I simply couldn’t finish this...rare for me. Ordinarily I enjoy reading fiction written any number of years ago, and I was very intrigued at the promise of travel and adventure in exotic locales. For some reason, this fell flat for me...slow moving and thin characters I couldn’t connect with.

It took me a while to become comfortable with the set up of the author's writing.
I was lost at first and then fell into the tangle of intrigue Ann Bridge brought through her list of characters and locations.
Thank you NetGalley.

Intriguing book which describes very vividly North African countries in the 50s while mixing in both British spy intrigue, a bit of romance and a dash of feminist go getting. Different and well worth a read.

An old fashioned but charming read with delightful characters. I enjoyed the twists and turns in the story and the air of intrigue. The details about Africa were interesting. Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to review this book.

You will travel to the other side of the world and become engaged in a mystery and learn some history.
I felt like I was reading a movie star's movir script. A wonderful adventure.

Julia probyn goes to Morocco in search of her cousin,, Colin, and gets mixed up in intrigue, and smuggling. An old fashioned but nonetheless interesting thriller, which for a change from the norm these days is not full of murders and twisted plots.

A really fun read in a great setting. Reminiscent of Agatha Christie's novels but a little more fast-paced. My only criticism would be that too much relied on coincidences but enjoyable nonetheless. I would definitely read more by this author.

Apropos of nothing, I read this right in the middle of sort-of-accidentally watching a Spanish language series on Netflix called "The Time in Between", and some of the coincidental echoes, especially in the setting, were a lot of fun.

There was no forward to this book (or if there was, I missed it) to indicate that it was, in fact, not written in the 21st century, but in 1969. (This has happened a few times lately.) I started to twig to it pretty quickly, based on a scattering of clues; the style almost couldn't be a product of more recent years. It's very specific to British novels of the time – see also Mary Stewart, D.E. Stevenson, etc. And if the sheer style didn't give it away, now and then causal tossed-off phrases like "that bunch of pansies" and "the Gyppos" made it pretty clear. So while I enjoyed the writing (except for the pre-PC moments, always surprisingly difficult to stomach), I was a little disoriented for a while. (Let that be your warning if you don't feel like having to cope with it.)

Oh – Americans aren't exactly Ms. Bridge's favorite group, either, if some of the descriptions are anything to go by. Harrumph.

I love the premise. After a sudden death in the family, a family is left without anyone to run an estate. That is, there is someone (a woman! Isn't it amazing?) but she has her own plans for her life (a career! Will wonders never cease?); she is willing to handle things for a time, but the only solution seems to be for someone to go find the family's heir, who sailed off with some friends a while back and hasn't been seen since. So a clever cousin is called in (another woman!!) and recruited to go look for him, armed with very few clues (but, happily, lots of spending money).

Julia is the young woman who is called upon to go hunt down the missing heir, and she embarks on her 'lighthearted quest" with a confident insouciance most of us can only dream of. Wander Europe with no solid idea where one man might be located? No problem. Make a temporary life in Tangier? No problem.

I'm really surprised, and sad, that I'd never heard of Ann Bridge before. I have been a huge Mary Stewart (no relation) fan for decades, along with Barbara Michaels and D.E. Stevenson and Elizabeth Cadell and so on – this series (because, I find, this book is the beginning of a series) would have been a terrific addition to that shelf. There's an intrepid young lady, exotic locales, vibrant background characters, sneaky and resourceful enemies, a dollop of romance, and a dash of archaeology – oh, and a glancing reference or two at Golden Age mystery – it's almost perfect. I would have <I>loved</i> it back in the day.

And I enjoyed it in the here and now. The writing – do I want to say it sparkles? Sure, why not – the writing sparkles. The story canters along happily to a suspenseful climax and a satisfying conclusion, and inspires a chuckle or two along the way ("storks have a capacity for looking disgusted almost equal to that of camels"). It sent me off down various eBay rabbitholes looking for trunks and other décor like that described in the book ("Moorish stuff—you know, antiques, leather goods and brass and so on.") "Why do you go hooshing off to find him in this completely wild-cat way?" – I want to start using "hooshing". And "The same to you, with knobs on!"
And one exchange proved that the more things change the more they stay the same:
"Has it ever struck you how apocalyptic the world is, today?"
"Yes, often," said Julia.

Me too.

Some notes which might be helpful to other American readers my age or younger:
"Le agradeço mucho su amabildad" is, in Spanish, "I really appreciate your kindness".
"the Old Lady of Thread-needle Street" is the Bank of England (I don't know why – I haven't investigated the story yet)
Tiens! Les petites feuilles – French: Look! Small leaves
Aucunément – French: nothing
Sabe todo – Spanish: (He/she) knows everything
Ah, méfiez-vous de cet homme-là – French: Ah, beware of this man!

The usual disclaimer: I received this book via Netgalley for review.

A story set in a bygone age of landed gentry struggling to survive after WWII where time is slower and affairs are conducted with gentle manners. It focuses on an attractive young lady friendly in disposition that belies a steely resolve with a sharp intellect who is dispatched by family to locate a cousin who has disappeared in Morocco. She journeys there on a tramp steamer, befriending every one she meets leaning everything of interest to help her to write stories for a weekly magazine to earn her living. In Morocco she sets about trying to locate her cousin by questioning all she meets but no one knows a thing. In her quest we learn much about the country’s politics and culture and savour the sights, sounds and tastes of its life. When she finally begins to make a breakthrough she is warned off but persists and is plunged into danger and narrowly escape death. A most engaging and enjoyable story with a rich cast of characters that ends happily for everyone.

