Murder on a Summer's Day

Murder on a Summer's Day by Frances Brody
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I enjoyed Frances Brody’s Murder in the Afternoon enough to try another of her Kate Shackleton series. Here our level-headed Yorkshire lass comes up against officialdom when she tries to investigate the murder of rich playboy maharajah who goes shooting on the moors. I love how Brody manages to ignite the reader’s indignation on behalf of her detective every time some man or other—in this case, her cousin, her cousin’s boss, and the local police officer—comes out with a patronizing sexist slight. It’s 1924, so, believe me, “unwitting” slights against women pop up with depressing regularity. I enjoyed this very much!
But that’s just my own humble opinion…what do you think? Do let me know! Read as part of my 2015 Goodreads reading challenge.


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Murder In The Afternoon

Murder In The Afternoon by Frances Brody
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A really attractive cosy mystery set in the north of England in the 1920s. Kate Shackleton, adoptive daughter of a superintendent in West Riding’s constabulary and his landed-gentry wife, has set herself up as a private detective. Her husband went missing-in-action during the war, but she’s a modern woman who is moving on with her life: she now has brand new suitor. In a neat twist on the usual will she/won’t she? question, I think most readers would be aghast if she did! Don’t do it, Kate! You may be a good judge of character, but he’s a chauvinist! I hesitate to mention anything of the plot, lest I spoil it for anyone, but there’s a great cast of supporting characters and Brody has a nice turn of phrase. Here, for instance, Kate listens through the keyhole to a mystery visitor:
The voice was cultured, with rounded vowels and carefully enunciated word endings; too careful, perhaps. It was the voice of someone who has just filed her nails.Fantastic!
But that’s just my own humble opinion…what do you think? Do let me know! Read for the Crime & Thrillers reading group that I attend at Canada Water Library, and also for my 2015 Goodreads reading challenge. Very much enjoyed.


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