My #Review for the fascinating 1920 #Murder #Mystery – A Witness to Murder by Verity Bright
Title: A Witness to Murder
Series: Lady Eleanor Swift Mystery #3
Author: Verity Bright
Publisher: Bookouture
Published: September 14th, 2020
Pages: 289
Rating: 4/5*
My Review:
This is a murder mystery set in 1920 and featuring Lady Eleanor Swift who, with Clifford, her intrepid butler, and staff, set out to solve just who did it! This is a fascinating read with many historical aspects from that era involved in the story, including politics, nobility, upstairs and downstairs, women’s rights movements, they all play their part in the cosy mystery.
Lady Eleanor Swift inherited her title, Henley Hall and the family estate when her uncle died. She’s certainly not used to acting as a member of the nobility are expected to, having travelled the world with her parents until they mysteriously disappeared and the story starts on the anniversary of that disappearance. However, she is shocked when she learns that a local politician has died at a dinner party and the cook, Mrs Pitkin, has been accused of his murder – death by peanut allergy . . . . Eleanor can’t resist trying to discover what really happened. Nor can she resist agreeing to stand to be the constituency’s next Member of Parliament . . . So with campaigning and investigating, life is going to be very interesting again!
The story has great characters, plenty of suspects and a great mix of both mystery and humour. The servants at Henley Hall are more like family to Eleanor, whilst they endeavour to ensure she’s recognised as the Lady in charge of the Hall they are also caring, supportive and protective of each other and she of them. There are some really funny incidents, possible romantic encounters, deadly danger and not one but two murders to be solved in this entertaining read. The communities, the attitudes of the residents, the political machinations and the main news and fears of the time are all explored as part of this intriguing murder mystery. I really enjoyed reading it and look forward to reading more stories involving this independent young lady acting as a detective!
Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for my copy of this book which I read voluntarily and reviewed honestly.
Synopsis:
A medieval house, a dead body and some rather suspicious chocolate fudge? Call for Lady Swift!
Autumn, 1920. Lady Eleanor Swift, accidental amateur detective and retired explorer, is determined to take a break from investigating murders. So when a local politician dies suddenly at an elegant dinner party at Farrington Manor, she tries her hardest not to listen to the raft of rumours around the village that he might have been poisoned by the fudge. It’s the anniversary of the disappearance of her beloved parents and she’s promised herself not to get mixed up with any more mysteries. She isn’t sure they’d have approved.
But when she arrives home to discover that Mrs Pitkin, the kindly cook from Farrington Manor, has been dismissed without wage or reference because the police consider her a suspect, Eleanor knows she needs to act. If there was a murder, then she needs to track down the culprit and clear Mrs Pitkin’s name.
Accompanied by her faithful partner in crime, Gladstone the bulldog, who has the best nose for sniffing out bones in the country, Eleanor sets out to find the killer. And when another body turns up and she finds poisoned fudge in the victim’s house, Eleanor knows she’s on the right track. But can she sort the truth from the lies before she becomes a witness to another murder – this time rather closer to home?
An utterly charming cozy mystery! Warm and witty, fans of Agatha Christie, TE Kinsey and LB Hathaway will be totally hooked.
Author Bio:
splashesintobooks 
Hi Elaine
Thanks for such a wonderful review. I really enjoyed researching the politics and social aspects of the time, and am so glad they added to the story 🙂
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