A good old fashioned detective story reminiscent of Agatha Christie but set in the middle of the last century. A fantastic reminder of times when mobile phones and internet did not exist and detective work had to be done in person.
Fantastic descriptions of post war Africa and the cold war that continued throughout that period and the international espionage.
What I loved about the book was not only the detective story but the fantastic descriptions of Africa at that time it was almost like reading a travelogue. Brilliant.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. I'm going to be very honest with this book I didn't think it was all that good. I found it to be quite dated and boring in parts. Its just not for me. But thank you netgalley.

I received this book from NetGalley for an honest review. I got into the book straight away but after about a third I found it became long winded and lost my attention a bit. The final third became a bit better. The one thing I did think as I was reading it is that it would be great as a TV show similar to say "Father Brown" - good old fashioned afternoon TV. I don't think I will read any more Anne Bridge but I would curl up with a hot chocolate and watch it on TV.

This was a delightful story, part old fashioned and part modern. Great range of characters and very entertaining writing style. Lots of intrigue and twists and turns which kept me engaged to the end. You could really feel the atmosphere and be part of the surroundings to the story. Great writing skills. Good conclusion which tied up all the ends. Excellent read.

Probably more like 2.5 stars.
This is a story about Julia Probyn, a journalist who agrees to go to Africa to look for her cousin, whose family want to come home to take over the running of the family estate now his uncle has died.
This book, the first one in a series, was originally published in 1969, and has now been re-released, with a new cover.
I think, unfortunately, this book rather shows its age. The descriptions, of which there are so many, of Morocco have the feel of being a little dated, and the language used is just too flowery. It became quite monotonous quite quickly, and I have to say that the main character was not, for me anyway, a particularly likeable person, and by the end of the book I quite disliked her.
The mystery took almost a back seat too, as Julia travelled around various places, got herself a job and even met a variety of people. Then when she found cousin Colin, the end scenes were so long and drawn out I was thoroughly fed up by the time I turned the last page.

Sheer delightful read: upper class British resourceful, upbeat women written by a woman who may well have been just the same. This is a revival of that earlier book... we travel with a charming young woman in search of her cousin to help his agreed mother , and the characters are fully drawn in what is really a tale of sheer escapism - through Morocco and Tangier, on rickety boats and trains, charming her way safely ... plausible enough ending when Colin is tracked down but really genial good fun to read.

A good concept, adventure, mystery, woman saving man. I think there is a feminist concept in too many books lately, no matter the genre. Not one of my favorites.

This is the first book in a series about Julia Probyn, an intrepid woman who becomes involved in solving mysteries. When Julia's cousin Colin disappears, his unhappy family decide to send her on a quest to find him. They are sure that he's still alive and safe but they find his actions odd. His sister Edina is especially upset and annoyed because she has to leave her highly-paid advertising career to take care of the Scottish estate.

Julia may look like a 'dumb blonde' (the author's words) but she is an extremely clever and practical young journalist who can charm anybody, including her long list of boyfriends
who appear to propose at the drop of a hat! Julia discovers that Colin is in Morocco, perhaps smuggling, and sets off on a small, rather dirty boat that is not at all what she is used to! However, she makes the best of it and she soon becomes friends with the crew, especially a helpful officer, Mr. Reeder.

She is able to use her journalism as a cover in Morocco and she also obtains a job as a secretary to a rather eccentric archeologist. Julia's journey takes her all over Morocco and she certainly has to keep all her wits about her because she doesn't know who she can trust! However, she has a good time along the way - this book actually made me hungry at times because Julia has delicious French food in some fine restaurants and always manages to find excellent picnic lunches as well! She also spends a lot of time in a bar trying to obtain information from the owner.

The Light-Hearted Quest is a travelogue as well as a mystery story. Bridge's descriptions of Morocco are colourful and vivid and she includes lots of interesting historical information, especially about the Phoenicians and Romans. Anyone who reads it will want to go to Morocco.

This book was written in the 70s and, be warned, it's not politically correct. None of this worried me, except for the anti-Semitism, which I found rather shocking. Bridge praises the French colonists highly which may not go down well with some readers. I didn't know much about Moroccan history and the book has made me more interested in it.

I really enjoyed this rather frivolous story with its likeable heroine, interesting characters, exotic setting and its touch of romance. I can't wait to read the rest of the series!

I received this free ebook from Net Galley in return for an honest review.

I had forgotten when I got round to reading this book that it was a vintage edition re-issued as an ebook. It wasn't until I reached the end that I found it was first published in 1956. The language and characters were of that time soon after the second world war when countries still had colonies. The people were charming and the descriptions of North Africa were illuminating. Julia Probyn is an unusual investigator and one can imagine a film or TV series being made of the book. A good read.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher. This is the first book I have read by this author and really enjoyed it. It is set in the 1950s and it is a real cosy mystery

Your standard young plucky young women looking for adventure and solving a mystery. What turned me off this book was the blatant racism and antisemitism, pretty awful.