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Arsenic and Old Lies was an absolute delight from start to finish! This cozy mystery hit all the right notes—charming, clever, and completely satisfying. I fell in love with the characters (Marius especially!) and found myself wishing I had started the series from the beginning just to spend more time with them.

The writing has a nostalgic feel that reminded me of the mystery stories I grew up with, but it still feels fresh and unique. And the bonus content at the back? I loved learning the backstory of the characters—it added such a personal and thoughtful touch.

Can’t wait to read more from Benedict Brown!

BOOK: ARSENIC AND OLD LIES
AUTHOR: BENEDICT BROWN
PUB DATE: JULY, 2025
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REVIEW- 2.8 stars
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
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THINGS I LIKED
1. The MCs; Marius abd Bella
2. The storyline in the beginning
3. I liked that the wrongly accused was exonorated
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THINGS I DIDN'T LIKE
1. I would have preferred it if the MCs had actually solved the original case.
2. I didn't understand Bella's grieving process
3. The way the case was solved, I didn't really feel like the MCs actually put in the work.
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This was not my favourite cozy mystery, but it had a nice beginning

Thanks to Net Galley and Storm Publishing for this ARC.. This is the 4th book in this series and its the best so far. Brilliant plot and great character development. I was getting s bot bored but after this story my interest is reinvigorated and look forward to the next

It’s not everyday you return home to find the fiance of your old love sitting in your office chair with his throat cut, but Marius Quin did. A mystery writer and amateur detective, Quin very much wants to investigate, but is warned off by Scotland Yard. Desperate for something to keep his mind off one mystery, he goes in search of another. In his research he comes across the case of Felicity Mortimer, a woman incarcerated for the death of her husband fifteen years ago. The information he uncovers and his own interview with Felicity convinces him that there has been a grave miscarriage of justice. Quin enlists the aid of his friend and fellow investigator, Lady Bella Montague and they take themselves off to the country and the manor in which Felicity supposedly murdered her husband.
As they pursue the case, they discover a fractured family enmeshed in a web of secrets and lies. Will they be able to find the proof they need to confirm Felicity’s innocence and so procure her release from goal? In this, the fifth of the Marius Quin Mysteries, Benedict Brown takes us on a journey into the darker side of family life. The clues are subtle and the Poirot-like denouement is masterful.
Quin and Lady Bella are a class double act. The use of the first person narrative adds to the urgency and intimacy of the story, as Marius reveals not just his intelligence in piecing the clues together, but his vulnerability in working with the woman he loves who has promised herself to another. It makes him one of the most relatable amateur sleuths in the cosy mystery genre. 4/5

I just finished Arsenic and old lies. The fifth book in the Marius Quin Series. I must admit that I only read one previously, but I do have the earlier books on my to-read list.
Early in the story, on his return from a short trip, Marious finds a body in his home office. What makes it even more delicate when it happens to be the fiancée of the woman he has been in love with.
Ordered by the police not to get involved, he turned to the library to get material for his new book. This is where it becomes interesting. Reason you need to read the book. Not only with twists and turns but we get to see how protective he is towards Lady Bella. Worried he makes is worse for her still dealing with the loss of her fiancée.
It is a fast read but has plenty of contents.

July 1928, when the body of Gilbert Baines, fiance of Lady Bella, is discovered in his flat, Quin is warned off investigating. He becomes interested in the fifteen year old trial of Mrs Felicity Mortimer, who was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of her husband. It doesn take long for a death related to the case to occur and vital documents stolen. Soon Lady Bella becomes involved as well.
An entertaining and well-written historical cozy mystery with its likeable main characters. Another good mystery in this enjoyable series.
An ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Marius Quin is an author of mysteries and he likes to investigate them as well. Together with Lady Bella Montague they make an excellent team.

The story begins in London in 1928 when Marius discovers a dead man in his home. The body belongs to one of his friends who is also Bella's fiancé. He is too close to the crime to be able to investigate it so instead he takes up the cause of Felicity Martin, a lady who has spent fifteen years so far in prison for the murder of her husband. Marius and Bella work to prove her innocence.

This is an excellent mystery with good characters. I enjoy the author's writing style very much. Four stars.

Maricus Quin, mystery writer and amateur detective, visits the London Library with hopes to find inspiration for the plot to his next mystery. What he finds is the story of Felicity Mortimer who was convicted of poisoning her husband 15 years before. Reading more, he becomes convinced she is innocent. With the help of Lady Bella, he visits the Felicity Mortimer's husband's family and discovers spite and mysteries enough to fill several detective stories. But will he be able to clear Felicity and free her from jail or will someone put him to rest forever...

The story starts off with Quin discovering the body of a friend murdered in his house. This is a carry over of a storyline in previous books which I haven't read. Brown was able to concisely bring the reader up to speed without it feeling like an info dump. That isn't actually the main storyline of this book; Quin trying to prove Felicity Mortimer's innocence is. It kept me guessing until the end.

