American heiress Roxy and her family fall under suspicion when a murder occurs at a London dance. Amateur sleuth Mabel and her friends investigate, but the stakes escalate when Roxy is kidnapped. Can Mabel unmask the murderer and rescue Roxy before it’s too late?

I love Mabel and the cast of characters in this historical cozy mystery. The plot is well constructed, and the twists and turns kept me guessing to the end.

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

It's 1922 and Mabel Canning works for the Useful Women Agency in London. Tasks can range from helping a client pick out wallpaper to solving mysteries. Mabel's next job is acting as a chaperone for a young American woman who has come to England to visit with the father she hasn't seen since she was three.

Roxanne Arkwright is a modern young woman and a little wild. She managed to ditch her chaperone and travel to England on her own and sees no reason to need another chaperone now that she's in England. Her father disagrees. He hires the Useful Women Agency which is owned by one of his former flames and Mabel is assigned to the job.

When Roxanne decides she wants to visit a dance hall, Mabel is eager to go along. She doesn't expect that the man Mr Arkwright also hired to look after his daughter would be there and would be murdered leaving Roxanne in a blood-spattered yellow gown.

While not officially hired to solve the other detective's murder, being with Roxanne and performing her duties as a chaperone will give Mabel plenty of opportunities to search for clues.

But then Roxanne is kidnapped...

As Mabel calls in all her friends to find Roxanne, a dastardly and murderously inclined villain has their own plans for Roxanne. And there is just a short timeline before it will be too late to rescue her.

This was an engaging and entertaining historical mystery. It is third in a series. I like the way Mabel has grown into her new position with Useful Women. I also like the way she is gathering an assortment of intriguing and useful friends too.

Mabel is once again given a job with the Useful Women Agency that turns out to be more than she bargained for. Asked to be a companion for a visiting young American heiress, she accompanies Roxanne to a local dance hall. When a body is found before the evening is over, Roxy’s dress is covered in blood and the police are sure they have their killer, Mabel and her friends in the London Ladies’ Murder Club set out to find the killer.

This is the third book in this new series by Ms. Wingate and I enjoyed it just as much as the first two. Mabel has proven herself to be quite competent in almost any situation, and she is unflappable. Her friends bring diverse skills and connections to the table, and Gladys, the terrier, once again steals the show. The visiting characters, those from this book that we won’t see again, were harder to pin down. Several of them turned out to be steady, decent people that could be relied on, but others gave me a headache.

The murder victim was relatively well known, and in a profession that would naturally create some enemies, but the circumstances of his death left only a handful of suspects. I really hoped that one particular character would somehow turn out to be the killer, despite not being able to come up with a motive for that person, but alas, that did not happen. I did begin to suspect the actual killer and the motive just about the time Mabel did, but the confrontation scene was still tense.

I look forward to reading the next book in this series so I can spend more time with Mabel, Park, Gladys and the rest.

If you haven't heard of the London Ladies' Murder Club, it's a wonderful new cosy mystery series set in 1920's London, highlighting the adventures (or are they misadventures?) of Miss Mabel Canning.

In book #3, Miss Canning and the Useful Women's Agency are back, and in this instalment there's a body at the Dance Hall.

In her early thirties, Miss Mabel Canning recently moved to London to live as an 'independent' woman. She found herself a job at the Useful Women Agency run by the efficient Miss Lillian Kerr. Being a 'useful woman' means just that - providing a useful service for the well-to-doers of London Society. Helping hang a picture frame, to collecting dresses from the haberdasher, going to the library, reading to a client, or responding to correspondence, it's all useful employment.

At the Useful Women Agency, there are no 'typical' assignments, and for Miss Mabel Canning it's the uncertainty of what jobs she will be assigned on any given day that keeps life interesting.

When book three opens, it's January 1922, and Mabel Canning has been one of Miss Kerr's 'Useful Women' since the previous September and is proud to oversee the newly formed Private Investigations division. Still, it isn't always easy to be a modern, independent woman and Mabel has her hands full when she's assigned to be the companion to a young American woman who is visiting her father and his new bride. Eighteen-year-old Roxy Arkwright wanted nothing more than to experience all the nightlife that London had to offer. Her father was not so keen for his only daughter to be out and about at night on her own, so he approached Miss Kerr and the Useful Women for a suitable companion. Just when Mabel thinks she's in for a fun night of champagne and foxtrot, her charge goes missing. When she finds Roxy, her dress is covered in blood and the young heiress is very much in distress. Someone is dead.

