed, how he’s beginning to think outside the box à la Catchpoll. A fairly convoluted plot that ha...

Pride Comes Before a Fall  (Miss Prentice’s Protégés #3) by Virginia Heath            ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ A delicious story featuring a dyed in wool reformist influenced by the writings of Mary Wollstonecraft and a swoony much put upon Duke (with dimples). Portia Kendall is a governess from the well respected Miss Prentice’s School for Young Ladies. Her secret passion is writing incendiary political pamphlets. Portia has been offered the position of assistant editor with the newsletter Equitas in Bath.  Unfortunately it turns out to be voluntary. Portia must find another source of income in this very expensive city. Leopold Sloane, the Duke of Debden, has had enough of his mother’s lax chaperoning of his two sisters.  He’s determined to cut their wings somewhat. Cue stage right! Portia lands a job in Leo’s household and is immediately plunged into a whirlwind  of misunderstandings—and attraction. A delightful regency romantic comedy that invigor...

The Blackbird Conspiracy  (Callie Munro Thrillers #2) by Tariq Ashkanani          ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Callie Munro became a Private Investigator in part to search for her parents who’d abandoned her at a homeless shelter when she was a baby. When Callie finds her mentor, Martin Walsh shot in his ultra security protected apartment she’s shocked. Needing to avenge Martin’s death Callie pulls out all the stops to find his killer. Except that person keeps on murdering anyone connected to a mysterious document labeled only “Blackbird”. Great read when you want something that entertains and keeps your interest. The pace is terrific, with many unexpected twists. I enjoyed this so much I have to go back and read #1 An Amazon UK ARC via NetGalley.                                               Many thanks to the author and publisher.

Murder in Blackfriars  (Below Stairs Mystery #9) by Jennifer Ashley       ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️  Kat Holloway has come a long way from the Kat we were first introduced to eons ago. Changes are looming. Her friend Joanna is moving out of London. Joanna’s solicitor husband has accepted a new post. Joanne looks after Kat’s daughter Grace, and for the time being Grace will move with them. Kat is heavy hearted.  Kat’s now fiancé Danial McAdams is still searching for his identity. His past looms over him. Kat’s help will prove invaluable. There’s honorable rogues, a dangerous and sleek gang leader, ruffians and bullies, charming gutter rats and a host of beloved favorites. Kat is indomitable when roused, loyal to her friends, and caring. Another startling Victorian mystery from Ashley. A Berkley ARC via NetGalley.                                               ...

Storm Tide  (Mike Bowditch Mysteries #16) by Paul Doiron          ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ A tale in four seasons. Action explodes off every page  Maine game warden, Mike Bowditch, is first on scene at a house fire. A woman is holding a baby. Mike goes into the inferno and brings out a man who dies. A woman inside has already died. (Previously Mike has been demoted from Warden Investigator to patrolling game warden.) The dead couple are suspected of killing a young boy, their son. Nothing is ever proved but the couple are pariahs in the town. Mike little suspect he’ll be caught up in vigilantism, more deaths, and a grudge going back decades. I love that he has a trusty wolf hybrid, Shadow, to assist. His wife Stacey is an emergency medical technician. A fast moving, nerve wracking read. A St. Martin’s Press ARC via NetGalley.                                         ...

A Season for Justice  (Justice Belstrang Mysteries #3) by John Pilkington         ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ The Great Comet appeared in   September 6th, 1618. Said to be an omen by many, ex Justice Belstrang just might agree. Disturbing news is coming out of Bohemia. (King James’ daughter is married to the ruler of Bohemia) At home, a simple request to visit an old sick friend turns into a tale of theft, graft, corruption, and treason. A side burden for Belstrang, is the rumored likelihood of King James requesting his property Thirldon to gift to a favorite. Shocking! Being an ex magistrate has given Belstrang time to wander off in other directions of enquiry, which always seems to end in danger. After all this is the time of the great comet! This last in the series, sees Belstrang confront danger, hardship and more with his usual impulsiveness.   A fitting conclusion to these last few years of Belstrang’s life that began in 1616 with his chronicling of his Year of ...

A Hunt for Justice  (Justice Belstrang Mysteries #2) by John Pilkington        ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ It’s a sorry time in Worcester. The young daughter of a powerful landowner has been found drowned in the local witching pool, and a midwife, Agnes Mason has been imprisoned, charged with witchcraft. Former magistrate Belstrang is implored by Agnes’ family to intervene, even as the local preacher rails against the servants of satan. We do wonder if Agnes is more than she seems. Once again Pilkington brings together the age and times,  its  superstitions and practices, and woven all into a twisted mystery. I’m loving Pilkington’s writing! A Boldwood Books ARC via NetGalley.                                               Many thanks to the author and publisher. Please note: Quotes taken from an advanced reading copy maybe subject to change.

