Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you are all having a good day today, I thought it might be fun to share the top five series’ that I would like to finish up by the end of 2024. I have started a lot of series, I love getting to spend multiple books with characters so it is the main bulk of what I read.
Here are the five I want to prioritise:
The Hercule Poirot series by Sophie Hannah
I only have one book left, Hercule Poirot’s Silent Night, then I am up to date with this series and seeing as it has a winter/christmas theme I should get to read this in December.
The Painted Dragon by Katherine Woodfine
This is the third book in the series starting with the Clockwork Sparrow, there are actually four books out in this series but I only own the first three and I don’t plan on buying the fourth so I will be finishing the series with book three.
As Good As Dead by Holly Jackson
This is the third and final book in the Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series, I have been putting it off because I love the first two and I have heard mixed things about the last book but I would like to get this one finished off soon.
The Secret Service of Tea and Treason by India Holton
This series is very quirky and fun and this is the third and final book in the series. I have it on my TBR for November so hopefully that will be this series finished up.
A Death in Diamonds by S J Bennett
This is the fourth book in the Queen Elizabeth II investigates series and reading it would mean I am up to date with the series so far. I do enjoy this series although not every books has been brilliant, I’d say two out of the three I have read so far were great and one was not, so fingers crossed for this one.
Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you are all doing well today. Seeing as it is spooky season I thought it may be fun to share with you all my top 15 murder mystery books and this is one of my favourite genres to read so this was a difficult choice. Let me know if any of your favourites are on this list or if there are any you would have put on here instead.
The London Seance Society by Sarah Penner
Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco
Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price
Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco
The Three Dahlias by Katy Watson
Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson
Dangerous Women by Hope Adams
The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood
Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
Happy Monday bookish people! I hope you are all having a wonderful day today.
I am bringing you my book review for Murder Most Royal by S J Bennett, the third in the Queen Investigates series.
In this book review I will give star ratings to four categories and I will write a little bit about each one. I will do my best to keep this review as spoiler free as possible.
I hope you all enjoy! Let me know in the comments if you have read this book and what you thought of it.
Murder Most Royal Plot:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Murder Most Royal is the third book in the Queen Investigates series of murder mystery books. In this one Queen Elizabeth II gets involved in a murder investigation after the hand of a wealthy man, known to the Queen, is found washed up on a beach.
I have read all of the books in this series so far, and I absolutely plan to continue with it, but this was probably my least favourite of them so far. The second one, A Three Dog Problem, is my favourite. I enjoy the series because of it’s unique premise but for me this one, although it threw you straight into the action with the discovery of the hand, was the most complicated and confusing. This was good in the fact that it was fun trying to work out all the threads and I’m not ashamed to admit I didn’t manage to guess what happened before it was revealed.
I liked that this book took a different route than the first two, in the first two of the series it is revealed very early on who was murdered and how but this book was more complicated because you had the who but there was no actual body.
Murder Most Royal Characters:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
There are two main characters in this series, the first being Queen Elizabeth II and the other being her assistant Rozie.
In the first and second books Rozie is the one who the narration focuses on, she is the main investigator with some input from the Queen. However, what I liked about this third book in the series was that Rozie took a backseat on the investigation while the Queen was more actively investigating. It made the book stand out and feel fresh while still keeping the overall cosy feel of the series.
Murder Most Royal Writing and Dialogue
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Murder Most Royal Overall:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
I gave this book four stars overall because it was a very enjoyable read in a very quirky series that fits very well in the cosy crime genre.
Blurb/Synopsis:
December 2016 – A severed hand is found washed up on a beach next to the Queen’s estate at Sandringham. Elizabeth has become quite accustomed to solving even the most complex of murders. And though she quickly identifies the 70-year-old victim, Edward St Cyr, from his signet ring, the search for his killer is not so straightforward. St Cyr led an unconventional, often controversial life, making many enemies along the way in the quiet, rural world of North Norfolk, where everyone knows each other’s business.
But when a second man is found dead, and a prominent local woman is nearly killed in a hit-and-run, the mystery takes an even darker turn. With the Christmas break coming to an end, the Queen and her trusted assistant Rozie must race to discover how the pieces of the puzzle fit together. Or the next victim may be found even closer to home.
Agatha Christie meets The Crown in MURDER MOST ROYAL, the much-anticipated third book in the ‘Her Majesty The Queen Investigates’ mystery series by SJ Bennett – for fans of The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman, Agatha Christie and M.C. Beaton’s Agatha Raisin.
Happy Monday bookish people! I hope you are all having a good day today. I am bringing you my book review for The Three Dog Problem by S J Bennett, the sequel to The Windsor Knot.
In this book review I will be giving star ratings to four categories and I will write a little bit about each one. I will do my best to not include any spoilers.
The Three Dog Problem Plot:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
This series is sold as a mystery story where the Queen is the one investigating and solving the crime, this isn’t exactly true. It’s the Queen and a few other people so as long as you don’t go in thinking it is only the Queen on her own solving the crime you won’t be disappointed. I quite enjoy how this book series stands out from other books in the mystery genre. I personally enjoyed this second book in the series more than the first book, I think the first book had too many elements and the twists were like sharp corners whereas in this book they were set up a bit more throughout the book which gave you the chance to try and guess what was going to happen.
