Murder in Belgravia

This novel is set in London in 1915 during the first world war. The war has taken all the able-bodied men and women have assumed a new and more prominent role in the workforce. Also the war has physically and mentally unbalanced many of the returning soldiers all resulting in more crimes against women and more crimes involving women. Chief Inspector Peter Beech approaches his superiors with the need for female police officers who can more readily deal with these women victims. The morality of the day is not yet ready to accept female police officers, but he is allowed to form a trial squad including two unpaid women and two men, a detective and a cop. Beech recruits two female friends, one a doctor and the other with legal training. They are of proper social rank to handle their first case. A Lord, badly wounded during the war has been stabbed to death in his home. His wife, who he had badly beaten, confesses to the crime. However, her injuries are such that the doctor doubts her ability to have done. Both her maid and the butler have gone into hiding and the team begins to search for answers. The author paints a vivid picture of London during the war. It is a period of enormous social change. The case itself is very interesting with lots of twists and turns. Also the characters of the team are interesting and likable. This is billed as a cozy mystery, but I would not characterize it as that since it delves into the dark side of society. It is a great book for those who enjoyed The Alienist. I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Mirror Books for a digital galley of this novel.

There are quite a few things I liked about this novel. The writing was well done and the plot premise was different from any mystery I've read. There are quite a few characters, with more being added almost all the way through the book, and they were each given enough attention that I was left with an understanding of their character to a larger degree than is usual. The premise for this story is quite clever and the author got so many of the elements right that it made for a pleasant reading experience.

The story is set in London and takes place over a few days time in May 1915. As historical mystery readers will know this is during World War I with all the social upheaval created when the men are joining the military and women are left behind to fill the vacant jobs. The main character of this novel is Chief Inspector Peter Beech, back from the war with a wound which keeps him from returning to the front lines. Beech is summoned to the home of an aristocratic lady who refuses to speak to a male police officer about her murdered husband and her own physical condition. From that starting point Beech comes up with a plan to present to Sir Edward Henry, Commissioner of Scotland Yard, for forming a secret group of investigators to help deal with problems like this when they arise. At this time women are not allowed to serve on the police force. Lord Henry allows Beech to organize a very unofficial group consisting of a female doctor, a woman who has studied law, a young police constable who was injured in the war and a veteran officer with forty years of experience who has come out of retirement to help the force while their numbers are so low. These core characters make up the main body of the story with family, friends and servants filling out the character list. (There certainly were a lot of people who knew about this group for it to have remained *secret*.) This time in British history is simply teeming with changes in social structure and the class system. There is still strong prejudice against women taking any career or working outside the home and the more militant suffrage activities only reinforce these prejudices. The author has done an excellent job of including many social ills in order to build the plot of this novel.

I enjoyed this novel quite a lot and will certainly be willing to read the next book if the author turns it into a series. I think there is a very good chance of that. There is also a very low key romance element, but it remains more of a hint than a reality because of the past history between the two characters. There is a lot of room for this group of characters to grow and I'm interested in seeing how the character dynamics will change in future investigations.

England is in the mix in Europe best know at World War I. Many of her young men have joined up and many have come home wounded an unable to continue to contribute to the day to day activity. Some, like Peter Beech, have returned home wounded but able to go back to his job as Chief Inspector. He has somehow managed to convince the Commissioner to allow him to set up a special, secret group to help him solve a rather tricky murder of one of London’s aristocrats. It must be kept secret because two of his main investigators are women. Caroline Allardyce is a highly skilled physician at the women’s hospital. Victoria Ellingsham, a well-educated young woman in British law with a quick calculating mind, and Billy Rigsby, a former boxer who was wounded in the war also but is able to walk the beat as a regular patrolman. Together this group will delve into the dark underground that is beginning to creep into the parlors of London’s higher society.

A book is always more enjoyable for me if I make a ready connection with the characters. Brittney has put together a very likeable group of characters that are not above being repulsed by what they encounter but emboldened to bring about change. Backgrounds of characters are brought to the surface through light conversations not long, dry wordy paragraphs. Several of the pivotal situations are tied up a bit too conveniently and tidy. However, it made me a happy reader, so I don’t care. There are a few anachronisms but again, I don’t care. I completely enjoyed the story and am looking forward to another installment in the Mayfair 100 series.

