Cosy crime isn’t my go-to genre – I usually prefer something a bit darker – but I couldn’t resist this book! A fab and festive cover, a female lead character descended from famous Victorian food writer Mrs Beeton and the promise of a twisty mystery – count me in!
Thank you to Rachel Quin and HQ for my copy of the novel for review. It’s published in hardback on 24th October and would make a great Christmas present for the crime fan in your life.
The story centres on Alice Beeton, an older woman running the Good Household Management Agency – if your most famous relative is famous for the Victorian classic ‘Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management’ then why not capitalise on the connection?! Alice provides the best domestic staff to the poshest families in the UK and is known for her discretion and calm competence. Along with her dog, Agatha (named after the best crime novelist, of course), she lives in a basement flat in Kensington and focuses her efforts on her business.
When a well-to-do family need a housekeeper, Alice sends new hire Enya – a woman with perfect references and fluent French who seems ideal. However, a matter of days later, on New Year’s Day, Enya is found dead at the family home. Feeling responsible for Enya’s death, Alice gets herself involved in the police investigation led by the scruffy but slightly clueless Detective Rigby. Can she uncover the killer stalking through high society?
I absolutely loved Alice Beeton and need to read more about her! Initially, she comes across as someone whose life is very ordered and regulated – she has her dog, her flat and her business and that’s the extent of her world. However, being thrown into a murder investigation forces her to broaden her horizons and take risks – from going undercover to dealing with Detective Rigby and his charms. It’s lovely that Alice is an older woman – ‘the wrong side of fifty’ – as it’s rare to read about protagonists of this age and gender (even though women and older people make up a huge proportion of the book-buying public).
Alice’s connections with her famous ancestor are also used well within the novel – as well as the business name, there are Mrs Beeton recipes at relevant points throughout the book. These are (I think) taken from Mrs Beeton’s famous cookery book and are sometimes tempting, sometimes weirdly archaic, but always interesting.
The plotting of the mystery is well done and kept me guessing for quite a while. I did solve the mystery just ahead of Alice, but more through luck than judgement. There were plenty of surprises along the way, as well as a host of engaging characters (Alice’s co-workers are pretty great) and some luxury settings.
I thoroughly enjoyed my first (but hopefully not last) insight into Alice’s world; it’s cosy and festive, but also immersive and engaging. I really hope Book 2 is on the way…