The Three Dog Problem Characters:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Obviously The Queen is one of the main characters in this series and she is presented very well, the right balance between regal and mischievous. She is the brains of the whole thing even though she doesn’t let everyone in on that secret.
The Three Dog Problem Writing and Dialogue:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
I like the writing in this series because it carries a light tone for half of the book and then you feel the tone get darker as you get closer to the reveal and that is something I enjoy in a book, also, the pace changes perfectly in accordance to the plot.
The Three Dog Problem Overall:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
I gave this book four stars overall because I really enjoy the difference from other books in the genre and how the mystery unfolds in each book.
Blurb/Synopsis
In the wake of a referendum which has divided the nation, the last thing the Queen needs is any more problems to worry about. But when an oil painting of the Royal Yacht Britannia – first given to the Queen in the 1960s – shows up unexpectedly in a Royal Navy exhibition, she begins to realise that something is up.
When a body is found in the Palace swimming pool, she finds herself once again in the middle of an investigation which has more twists and turns than she could ever have suspected. With her trusted secretary Rozie by her side, the Queen is determined to solve the case. But will she be able to do it before the murderer strikes again?
That’s it for this book review, I hope you all enjoyed it!
Happy Monday bookish people! It’s time for another book review (1 of 5 book reviews that I will be posting today). I’m catching up with the book reviews for all the books I’ve read so far this year. I read The Windsor Knot in January after seeing it in my local bookshop, I didn’t buy it there my friend actually sent me a copy. I thought it looked like a unique mystery novel, the Queen solving murders in her free time? I needed to read it.
In this book review I will give star ratings to four categories and I will write a little about each one. I will try to keep it as spoiler free as possible. I hope you enjoy my book review!
Plot:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3.5 out of 5.
This is the first book in a series and I’ll start by saying that I will be continuing the series because it is an original and compelling take on the murder mystery genre. I found myself unable to put this book down because I wanted to know how the case would unravel at the end. However, I felt like the majority of the story focused on other characters rather than the Queen and I would have liked to have seen her feature more in the case. I enjoyed that there was a twist with the murder itself at the beginning of the novel and the twists kept coming which kept me hooked on the book. Personally, I think that the plot could have been developed further, maybe by making the book longer, but also this is the first book of the series and I think that as the series goes on the plots will get better.
Characters:
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3 out of 5.
The characters were okay. I personally didn’t believe in them, or get recruited to them and their motivations. I felt that there were a lot of characters that were introduced in one sentence and barely mentioned throughout the book but at the end they were important to the plot and for me this meant that I didn’t have the chance to enjoy the characters or to develop any real feelings towards them. The main character throughout the novel, Rozie, is an interesting protagonist that takes you along the journey of solving the case. She is a likeable and intelligent character, I’m glad we got so much of her in the plot because I enjoyed following her thoughts.
Writing and Dialogue:
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3 out of 5.
For me the writing style was hard to get into. There was nothing technically wrong with it but something about it was difficult for me. Some pages I had to read through more than once, this didn’t have much of an impact on my overall enjoyment of the book however it did have an impact on my star rating for the book. However, this is only my opinion on the writing style.
Overall:
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3 out of 5.
I gave The Windsor Knot 3 stars overall because I enjoyed it however, there were some parts of the plot that I think let the story down. I struggled a little with the physical reading of the book and I felt that there wasn’t enough of the Queen in the book.
Blurb/Synopsis:
The first book in a highly original and delightfully clever crime series in which Queen Elizabeth II secretly solves crimes while carrying out her royal duties.
It is the early spring of 2016 and Queen Elizabeth is at Windsor Castle in advance of her 90th birthday celebrations. But the preparations are interrupted when a guest is found dead in one of the Castle bedrooms. The scene suggests the young Russian pianist strangled himself, but a badly tied knot leads MI5 to suspect foul play was involved. The Queen leaves the investigation to the professionals—until their suspicions point them in the wrong direction.
Unhappy at the mishandling of the case and concerned for her staff’s morale, the monarch decides to discreetly take matters into her own hands. With help from her Assistant Private Secretary, Rozie Oshodi, a British Nigerian and recent officer in the Royal Horse Artillery, the Queen secretly begins making inquiries. As she carries out her royal duties with her usual aplomb, no one in the Royal Household, the government, or the public knows that the resolute Elizabeth will use her keen eye, quick mind, and steady nerve to bring a murderer to justice.
SJ Bennett captures Queen Elizabeth’s voice with skill, nuance, wit, and genuine charm in this imaginative and engaging mystery that portrays Her Majesty as she’s rarely seen: kind yet worldly, decisive, shrewd, and most importantly a great judge of character.
That’s it for this book review, let me know if you enjoyed it, if you’ve read The Windsor Knot and what you thought of it!
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