"Murder in Belgravia" is a mystery set in 1915 in London. Chief Inspector Peter Beech is confronted with a suspect who refuses to see a male doctor for her life-threatening injuries or to talk to a male policeman about the murder of her husband. Happily, he's good friends with a woman doctor and with a high-born woman who trained as a lawyer. They help him with the suspect but doubt she killed her husband even though she confesses to it. But who is she protecting?

Beech gets permission to form a secret team to deal with this crime and future serious crimes involving women. The team includes these two women and two other men. They each have skills that the others don't, work well together, and share a desire to find justice for victims. The characters were likable, compassionate people. The author worked the changes that occurred due to WWI into the murder investigation.

The mystery was clue-based. The team asked questions and followed up leads until they finally uncovered the truth. They were smart and had good hunches, but it took some work as they had to track down some of the witnesses. There were no sex scenes. There was some bad language. I enjoyed the characters and the mystery kept me engaged, so I'd recommend this novel.

Murder in Belgravia was an engaging, smart and satisfying post WW1 period mystery. There is a rich cast of characters and lots of period detail regarding women's employment and social stratification without any trace of tedium.

So often in light mysteries it feels like the author periodically inserts paragraphs (or pages) from Wikipedia to add authenticity or period detail---there was none of this here. The characters rang true and post-war London felt seedy in the right places and bursting with promise in others.

I loved this book and hope that the author will bring these fabulous characters together for many more adventures.

Note: this review will simultaneously be posted on GoodReads.

I loved the characters in this book. Some of the scenes seemed to be added just for the historical factor and didn't feel necessary. However, I loved the plot, the development of the case, and the attention to the details of the time period. Hopefully there will be a series.

Absolutely amazing I loved this book from the first page to the last and was sad to come to the end. Set in London during 1915 the author has brilliantly combined fiction and fact to produce a brilliant detective story, loved the twists and turns and loved the characters each one with one uniques skills. Can't wait for the next one in the series well done to the author .

Murder in Belgravia by Lynn Brittney is set in London during WWI, a time period of great interest for many reasons.

The Great War was in progress and the social landscape was changing: drugs like cocaine and heroin were available at the local pharmacy; the male population was depleted as men enlisted or were conscripted; the zeppelin raids in 1915; women were needed in areas other than domestic service and were working in factories, wearing trousers, cutting their hair, and learning to drive; suffragettes were still hoping for the vote, but suspended many of their political activities and offered their services to the government; only a small number of women were able to receive higher education, but the war increased the need for more women in fields that required more disciplined learning.

The book is a murder mystery that touches on all of the above, as well as examining the difficulty for many in accepting these rapid changes. Today, approximately 100 years later, traditional society struggles to accept the many changes that result from technology.

Briefly, Chief Inspector Peter Beech finds himself investigating the murder of Lord Murcheson. Murcheson's grievously injured wife has confessed to killing her husband, but questions arise as to whether or not her life-threatening injuries would have made it possible.

Beech is given permission to assemble an unusual and off-the-record team that includes two women to pursue the Murcheson case.

In spite of the tawdry elements of the case, the novel has an almost Pollyana-ish group of characters who are more open-minded than would have been typical of the time. Beech's assembled team includes a retired policeman summoned back because of the loss of man power during the war, a young policeman who was wounded during the war, a female doctor, and a woman who studied law. All of the characters are dedicated to solving the murder and are interested in making positive changes.

In the midst of a sordid case that includes murder, prostitution (both male and female), and drugs, the assembled team represent the best of humanity. So...the novel deals with some of the most degraded offenses, but lightens up because of the respectable and decent members of the team. It is a contrast between the terrible reality of the social ills faced and the virtual goodness of the team. This contrast between reality and wishful thinking keeps the novel a step below what it could have been.

The plot is intriguing and held my interest, and the characters are likable, if a bit perfect.

Although the research is obvious, there is no bibliography or list of sources. This may simply be that my copy is an ARC. Nevertheless, I enjoyed Murder in Belgravia and look forward to the next in the series.
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Cocaine and heroin were available in pharmacies for almost every possible problem from helping babies to sleep, hay fever treatments, pain relief, etc.

Read in December; review scheduled for March 2018.

NetGalley/Mirror Books

Historical Mystery/WWI. March 15, 2018. Print length: 211 pages.

Fascinating insights into life on the Home Front in Britain during WW1 are to be had in this, the first in a projected series of historical mystery novels. It is set in London in 1915 and features a unique group of people brought together by Chief Inspector Peter Beech to investigate the killing of Lord Murcheson,

Included in the group are Dr Caroline Allardyce, Constable Billy Rigsby, Arthur Tollman, formerly of the Special Branch, and the Hon. Victoria Ellingham.

The investigation brings them in contact with a cross-section of people from all walks of life. The aristocracy of Belgravia and the workers of Hoxton, drug dealers and gang leaders, brothel keepers and rent boys, all feature.

The historical setting is well done and the author conveys a wealth of interesting detail without overwhelming the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, Mirror Books for the digital ARC.

Great beginning to what I hope is a new series ! Intriguing characters and a gritty historical look at London.

Murder in Belgravia is the first book in what promises to be a continuing series. Set in WWI London, this is a semi-cozy with an ensemble cast. Despite having a relatively large cast of characters, the author does a good job of writing clearly and concisely and there isn't any confusion about what is happening to whom.What begins as a seemingly straightforward case of murder by self defense turns out to be anything but. I would normally call this a cozy, however the fairly graphic descriptions of injuries, sexual abuse, pedophilia, homophobia and sexism, while softened from the brutal reality, were more than most people expect for a cozy mystery. I didn't find the realism detracted from the novel, but I can see that for many readers it might.

The plotting and characterizations are well done and the dialogue is good, if somewhat breezily anachronistic (almost sarcastic in the modern usage of the word). The women in the book are given a very free rein to investigate and interview people; it's sometimes a trifle jarring in context.

The denouement was very abrupt and somewhat unexpected for me. I admit that it was pushing the boundaries for my suspension of disbelief that all the subplots were tied up so neatly and happily-ever-after-ly. I can understand the desire for the author to give the poor tortured and downtrodden secondary characters a chance at a better life; I just wasn't entirely sold on the deux ex machina methods of delivery.

That being said, this is an enjoyable 211 page cozy, well written and entirely readable from a new voice in historical crime. The author has written in other genres and for other audiences before. Due to be published 6th Dec, 2017 from Mirror Books, available in ebook and paperback formats.

Three and a half stars, I will be following this series further

A very thrilling historical mystery. This one starts slowly, like a straightforward whodunnit, but quickly evolves in something much more complex and fascinating. Set in London during World War I, we have soldiers, street gangs, prostitution rings and much, much more, and it all works together well to create an intricate mystery.

There is a progressive police inspector who decides to put together a team of individuals to help solve his case, including a female lawyer and doctor which was unheard of at the time. There is much to be said here about the advancement of women in society as the war began to change their roles. As there was a lack of men, women slowly but surely began to come into positions formerly held only by men - with much disdain from certain individuals. And I love how this story put women front and center as an integral, intelligent, important part of the work.

The author uses real historical locations, events and people (the ones I didn’t recognize, I looked up to get a visual) and I learned even more about this period.

This has a similar feel to Victoria Thompson’s Gaslight Mystery Series that I’m always raving about - if you enjoy those books, you will enjoy this as well!

Thank you to Netgalley, Lynn Brittney and Mirror Books for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

"Very few of us are what we seem." (Agatha Christie)

As World War I enters with heavy marching boots into the lives of 1915 London, nary a soul will be untouched by the weight of its presence. Men from all walks of life are uniformed and sent to fight the good fight in France and beyond. It is a time of mixed emotions, questionable identities, and the shifting of roles in society.

Because of lack of males in the homes and businesses, women step forward to fulfill their obligations. You can almost hear the shattering of the ol' class system as it hits the wall. Even the Civil Service in Whitehall begins to take on women. The Suffragette Movement emboldens females not to be seen as mere housefraus.

Enter: Chief Inspector Peter Beech of the Metropolitan Police with a forward moving idea. He wishes to encorporate a police task force based on talent and individual contributions and not based solely on gender. Female police officers have not yet been recognized as a benefitting element during this fast-changing time period. But ol' Beech has convinced the commissioner that Mayfair 100 has the potential for untapped merit.

Look Alive Here, Folks: Lord Murcheson has returned from the war muddled in mind and body. A vicious attack on his wife, Lady Harriet, leaves the aristocratic gentlemen dead on the floor of his wife's bedroom.........a pair of long-handled scissors are sticking out of his chest where his former war medals had been. Lady Harriet admits to the murder even though she is writhing in pain and clutching her stomach. Beech is convinced that Lady Harriet could not have committed murder in her condition. If not, then who?

Open the Door: Check out the smooth transition of well chosen individuals that make up Mayfair 100. Beech has lined up a former soldier/boxer, a well experienced detective, a young woman who has studied law, her feisty society mother, and a female doctor of the highest standing. The dialogue amongst them is filled with humor at times as well as the camaraderie of people bearing well-honed analytical skills and a great desire for justice.

Front and Center: The quest for the murderer will bring this group elbow to elbow with some seedy characters and circumstances. We, as readers, are locked into the beginnings of the drug trade with the true reality that heroin powders, morphine, and opium could be purchased at any pharmacy for toothaches, infant colic, and as a nerve tonic. Step right up, customers.

Lynn Brittney presents a fascinating glimpse into the societal changes of these times, especially in regard to women. Her Mayfair 100 crew include some very demonstrative females who lead with their intelligence and not necessarily with their looks. Ah, refreshing! She also rounds out her storyline with the newly contributing benefits of scientific discoveries in fingerprinting and investigative techniques. Her research is remarkable and the implementation is top-notch. Here's hoping that this is on the horizon for a series involving this stellar team in the future.

I received a copy of Murder in Belgravia through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Mirror Books and to Lynn Brittney for the opportunity.

This is the first book in a new series and it is a real treat. I love British cozies. This is more dark and intense than a usual cozy and it is a very good book.

Detective Inspector Peter Beech has been called to a murder scene. The victim is a member of the upper class. The confessed murderer is his wife. But, things are not as they seem.

The lady will not speak to a man about her situation. But, before she can speak to anyone she must be whisked to the hospital. She has been so seriously injured she is bleeding profusely and seems near death.

Beech is an injured veteran who has returned from WWI. He has seen enough of the world that his ideas are not exactly in step with what is considered “normal” for the times.

He goes to his superior and presents an idea. He would like to create a small team of investigators. He has the people in mind. His two friends, Victoria, a woman who is a trained attorney and a very good at deductive reasoning, Caroline, is a doctor and able to diagnose as well as anyone, Arthur Tollman, a retired policeman who has been called out of retirement because of the shortage of qualified policemen and finally , Billy Rigsby, a young and powerful patrolman who is also an injured veteran.

Beech and the two policemen would be the people who make actual arrests, but the women would be consultants and provide their expertise. They also could relate to women and recognize what was happening in many situations.

Beech believes that because crime has changed in London, women could be part of the investigations along side policemen who could actually make arrests would be just what is needed. The superior officer agrees if Beech and be certain no one will know that women are part of the team. The uppers in the police force would never agree to that.

Each of the people who Beech asks to join his team are more than happy to do so. He even gets a home in Mayfair to use as headquarters.

At the time this book is set, England was losing more and more young men to the war effort. It was believed that the war would be over quickly. Young men joined up for the adventure because they would be back home soon. There was no knowledge of the kind of war that would be fought. Things like bombs being dropped on London, mustard gas being used by the Germans were new and completely unexpected.

For the first time, women were working in employment they would never have been offered before. Many of the places where men were expected to work, now needed women so they could continue to function. It had become a brand new world, and it was not necessarily always a good one.

This story goes from an upper class home to some of the most degrading and crime ridden areas of the city of London.

And there are constant reminders that no matter the supposed class of a person there is no guarantee that they will be honorable.

This was during a time when both Britain and the United States did little to regulate what medications were provided to the public. A person could buy heroin or cocaine over the counter. That fact is one of the many surprising facts about that era.

This book is well plotted. I am a fan of mysteries and I was pretty sure I knew the villain early in the book. I still liked the book very much. All the ins and outs made the search for criminals entertaining as well as interesting.

Because this is a large ensemble cast, the reader is provided with all the information the team is finding. Each of the people investigate and gather information in different ways and all of it adds up to a wonderful story. There are contributions from each member of the team.

The leading characters are well defined. The reader is drawn into the lives of each of them and is given a picture of who they are and their motivations.

I enjoyed this book very much. I have read a great deal about Britain during WWI and this book does provide an accurate picture of the class system and the lives of women no matter what their class might be.

I received this book from the publisher through NetGalley. I am voluntarily writing this review and all opinions are my own.

This crime historical fiction set in 1915 during WW1 in London by Lynn Brittney was a real pleasure to read. It begins with the murder of Lord Murcheson, stabbed with a pair of scissors in Belgravia. Chief Inspector Beech is investigating but feels he needs more support than the Met can currently provide under Commissioner Sir Edward Henry. He takes the opportunity to ask for a special task force that will help to solve the case. Women have no place in the police is the current thinking, Beech wants to use the expertise of talented women but has to do this covertly. And so Dr Caroline Allardyce, who works in the women's hospital, widow and legally trained Victoria Ellingham, PC Billy Rigsby injured in the war and boxing champion, and Arthur Tollman, police offficer are recruited. They are based at Lady Maud's London townhouse, the mother of Victoria. It is a time of great change with the suffragettes determined that women should get the vote, and volunteer women's groups supporting the police. The class system is under pressure and London is being bombed, with the East End a particular target as the Kaiser tries to avoid killing family.

Lord Murcheson returned seriously injured from the war which turns him into a rampaging brutal drug addict with his wife, Lady Harriet at the end of his terrible violence. She is discovered close to death and is initially thought to have stabbed him in self defence after he stamped on her abdomen. However, it appears it was physically impossible for her to have done this. The special task force investigate the Murcheson household, including the suspicious butler, Dodds, and the young Polly, Lady Harriet's maid. It soon becomes clear that Lord Murcheson had a rather large collection of medications and drugs with the key ingredients of cocaine and heroin, which the group are keen to know where they came from. Dodds and Polly disappear, and we learn of the dangers that women face working in munitions factories. Encounters with London's gangs, brothels, Molly houses, Barnardo's homes, and doctors working in Harley Street tending to the needs of the aristocracy and the powerful give us a picture of London at the time. The special group exceed expectations as they chase down leads in what turns out to be an exceedingly complex case amidst a background of war torn London.

This piece of historical fiction felt as if it incorporated elements of Downtown Abbey. Brittney has written a compelling and gripping narrative with a great set of characters. I imagine this is the first in a series, and I am keen to read the next book! I particularly loved how Billy's mother and her sister, went out of their way to ensure that George Harris, a molly who is brutalised dreadfully, is able to leave hospital knowing he has a home and the possibility of training for a profession. If you enjoy crime and historical fiction, then this is a wonderful book that I recommend. Many thanks to Mirror Books for an ARC.

Lynn Britney writes a historically rich, if sometimes gory, mystery set in London during the Great War. Her characters are an interesting team of detectives, including professionals, and a couple of amateurs, a highly unusual mixed gender setup predating the presence of women in London’s police force. I look forward to more "Mayfair 100” stories.

Chief Inspector Beech has had the idea to use women in the force for some time now, but his latest case presents an excellent opportunity to form a special team that his superiors allow as a quiet experiment, especially in light of the war on and their short staff. So Beech puts together a team of a lady doctor, a war widow trained in the law, a wounded war vet police officer who is a giant of a man, and a retired police officer who has been brought back into the force useful for his excellent memory. The widow's mother has provided them with her London house as a base, 100 Mayfair. The team's first case, the one that prompted such a unique team to be allowed to form, starts off as a seemingly open and shut case of domestic violence in a Lord's family that resulted in a woman stabbing her husband with a pair of scissors in self-defense quickly becomes much more complicated. But she has refused to talk to anyone but a married woman. The case is anything but open and shut, and the team soon finds the trail going all over London as Germans start to bomb the city.

Brittney has developed a most interesting detective team here. The setting is WWI England and she has capitalized on the way the world, especial women's roles and class roles, was dramatically changing in light of the war. Numerous social and moral issues get brought up as the case moves along. It is not always an easy read, but I feel like the motivation behind it is good. It seems to be desiring people to be more aware of the evils in their own present world and do something about it. Beech and gang are not ones to take things laying down, so as side issues are brought to their attention, they will make note and when there is a pause in the case most of them will work to do something to bring about positive change in those areas. They model being great citizens and agents of change. So not only do we get to cheer them on in their sleuthing skills, but also in making their world a better place. Hopefully, that will encourage readers to go out and do the same in their realms of influence. (That said, this is only recommended to readers who can handle the content within. See the content notes for trigger warnings and such.) Each of the main sleuthing team characters is different, but I liked them all in their own way. I will definitely be on the lookout for more books in this series. It's my new favorite WWI mystery series, way better than Maisie Dobbs.

Notes on content: About five minor swearwords. No sex scenes, but domestic sexual abuse is part of the plot and a prostitution ring (involving female and male brothels) is uncovered in the investigation and there are clinical and professional discussions about these. They are kept professional and not graphic, but it is there and comes up a few times. There are two murders by stabbing and one woman very beat up by her husband. Some discussions of autopsies and medical procedures, and one description of a medical procedure on a whipped boy's back. London is bombed at one point and the destruction there is mentioned. Trauma from the front and war wounds also come up, as does an explosion at a munitions factory. Drug use is also heavily involved in the case. As normal for the time period, adults drink alcoholic beverages from time to time. Main characters always do so in moderation.

London, 1915. Lord Murcheson has been stabbed and murdered in his house, his wife Lady Harriet was found there wounded, too. She claims to have committed to crime with a pair of scissors, which is highly unlikely due to her severe injuries. While Lady Harriet is fighting for her life at the hospital, Chief Inspector Peter Beech takes over the case. The city is at war and thus, men are scarce with the Metropolitan Police. Beech has quite an innovative idea which seems to be more than reasonable for the case at hand: he wants to employ women for the investigation. Thus, Victoria Ellingsham, trained in law, and medical doctor Caroline Allardyce join the small team of Beech, charming ex-boxer PC Billy Rigsby and former Special Branch Arthur Tollman. While London is under attack of the Germans, the unusual squat investigates the case, comes across masses of legal and illegal drugs, prostitutes and the abduction of a young girl who worked in the Murcheson household.

“Murder in Belgravia” follows the lines of classic murder cases in the style of Agatha Christie. The most striking about the novel is the atmosphere. Not only is the situation of World War I convincingly portrayed with the city under fire at night and the shortage of men for the police and other forces, but you also feel yourself transported back to the times when lords and ladies lived in a completely different world which only scarcely overlapped with average or lower class people.

The case itself has to be solved without any modern forensics or other sophisticated medical or technical means which I liked a lot. It is due to a quick-witted intellect and particularly the women’s sharp observation that they can assemble the necessary pieces of evidence to rumble the murderer.

Lynn Brittney’s book is a cosy crime novel that I really enjoyed to read. She has created awesome characters of whom I would like to read more.

London May 1915 and Chief Inspector Beech is convinced, and convinces the Chief Commissioner, that he needs the help of various females in his latest case. That is, Lady Harriet will only speak to a lady of a superior standing to explain the death of her husband. Beech collects his team and relocates to Mayfair, Mayfair 100 being their telephone number.
An enjoyable mystery, well-written, with a likeable team of characters. A good start to a new series.

One of the best mystery I read this year. It's entertaining and a real page turner, once I started I was hooked could not put it down.
There's a very interesting setting with all the changes that WWI is bringing to London and to women position.
It 's well researched, with interesting and well developed characters and the right dose of humour. The plot is well developed and there is no plot hole nor anything left unsolved.
A great start for a new series, look forward to reading the next instalment.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Mirror Books

Well written, with full awareness of prayers on these women in earlier times, this is a moSt engaging novel. Early women medical doctors contend with wife-beaters .. in this case an aristocratic woman's seeming murderous act is perpetrated by someone else, but it's self defence. The police firm special unit and Bell is well placed to head out up, with gorgeous male brawn .. so ironies are witty .. enjoyable and timely!

First in a new series set in London during WWI. With the wartime enlistment of most of the country's male work force, hoards of women flooded London, eager to fill in necessary jobs. (This is also during the early days of the women's suffrage movement). A small, secret group is formed under the auspices of Scotland Yard - a group containing both men and women intent on solving female related crimes. Their first case involves the death of an injured soldier at his wife's hand. A well woven beginning to the series.

Murder In Belgravia by Lynn Brittney is a meticulously-researched cosy whodunnit-type mystery novel set in London in the midst of WW1.

Called to the home of an upperclass English family, Chief Inspector Peter Beech finds himself investigating the murder of Lord Murcheson. His wife, Lady Harriet, has confessed but refuses to elaborate, requesting a woman be present. Noticing Lady Harriet is bleeding and fading fast, Beech hastily sends for his friend and doctor, Caroline who, upon examining Lady Harriet, rushes her to hospital and performs emergency surgery, proclaiming that her injuries are so severe that Lady Harriet couldn't have possibly committed the crime.

