Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: The Lady from Burma by Allison Montclair

The Lady from Burma by Allison Montclair (Minotaur, 2023) is the forthcoming fifth book in the very fine historical mystery series set in post-war London. People were still staggering from the enormous losses of the war and thousands were searching for a new purpose in life. Iris Sparks, recently of military intelligence, and Mrs. Gwendolyn Bainbridge, widowed by the war, were at loose ends when they met quite by accident. They established The Right Sort Marriage Bureau to help those seeking partners along the path to matrimony. Women were not seen as entrepreneurs then and they sometimes had trouble being taken seriously. But they had no shortage of applicants.

Their newest client is Mrs. Adela Remagen. Terminally ill and worried about the welfare of her socially awkward insect-loving husband after she’s gone, she arranges with the Bureau to find her husband a second wife. Mrs. Remagen dies shortly thereafter in what seems to be a suicide but quickly is shown to be homicide. Sparks and Bainbridge, appalled by the mistreatment of their client, immediately become involved.

An important second story line is the continuing attempt of Bainbridge to overturn the ruling of lunacy that has taken away every single legal right she has including custody of her son. She is at the mercy of an unsympathetic man who goes out of his way to remind her of her helplessness. Montclair does an outstanding job of highlighting the archaic laws of lunacy and how the legal system has been used to exploit and abuse women. The system still exists, witness the years-long “guardianship” of Britney Spears. It is a grim reminder of just how poorly the law protects women.

The murder and the motive behind it are one of the most deviously plotted pieces I’ve seen for awhile. Brilliantly done. The growing respect of Lord Bainbridge for his daughter-in-law is a pleasure to watch unfold. As always in these books, the post-war setting is authoritative and the characters are razor sharp. Highly recommended.

 

·         Publisher: ‎Minotaur Books (July 25, 2023)

·         Language: ‎English

·         Hardcover: ‎336 pages

·         ISBN-10: ‎1250854199

·         ISBN-13: ‎978-1250854193

 

 

Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2023

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.

Lesa's Book Critiques: COURTING DRAGONS BY JERI WESTERSON

 Lesa's Book Critiques: COURTING DRAGONS BY JERI WESTERSON

Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: Lord James Harrington and the New Year's Eve Mystery by Lynn Florkiewicz

Lord James Harrington and the New Year's Eve Mystery by Lynn Florkiewicz (Independently published, November 2021) is the eleventh book in a gentle historical mystery series set in a Sussex village in the late 1950s.

Lord James Harrington turned his inherited family mansion into a high-end country hotel, which he runs with his wife Beth. It’s close enough to London to be a desirable weekend jaunt and it’s quite successful. In mid-December 1959 they visit Haywards Heath to see a Wild West touring show run by two sisters, Jane and Shirley Johnson from Texas. It capitalizes on the rash of Western television programming common during the late 1950s. Harrington’s is hosting some of the cast over the weekend as they take a break between shows and is offering a country and western evening in their honor. (The hotel’s French chef is pained to be offering fried chicken and hot dogs to his guests.) A collection of Native American artifacts on loan is accompanying the tour to add interest and Harrington’s will be displaying it during the troupe’s stay.

A pretentious representative from the British Museum expresses interest in the artifacts and an obnoxious member of the Foreign Office wants to buy the lot outright. Someone tries to pick the lock on the case in the reception area of Harrington’s one night, and a few days later one of the Johnson sisters is killed in a clear homicide. Lord James and DCI George Lane work the case together, as they have in earlier books, bringing it all together on New Year’s Eve.

While this title trends cozier than those I usually pick up these days, I found it highly readable. The story line is original, the writing is competent, and the late 1950s timing is unusual. The country inn setting reminds me of the Pennyfoot Hotel mysteries by Kate Kingsbury. The characters are pleasant if not particularly well developed. There are a good many of them, and I had a hard time keeping them all straight.

There is wonderful detail about holiday celebrations in 1950s England, especially in a scene where James and Beth visit the shops in London to see the Christmas displays and decorations.

These books are independently published and not apt to be part of a public library’s collection. Look for them on Amazon, the Kindle versions are quite affordable. Recommended for fans of historical cozies and students of mid-century fiction.

·         ASIN: ‎B09L1BM4V6

·         Publication date: ‎November 3, 2021

·         Language: ‎English

·         File size: ‎1523 KB

 

Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2023 

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.