This is a smart mystery with engaging characters and humor. Brown also includes a lot of historical information at the back in his author's notes which aren't necessary to read but are fun and informative. I need to go back to read of this series.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

A few years ago I read one of Benedict Brown’s first stories in his other 1920s series, Lord Edgington Mysteries, I really enjoyed it. So I went into reading this – which is the fifth in Marius Quin’s adventures, and not totally disconnected from the other series – with high expectations.

I wasn’t disappointed.

Despite being the fifth book in a series, the narration immediately pulled me in. The natural-sounding, very personal first-person narration certainly played a major part.

Marius’s voice is close and friendly, and it has the effect of making you feel as if he is telling the story directly to you across a mug of coffee. He is a witty, very English man, and I greatly enjoyed his sense of humour as well as his self-deprecation. I also fell very quickly for his sense of justice and – despite what he always says about himself – his generosity.

Marius is seeking inspiration for a story that he can love – unlike the one he is currently working on, which his publisher loves but he detests. As he often does, he visits the library to browse through old newspapers. A fifteen-year-old case catches his attention, and even from the scant press reports, he immediately starts to think that something very wrong happened there. He decides to meet Felicity Mortimer, the woman convicted for murdering her husband, in the prison she’s kept and comes out surer than ever that she is innocent.

So he and Bella, his ‘partner in crime’, start an investigation to try and help her get out of jail.

I really liked this part of the story because I was never certain until the end whether Marius was placing his trust wisely. Everyone has their opinion about Felicity, some swearing by her innocence, others certain that she was and still is a very skilled manipulator of people.

Marius and Bella find a way to get into Felicity’s family’s country mansion, and I have to say the setting is masterfully created. The place is a relatively new mansion with a very strong fairy-tale character, a dark, almost gothic atmosphere, home to people who perfectly complement the place.

Felicity’s acquired family is eccentric and very interesting, dysfunctional and still very close. You can never be sure who you can trust because it is very clear that everyone has secrets. All of them know each other’s secrets (for the most part), and all of them protect each other’s secrets. It’s a crazy system, and yet once you know what’s going on, you almost understand why it exists and why it works.

I loved the family dynamics because I could always feel there was more to know, and yet discovering anything was extremely difficult.

The mystery is intricate. Only at the end do you fully understand how much.

I almost wanted some of it to be revealed a bit more slowly rather than have all the explanations concentrated at the end of the novel. However, I suspect this was a storytelling decision on the author’s part. And anyway, it didn’t take away anything from the enjoyment of the story.

It was an excellent read around a well-thought-out plot, and I really really enjoyed it.

Marius Quinn is a young author of mystery novels and also a private investigator. He returns to his flat to find a dead body in his study. To confound matters the victim is the fiancé of his previous partner. As a potential suspect he is not permitted to participate in the investigation. To keep his mind distracted from his grisly find he returns to his latest novel. Seeking creative inspiration he visits the London library and, in looking through old newspapers, comes across the story of a woman convicted for the murder of her husband. Sensing an injustice has been done, Marius embarks on his own eventful investigation.

The characters are delightful and the narrative portrays the feel of the 1920’s. The dialogue is engaging and there is plenty of intrigue around the two murders and suggestions that they might be related. The storyline is good and engaging from the start. There are some nice twists and some lovely elements of humour. I also particularly liked that at the end of the book there are some interesting sections explaining the context, historical research and definitions of some of the more unusual words and references.

Another great mystery to add to the series! I really enjoy following Marius as he sets out on his investigations and this one was no exception. I think this might be my favorite mystery so far in the series. It has so many layers and wrongdoers and the ending was a bit of a surprise. My only problem with these books is the character of Bella. I just wish the author would do something with her. So far she's just there to provide Marius with the connections he needs to solve some of the crimes. She barely does anything in the actual investigations. I have also grown tired of the way Marius holds her up on a pedestal as this perfect person because that also doesn't allow her to become anything more than a pretty face. It also would have been better to have Bella and Gilbert's relationship come to a close in another way. If she ends up with Marius it will only be because his competition was taken out of the game altogether. I am holding out hope that the author will make some course corrections in future books. All of that being said, my issues with the writing to not extend to the actual plots of the stories and this continues to be a favorite series of mine right now.

This was an engaging read as Marius tries to solve what he believes is a miscarriage of justice. Of course, he does need the help of Lady Bella and her connections. It is a complex case and although I had worked out part of it, the culprit was a surprise. There is also the unsolved murder of Bella’s fiancé and the mystery concerning Marius’s father. As this is a series, some mysteries are ongoing. Marius and Bella make a great pairing, each bringing their own special skills to solve the problem. I look forward for reading more in this series. I received a copy and have voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Marius Quin, mystery writer and detective returns home to find the body of his friend in his study. He is warned by Scotland Yard to stay away from the case and so tries to find something else to do. He is drawn to the case of Felicity Mortimer, imprisoned for poisoning her husband, a crime that Marius is convinced she did not commit. Along with his detecting partner Bella they look deeper into the case, visiting the house where Richard Mortimer died to see what really happened.
I could hardly put the book down as I wanted to know who framed Felicity. A very well written book with plenty going on. My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the arc.

