Tag: historical mystery

A Dark and Deadly Journey- An Evelyne Redfern Mystery by Julia Kelly

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Publication September 23, 2025-St. Martin’s Press-Historical Fiction, Mystery & Thrillers-304pp

Book Summary

Evelyne Redfern returns in A Dark and Deadly Journey, the next book in international bestselling author Julia Kelly’s captivating historical mystery series.

After being sidelined for a pesky gunshot wound, typist-turned-field agent Evelyne Redfern is ready for her next assignment with Britain’s secretive Special Investigations Unit. When a British Intelligence informant in Portugal mysteriously disappears just after hinting that he has vital information about German plans that could tip the balance of World War Two, Evelyne and her dashingly irksome partner, David Poole, are sent headed to Lisbon to find him.

Once they land, Evelyne and David aren’t even able to leave the airport, before she discovers one of their fellow aeroplane passengers murdered and uncovers a diary with a clear link between the victim and their missing informant. With their mission in jeopardy before it can truly begin, Evelyne and David fight to keep their cover intact as they descend deeper into the shadows that surround Lisbon’s glittering collection of wealthy expats and dangerous spies. This case will test Evelyne and David’s training, charm, and wit—and their growing attraction for one another.

Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab First Published in Historical Novels Review Magazine, Nov.1, 2025 Issue

     This newest installment in the Evelyn Redfern Mysteries presents fans of historical mystery novels with a fast-paced trek following British Special Investigation Unit agents Evelyn Redfern and partner David Poole to Portugal,1940.  Kelly’s vivid details of politically charged Lisbon, filled with wealthy expats, sparkling jewels and a throng of spies, is the perfect setting for A Dark and Deadly Journey. The disappearance of a British intelligence informant leads Evelyn and David to Princes Petrova’s soirees, the Hotel Metropol, casinos, bars, and jewelry shops as they piece together the giant jigsaw puzzle.

     Julia Kelly easily connects readers by revisiting Evelyn’s famous childhood as the “Paris Orphan” leading to the estrangement of her father, Sir Reginald. He has suddenly contacted her with a surprising request which strangely coincides with her new mission as an SIU agent. Disguised as a wine buyer and his secretary, David and Evelyn work with Phillips, head of the intelligence branch in Lisbon, tracking an informant who supposedly has knowledge that could shift Portugal’s neutrality in the war.  Sir Reginald, Phillips, Princess Petrova; and many more intriguing characters are involved in unexpected plot twists at every turn in the crowded Lisbon streets. Kelly interjects Evelyn’s smartly induced theories to keep readers analyzing the clues as the search for the missing informant progresses.

      With each new installment Kelly adds a touch of romance as Evelyn and David’s growing attraction is coyly revealed in details of private moments and memories of their previous assignments as SIU agents.  Be forewarned of an unexpected, jaw-dropping ending. Suspenseful. Highly recommended. Awaiting the next adventure in the Evelyn Redfern Mysteries with great anticipation.   

These Blue Mountains by Sarah Loudin Thomas

Publication July 2025-Bethany House-Historical Mystery-368pp.

Book Summary

A moving story of love, betrayal, and the enduring power of hope in the face of darkness.

German pianist Hedda Schlagel’s world collapsed when her fiancé, Fritz, vanished after being sent to an enemy alien camp in the United States during the Great War. Fifteen years later, in 1932, Hedda is stunned to see Fritz’s name in a photograph of an American memorial for German seamen who died near Asheville, North Carolina. Determined to reclaim his body and bring closure to his ailing mother, Hedda travels to the US. Her quest takes a shocking turn when, rather than Fritz’s body, his casket contains the remains of a woman who died under mysterious circumstances.

Local deputy Garland Jones thought he’d left that dark chapter behind when he helped bury Fritz Meyer’s coffin. The unexpected arrival of Hedda, a long-suffering yet captivating woman, forces him to confront how much of the truth he really knows. As they work together to uncover the identity of the woman in the casket and to unravel Fritz’s fate, Hedda and Garland grow closer. But with Hedda in the US on borrowed time while Hitler rises to power in Germany, she fears she’ll be forced to return home before she can put the ghosts of her past to rest.

Grateful Reader Review-First Published in Historical Novels Review Magazine-August 1, 2025 for Historical Novel Society

This is a well-balanced tale of mystery and romance set in 1930’s North Carolina. German pianist Hedda Schlagel travels to America to bring home the remains of her fiancé, Fritz, who disappeared 15 years earlier near Asheville during WWI. Hedda’s arrival and the discovery that Fritz’s casket holds the body of a woman who died under mysterious circumstances sets the grizzly scene and propels the well-paced plot. The conflict is whether Fritz is alive and why he’s never contacted Hedda?

                Appalachian author, Sarah Loudin Thomas, delves into themes of identity and belonging through multilayered characters that provide Hedda with emotional support as she searches for the truth. Eleanor, a boarder where Hedda lives, becomes a true friend whose insight and encouragement is a new experience for Hedda. As Eleanor helps Hedda explore the possibilities of staying in America they discover Joseph and Anni, teachers at Black Mountain College. This thread connects readers to Germans brave enough to start a new life in America and provides the perspective and hardships of immigrants. Hedda is faced with the difficult choice; return to Berlin to care for Lotte, Fritz’s dying mother or stay in Asheville as the search for Fritz continues. Deputy Garland’s investigation, updates, and trips to Black Mountain add much anticipation to the plot and budding relationships! Loudin’s narrative burgeons with stunning descriptions of the Blue Ridge Mountains, analogies, and foreshadowing, while themes of guilt, acceptance, and jealousy tilt the emotional balance.   

                Readers of These Blue Mountains, filled with love, tension and heart pounding suspense will agree with Hedda, “Wunderschonen!” Beautiful! Spectacular!  

