+4 stars for a great read

🔍📝💰

I WAS RIGHTTTTT🤌🤌
i locked in my answer early on bc usually i suspect everyone until the last minute and that feels like cheating and i was CORRECT woo!

anyways, it was so fun to be with piper again. she reminds me a lot of pip from a good girl’s guide… (idk if i said that in book 1’s review or not), and the case was pretty interesting.

the reasons why i knocked off a star:

-the pacing was a little 🤏 slow due to some repetitiveness (piper going over the same clues again and again and coming to the same conclusion)

-the romance aspect. at first i thought there was gonna be a love triangle bc jeremiah was prominent, and mariano was slacking, but then that changed… and then mariano asked to be piper’s partner and only accompanied her on one mission, for lack of better words lol. he was like there but also not?? they did have some cute moments together though, and they are a good couple, so i’ll give them that. it just seems like we never really get to see much substance to their relationship since most of their conversations are about the case she’s working on. the cannoli convo was nice though.

-i feel like the reveal was a bit of a let down. i mean it’s built up so much and then the person is just like “sigh, yes it was me 😔”. after almost getting choked, i’ll add, but still. i wanted that to be more dramatic.

-the writing style is a bit odd… scenes just cut off and transition so fast

but yeah other than that this was fun! i hope this continues to be a series.
thank you to netgalley for the arc :)

A cozy sequel to the stunning novel "The Lost Girl of Astor Street". We follow Piper after her success with solving the disappearance of her late friends, and what she plans to do after. She becomes a semi-private investigator after a murder case basically drops from the sky. If you need a light read--well as light as murder can be--to read on a rainy afternoon, pick this up!

This. Book.

I've loved The Lost Girl of Astor Street for several years now, so when I heard the INCREDIBLE news that we were getting a sequel, I was shrieking in excitement. As soon as it became available on Netgalley, I snagged my copy and dove in.
Oh my goodness, dare I say that this book is even better than the first one? It's so hard to know what to even say without giving away spoilers, but after I hit the 30% mark on this book, my kids and husband couldn't find me anymore. Because I was hiding in my closet reading because I had to know what was going to happen next. And I didn't leave my hideout until I'd finished the book. Yes, it was that good.
Morrill dives even deeper into all of Piper's relationships, and we readers get to explore the complications of her life after graduating from school. As a young rich girl, there are so many expectations placed upon her. Expectations she neither knows how nor wants to live up to. All she wants to do is help others, but how to do that as a girl?
I love how Piper is strong yet feminine. How she doesn't hesitate to ask for help when she needs it, yet she also believes in herself and her abilities and is willing to advocate for herself. And Mariano. Again, can I just say SWOON. I adore him and the way he supports and encourages Piper while walking through his own mafia family's darkness.
And the mystery itself. I had so many theories and ideas and almost took out my own notebook like Piper's to write down all the clues and ideas that I had about whodunnit and why. Whoo! That ending was phenomenal! I was so happy to finally read a mystery that you could go along the entire journey with the protagonist. It was solvable if you were paying attention but it had enough surprises and twists that it kept you on your toes. Ah, it was just so good and I would love more Piper Sail mysteries!

The Secret Investigator of Astor Street continues the tale of Piper Sail, erstwhile private investigator. She has a new case, this time proving that the suicide of a student's brother was really murder. In the background, Piper's relationship with detective Mariano continues and develops. Piper investigates the mafia of Chicago and eventually finds the culprit. The ending was the beginning of a third case, so this is definitely a series that may have many books. Each one resolves the crime and can be read as a stand alone, but there are characters who evolve in each book. There are themes of death, suicide, betrayal, romance and murder. The books in this series are squeaky clean and are appropriate for anyone.

I received an advance reader copy. All opinions are my own.

Piper Sail hasn't had it easy over the past year even though she lives on Astor Street in the affluent part of Chicago. Her father has remarried, she has graduated high school with no idea how she can have the future she desires and, hardest of all, she is still mourning the loss of her best friend. At least her relationship with Detective Mariano Cassano is moving along nicely. What she would really like to do is become a respected private investigator but even in 1924 Chicago that isn't about to happen.

