Please follow this link for my full, published review: http://www.narrativemuse.co/books/the-mitford-murders/

I really enjoyed the murder mystery side of this book, but I felt a bit disappointed by the fact that the Mitford connection being completely incidental and really of no consequence in the story at all. I feel like the cover/blurb built it up a bit, but really Nancy was the only Mitford involved in the story and she could have been anyone, which, for me, made having the Mitford name on it really quite gimmicky. However, I do acknowledge that this is the first book in a new series, so maybe the Mitford connection will be built on in future stories.


So, back to the mystery side of things. This had a great cosy-ish mystery feel, and the way the story is told really makes you look at how women fit in society in those days - which gave it a bit of a Phryne Fisher vibe (if Phryne's housemaid was the one doing the 'detective-ing'). The characters were pretty fun, and I liked getting the perspective from the police officer too. The whodunit aspect had me guessing until the very end.


My verdict overall? If you're after a great mystery read then definitely pick this up. But if you're just in it for the Mitfords then maybe think again. I gave this three stars and will be keeping an eye out for the sequel (with somewhat altered expectations)

Interesting, but it didn't grip me, grip me like I was hoping it would. I think that's because I read a lot of mysteries so my standard bar is higher. Will check out this author's future work.

Thanks Little, Brown Book Group UK and netgalley for this ARC.

This is a outstanding first books in a series. Wonderful pacing, characters, and depth.

This was an interesting story, but I felt there were some holes in the plot. There also seemed very little point in including the Mitford family other than to get a good title. An average read.

Take a real family and a true crime and make it into…

A cold case – murder of Florence Nightingale’s goddaughter – Florence Nightingale Shore – as told through the eyes of the contemporaries.

Young people – Railway Policeman, nursery maid, eldest daughter of aristocratic family – decide to solve this murder and it looks like, at all costs.

There is love, betrayal, stolen identity, unfair dismissals, uncovered secrets and escaping evil. The Mitford Murders is a very slow but interesting read. It evolves and develops very slowly. I guess, you can drink numerous cups of tea and eat tens of scones while you get to the gist of it.

A reader is not shocked with the murder. The murder takes it’s sweet time to take place. Then, it is all very slow and careful from then onward.

The narrative is just like old steam trains (there are a lot of them in the book) picks up speed and suspense very slowly and carefully. However, the plot does get interesting about three quarters through the book. And knowing that the actual real-life murder is still unsolved, makes reader’s suspense even more tangible and tasty.

All in all, I found this book a bit too slow for me.

Read it if you like Europe of mid-twenties and want to get immersed in the post-war goings on. Author does take a few liberties with history and chronology of some events (Agatha Christie’s books, for instance), but overall the feel of Londong and surrounds seems to be very authentic and very Miss Marple and Downton Abbey.