“Killer Bouquets” or A Botanist’s Guide to Flowers and Fatality by Kate Khavari

Published June 6, 2023-Crooked Lane Books-352pp

Book Summary:

1920s London isn’t the ideal place for a brilliant woman with lofty ambitions. But research assistant Saffron Everleigh is determined to beat the odds in a male-dominated field at the University College of London. Saffron embarks on her first research study alongside the insufferably charming Dr. Michael Lee, traveling the countryside with him in response to reports of poisonings. But when Detective Inspector Green is given a case with a set of unusual clues, he asks for Saffron’s assistance.

The victims, all women, received bouquets filled with poisonous flowers. Digging deeper, Saffron discovers that the bouquets may be more than just unpleasant flowers— there may be a hidden message within them, revealed through the use of the old Victorian practice of floriography. A dire message, indeed, as each woman who received the flowers has turned up dead.

Alongside Dr. Lee and her best friend, Elizabeth, Saffron trails a group of suspects through a dark jazz club, a lavish country estate, and a glittering theatre, delving deeper into a part of society she thought she’d left behind forever.

Grateful Reader Review by Dorothy Schwab

The second installment in Kate Khavari’s Saffron Everleigh Mystery series, set in 1920’s London, features the old Victorian practice of Floriography. Khavari provides adequate backstory without spoiling the plot if readers decide to read the first installment, A Botanist’s Guide to Parties and Poisons.

 In this novel Khavari explores family expectations and the struggle of women in a male-dominated field. Saffron’s research career choice has created a “gulf of separation” within her family, connecting readers across generations to social and emotional truths of personal choices then and now. The tension in the professional and personal relationship between Saffron and her colleague, Dr. Michael Lee, is interspersed with infuriating dialogue, endearing body language, humorous situations, and life-saving discoveries!  Khavari’s characters are skillfully revealed through conflicts between several detectives and their attempts to solve the mystery involving three murders. She layers the murderous plot with exquisite descriptions of flowers and possible meanings while immersing readers in the eye-opening world of The Blue Room jazz club. The underworld of cocaine and its use in the past is brought to light as Saffron dons a beguiling disguise as Sally Eversby.

 Kate Khavari delivers “killer bouquets” filled with flowers of friendship, abandonment, and pain, arranged into a potent, perfumed mystery: A Botanist’s Guide to Flowers and Fatality.  

Book #1

Kate Khavari is the author of fiction ranging from historical mysteries to high fantasy epics. She has her parents to thank for her fascination for historical mysteries, as she spent the majority of her childhood memorizing Sherlock Holmes’s and Poirot’s greatest quips. A former teacher, Kate has a deep appreciation for research and creativity, not to mention the multitasking ability she now relies on as an author and stay at home mother to her toddler son. She lives in the Dallas-Fort Worth area of Texas with her husband, son, and a lovely garden that contains absolutely no poisonous plants.

The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont

Publication-February 1, 2022

“Nina de Gramont’s The Christie Affair is a beguiling novel of star-crossed lovers, heartbreak, revenge, and murder—and a brilliant re-imagination of one of the most talked-about unsolved mysteries of the twentieth century. St. Martin’s Press”

“Nina de Gramont lives in coastal North Carolina with her husband, the writer David Gessner. She teaches at the University of North Carolina Wilmington and is almost always in the company of her two dogs, Missy and Isabelle. She’s the author of the acclaimed Meet Me at the River, Every Little Thing in the World, Gossip of the Starlings, The Last September, as well as The Distance from Me to You, which has recently been optioned for a movie. ”

The Grateful Reader- Dorothy Schwab

I’ve been travelling the last two weeks, visiting bookstores and reading all along the way. One of my stops was in Houston at the Blue Willow Book Shop, which I enjoyed immensely. The review I’m adding here is from the Blue Willow newsletter, Shelf Awareness-I love that name! As I was reading the newsletter today I came across Shahina Piyarali’s review of The Christie Affair. Since I’m still in the middle of the mystery, I though I’d share Shahina’s review with you. Enjoy!

“The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont is an ingeniously plotted historical mystery in the style of an engrossing Agatha Christie thriller–except the character at the center of the mystery is the beloved lady novelist herself. Bringing to glorious life the more intimate roles Christie played, including as a mother, wife, loyal friend and passionate lover, de Gramont’s graceful novel will enthrall Christie fans of all persuasions.

The story is set in 1920s England, during the early days of Agatha’s rise to literary fame and the implosion of her marriage to Archie Christie. In real life, Agatha’s devastation over her husband’s demand for a divorce led her to flee her Berkshire home and disappear for 11 days; no one knows where she went, and she took that secret to her grave. Here, de Gramont (The Last September) offers a skillful reimagining of what transpired when Agatha vanished in the dead of night with her typewriter, setting off a media-driven scandal and a country-wide police manhunt. The result is a particularly gripping story, brilliantly embellished by the enigmatic narrator, Nan O’Dea, who also happens to be Archie’s mistress.

Although Agatha is at the heart of Nan’s narrative, The Christie Affair is a story of two women from vastly different backgrounds struggling to control their own destinies. An accomplished author, de Gramont takes a page from the great mystery writer herself and makes swift work of tying up loose ends as the story reaches its boiling point, leaving readers marvelously entertained and breathlessly connecting the dots. ” –Shahina Piyarali, reviewer

Discover: This gorgeously written mystery reimagines Agatha Christie’s real-life disappearance after the collapse of her marriage and the intriguing story of the woman responsible for the breakup.

Here’s a link to Shelf Awareness from Blue Willow Book Shop- Great interviews, book suggestions and recommendations. https://bluewillowbookshop.shelf-awareness.com/?issue=1017 My blog post from my Blue Willow visit was posted in late January.