Having already noticed that the Met (Metropolitan Police) isn't necessarily equipped to handle crimes involving women, and using Lady Harriet's request as an example to bolster his argument, Beech approaches his superior, Sir Edward Henry, and presents them with an idea. He would like to form a small team of investigators that'd be sensitive to such cases, already having the ideal participents in mind: Caroline Allardyce, the doctor who attended Lady Harriet; Arthur Tollman, a former policeman who, with so many young men away fighting in the war, has been called out of retirement; Victoria Ellingham, a trained lawyer who remained Beech's friend, having turned down his marriage proposal several years earlier, and Billy Rigsby, a young veteran and skilled boxer turned police officer. Even the team's headquarters has been thought of, with Victoria offering the use of her Mayfair home. Beech's superiors agree to the proposal on the proviso that the team remain 'off book,' and that the two women would only be consultants, the three officers responsible for making any arrests.

And so the quest to bring Lord Murcheson's murderer to justice begins, and what was seemingly a cut-and-dried case of a titled lady stabbing her husband in self-defence develops into two murder hunts, taking the team from the esteemed doctor's offices on Harley Street, to the seedier side of London's underworld involving drugs and an unsavoury, underage prostitution-ring that crosses the class divide.

Set at a time when there is still a strong prejudice towards women working outside the home, let alone in male-dominated environments such as the police force and medicine, the author has done a wonderful job of researching the period and giving Caroline and Victoria an authentic feel. Indeed, the whole team consists of likeable characters who, instead of shying away from what they encounter during their investigation, have hope and encourage change. I would've liked to see a little more character development but as the first book in a new series, perhaps more is to come.

Advertised as a cosy mystery, the author's writing style and easy dialogue between characters certainly does have that feel. However, I would hesitate to class it as such due to the darker topics broached by our intrepid investigators. That said, the murder is eventually identified, and the sub-plots involving secondary characters all concluded with a happy-ending, leaving me satisifed that even when something's beyond their remit, with the Mayfair 100 team on the case, all will be okay in the end.

Note: Thanks to the author, Mirror Books and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an advance reading copy of this book. The comments and opinions expressed below are mine alone.

At first it's a bad case of domestic abuse that greets Chief Inspector Beech of Scotland Yard when he is called to a posh Belgravia residence in 1915 London. The abuser, an aristocrat, is dead and his battered wife is in hospital and her death is imminent. The wife confesses to killing her husband, but because of her severe injuries, Beech does not believe she could have managed it. The wife's maid disappears along with the household butler, causing a police search for them. Beech assembles a unique team, including a couple of women, to investigate and identify the real killer. More sinister activity is uncovered: widespread illicit drug abuse with tainted medicine. The police track down criminal gangs that cater to the baser desires of the British upper classes, and discover such things as male brothels ("molly shops"). Eventually, the path to the killer leads them to a surprising place.

This is good historical fiction, set in London during WW1, and highlights several of the problems facing Britain because of the war effort. For example, there's a German Zeppelin attack on London during the police investigation. The author demonstrates a detailed geographical knowledge of London which adds authenticity and atmosphere to the story. Of course, the ever present British class system is on full display. The molly shop story is on the gruesome side but demonstrates the hypocrisy of the times towards homosexuality.

With most able-bodied men away at war on the continent, or back in England injured, there's need for women to step up and do what is commonly called "men's work". This does not sit well with the police force, where there's a ban on hiring women. Chief Inspector Beech sees a real need for women on the police force, both to fill in for absent men and to address women's crime and crime affecting women. He convinces the Chief Commissioner of Scotland Yard to allow him to put together an ad hoc team consisting of two women and two men. He manages to get the OK to do so conditional on the women not being on the police payroll. Most important though is that the team must keep a low profile. He is able to recruit a female doctor and a female lawyer to join the team. For the men, he recruits a young police constable who has returned from the war with a damaged hand and a veteran detective with Special Branch service who is deemed too old to go to war.

This is a Recommended Read for me. There's an interesting story with a neat twist on the standard police procedural murder mystery story. The pace is brisk and assured, making the book quite readable. The characters are sufficiently developed, although at times they seem too good to be true. The London war background adds depth to the story too. This is a good start for what has potential to be a good series.

This is an excellent mystery! My favorite thing was the juxtaposition of the deleterious effect of suffragette's actions on men's attitudes toward the idea of police women against the impressive work done by three independent, intelligent women helping solve an actual murder. Brittney did a really good job describing the tremendous changes in British society that began during WWI and their effect on both men and women living with those changes. I don't always enjoy books that shift among the points of view of multiple characters, but Brittney's shifts are so adept they are almost seamless. The reader quickly becomes invested in characters from all levels of society and cares what happens to them. There are definitely enough social issues woven into the plot to provide opportunities for extensive group discussion. Murder is a weighty enough topic to make the bits of humor in the book a welcome relief, as well. I can hardly wait to read the next installment in what I hope will be a lengthy series!!! Thanks to Mirror Books and NetGalley for providing electronic access prior to publication in exchange for an honest review.

