London, 1928. Egyptomania is at its peak. A mummy, the real mummy of a Pharaoh, is brought to the capital, and the public goes wild. Two bookshops compete to hold the ‘mummy night’, but it is Lucy, the owner of the ‘losing side’, who finds herself amid a whirlwind as strange notes appear and bodies pile. As if this wasn’t enough, Lucy has to deal with an utterly obnoxious mother and irritating suitors and the obvious attraction towards a fascinating Inspector.

Best mystery I’ve read in a long time and that’s an understatement!

Treading more than carefully since we are talking about a murder mystery, the setting is absolutely perfect! Foggy London, with its mysterious alleys and the Londoners’ fascination with all things occult and paranormal, with its rich ‘benefactors’ who waste money on stealing treasures from other countries instead of aiding the ones in need, becomes a character in itself. The writing and the interactions between the characters are seamless, engaging, and the elegance of the era permeates the novel. The story itself had me guessing until the last page. Each time I thought I had figured things out, I found myself hopelessly wrong. And we are not talking about gimmicks, twists and turns and herrings, but about a truly perfect plot that needs no cheap tricks.

Lucy is the factor that turns an excellent book into a triumph. She is perfection personified. Smart, kind, the perfect boss and the perfect example of putting others in their place without offending them. She is the epitome of the British female sleuth and one of the finest heroines in this quintessentially British genre. All the characters are rounded and tangible enough to be believable, but I admit I have a soft spot for the Inspector. He is dreamy, and no, I refuse to remain professional at this point, thank you very much!

As a Greek, I couldn’t help but wince every time the British Museum was mentioned, and I applaud the writer’s stance on filling your shelves with stolen goods. It just doesn’t work, people! Don’t do it!

Long story short, you need this book in your life, and I need another 776729 novels with Lucy Darkwether as the heroine. And the Inspector, obviously…

Many thanks to Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com/

A cute, cozy historical crime fiction book that was a delight to read.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and was hooked right to the end to find out what happened. The writing really set the scene and I could imagine where it took place and the era it was set in.
Thoroughly enjoyed this book.

London is gripped with excitement to see the latest Egyptian artefacts brought back by the archeologist Gordon Lyle, the sarcophagus is to be displayed in a London bookshop prior to being taken to the British Museum. Unfortunately for Lucy Farkwether it is not her bookshop, with her Oxford degree in Ancient History and interest in Egyptology she had had hopes, but her neighbour Mr Daken’s bookshop was chosen. When a dead body is discovered beside the sarcophagus at Mr Daken’s shop Lucy gets drawn to investigate.
This is a fast paced murder mystery with plenty of twists and turns. My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the arc.

Murder Most Foul..
1928, London, Lucy Darkwether lives life by her own yardstick. Refusing to conform and determined to succeed, Lucy is already armed with a good degree and is now the proud owner of a bookshop - London’s newest antiquarian bookshop, no less. When a rival store announces its presence, Lucy is alarmed - but when the opening night ends in murder, Lucy cannot help but be wholly intrigued. Enjoyable and nicely plotted historical mystery, well steeped in atmosphere, with a credible and well drawn cast of eclectic characters. A promising start to a possible new series.

An entertaining historical mystery. I read an eARC of this book on NetGalley so thank you to the author and the publisher.

We meet our heroine, a bookshop owner with a passion for ancient history just before a murder takes place in the shop next to hers. She starts to receive notes hinting at the killers next crimes and finds herself compelled to investigate, to protect potential victims, to solve the case. However she puts herself in danger, earning the concern of the investigating police officers.

This is set in the 1920s and we see our main character straining against the expectations of society, she broke off her engagement, went to university and took over her bookshop. Yet she is continually underestimated by men, her family encouraging her to reconcile with her former fiancé, her choices continually questioned, friends not understanding her desire for a dusty bookshop over a life of leisure. She certainly causes a shock when she chooses to solve a murder on top of all this. Yet she is determined. Determined to solve the case and to protect her shop. She’s a fantastic main character.

There’s much to like in this book, the focus around the bookshop, the recognisable London landmarks, the reverence for ancient Egyptian history, the museums, the questioning of the past.

The first couple of pages of this book had a weird, very dramatic style but this didn’t continue beyond that intro and I thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the book.

This was such a wonderful read with amazing characters and a good solid plot.

I love golden age mysteries and this one set in 1928 tell the story of murder and mystery was right up my alley.

Lucy is a woman of means, she owns a bookstore which is quite magical, she stumbles across a murder and she turns investigator.

It is well written, has all the drama and a few twists.

A good one sit read..

This was a very good golden age set murder mystery and the start of a new series.

The protagonist is Lucy Darkweather, socialite, bookseller and sleuth. She has always marched to the beat of her own drum, ending her engagement to a boy of good family, going to Oxford to earn a degree in Ancient History and then horrifying her family by opening a bookstore. Her past and present collide when she attends an exhibition of Ancient Egyptian treasures and instead stumbles on a murder! Being who she is she can’t leave well enough alone and so begins investigating the crime herself. She’s aided by her friends and colleagues at the bookstore and abetted by the Inspector in charge of the case who seems to have a reluctant admiration for her.

The plot itself was well done, the red herrings were clever and the author led me where she wanted me to go with ease. I did guess the murderer but it was close to the end and in hindsight the clues were there all along. The only thing I wasn’t completely sold on was the character development. I felt that my understanding of the characters in the story was largely superficial so struggled to get invested in the outcome. Hopefully if there are more books in the series this will change.

All in all I would highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys Golden age mysteries as this is an excellent one!

*** Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher ***