Liar’s Island by T. Orr Munro

CSI Ally Dymond #3

400 pages

Publisher: HQ

Release Date: November 21, 2024

 

Blurb

When the body of Kieran Deveney is found on Liars Island, it sends shockwaves through the tiny, close-knit population. The rugged coastline has a history of smuggling and shipwreck, but there has never been a murder – until now.

With the hunt for the killer underway, two locals confess to the crime. Each claims they acted alone, and neither can be convicted while the other stands by their story. Which of them is telling the truth?

CSI Ally Dymond arrives to uncover the evidence that could crack the case. What she finds is a community awash with secrets. As a storm closes in, and with the identity of the murderer still in doubt, no one can leave the island. But it’s not the treacherous weather that Ally fears, it’s the people she’s trapped with…

 

Review

Kieran Deveney is the co-owner of a sports centre on Liar’s Island. His father is on the board of trustees for the island and more or less determines what happens there. When Kieran’s body is discovered on the island the question is who killed him. The island only has a tiny population and when two of them individually confess to having murdered Kieran singlehandedly, the police are facing a stand-off as far as their investigation is concerned.

CSI Ally Dymond and a junior colleague are sent to Liar’s Island to uncover evidence that will prove or disprove either of the confessions. Before they can return to the mainland with what little potential evidence they have found, a storm descends on the island, and they find themselves stranded in close proximity to a murderer.

The story is told in the first person from Ally Dymond’s perspective. However, interspersed throughout the story are CSI reports for each of the island’s inhabitants as well as passages printed in cursive that describe relevant details about those inhabitants’ pasts. I’m not sure how I felt about those cursive parts. On the one hand, they allowed the reader to join the dots and be part of the solving of the puzzle. On the other hand, those sections weren’t the result of the on-the-page investigation so it created the weird situation where the reader knows more than Ally Dymond did. One thing they made perfectly clear though, is that everybody on the island had a motive for killing Kieran.

Liar’s Island is an atmospheric story with the placenames creating the atmosphere. For example, Kieran Deveney is found in a bay known as Devil’s Cauldron on Liar’s Island. This is also a rather slow-moving story and a relatively large section of it deals with Ally Dymond’s private life. This book is very well written and easy to read but it also felt a bit flat. Despite the atmosphere, the location, the murders, and the storm there wasn’t any real tension or urgency in the story.

This is the third book in the Ally Dymond series by this author. I didn’t read the previous two books, and I don’t think it is necessary to have done so in order to enjoy this title. Having said that, if you think this series sounds like something you might enjoy, I advise you to start with book one (Breakneck Point). I may be wrong, but I think Liar’s Island contains at least one spoiler for the previous stories.

Overall I enjoyed Liar’s Island and I’d call it a well-plotted and easy-to-read mystery that for me personally could have done with a little more tension and a little less personal backstory.

Miss Beeton’s Murder Agency by Josie Lloyd

 

Miss Beeton Mysteries #1

384 pages

Publisher: HQ

Release Date: October 24, 2024

 

Blurb

Alice Beeton never meant to wind up single and childless on the wrong side of fifty. Like her distant relative Mrs Beeton – yes, that Mrs Beeton – she had hoped to have her own spic-and-span household by now. In reality, she lives in an immaculate but dingy basement flat in a rather shabby block in Kensington with Agatha, her fiercely intelligent, if rather over-territorial, corgi-Jack Russell cross.

Now Alice runs the Good Household Management Agency, providing discreet domestic staff to extravagant townhouses and sprawling country piles. So when Camille Messant calls in urgent need of a new housekeeper, Miss Beeton sends out new hire Enya. She’s rather forward but she does come with impeccable references and is fluent en français.

