Eleanor and her husband Seldon are at last honeymooning in Paris with Clifford and Gladstone the dog accompanying them. On the first night during dinner, a man falls through the glass roof and lands on their table. Before he dies , he presses a pearl brooch into her hands. The police arrive, and it appears he had just been at an art museum down the street and was thought to have stolen something. They go along with the police to the museum. It appears the man was an artist who wasn't doing very well. However, the man's father was a very good artist, For some reason, the police suddenly think they are all involved with the theft, and they spend a night in jail. When they are out on bail, they are invited to stay with a wealthy man in the country. They meet the dead man's mother, and find out that Eleanor's parents had visited her many years before and she gave Ely some old letters from her parents. The story involves some bad police as well as bad museum employees. However, the bridal pair and Clifford finally are allowed to go home.

I thank Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC so that I could read the book before publication.

This is a lighthearted historical cozy set in Paris. While Lady Eleanor and her new husband Detective Hugh Seldon are toasting their marriage at a fancy restaurant, a man falls through the glass roof right onto their table. Right before he dies, the man presses a beautiful pearl brooch into Eleanor's hand. The police arrive and immediately accuse Eleanor and Hugh of helping the victim rob the nearby museum. Eleanor, Hugh, and her butler Clifford, work together to clear their names. This book had red herrings galore, suspense, adventure, and a splash of humor sprinkled throughout. What a fun read!

The Eleanor Swift mysteries are reliable books with a set formula. If you enjoyed one, you'll enjoy them all. There's a lot to be said for being able to reach for a book that you know you'll like. They are classic cosy crime, with every feature and cliche you'd expect, and are really well done. You can read them in order, but they're also quite possible to pick up cold, as the accessible style and familiar format make them easy to enjoy separately.

In this latest adventure, Ellie and her new husband are in Paris enjoying their honeymoon. The enjoyment is quickly curtailed when a dying man literally drops on them from above. It's so audaciously daft that you can't help but smile. Rather than coyly try to cover up the essential silliness of this type of book, Bright simply leans into it - although they are not satirical, just unashamedly what they are. And it works. Whereas I often get annoyed at the implausibility of cosy (and non-cosy) crime books, I never do with these.

So Ellie sets off around Paris trying to find out what happened, assisted as always by her husband Hugh, butler Clifford, and bulldog Gladstone. Naturally there are uncaring policemen who don't appreciate her efforts/interference (and this time they are French, which is even better as no character does disapproving aloofness as well as a cliched Parisian), and a whole host of possible suspects, all of whom speak surprisingly good English. And of course someone gets pushed off the Eiffel tower (you'd have been disappointed if they hadn't). I did miss the presence of Ellie's other servants, who make a loveable Greek chorus in the background of the books set in England.

If you want gritty or realistic crime then these are clearly not for you. But if you want the perfectly tailored cosy crime novel, then you really cannot do any better than this series. I love them.

Lady Eleanor does it again!

After finally marrying the man of her dreams and on her honeymoon in Paris, you might be forgiven for thinking Eleanor deserves a break and rest from her sleuthing. Instead, a man drops dead in front of her - literally, having fallen from the sky above her.

This was another very entertaining mystery. The supporting characters, as ever were a joy, from the familiar such as her butler and her bulldog, to one offs such as the Paris detective or the list of suspects that cover all possibilities. If you've read and enjoyed any of the previous Eleanor Swift stories, you will enjoy this one just as much. It's more of the same, which is no bad thing for someone who enjoys a cosy murder mystery. The story moves on at a good pace, characters are explained well, and the answers make sense.

We also get some new nuggets about Eleanor's past, as this story turns out to be far more personal than anyone, even the lady herself, originally realises. It was heart-warming and heart-breaking in equal measures.

I discovered Verity Bright's Lady Eleanor Swift series about two years ago. I immediately LOVED this series. I quickly made it through about 15 of them, and then, sadly, had to begin waiting for new releases. So, you can imagine my excitement when I was chosen to read the newest novel, Death at a Paris Hotel, before its release!