For her skills went far beyond the dance floor - she was the intrepid leader of a private investigations group. She was determined to solve this gruesome murder, but she would need the help of her friends in the London Ladies' Murder Club.

Enlisting the help of her good friends at New River House: Cora, Skeff and Park, together with Gladys, (the dog) they begin to investigate the murder.

Everything the author includes about this time-period screams true, from the clothing and the food to the pennies required to start the gas heater. Like the previous stories, A Body at the Dance Hall proceeds at the perfect pace - not too fast and not too slow. I can see the development of the characters since the first book and I'm really enjoying Wingate's style of writing and how she's developing her characters. The mysteries are well plotted and just twisty enough to be interesting, and they are certainly unique - on the doorstep, at the séance, and now, at the dance hall. I am eagerly awaiting where the next body will drop! [I can't believe I just said that, lol.]

A Body at the Dance Hall is due for release on April 8, 2024.

Previous titles in the series are:
A Body on the Doorstep
A Body at the Séance

#ABodyattheDanceHall #UsefulWomenAgency #LondonLadiesMurderClub #NetGalley

'A Body at the Dance Hall' by Marty Wingate.
Amateur sleuth Mabel Canning is surrounded by the bright lights of London as she chaperones a young American woman to a dance. But when someone is murdered, a deadly tango begins…
This is the second book I've read in this series and I really enjoyed it. Mabel is a fantastic character but I do feel that all the side characters really bring the story to life. This is a great story with lots of twists and turns. If you are a fan of cosy crime set in the 1920s then give this series a read.
Thankyou to NetGallery UK, the publishers and the author for letting me read a copy in return for an honest review.

I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher for not only giving me this book, but introducing me to this entire series and Marty Wingate! I have been delighted by this entire series. It’s such a fun and cozy read. Even better that it’s quick to get to the action!

I truly thought I had figured out a major plot point when I was only a third of the way in. I was totally wrong and glad to be! Maybe I’m not quite the detective I thought! 😂 This book has been my favorite of them all and. I can’t wait to read the next one!

Mabel Canning and her friends--including Gladys the dog--are back in this third book in the London Ladies Murder Club series. It's 1922 and Mabel accepts an assignment from Miss Kerr, her boss at the Useful Women Agency, to be a companion to a wealthy American girl, Roxy, who is visiting her father in London for the first time. Roxy is a bit rebellious and angry at first and tries to irritate her father, so one of the places she wants to go is a dance hall. While there, Mabel works hard to keep an eye on Roxy and her behaviour, but Roxy disappears from Mabel's sight. When Mabel next sees Roxy, she is in great distress, her dress bloodied, and someone is dead. Who was the deceased? Who killed this person? Mable gets the London Ladies Murder Club (with their token male Park Winstone) on the case.

This is a wonderful cozy mystery series--definitely one of my favourites. The characters are well drawn and one of the delights of the books is learning more about them and their relationships. Gladys is, as always, a wonderful part of the gang and she plays a big part in getting people to open up. The setting is excellent and I really enjoy the cultural aspects of the books. Mabel's growth as she expands her horizons, learns new things, and gains confidence in herself is very satisfying and enjoyable. The writing is great, the mysteries are well done--twisty enough to be interesting and keep me turning the pages, but not convoluted. If you're a historical cozy mystery fan this is a great book (and series) to pick up. The book is a great read and I highly recommend it!

This was lots and lots of fun. I really enjoyed the world that was created within this book and I only wished I had started at the beginning of the series. Mabel as a main character was wonderful and I really enjoyed her journey throughout this book. It is everything that a murder mystery should be, key elements sown at the start of the book that aren't obvious so that when all is revealed at the end it hits with more impact. The character building was wonderful and I loved the others, including nice representation of a lesbian couple. It's interesting that even though there were a lot of characters, I wasn't having to search backwards to remember who everyone was.

