I liked this book as it was a very nice mystery. I love the time period and the zigs and zags kept me interested. It was fun to read and I recommend it.

Thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for providing me with an advanced digital copy of Nobody’s Sweetheart Now by Maggie Robinson. The book is introduced as the first in a new cozy series featuring Lady Adelaide Compton. If the book leads to a series, this reader hopes the future books will include some of the more interesting secondary characters as well and an opportunity to see how relationships develop. The book is well written and offers an enjoyable opportunity to spend time with some of the wealthy and titled in England during the roaring twenties.

Lady Adelaide is a kind-hearted, innocent woman of impeccable breeding who has recently been widowed. Her philandering husband was killed in a fatal automobile wreck while driving with his latest mistress. The accident and resulting death is how Lady Adelaide learns her husband is and has often been unfaithful. Her response has been to gather her thoughts, remodel the country home she inherited along with the flat in London, and begin to move forward with her new life. She was aware the marriage was less than happy, but clueless as to the extent of his philandering, which combine to prevent her experiencing any deep grief at her new status as widow.

With her desire to move forward and begin to enjoy life again, she plans a weekend party at her country estate, inviting a number of her long-time friends. The guest she didn’t invite, but who shows up anyway, is the ghost of her now dead husband. Throughout the book the reader gets the opportunity to eavesdrop as Addie moves from believing he is a figment of her imagination to accepting that she is now being visited by a ghost.

The weekend party is barely underway when the discovery of a dead body is found on the grounds of Addie’s estate. Not long after, a second body is found and Addie begins learning that most of her friends have lives both secret lives and activities far darker than she would have believed. She is truly an innocent who is kind-hearted toward friends and servants alike, and it comes as somewhat of a shock when she learns not everyone is the same.

Because the local constabulary bungles the initial interviews and angers many of Addie’s upper class guests, Devenand Hunter an Anglo-Indian detective from Scotland Yard is called in to take over the investigation. He is a few years older than Addie, single and incredibly handsome as well as intelligent. While there are hints at an attraction between Addie and Dev, as well as another male character who has known Addie for most of her life, these are very much background stories and serve to add character and depth to Addie and others instead of pushing the book over into a romance novel.

While the ending is satisfying, it was not as tight as I might like for it to have been. The solution to this mystery is given toward the end of the novel without many clues and red herrings leading up to the conclusion, so the reader isn’t afforded the opportunity to solve the mystery on their own much before the denouement. Still, with many likeable characters and an intriguing look into the period, the story remains enjoyable and I would definitely consider reading a second book in the series.

Posted on Goodreads. I read this mystery courtesy of NetGalley. The British house party mystery gets a twist with the appearance of Lady Adelaide's husband Rupert, well, his ghost actually. Rupert smashed his car, himself and his mistress into a tree about six months prior to Lady Adelaide's (Addie's) house party. In an attempt to reconnect with friends and lift her spirits, Addie had no intention of raising her husband's shade. She also didn't invite the dead body of an acquaintance to recline in her barn. Addie worries that everyone will think she's as mad as a hatter because she cannot resist responding to Rupert's sudden appearances, inappropriate comments, and occasional face-making. She is intrigued by Devenand Hunter, the mixed Indian-English detective assigned to the case and assists him as much as possible. This is an upbeat 1920s British mystery set on an estate that many will imagine resembles Downton Abbey after WWI. Addie is straddling the old fashioned and the flapper set as she attempts to begin her new life post marriage. This is the charming first book in a series that promises more adventures for Addie and most likely more appearances by Rupert. Highly recommended for fans of historical mysteries that are not stodgy.

This was delightful. I loved every single character; they are quirky but don’t turn into annoying caricatures. This made me especially happy because many of the more light-hearted mysteries overdo the quirkiness. Especially the main character’s family members are often more exhausting than amusing. Here Addies’s mother (and to an extent also Devenand’s parents) are meddling – in the time-honoured tradition of parents in cozy mysteries – but it never goes so far that I wanted to yell at them for interfering so much.