But in the early hours of New Year’s Day, Alice is rudely awakened with the news that Enya has been found dead. As the police struggle to drum up an adequate investigation and the wealthy family and their party guests close rank, Miss Beeton takes it upon herself to solve the crime…

 

Review

Alice Beeton is a distant relative of the Miss Beeton of Miss Beeton’s Book of Household Management fame. She runs the Good Household Management Agency providing domestic staff to the rich and famous. When she employs a new hire named Enya on the same day that she is asked to provide the Messant household with a housekeeper immediately, it seems too good to be true. When, only a few days later, Enya is found dead, Alice Beeton feels responsible. With the police investigation not going anywhere, Alice decides to do some investigating of her own. After all, she’s a huge fan of murder mysteries. How hard can it be to unmask a murderer?

Alice with more than a little help from her friends Jinx, Helly, Barney, Jacques, and Massoud, to name but a few, soon discovers that investigating a crime is much harder than it looks between the covers of a book. And much more fraught with danger too. Going undercover in the Messant household to replace Enya, Alice Beeton finds herself taking risks and not getting anywhere fast. But, as she reflects 49% into the book: “Being stuck in the middle was part of the process.”

There’s a lot going on in this book apart from the murder which is not surprising since this appears to be the first book in a planned series which means that several characters and back stories had to be established. If I’m honest, it was a bit (too) much for me at times. More than once, I found myself wondering ‘who are you again?’ about secondary characters and some plot developments were outrageous enough that I found myself rolling my eyes. At the same time, the writing is smooth, and the story was intriguing enough to keep me turning the pages.

There are recipes in this book, some going back to the original Mrs. Beeton and others more modern. These recipes are placed right behind the place where a dish is mentioned right in the middle of chapters, and I’d love to tell you more about them. Unfortunately, the formatting of the ARC the publisher provided me with meant that they were literally unreadable. That is a shame since most of the dishes mentioned in the story sounded very yummy and I wouldn’t have minded trying my hand at recreating one or two of them.

Overall, this was a fast-paced, thrilling mystery, and captivating crime-caper with a few too many wtf moments for me to rate if five stars. If you like your cosy mystery with a large dose of mayhem, a host of larger-than-life characters, a cute little doggo, as well as plenty of action, and you don’t mind suspending disbelief once or twice, you’re going to love Miss Beeton’s Murder Agency.

Friends of Dorothy by Sandi Toksvig

320 pages

Publisher: Little Brown Group UK / Virago

Release Date: September 26, 2024

 

Blurb

After much searching, the happily married young couple, Amber and Stevie think they have found the perfect spot in Grimaldi Square. Despite the rundown pub across the way, the overgrown garden and a decidedly nosy neighbour, number 4 is the house of their dreams. Stevie, a woman who has never left anything to chance, has planned everything so nothing can spoil their happiness. But ... upstairs in their new home, seated on an old red sofa is the woman they bought the place from - eighty-year-old foul-mouthed, straight-talking, wise-cracking Dorothy - who has decided that she's not going anywhere. It turns out that Dorothy will be only the first in a line of life-changing surprises.

Friends of Dorothy is a touching, funny novel about a family that is not biological, but logical; a story close to Sandi Toksvig's heart.

 

Review

The last thing anybody moving into their new house expects to find is the former owner still in situ. But that’s exactly what happens to Stevie and Amber when they take possession of number 4 Grimaldi Square. Dorothy Franklin sits comfortably on a red sofa in one of the bedrooms with a suitcase by her side and she has no intention of leaving. Despite Stevie and Amber’s best efforts, there’s no getting through to Dorothy who appears to be staying for a reason she isn’t willing to disclose.

Life with Dorothy turns out to be anything but boring. From a demolished internal wall, via delicious meals, to heart-stopping rides through London, Dorothy keeps the two young women on their toes. She also introduces them to the neighbourhood and the pub across the road that has seen better times and is called The Price of Onions. Without being sure how it happens and while they’re busy trying to come up with a solution for Dorothy that doesn’t involve her living with them, Stevie and Amber find their new life taking shape and their circle of friends growing.

This is mostly a lighthearted, at times laugh-out-loud story. However, it isn’t without its deeper and darker moments. It is also a commentary on parenting, the housing market, the way society deals with our elderly, and LGBTQ+ issues, for starters. It is fair to say that while I found myself crying on numerous occasions while reading this book, most, but not all, of those tears were triggered by laughter. Overall though I would call this a feel-good read. While the book itself states that it isn’t a fairytale, the story does come with perfect happy endings for all the characters who deserve them.