After an unpromising start, this is delightfully complex mystery taking place in London during World War I. It features interesting characters, plenty of folks breaking or skirting the law and a great plot.

I'm looking forward to more in this series.

This is a promising start to a new historical murder mystery series, Mayfair 100 (named after the telephone number of the headquarters of the investigative team featured in the novel). This first instalment introduces an interesting bunch of characters brought together to investigate crimes of a potentially sensitive nature. These include policemen, a female doctor, a female law expert and a host of other characters who you just hope will feature more in future books: Billy's mum and aunt are great and so is Mabel the pharmacist. The team get their first case when Lord Murchison is murdered and his wife badly wounded in their Belgravia mansion.

There was lots in this to like. As well as (most of) the characters, the 1915 setting was also engaging. Against a backdrop of war, the writer incorporated many contemporary issues such as the new role of women in the workforce, the danger of the munitions factories, zeppelin raids on London and the corruption of those with high social status.

What I did struggle with a bit was two of the main male characters, Beech and Tollman. Despite their back stories being given, they kind of blended into one in my head because they seemed so similar. The women were really distinctive, but the male characters less so. I would also suggest that this shouldn't be marketed as cosy crime as was suggested by the blurb - there were some quite unpleasant and graphic elements incorporated (e.g. rape, abortion, prostitution) which, while they did not bother me particularly, might deter readers expecting something more gentle.

Overall, this is a good start to the series and I will look out for future instalments. Recommended for fans of historical crime, especially those with a focus on gender issues.

Murder in Belgravia
A Mayfair 100 Murder Mystery
by Lynn Brittney
Mirror Books


General Fiction (Adult) , Mystery & Thrillers
Pub Date 15 Mar 2018


I am reviewing a copy of Murder in Belgravia through Mirror Books and Netgalley:


This book is set against the backdrop of World War 1. Mayfair 100 is the number for a specialized crime busting team who is based in the house of Mayfair, in London 1915. Only ten months into the First World War and already the city has become flooded with women taking over the work of the men who had gone into the armed forces many of whom went into war.




Chief Inspector Peter Breech was a young man who had been invalided out of the war, in one of the first battles. He finds himself having to investigate the murder of an aristocrat. The mans wife is both a key witness and suspect and she will not speak to anyone but another woman about the unpleasant details of the case. Chief Inspector Peter Breech sets up a clandestine team to deal with such situations after convincing the Chief Commissioner. Beech is able to put a small crew of well educated women and professional policemen.


As the group Beech, Victoria, Caroline, Rigsby and Tollman investigate the murder they find themselves having to delve into the seedier side of London during the First World War, they visit everything from Criminal Gangs to brothels and underground drug rings supplying heroin to the wealthy in search of a killer?


Will the Mayfair 100 be able to solve the murder? If they do will they be allowed to continue working as a team?


I give Murder in Belgravia five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

3.75 stars

An interesting and lively historical mystery set in London during World War 1. While the British suffragettes are agitating for the vote and equal rights, the police force and Scotland Yard are resistant. But the war has left them short of able-bodied male policeman, so it is agreed to quietly assemble a special unit including women to deal with certain crimes.

A retired inspector, a female doctor, a female lawyer, an active inspector and a war-wounded copper are working together to solve a confusing and sensitive crime. A posh lord has been found stabbed to death with a pair of scissors and his severely injured wife has confessed to the crime. No one thinks the wife is guilty, and she is near death from a brutal beating administered by the husband before his death. A female servant has disappeared, and the butler is discovered to have very unsavory underworld connections.

The new crime unit uncovers all kinds of unpleasantness in London: drugs, brothels, unscrupulous doctors, and spousal abuse. The personalities are interesting and the action moves right along. The book does a nice job of bringing London in that era alive and having some good interactions between characters. I would certainly pick up another mystery in this series.

Thanks to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my review.

A really interesting and well told story with wonderful writing. I found myself thinking about it when I was reading it and raced pack to pick it up. Brittney is a welcome presence in the world of murder mysteries.