A Dangerous Justice  (Justice Belstrang Mysteries #1) by John Pilkington          ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 1616, King James is on the throne. Times might be more relaxed but men must be vigilant.  Plots and counter plots attend an innocent inquiry made by Belstrang’s neighbor in Worcester. He’s  been asked by a papist neighbor to journey to London to discover what has happened to his son Thomas. Reluctant to do so, nevertheless he departs and goes to London. He will make enquires, visit his daughter and son-in-law (a man he has little time for) and return. That was his thought! By the time he’s halfway through he has discovered plots that throw innocents to the wolves, justice sorely lacking, himself thrown into Debtor’s prison, and so much more. It’s the ten year anniversary of the gunpowder plot. The population is nervous. Pilkington’s writing is accessible, describes the times accurately, whilst weaving a deft and accessible mystery I found myself unable to...

A Lark's Gambit  (Verity Lark’s Mysteries #6) by Lynn Messina         ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Verity Lark finds herself in something of a conundrum about many things. There’s her relationship with Lord Hardwicke Coulson, the Marquis of Ware’s son, varied household personality arrangements and innovations, keeping together her aliases and disguises (which I adore), and her unspoken need to continue her way of doing things. Then there’s the Marquis himself! Double Hmm! The Ton has left London for the summer and her personae Mr. Twaddle-Thum is somewhat bereft of gossip for his column. “ One could not detail the aristocracy’s many quirks and foibles when the aristocrats were not in London to quirk and foible. Twaddle found it vexing indeed.” Freddie, owner of the London Daily Gazette, comes to the rescue with a list that included Verity’s former employer, an all out leacherous sleaze, and repellent person, the Earl of Stetchford. It’s Verity’s investigations at a Venetian Brea...

The Lady Sees a Ghost (The Lady Sees…Mysteries #1) by Valentine Foster ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️           …the words of the Dowager Viscountess Duchess Carrow to Lady Cordelia about her son’s death. Lady Cordelia Vane is in her third season. The younger daughter of the impoverished Earl of Pendle, Cordelia endures the seasons activities by disappearing into the background. She always stands against a column from where she can silently observe the room, and to all intents and purposes be invisible. Which is why when the wealthy Felix Carrow dies from apparent apoplexy Cordelia is nearby—and she wonders. Cordelia observes Felix in death. His vanity, the enamel box he always carries on the floor, spilling it’s contents. Cordelia hears and sees things that will later on be incorporated into the scaffolding of her investigations. When Felix’s ghost appears to her she is both shocked and fascinated. Felix’s mother wants Cordelia to solve the cause of his death. Was it Felix’s cash...

Blood Enemy  (Warsaw Quartet #4) by Douglas Jackson          ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ The quartet of novels depicting a police detective in occupied Warsaw during WWII is concluded with Blood Enemy. Jackson has once again delved into archives and lost places of the era to bring the story of the many parties acting in Poland. We have the Polish resistance (the Armia Krajowa), Jews from the ghettos of Europe brought to Poland, the Jewish resistance inside the death camps, the brutality of the Nazis, the Polish youth resistance trying for when their day to rise up comes, the general populace, and the advancing Russians. It’s dangerous, confusing and terrible. Investigator Jan Kalisz goes undercover into Auschwitz-Birkenau and the gruesomeness of that place is fully on display. Karl is actually a resistance spy and works to maintain his cover, and that of his beloved wife Maria, who is a nurse with the resistance, and his son Stefan who is caught up in secret Youth movement...

The Spy and the Snake  (Mrs. Spy #2) by M. J. Robotham        ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Really enjoyed this. So much so I read the previous title.  It’s post WWII and MI5 personnel Maggie Flynn seizes the opportunity to head back into the field with both hands. It’s the beginning of the Cold War and Maggie is sent to Budapest to extract a  British defector, Fitzroy Carver, and bring him safely back into his country’s arms.  Fitzroy has demanded a woman agent be used. Cue Maggie! Only Maggie finds herself up against the AVH, Fitz’s demands, KGB, and MI6. The experts expected Maggie to fall at the first fence. When she doesn't their plans are blown out of the water. Maggie has explored her own contacts and gets in touch with an older agent, Dottie Hands. An unexpected turn of events has Maggie looking at alternative plans to sew confusion and doubt. Exciting read!  A Bloomsbury ARC via NetGalley.                  ...