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.

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.

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.

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!