Rupert’s ghost was a fun addition to the story in the sense that I enjoyed his interactions with Addie and how his past serial cheating was dealt with. He now regrets it and explains it with the fact that after fighting in the war he couldn’t cope with the quietness of a peaceful life and was looking for new excitement. The book treads a fine line between explaining his actions without completely excusing his behaviour. However, for most of the book, his presence had very little influence on the plot. He does help with finding one clue but it wouldn’t have taken them that long to find that out without him*. Then, at the end of the book, it seems as if the author remembered that she should perhaps do something more with that ghost and he finally gets to do something – after everybody acted quite idiotic so that a situation could be created in which he had to act heroically.

The victim is a woman who is also a serial cheater and while at first, it seems as if nobody liked her and that she was an unlikeable character all-around, she also gets more depth over the course of the investigation. Similarly to Rupert, her actions aren’t excused but we are shown that there were people who cared about her.

I am very curious about how this series will continue. Will Rupert return or will Addie meet a new ghost?



*Well and he helps Addie to hide her dildo. No, really. Did I mention that I enjoyed this book a lot?

What is more embarrassing than a cheating husband who dies while speeding along with his mistress?  - one who comes back as a ghost, showing up at inopportune times providing irritating commentary and making you look quite mad.  Not only does Lady Adelaide Compton have to deal with a corpse that inconveniently appears in her barn during a weekend dinner party, she also has to cope with the appearance of her charming ne’er do well husband’s ghost.  Who amongst her guests (all with links to the victim) committed the crime? Scotland Yard sends Inspector Dev Hunter to investigate. Half Indian, all English and entirely handsome, Dev knows he has challenges ahead, including keeping his mind off the beautiful, if slightly peculiar Lady Adelaide.


Nobody’s Sweetheart Now is a charming throwback to the screwball mysteries popular in the 1930s.  The dialogue is funny and comes across as natural, without the stilted formal feel that some historicals have.  Situations are absurd at times but believably so. The chemistry between Dev and Adelaide is palpable, as is the lingering attachment between Adelaide and the ghostly Rupert.  He’s definitely a cad but a charming one. I truly enjoyed this funny, fast paced cozy mystery and look forward to seeing what life and Maggie Robinson have in store for Lady Adelaide.


5 / 5


I received a copy of Nobody’s Sweetheart Now from the publisher and Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.


— Crittermom

Nobody's Sweetheart Now by Maggie Robinson was an enjoyable beginning to a new historical mystery series.

Ms. Robinson's writing allowed the reader to see clearly the surrounding English countryside where the houseparty was given. The characters were well established but there is more to them I am sure as the series continues. I liked Addie and found her to be extremely naive regarding her friends. However, this didn't distract from her inherent kindness towards them. The mystery was smoothly paced with several suspects, and the clues, twists and turns kept me completely baffled until the reveal. The touch of paranormal with the ghost of Addie's husband provided many humorous moments throughout the story with their banter. Poor Addie was quite sure that she was becoming totally unhinged. I look forward to more adventures with Addie.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book from Poisoned Pen Press via NetGalley. All of the above opinions are my own.

I loved this book, a mystery, humorous , romantic and including a ghost. It was a book that I just could not put down, both in the sense of the written style. and the characters. Set in the early twenties it really, picks up the sense of the era, and the mystery keeps its secret right till the end.

This book was well written and a fun read. The characters were interesting and well developed. The plot of the novel was easy to follow and flowed nicely from chapter to chapter. I highly recommend both this novel and author!

Maggie Robinson's period mystery was the ultimate summer escape. A country house murder, set in the '20's was
light and frothy, but full of colorful characters and an unanticipated ending.

Serious mystery fans might initially be disconcerted by the presence of a ghost as a principal player in the story, but it added humor while it helped the plot development of the clever story.

The country house setting added glamour and felt pitch perfect for the period, but the most fun was the charming heroine, Lady Adelaide. I'll cross my fingers that this is only the first of many mysteries in which she is featured.

Excellent first novel in a brand new mystery series set in 1924 England. I loved Lady Adelaide - she's a well written, very likable protagonist. A wonderful cast of characters and a lovely setting help suck the reader into the story. I look forward to the next book of the series and this book to lovers of historical cozies. Well done!

*I would like to thank the author/publisher/Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a fair and honest review

I thoroughly enjoyed this story and particularly the twist of having a ghost as part of the cast. The 1920s setting was believable, especially the contrast between the need to enjoy life and the way that the great war had destroyed so many lives. The heroine developed during the story I ended up wanting to hear more of her adventures in the future. It is a welcome addition to the sub-genre of golden age style mysteries.