The only issues I had with this was that often it felt that scenes jumped too quickly and some were too short and others didn't feel resolved before the scene was changed again. But this didn't really mar my enjoyment of the book.

Totally recommend to anyone who enjoys 1920's murder mysteries.

Murder at the Dance Hall is set in 1922 London. It centers around Mabel, an employee of the Useful Women Agency and a member of the London Ladies’ Murder Club, Mabel has a talent for solving crimes with a spot-on intuition and a little help from her friends. She is assigned to chaperone a young American woman who is in London, visiting her British father. The assignment takes her to a dance hall where the homicide takes place. The plot expands to include several other criminal activities and a few twists within a rather historically accurate depiction of the social scene in the 1920s.

This is the third installment of this series. While I haven’t read the first two, I found I didn’t need to. The author does a fabulous job of writing the series so each book flows with the next, yet is able to stand completely on its own. The main character is likeable with a good balance of compassion and strength, grit and vulnerability. The book is well paced, and I can see the series as a favorite for fans of British cozies and historical cozies.

I had never read a book in this series before but the description sounded right up my alley so I put in a request for it. I am glad I did! I found a new series to read. I enjoyed that the main character was a little bit older than they tend to be in books of this time period that I read (early thirties instead of early twenties) and not an aristocrat. I pegged the murderer about halfway through and did get a bit frustrated that no one else caught on as soon as I did, but that didn't ruin the book for me by any means. I enjoyed the cast of characters immensely & the different strengths they brought to solving the crimes. I will definitely go back to read the first two books in the series & will be on the lookout for new ones too! If you enjoy cozy mysteries that take place in England in the interwar period like me, I definitely recommend this book.

Thanks to NetGalley & Bookouture for the opportunity to get an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

London, series, friends, cozy-mystery, historical-fiction, investigations, local-law-enforcement, amateur-sleuth, situational-humor, veterans, pet-dog, family, family-dynamics, ex-cop, verbal-humor, 1920s, secrets, lies, murder, attempted-murder, abduction, threats*****

Mabel Canning, leader of the London Ladies’ Murder Club and employee of the Useful Women Agency gets the assignment of showing Roxy, a fun-loving young heiress around town. The girl wanted to go to a classy dance hall, but no one expected her to come across a murdered man. The investigation that follows is filled with laughter, surprises, and a real workout for the brain.
Mabel left the village of Peasmarsh, moved into New River House, made friends with fellow rooming house residents (Cora and Skeff), and came to work at the Useful Women’s Agency.
Easily works as a stand-alone. Loved this one, too!
I requested and received a free temporary EARC from Bookouture via NetGalley. Thank you!
Available 08 Apr 2024 #UsefulWomenAgency #LondonLadiesMurderClubBk3

I discovered Marty Wingate a couple of months ago, when I read the first two books in her London Ladies’ Murder Club series. I was awestruck: I thought those first two books were perfect. When I spotted the third book in the series, A Body at the Dance Hall, I wept with joy and grabbed it immediately. So… did it meet expectations?

As always, Wingate starts the book with a bang. I do love that about her books: in this case, murder is mentioned in the second paragraph and we see the body in the third. Wingate grabs our attention like few other authors. The only other opening that springs to mind, comparable with Wingate’s, is “Marley was dead, to begin with.” Yes, yes, I know: how dare I compare Wingate with him? But I do: that’s how good I think Wingate’s opening page are. In this case, it’s January 1922; and Mabel Canning has been asked to chaperone a young American woman to a dance in London. This is a typical assignment for Mabel, who has a zero-hours contract with the really Useful Women Agency. Unfortunately, a man (who tricked Mabel and locked her in a pantry an hour or so earlier) has been murdered at that dance as Page One starts.

Mabel lives in an apartment block with good friends in apartments above and below. Wingate captures, most beautifully, what it was like to be a single woman in the 1920s, exploring independence away from her family and working to pay the bills. One who was able to put occasional taxis on expenses when working, but still had to be parsimonious in her personal expenditure. At one point, we’re told Mabel’s food cupboard contains a jar of stewed chicken; a tin of tomato soup; an open packet of cream crackers; and some home-made blackberry wine. She has a gas heater that gets fed a few pennies at a time when required.