I adored this book. It’s almost certainly going to be (one of) my favourite book(s) this year and goes straight to my ‘extra-special’ list. There is so much to love on these pages. Quirky and charming characters, lively dialogue, and not a boring moment, make this a memorable read. While the stories are different, the atmosphere of this book, the diversity of the characters, and the idea of logical rather than biological families reminded me of the Tales of the City books by Armistead Maupin. Considering how much I loved those tales the comparison is a compliment.

Finally, I’m pretty sure Sandi Toksvig referenced herself in her book when she wrote:

 “That lesbian on the telly – what shername – she has kids.”

And yes, this was one of many times when I laughed out loud.

Long review short: Friends of Dorothy is a delightful book! So much so that I want to live in Grimaldi Square, be part of that world, and become one of Dorothy’s friends.

One Bad Apple by Jo Jakeman

Pages: 416

Publisher: Little Brown Book Group UK / Constable

Release Date: September 19, 2024

 

Blurb

Welcome to Aberfal Boys High School. Independent jewel of academic and sporting excellence in the South-west -- until the headmaster is murdered in his study. And now the Year Seven School Mums' WhatsApp Group really do have something to talk about...

Clare Withoutani: OMG have you heard about Newhall?!!!
Becky Rupertsmum: Helen-Louise just texted. Can't believe it.
Asha: Not heard anything. What's happened?
Pam Geoffreysmum: What's he done this time? They're going co-ed, aren't they? I knew this would happen.
Clare Withoutani: Can't believe it, Becky. I'm in shock.
Pam Geoffreysmum: Are we going co-ed?
Becky Rupertsmum: No, Pam. Newhall died.
Pam Geoffreysmum: Oh GOD. Seriously??!! Can't believe it. So sad. He'll be such a loss to the school. The boys will be devastated. Will the school be offering grief counselling?
Rose Oliversmum: Anyone know what pages they're meant to do for chemistry? Ollie's homework diary says 'do questions 1-4' but no page numbers!

As the resulting police investigation reveals more and more of Aberfal's long-hidden secrets the list of suspects who wanted the headmaster dead grows by the day. And far from being a glittering jewel of exclusivity and excellence, it would appear Aberfal Boys High School is rotten to its core...

 

Review

“You really never can tell which one’s the bad apple.”

Asha Demetriou had no intention of enrolling her son Cassius in Aberfal Boys High School when she gatecrashed the open day. People with Asha’s background don’t belong in the privileged world of private schools. But Jerry Newhall, the headmaster can be persuasive and almost against her better judgement, Asha finds herself accepting a bursary for Cass and as a result, entering a world she doesn’t think she belongs to.

Initially, Asha is in awe of the school, the people who work there, and the other mothers she interacts with but it isn’t long before she notices that the school isn’t as shiny as it appeared at first glance. And when her son is the subject of bullying, Asha springs into action. But it isn’t until the day of a cricket match when Jerry Newhall is found dead in his office that things at Aberfal Boys High School come to a head.

While it’s clear that somebody murdered Jerry, nobody has seen the perpetrator and since his personal assistant states that she didn’t leave her post outside Jerry’s office all afternoon and didn’t see anybody enter, it appears we’re dealing with an impossible crime. Except that just as the school isn’t what it appears to be, neither are the circumstances of Jerry’s death. Everybody has secrets and nobody is telling the (full) truth.

The story in this book isn’t told in a linear way. The narrative jumps backward and forwards in time, but chapter headings make sure the reader doesn’t get confused. Witness statements are interspersed throughout the story. Those statements are a one-sided affair in that the reader only sees the answers given by the various characters and not the questions posed by the investigating police officer. In fact, Detective Mullins doesn’t make an appearance until the very end of the story. All the reader learns about the investigation comes from those statements and the (online) conversations between the mothers of the pupils.