Attending a high school presentation ceremony at her old school wasn't something Piper was all that excited about but, amazingly, it provided her with two jobs, one for a secretarial position but the other was to undertake an actual investigation into an unexpected death! Now all she has to do is be successful at both!

I was able to read an advanced copy of this thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Blink, but the opinions expressed are my own. I loved this, the storyline was interesting from the start, the storytelling first class and Piper, Mariano, and the other main protagonists are great to read about. There were eight years between the first two books in this series, I hope book three will appear way before that as I already want more. Highly recommend.

Piper is back, and without much time passing between her first investigation and this one. This time around, Piper is hired as the secretary at her alma mater - giving the students access to her crime solving ways.

Piper has been hired to prove that a death ruled a suicide was actually a murder. And true to form she takes the case, while at the same time working through her loss from book 1, the growth of her family, and figure out how to be an "investigator" while everyone just sees her as a girl. Except for Mariano who encouraged her to be herself and offers to be her investigative partner.

I enjoyed this mystery but found the culprit easy to pinpoint - however that did not take anything away from the story. All of the crew is back from book 1, now we get to see them grow. Definitely looking forward to more of Piper and her (mis)adventures in the future.

I had read the first book by this author some time ago. Not when it first released but several years ago when I was browsing historical books in my library system. I enjoyed it and when I saw that there was a sequel coming out I knew I wanted to read it. I'm always on the hunt for a good historical mystery that isn't too scary or gory. Definitely would recommend this to anyone interested in the genre, especially if you like the 20s aspect like I do. Just read them closer together than what I did! I was having a hard time remembering some of the stuff that had happened in the first book. I actually enjoyed this one even more than the first one. No sex, swearing and the death that she is investigating happens off page so there is very little violence.

It has been a while since I have had a good historical mystery to recommend to my students, so I had high hopes for The Secret Investigator of Astor Street. This book delivered! The characters dealt with serious issues and the mystery was suspenseful. My classes will really enjoy this one for First Chapter Friday.

I would suspect that Agatha Christie would be horrified that the blurb for this book says that it is perfect for her fans. I’m a fan of Agatha Christie and this book does not compare favourably with anything she has written. An 18 year old girl detective with a fluttering heart and gossiping friends; too awful for words, not a book I would recommend.
My thanks to Net Galley and the author for an ARC

4.5 stars. An enjoyable cosy mystery set in 1920s Chicago, featuring Piper Sail who again investigates a mystery locally. This times it’s not the death of someone she knows, but the brother of a girl at her former school (where she’s now started working after graduation), as the police have said it was suicide but the sister doesn’t believe that…

All our favourite characters return from the first book, and this has a slightly more fleshed out mystery, so if you liked The Lost Girl of Astor Street, then I think you’ll definitely like this one.

I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review.

3.5 stars
A twisty mystery, a strong FMC sleuth and 1920s Chicago make this a strong read. But I didn’t realise this was the second book and haven’t read the first so I couldn’t fully appreciate it. Still, it’s a great mystery and I’m now intrigued to read book 1!

If you're looking for a 1920s Chicago mystery with an amateur sleuth, look no further than Piper Sail!

The mystery will keep you wondering, while Morril skillfully leaves the clues you need all along the way.

I appreciated how Morril tactfullly and purposefully wove in Piper's hurt, trauma, and healing from Lydia's death throughout the book and even tied it into the plot. It added an extra level of believability.

While it made sense for Mariano to feature less in the story with the coming-of-age and indepence character arc for Piper, I did wish that he'd been involved more beyond the romance subplot.

Fans of The Lost Girl of Astor Street will enjoy getting to tag along with Piper for another case.