Pleasant, light reading with a ludicrous solution and ending. Book started off with one murder , quickly switched to another and never really circled back to the original murder. Pacing was kind of poky and the romantic dithering of the protagonist is getting old as it stretches across multiple books in the series

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Benedict Brown for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC for Arsenic and Old Lies coming out July 11, 2025. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I really enjoy this series! I’m obsessed with cozy mysteries. I really love Quin’s character. It reminded me of Arsenic and Old Lace. The time period is perfect for me. I would definitely read more books by this author!

In 1928 London, amateur detective Marius investigates a woman imprisoned for a murder he believes she didn’t commit. His investigation leads him to a manor house where he must unravel a deadly conspiracy before another murder occurs.

What a delightful read! The well-developed characters and cleverly plotted mystery kept me guessing until the very end. Light-hearted and fun, this cozy historical whodunit is perfect for a relaxing escape.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

The third Benedict Brown book I have read and enjoyed with a good idea for a story well executed. Thanks to Storm Publishing and NetGalley for the chance to ARC this book.

I have been reading the Marius Quin Mystery series since the first book and I am always looking forward to a new adventure, but I was especially excited about this fifth book because of the ending of the fourth book, A Body at the Grand Hotel. Mystery author and occasional private detective Marius Quin is back for another investigation together with his friend and former girlfriend Lady Bella Montague and his basset hound, Percy. However, following the shocking discovery at the end of the previous book (no spoiler!), the atmosphere is filled with tension and grief.

Their new case is a fifteen-year-old murder in which a young woman was accused of poisoning her older husband. She was sentenced to prison, but Marius is convinced of her innocence and is determined to find out the truth. The mystery was quite intriguing and the author informs us that he was inspired by the real case of Florence Maybrick at the end of the 19th century, of which he gives us a detailed and interesting summary at the end of the book.

I adore this series. The writing style is entertaining and addictive and the characters are always interesting and well-developed. As always, Marius is endearing and witty, Lady Bella flawlessly manages every situation, and Percy is his usual adorable self.

Fast-paced, clever, and with a plot full of twists, Arsenic and Old Lies is another winner for me and with yet another ending that left me looking forward to the next book!

Once I received the ARC for this story, I immediately read the preceding four Marius Quin books so that I was familiar with the characters. I am glad I did; however, you definitely can read this as a standalone.

While not a fan of period mysteries, this series is definitely an exception to that due to the main characters’ charm and Mr. Brown’s descriptive writing. I enjoyed this book and the previous stories because the main character of Marius Quin, a novelist, has combined forces with his childhood friend, Lady Bella Montague, to become detectives. This has been a successful endeavor for them as they have a 100% solve rate so far.

The last time we saw Marius, he had discovered Lady Bella’s fiancé dead in his study. Because he is not able to investigate the murder, he finds another case to work on by going to the library and reading old newspapers. He reads about Felicity Mortimer’s case and is not convinced that she is guilty of murdering her husband and goes to prison to meet her.

Through research, he discovers a man who could help him exonerate her, but he ends up murdered right before Marius can talk to him. If that wasn’t bad enough, the documents he obtained from Felicity’s attorney are stolen from his car. Clearly someone doesn’t want her released.

Marius enlists Bella to help him investigate and they are able to obtain an invitation to the house where the alleged murder took place in and meet Felicity’s deceased husband’s family—two sisters (Deirdre and Ursula), their husbands, and their children. There are a lot of twists and turns in this story because not only are Marius and Bella investigating Felicity’s case, but Deirdre’s husband ends up murdered. I found it puzzling that he was murdered when Ursula was so annoying.

I loved this story as much as the previous four Marius Quin mysteries. You feel like you are part of Marius and Bella’s investigation. I am baffled by the Lucien Pike storyline, though. Why is he just now becoming involved in Marius’s life? I cannot wait for more of this storyline to find out why he is just now popping up and what his endgame is for Marius. Plus, will Marius get a second chance with Bella or has that shipped sailed? I hope for more books in this series!

Thank you NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The fifth installment in the series has us returning to London for another mystery with Marius Quin, author and amateur sleuth. When Marius comes across a murdered man in his own home, he is not allowed to investigate as the victim is someone he knows. To distract himself, Marius looks for inspiration for his next book and comes across the case of murderess Felicity Mortimer. After visiting her in prison, Marius is sure she is innocent and sets out to prove it.

Joined by his fellow detective, Lady Bella Montague, Marius will venture into the countryside to surreptitiously investigate the family of the man Felicity was convicted of killing. What they find is an eccentric group of people with a variety of motives for murder. And when another dead body turns up, they know they must be getting close to finding answers.

This was a great cozy mystery with lots of plot twists, fun characters, and witty dialogue. I have read the previous books in the series, but you don’t have to in order to enjoy this story (although you should because they’re great!). Readers will have a hard time putting this book down!