Murder at Blackburn Hall (High Society Lady Detective)
At loose ends since she wrapped the Archly Manor murder case, Olive Belgrave accepts an assignment to make a discreet inquiry for a publisher about a missing author. Once at Blackburn Hall under the pretense of reviewing Lady Holt’s etiquette manual, Olive makes several surprising discoveries: R.W. May is dead at the bottom of a ditch, May was a woman masquerading as a man, and someone else helped write her last book. While trying to sort out the mystery despite the distractions of Lady Holt’s ingenious sister and aimless son, a local typist, and her alluring childhood friend Jasper, Olive witnesses another death, this time of a man she held a grudge against, which puts her under suspicion. Cool, clever Olive must navigate the complexities of 1920s English high society, secretive love affairs, ghostwriting, and golf if she is to expose the mystery, capture the culprits, and clear her name.
Rosett’s writing is clean and crisp, and her period details add life to the story; one can hear the purr of a motor engine, feel the drape of Olive’s stylish frocks, and taste the asthma cigarettes. Characters from the first book are integrated smoothly enough that this second can stand alone, and the deaths are never very gruesome nor the stakes very dire. The characters are engaging, the setting lush, and the ending sets Olive up for an Egyptian mystery reminiscent of Carter and King Tut. It’s sleek, chic fun.