Cautions: moderate romance; several kisses; one blasphemy; the case Piper investigates is initially believed to have been suicide, and the topic comes up several times; brief, non-graphic moderate violence

These should be read in order. There's a lot of people so it can get confusing at times. It's a decent historical mystery in Chicago, when the mob pretty much ran the city. I would read the next in the series.

I will not be sharing a review of this online until closer to the release date, but I just decided to not finish the book. I got about 25 pages in (10% or 3 chapters) and I'm frustrated and overwhelmed. I'm getting the gist that this is at least the second book in the series and in 3 chapters I've been introduced to 9 characters. And the problem is being introduced to them. I still don't have any idea who any of them are which is a big problem, especially for the protagonist. I don't know who she is and I don't care about her, which kills this story before it starts. On top of that, in chapter 3 we get this weird resistance to solving a case when she literally in chapter 1 is pursuing a case and has stated multiple times she wants to be a detective but can't cause she is a woman. This just was the final straw for me. It felt like the logic of the book betrayed itself before we really got started. I'm sending this review in now with a star rating from the CAWPILE system in hopes that something can be done to help this book. It feels like it has potential but I need to understand the characters I'm dealing with and care about any of them. So far my favorite character is Hannah because she feels the most fleshed out. That is a problem when it feels like she might drop out of the story at any minute. I need to care about Piper the way I do Hannah.

After an 8 year gap from when the first in the series was published, I was so happy to see this 2nd Piper Sails book. The story picks up seemlessly after the first one, and the growth of the characters flows smoothly. Piper is still grieving the loss of her best friend and is floundering, trying to figure out what direction her life should take. Because Piper deliberately sets out the investigate this mystery, the plot proceeded in a more step-by-step manner, with a bit less of a thriller feel. But it is still a many-layered mystery with well-developed characters. A good choice even for younger teen readers. There are hints that there could be a book three. I, for one, certainly hope so!

I really enjoyed the first one, and this surpassed that. The mystery was more intriguing, and had more twists and turns than the first one. The characters relationships continued developing well, and I really enjoyed the author acknowledging how people would have actually treated Piper in the 1920s, rather than just pretending that her working as a private detective would have been fine. I also thought Piper’s own thoughts on being a private detective played out really nicely, from ‘oh no I can’t’ to ‘I work for a private detective’ to ‘I am a private detective’. Overall really enjoyable. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

Move over Nancy Drew, a new young female detective is in town.

I really enjoyed this story. The mystery was a much stronger one than the first book and its clear that the author has gotten more confident with her characters and her setting. Piper is introduced to a girl whose brother committed suicide - a fact the sister refuses to accept. Eager to prove herself and find her own way in the world, she takes on the case but it quickly proves to be one full of many twists and turns. The case was fun, Piper deserved to solve it.

Just as good as Piper's investigation was the way in which the author explored the aftermath of a tragedy. Grief litters the pages, different people dealing with different issues in different ways. Each person's grief feels very real and honest, sometimes raw.

Mariano, Piper's boyfriend, is as adorable as ever, albeit with his own issues. My only compliant was there wasn't nearly enough of him, but I love how comforting and supportive he was, as well as proud of who she was.

~Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in return for an honest review~

There is a touch of Nancy Drew in Piper Sail, the new mystery investigator.
Set in the 1920’s, Piper has finished school and is at a loss of what to do with herself. Previously, as a student, her best friend was kidnapped and murdered. Piper was the one who discovered the truth and it set her life course on a different path.
A job offer to be secretary at her old school allows her time to work and also to investigate a new crime. Louisa, a student, approaches Piper with a case. Her older brother committed suicide a few months previously and Louisa is convinced it was murder. Piper takes the case and begins investigating and it leads her to some unsavoury and seedy places- this is 1920’s Chicago with mobsters, prohibition and speak easy’s. As the truth begins to emerge, Piper really needs to consider several key questions and characters in order to get to the facts.
This is a well written and intriguing mystery- I wish I had read the first one but I will find it and read about the first mystery Piper solves. I believe there is another one already published so will be hunting that down as well.