The author hit the nail on the head with the dynamics between the various players in the story. The interactions between the mothers both in the WhatsApp group and face to face are recognisable for anybody who has ever been part of such a group. Everybody appears to have an assigned position in their social circle until the murder and the subsequent unravelling of secrets upsets the apple cart. Everybody has something to hide or is pretending to be something other than who and what they are. It isn’t until the extravagant end-of-term summer ball that things come to a head and Detective Mullins makes his appearance to arrest the murderer.

But remember even when the story appears to be over: “You really never can tell which one’s the bad apple.”

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The writing is smooth, and the story captured my attention from the start. The characters in this book were recognisable as were the interactions between them. At times reading the book was a little like watching a car crash in slow motion as slowly but steadily relationships and reputations unravel. All of it kept me captivated from the opening paragraphs until the surprising and unconventional ending.

The Red House Mystery by A.A. Milne

288 pages

Publisher: Pushkin Press

First published: 1922

Re-release Date: September 3, 2024

 

Blurb

In a quaint English country house, the exuberant Mark Ablett has been entertaining a house party, but the festivities are rudely interrupted by the arrival of Mark's wayward brother, Robert, home from Australia. Even worse, not long after his arrival the long-lost brother is found dead, shot through the head, and Mark is nowhere to be found. It is up to amateur detective Tony Gillingham and his pal Bill to investigate.

Between games of billiards and bowls, the taking of tea and other genteel pursuits, Tony and Bill attempt to crack the perplexing case of their host’s disappearance and its connection to the mysterious shooting. Can the pair of sleuths solve the Red House mystery in time for their afternoon game of croquet?

The Red House Mystery marked Milne’s first and final venture into the detective genre, despite the book’s immediate success. Praised by Raymond Chandler and renowned critic Alexander Woolcott, this gem of classic Golden Age crime sparkles with witty dialogue, an intriguing cast of characters, and a brilliant plot.

 

Review

“…an acknowledged masterpiece of the art of fooling the reader without cheating him.”

Raymond Chandler in The Simple Art of Murder.

As Anthony Gillingham approaches the country house where his friend, Bill Beverley is staying he walks straight into a mystery. A man who turns out to be Matthew Cayley and who is obviously distressed needs help getting into a locked room in the house. Cayley has heard a gunshot and is very worried about his uncle and employer, Mark Ablett. After they force their way into the room, Cayley and Gillingham discover a body. It is not Mark Ablett who is dead though but, much to Cayley’s relief, Ablett’s ne’er-do-well brother Robert. Of Mark, who was seen entering the office to meet with his brother there is no sign. While the local police is on the case, Anthony Gillingham and Bill Beverley decide to conduct an investigation of their own with Bill Beverley playing Watson to Gillingham’s Sherlock Holmes.

This is the most British of stories. In fact, if it had been written one or two decades later, I would have called it a spoof version of a Golden Age of Mystery story. This is by no means a criticism. In fact, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and the picture it painted of Edwardian Britain. I figured out part of the solution to this locked-room-mystery early on but that didn’t lessen my enjoyment of the rest of the story. It was a joy to follow Anthony and Bill as they followed the clues and Gillingham’s intuition until they found the answers.

This was A.A. Milne’s only mystery despite the fact that the last paragraph of the book seems to imply there might be more to come. I for one would have happily read more stories featuring Anthony Gillingham and Bill Beverley.

Cabaret Macabre by Tom Mead

Joseph Spector #3

320 Pages

Publisher: Head of Zeus

Release Date: August 1, 2024

Netgalley

 

Blurb

Sleuth and illusionist Joseph Spector investigates his most complex case yet in this gripping new locked-room murder mystery from Tom Mead, set in an English country house just before the Second World War.

Hampshire, 1938. Victor Silvius is confined in a private sanatorium after attacking prominent judge Sir Giles Drury. When Sir Giles starts receiving sinister threatening letters, his wife suspects Silvius. Meanwhile, Silvius’ sister Caroline is convinced her brother is about to be murdered... by none other than his old nemesis Sir Giles.

