The Splendor of Ordinary Days (2015) by Jeff High

 

🩺 From the "ordinary days" in the title and the pastoral view of the cover, I have assumed that this novel would not be a far cry from James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small or All Things Bright and Beautiful. Just replace the veterinarian with a physician, and move the setting from English countryside to American small town, and that's that. But there I was wrong. Once again, this reminded me to not judge a book from its cover; least of all, its title. 

🩺 Young Dr. Luke Bradford has just been settled in Watervalley, a small town in Tennessee. He had moved from a bigger town a few years ago, but up till now is still feeling like an outsider. At first the story begins with just... well... ordinary days of ordinary lives in a picturesque little town. I loved the banters between Luke and his.. uh.. housekeeper? Anyway, Connie cleans and cooks for him, so Luke could almost always expect to get a warm greeting from Connie and her sister Estelle (who are often welcomed their as visitor). Luke's interaction with his eccentric patients and townfolks are entertaining too - an elderly woman who drinks too much and a cantankerous old veteran and publisher of the local newspaper are only few of them, but the most intriguing ones are the Mennonites.

🩺 I honestly have not realized of the Mennonite's existence until now - I only know about the Amish. They are apparently slightly different in culture and manners, but they are all embracing the same philosophy. And as they first appeared in the story, I began to be apprehensive of what lays ahead. This book would have deeper layer than I have first anticipated. The first 'casualty' was between two young men's supposed 'fight', one of them is a Mennonite, the other is a local war veteran. And when Luther, the cantankerous publisher, decided to publish a story about it, not without slight prejudice against the Mennonite young man, it provoked the town to their long time prejudices against the Mennonites. Apparently, it's up to Luke Bradford to maintain harmony in Watervalley, the town where he grows to love, and where the girl he loves most, Christine Chambers, lives.

🩺 Throughout the story, we are entertained with the 'ordinary days' of living in a small town with its picturesque scenery, eccentric inhabitants, and the busy days of a doctor's practice. But they are all just the background. On the forefront there is the budding relationship of Luke Bradford and Christine Chambers - including the funny scenes of his planning a romantic proposal and the unexpected turn of event which might have thwarted the couple's bright future. But most importantly, there is also a dark secret looming beneath prejudices and old time enmity between two families. The part about war memorial, and particularly Luke's speech in the end, was very touching. And I loved the mixed of mystery and superstitious that lurked behind. It's really a heartwarming novel with unexpected depth.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2

Murder in Regent's Park (2015) by Christina Koning: The Blind Detective series

👨‍🦯I can't believe that I haven't heard about this Blind Detective series until very lately, where have I been?? Anyway, a blind detective is an awesome idea for a cozy mystery, and Christina Koning did a marvelous job at drawing the character of Frederick Rowlands, our blind amateur sleuth. He was blinded after the war (the story is set in 1922), and lives in the countryside of Kent, trying his hands at farming. Not very successfully, it seems, when an old friend, Chief Inspector Douglas, offered him a temporary job as his assistance. A murder has been committed to a girl (a dancer) in London, and the killer left a playing card near the body. It was a braille playing card, and that's why Rowlands enters into the scene. The Chief Inspector wants him to blend in with men with the same predicament (blind, that is) to locate their (presumably blind) murderer.

👨‍🦯 And so, Rowlands is back into the whirlwind of London, and particularly to St Dunstan's Institute for the Blind, where Rowlands had been one of the inmates for years. Rowlands suggested that the Institute arranges a reunion party, and he and his wife Edith help with the preparation. I loved Edith Rowlands, here's an exemplary sensible, wise, and intelligent woman, who is so supportive of her husband. Meanwhile, more murders of young girls took place, and a new similarity was found: they were all lured by an advertisement to get a job as a painter's model. And so, there's another possibility that the murderer is an artist. But which one is true? Since a blind man could not have been a painter, right? But since Rowlands and the police had zero clue, they follow up both lines. 👨‍🦯 This new line of inquiry brought Rowlands' interest to the artistic world; one of these is his old flame - which spiced up the story a little! ;) Rowlands even agreed to sit as model to a painter, who's one of his suspects. I also liked this painter character; and from the start wished that he's not the murderer... And so, we are brought from the blind institute, to house parties of influential personages, to art gallery, and of course to the slum district of London where Rowlands interviewed some of the murdered girls' acquaintances. His blindness is almost no hindrance for Rowlands as he has been used to rely more and more on his other senses. Still, it doesn't guarantee him out of danger, as he is getting nearer to the truth. 👨‍🦯 All in all, this has become my new favorite murder-mystery series! I love the premise of a blind detective, it makes him more interesting to read. And I also love Fred and Edith Rowlands, though the Chief Inspector is quite an annoying person - he's rather a bully and a snob. The mystery itself is highly entertaining, a combination of whodunnit with a bit of thrilling action near the end. The art side added another charm to the story. But the factor which I admired most from Christina Koning is how she writes about the bygone era of 1930s so smoothly, I almost forgot that she wrote it in the 2010! It's a delightful read on every level. Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Read for:

Cloak and Dagger Reading Challenge 2026 hosted by Carol @ Carol's Notebook

Jade Dragon Mountain (2015) by Elsa Hart

🏮 Jade Dragon Mountain is Elsa Hart's debut historical mystery novel, set in Dayan, a small mountainous town at the Chinese border with Tibet, in 18th century. Our sleuth is Li Du, an imperial librarian in exile, who is visiting his cousin, who were the magistrate of Dayan, during his journey. Dayan was an insignificant town in the vast empire, but at present it's proudly preparing for the upcoming visit of the Emperor himself, as a total solar eclipse would occur in several days.

🏮 Chinese people at that time believed that the Emperor himself was able to command an astronomical event such as solar eclipse. And it was paramount that his people would watch as the Emperor commanded the sun himself. Failed to do so, he would lose dignity and his people's trust in his divinity. It was going to be a grand spectacle, and the magistrate was dreaming to get promotion had the festival been succeeded. Unfortunately, a murder threatened to thwart the magistrate's plans. And it's up to Li Du to solve it before the Emperor's arrival, or else, his future, too, would equally be bleak.

🏮 The murdered victim was a foreigner, a Jesuit priest called Brother Peter. He died instantly after drinking his tea. The Jesuits had a big influence in the kingdom, as advisers of its Bureau of Astronomy. It was the Jesuits who created annual calendars of astronomical events. And that's how the Emperor actually knew when the next solar eclipse would happen, and timed his arrivals well to arrive in time with it.

🏮 Li Du's investigation revealed the intrigue, conspiracy, and politics inside the magistrate's mansion as well as within the kingdom. Who, among its present occupants, was the murderer? Was it the magistrate himself? Or his first consort, who's afraid to be left alone if the magistrate was to be promoted to Beijing? Could it be the fanatic nationalist of the magistrate's secretary, or the old librarian? Or was it a foreigner who poisoned Brother Peter? There're another Jesuit priest who's staying there, and an East India Company merchant with his fascinating astronomical instrument. One of them could have wanted to do harm.|

🏮 All in all, this was an exciting read. The plot was not very complicated, perhaps. I guessed the whodunnit quite easily. But the historical aspect, the rather long but vivid descriptive mention of the building interior, streets, and public places, made up for it's rather weak plot. The author succeeded in bringing us to the 18th century of China, and her researches were superb. Loved it!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

In the Market for Murder (2015) by T.E. Kinsey: Lady Hardcastle Mysteries #2

🥧 The duo Lady Hardcastle and her maid Florence Armstrong are back in a new murder mystery. It's 1909, several months has elapsed from the end of 1st book (A Quiet Life in the Country) where Lady Hardcastle was injured. She is now recovered, but is bored and dejected. So, her friend and neighbor in the little village of Littleton Cotterell, Lady Farley-Strouds, brings her and Flo to the cattle market in Chipping Bevington during market day. The fun trip is capped with a visit to the local pub, enjoying its delicious beef and mushroom pie, while at the same time being introduced to the local farmers.

🥧 A week after, also during market day, one of the farmers, a Spencer Carradine, was found dead at the same pub, while eating the same beef and mushroom pie. Inspector Oliver Sunderland requested Lady Hardcastle to help him in the investigation, as he's quite busy at that moment. A request which, of course, was warmly welcomed by our duo.

🥧 A case which seemed at first to be simple, proved otherwise. The deceased made everyone's life miserable, and he quarreled with them often. Everyone could be suspect, then. Moreover, the police couldn't decide on what caused the death. It seemed like poison, but it could also be something else. Being stuck in the investigation, Lady Hardcastle and Flo were by no means idle. Two small mysteries unexpectedly appeared.

🥧 First, the local rugby club lost its precious memento - robbery? Then, a seance, in which Lady Hardcastle and Flo participated for fun, turned nasty when a "spirit" accused one of the guest of committing murder in the past. Who, or "what" caused it? Of course, our duo finally solved the cases nicely, just in time when a revelation from unexpected quarter turned up, and... eureka! Lady Hardcastle solved the murder mystery!

🥧 Just like its predecessor, In the Market for Murder is a light, humorous, charming story. The dynamic and unconventional relationship of the lady and the maid is one unique point of this series, and their everyday life in the countryside village forms a charming backdrop to every crime mystery comes their way. My only complaint is that I feel Flo's rudeness to her boss is a bit too impertinent to my liking. The rest is just refreshing and charming. Now I can't wait to read the third, which, as the end of this book hinted, sounds interesting!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