I loved this book! Of course, it's always lovely to pop back into Ellie's world, and this time, with Hugh and of course, Clifford, in tow on her honeymoon in Paris. I connected to this book, especially, as I had the great fortune of visiting Paris on my honeymoon. While nearly a century separated our visits, there were still familiar roads, landmarks, and streets, that felt familiar in the location of this latest installment.

If you've enjoyed this series' prior adventures, you will heartly enjoy this one! We get the usual banter, relationship dynamics, and high jinks, but we also get insight into more of Ellie's younger years, which I have been waiting to know more about.

Just go read this. Order it in advance and cozy up for a one-day read-a-thon. Why not?!

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture, and Verity Bright for this advanced read!

thrilling cozy set in France - Art, Murder, and Theft

This book was a little more intense than the other in the series, but it was very entertaining. We see a shift in Selvyn and Cliftons' demeanors and Ellie taking more of a lead than usual.

The author gives us more hints about Ellie's past and maybe a new future for the three of them. Selvyn is pondering what to do now that he is married to a lady of the realm.

The mystery was good, but a little too many red herrings. A young painter is killed most strangely, falling from the ceiling onto Eleanor's dining table. She soon finds herself, her new husband, and Clifton as accomplices to a robbery and murder, and is placed under arrest. This is not a spoiler, but I loved the part where she identifies the painting and where it was done.

This was a good mystery, and I can't wait to see what the next installment brings.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read "Death at a Paris Hotel" the 22nd book in the Lady Eleanor Swift series, in exchange for my honest opinion.

The story starts in Paris, 3 days after Ellie and DCI Hugh Seldon's wedding. They are on their honeymoon and have brought Clifford and Master Gladstone with them. Sadly the ladies are not featured in this story but they are mentioned.

Of course, no trip with Ellie can be free of mayhem, so when they are dining in the hotel restaurant it is not surprising that a body falls through the atrium roof onto their table. The hotel manager is a tad shady because instead of calling a doctor, he calls the police first. Before dying the man presses something into Ellie's hand. She feels that the item is something that is from her memory but she's not sure why. The police arrive at the conclusion that Ellie knew the man and that she was his accomplice. They say that there was a theft at the Musée d'Art Contemporain but the Musés's director insists that nothing is missing from any collection.

Ellie is sure that the police have it wrong and the man was pushed, he did not fall into the restaurant. So our trio get involved in the investigation because according to Clifford this is a holiday Lady Swift style. Ellie is far from being the titled lady that she is expected to be. Brought to light with Clifford marking a passage in an etiquette book about how to behave in a hotel.

The author included the interesting "secret" apartment of Gustav Eiffel's at the top of the Eiffel Tower. Of course, if Ellie is there then there is another body. Ellie is more determined than ever to solve this mystery because she feels she can't let the man from the restaurant down.

There is a lot of evidence planting, false imprisonment, a mysterious Le Compte, before Ellie makes a stunning revelation that the reader would not have seen coming.

The reader is left wondering what the new venture our trio has planned and really what could go wrong if Ellie is involved. Another fabulous addition to the series with great descriptions of Paris and historical references. Looking forward to where the adventure leads out friends in the next book!

Having finally married the man of her dreams, Lady Eleanor Swift is honeymooning in the most romantic city in the world, Paris, with the suave and equally besotted Chief Inspector Hugh Seldon. With her butler, Clifford and bulldog, Gladstone, also accompanying them romance, friendship, and laughter, is the order of the day until a body crash lands in her celebration dinner! Determined to solve the murder of a young man she feels an immediate but unexpected connection to, Eleanor has soon persuaded her companions to help, as she usually does! Danger and lies follow them continuously and, with very little understanding of the language and no idea who they can trust, they are truly alone in a foreign land with no one else to call on. Will Ellie sort through the clues and deceptions, or will her honeymoon be her last hurrah?

I was able to read an advanced copy of this thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Bookouture, but the opinions expressed are my own. I loved every word of this, from the romantic excursions, through Seldon's protective devotion, and his and Clifford's awkwardness at some of Eleanor's antics, to the big reveal. Married life definitely suits this series. Highly recommended.