Caroline seeks the advice of Scotland Yard’s Inspector Flint, while the Drurys, eager to avoid a scandal, turn to Joseph Spector. Spector, renowned magician turned sleuth, has an uncanny knack for solving complicated crimes – but this case will test his powers of deduction to their limits.

At a snowbound English country house, a body is found is impossible circumstances, and a killer’s bullet is fired through a locked window without breaking the glass. Spector and Flint’s investigations soon collide as they find themselves trapped by the snowstorm where anyone could be the next victim – or the killer...

 

Review

Almost a decade ago a young woman died under suspicious circumstances, but the mystery of her death has never been solved. The aftermath left one man, Victor Silvius confined to a private sanatorium for attacking Sir Giles Drury, the judge he held responsible for the death of the woman he loved.

Now, in 1938 the old case is coming back to life and Scotland Yard inspector Flint and Joseph Spector, former magician and occasional sleuth, are asked to investigate. Unfortunately, their involvement doesn’t prevent further bloodshed. In fact, it isn’t long before Spector and Flint are up to their necks in murders which all appear to be impossible and require all of Spector’s skills to eventually unravel.

If the description of this book makes it sound as if there’s a lot going on in the story, you are right. In fact, the blurb barely scratches the surface when it comes to (impossible) murders, victims, and mysteries. There is so much happening in this story that it should be too much and overwhelming. And, I want to say that in the hands of a lesser author this story and the solutions to the mysteries wouldn’t have worked. Tom Mead works some kind of magic of his own in this book which allows him to tell a story at neck-breaking speed without overwhelming the reader.

Eighteen clues are masterfully hidden in this story and tagged so that the reader can check and discover, like I did, that Tom Mead plays fair with his audience. All the information the reader needs to solve the mysteries in this story is available to those who pay close attention. I for one have to admit that I missed most but, I’m proud to say, not all of them.

This is the third Joseph Spector mystery I’ve read and with every book I’m more in awe of Tom Mead’s storytelling and mystery-creating prowess. The release of the next book in this series can’t come soon enough for me.

Related reviews:

Death and the Conjuror: https://helenasheat.blogspot.com/2023/05/death-and-conjuror-by-tom-mead.html

The Murder Wheel:  https://helenasheat.blogspot.com/2023/10/the-murder-wheel-by-tom-mead.html

 

 

Murder by Invitation by Verity Bright

 

A Lady Eleanor Swift Mystery #15

363 pages

Publisher: Bookouture

Release Date: September 27, 2023

Netgalley

 

Blurb

Lady Swift has been cordially invited to a huge royal celebration in Little Buckford to toast the King’s birthday… but wait, is that a body in the village hall?

Lady Eleanor Swift and her loyal butler Clifford are busy lending a hand with preparations for the big day. The grand dining room at Henley Hall is overflowing with home-sewn flags, paint and royal rosettes. Even Gladstone the bulldog and his new friend Tomkins the ginger cat are invited!

But just days before the event Mr Prestwick-Peterson, the chairman of the celebrations committee, is found dead in the village strangled with handmade red, white and royal blue bunting.

With the village hall in total disarray and a key part of the decorations missing, Eleanor wonders if someone dastardly is sabotaging the King’s birthday celebrations? Teaming up with her handsome beau Detective Hugh Seldon to question the local butcher, baker, and pub landlord it becomes clear that the meddlesome busybody Mr Prestwick-Peterson was not universally liked in charming Little Buckford. Indeed, the only mystery is why he wasn’t murdered before…

Searching Mr Prestwick-Peterson’s pristinely organised rooms, Eleanor is surprised to find a faded photograph of a beautiful young woman hidden within the pages of a novel. Could this be the key to untangling this very village murder? And can Eleanor catch the killer before the party is over for her, too?

 

Review

I have to start this review with a disclaimer: I did not read the 14 preceding Lady Eleanor Swift mysteries. Fortunately, I can also state that this did not leave me confused and that it didn’t affect my enjoyment of this story at all.