I enjoyed the verbal contortions that domestic staff employed to describe a situation when Mr Arkwright’s first wife came to stay with him and his second wife. (The first wife had lived in the same house and, indeed, a couple of the staff had been there in her time.) My favourite was the butler’s “the visiting Mrs Arkwright”. Historically, I’m not sure the scenario is accurate: my understanding is that, prior to the Matrimonial Causes Act 1937, the only ground for divorce was adultery – and there is no suggestion that Mr or Mrs Arkwright had committed that prior to the divorce. However, this is such a cracking story that I will forgive any infelicity as regards strict historical accuracy!

The book proceeds at a perfect pace. It’s not so fast that things happen infeasibly quickly; but we don’t hang around either. I did guess the murderer but, since I always suspect every character in a novel in turn, I’m bound to strike lucky eventually! In this case, I think the who and why was easy; but the full modus operandi was still a shock. As I’ve written elsewhere, the murders in so-called cosy murder mysteries are not cosy: they are cruel, brutal and devastating to the victims’ families. In this case, Wingate doesn’t pretend that the murder is cosy, although that is undoubtedly how the book will be labelled. If you like “cosy” murder mysteries, you will love this one. If you look beyond that fashionable adjective of the 2000s and simply enjoy well-plotted murder mysteries with a hint of romance and dialogue that can be described as “banter”, this is the book for you.

Thank you, Netgalley and Bookouture, for a highly enjoyable read. I received a free copy of the e-book in return for an unbiased review – and that is what I have given.

#ABodyattheDanceHall #NetGalley

3.75 stars

Fun series set in the 1920's featuring small town vicar's daughter Mabel Canning now a sort of investigator in London. Mabel is independent, smart, and not afraid of much. Her job at the Useful Women's Agency has her taking on all kinds of jobs, and the latest is keeping an eye on a young resentful American heiress visiting her father and stepmother.

All kinds of trouble ensues, including a murder, a kidnapping, and a lot of old secrets. Mabel, her neighbors Cora and Skeff, and her boyfriend Park are a great ensemble. Mabel is delightful to spend time with and charts her own path. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for a digital review copy of "A Body At The Dance Hall" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

Mabel Canning and her London Ladies' Murder Club is fast becoming a firm favourite of mine in the historical fiction/cosy murder mystery genre and this one is for me the best in the series so far. This time Mabel is pulled into a murder investigation when a simple task to act as companion to a young American woman is interrupted by a murder at a fashionable dance hall.

There are complicated connections and hidden backstories galore in this book all pushed forward by the straight forward, no nonsense Mabel and her wonderfully supportive gang of friends. This time we see some progress in Mabel's personal life and all of the characters are continuing to grow and develop (though I would like to see a bit more of Park's story - I feel there's something else lurking below the surface waiting to come out!). The supporting cast of characters this time round is much better fleshed out with more individual personalities making it easier to distinguish characters and care about them. It provides many more red herring opportunities as well which add to the twists and turns of the story.

I read this book in one sitting due to its fast pace and fun yet intriguing story which sucked me in from page 1. I enjoyed the ultimate case conclusion and found it wrapped up very satisfactorily and can't wait for the next installment in the series!

I haven’t read any others, but I will now. Not my usual genre, but i really did enjoy it! Mabel is escorting an American woman to a dance and someone is murdered. It’s up to Mabel to figure out what happened! Easy to get into and a really enjoyable writing style!

Amateur sleuth Mabel Canning is surrounded by the bright lights of London as she chaperones a young American woman to a dance. But when someone is murdered, a deadly tango begins… A lot of books usually either have a super good beginning or an amazing end. It's pretty rare for me to find one that has both but this defiantly had such a great beginning and all the way through pace that kept me wanting to keep reading like crazy and it also had an unforgettable ending. Loving Mabel Canning and can’t wait to see what’s in store next!

The third installment in n this cozy mystery series set in 1920s London is as entertaining and enjoyable as the first two. Mabel and friends are drawn into another mystery when Mabel is hired to act as companion to a young lady visiting her father in London. A murder, an attempted murder, and a disappearance all follow as Mabel and friends sort out some complicated connections and hidden backstories. The plot is well done, and the characters continue to grow and develop. A thoroughly enjoyable read with some developments in Mabel’s private life as well. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.