Quite the opposite in fact. There’s a lot to enjoy in this charming story. The characters and the interactions between them are vivid, interesting, and at times chuckle-worthy. The exchanges between Lady Eleanor and Clifford, her butler, are especially delightful. Just as those between Eleanor and her fiancé Detective Hugh Seldon often made me smile. Overall, I can honestly say there wasn’t a boring or superfluous character in this story, and that includes Gladstone the bulldog and Tomkins, the cat.

The mystery in this book was intriguing and well-plotted. The murder of a man universally disliked is always a great set-up and the fact that every possible suspect had the same, impossible to disprove, alibi, added greatly to the intrigue. When a second murder victim is discovered, the urgency of the investigation increases, especially since it is only days until the festivities to celebrate the King’s birthday are to take place. The solution surprised me, although I realised after I had it all spelled out for me that the clues I needed to figure it out for myself were all there. 😊

The one thing I found less charming was the thriller aspect near the end of the story. I don’t object to it being there, it just felt a bit (too) long in what was otherwise a delightful cozy mystery. Having said that, I can’t say it bothered me enough to put me off Lady Eleanor and I can definitely see myself reading other books in this series in the future.

To summarize: Murder by Invitation is a smoothly written, captivating cozy mystery featuring delightful characters and a well-plotted mystery.

 

 

 

The Appeal by Janice Hallett

447 pages

Publisher: Viper

Book Club Read

Own

 

Blurb

 One Murder.

Fifteen Suspects.

Can You Uncover the Truth?

There is a mystery to solve in the small town of Lockwood. It starts with the arrival of two secretive newcomers, and ends with a tragic death. Roderick Tanner QC has assigned law students Charlotte and Femi to the case. Someone has already been sent to prison for murder, but he suspects they are innocent. And far darker secrets have yet to be revealed…

Through the amateur dramatics society’s disastrous staging of All My Sons and the shady charity appeal for a little girl’s medical treatment, the murderer hit in plain sight. Will Charlotte and Femi solve the case? Will you?

 

Review

 “Arthur Miller constructs a play the way a sculptor creates a three-dimensional image from an amorphous chunk of clay. He shows us a basic shape. Then bends and stretches its contours, turns it for us to view alternate angles, gradually reveals the finer details until, finally, we can see for ourselves what it really is.”

And the same can be said for this story. Nothing is as it appears at first and as the story progresses, deeper and hidden levels are constantly revealed. The big question being how it all ties into the mystery.

It is only thanks to the first two pages, where two young lawyers (?) are tasked to go over the paperwork of a case, that we know we will be dealing with a murder somebody has already be imprisoned for.

The next 2/3s of the book deals with an amateur dramatics group and the real-life drama taking place off stage. Through emails and messages, we get to know the Fairway Players and how they relate to each other. We learn about a young child with cancer and the fundraising efforts to get her an experimental treatment from America. But most of all, we slowly but steadily discover that nobody is exactly how or who they present themselves as. Secrets, past connections, animosity, obsession, fraud, lies, they all float to the surface. Until ultimately, on the premiere of their performance of All My Sons things come to a head. Truths are spoken and accusations made, and they lead to death.

I have to be honest, the cast list in this story is so long that it took me a while before I knew who was who and how they related to each other, and to what was happening. While it was a little frustrating initially, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise because keeping track of it all forced me to read slowly and pay attention to all the details. And that, in turn, allowed me to notice the various discrepancies and misdirections I might have missed if I’d read at my normal pace.

The murder is almost an afterthought. In most mysteries, we start with a body after which the investigator tries to figure out the motives and events that led up to and might explain the crime. In The Appeal, we are given all those possible motives and the events that led up to the crime before the murder is committed. You would think that having all that information would make the identity of whodunit obvious. Not for me. I still wasn’t sure who out of an enormous cast of suspects had done the deed.

The murder victim wasn’t who I thought it would be either, although it does make a lot of sense it would be them. The actual murderer was also rather low on my list of suspects, although now that I know, it does make sense that it would be who it is.

The final page and a half were delightfully creepy.

I rarely re-read books, not even mysteries, on purpose, although the occasional title does slip in due to my far-from-perfect memory. However, I can’t help feeling that The Appeal and Hallett’s other titles would greatly benefit from a re-read. While I tried to keep a running list of characters and things that stood out about them and their actions while reading this story, I’m still sure I must have missed a long list of clues. For obvious reasons, I can’t share those notes or the thoughts I had when I wrote them down. The fun (for me) in this mystery is the slow lifting of the veil.

After having read all three of Janice Hallett’s currently available titles I have to conclude that she is something of a genius when it comes to slow reveals and misdirection while still giving the reader all the information they need to keep up with the investigators. Except that the fictional sleuths have so far proven a lot cleverer than I am. Then again, being shocked and surprised by the end of the book is one of the big joys I find in reading mysteries.

I am now caught up with Hallett’s mysteries and eagerly awaiting the release of The Christmas Appeal on October 26^th. The blurb indicates that the story will return us to the Fairway Players and Femi and Charlotte, which should be interesting, to put it mildly. 

Bring. It. On.

The Good Liars by Anita Frank

400 pages

Publisher: HQ

Publishing Date: August 17, 2023

Netgalley

 

Blurb

In the hot summer of 1914 a boy vanishes, never to be seen again.

Now, in 1920, the once esteemed Stilwell family of Darkacre Hall find their already troubled lives thrown into disarray when new evidence leads to the boy’s case being reopened – and this time they themselves are under police scrutiny.

As the dead return to haunt the living, old resentments resurface and loyalties are tested, while secrets risk being unearthed that could destroy them all.

 

Review

If you take the blurb to suggest a dark tale, you would be right. This story is very atmospheric, as Darkacre, the name of the manor where the action takes place implies. Doom, gloom, secrecy, and shellshock all add to the undercurrent of evil. As the story progresses, that suggestion gets stronger until, in the end, it turns out not to be a suggestion at all.

I’m not sure how to label this book. It’s not quite a mystery, although there certainly are quite a few puzzles to resolve. And despite the haunting atmosphere, it’s also not quite a gothic thriller. And while there are hints of supernatural goings on and the departed certainly haunt those still alive, The Good Liars isn’t a ghost story either. This is however a fascinating and memorable tale; one that may well leave you wondering what you would do under similar circumstances.

Darkacre is a large manor house occupied by a cast of four. There’s Ida Stilwell, the mistress of Darkacre and the wife of Maurice Stilwell who two years after the end of WWI still suffers from shell shock. Leonard Stilwell is the younger brother who is an invalid, having lost the will to live after losing three of his limbs during the war. Finally, there’s Victor Monroe, a friend of the Stilwell brothers who has more or less been adopted into the family. Sarah Hove is a nurse/housekeeper who joins the family to look after Leonard and take care of some household duties. Eventually, this group will be joined by Detective Sergeant Verity, who ends up stranded there when bad weather makes leaving Darkacre impossible.

From the beginning, it’s clear that all is not happy and well with this family. And the tension increases when the police arrive to tell them that they will reopen an old investigation into the disappearance of a young boy in 1914. What’s more, they will be searching the estate’s woods.

Told from shifting perspectives, we watch as the situation in the house slowly moves from mildly uncomfortable to outright horrifying. But, as the title implies, we are dealing with a group of good liars. I mean, you have unreliable narrators, and then you have this lot.

And that’s probably all I should say about the plot. There are a lot of layers to this story, just as there is a lot of evil in it. It’s a fascinating tale though of the unravelling of a family who thought themselves to be untouchable and it asks some interesting questions about guilt, innocence, and justice.

The story is very well written and told. The descriptions of the house, the atrocious weather, and the surroundings add at least as much menace to the tale as the actions of the characters do. The words flow smoothly, pulling the reader along and the further I got into the book, the harder it became to take a break from reading. I did manage to figure out one or two plot twists before they were revealed on the page, but that didn’t diminish the story for me.

Overall, The Good Liars is a fascinating and thought-provoking book.