A Quiet Life in the Country (2016) by T.E. Kinsey: An Audiobook Review

💙 Lady Emily Hardcastle and her maid Florence Armstrong have moved from the hustle bustle of London to the rural countryside of Gloucestershire, to seek for a quieter life. However, just a few days after their arrival, they found a body hanged from a tree on their morning stroll. It appears like a suicide, but Lady Hardcastle's watchful eyes soon found evidences that it was a foul play.

💙 The police seem to take the wrong way, though, that our unconventional amateur sleuth pair decided to investigate by themselves. During this time, Lady Hardcastle received an invitation for a house party at the Granger, while Flo (Florence) was asked to help with the service.

💙 That night one of the band members was murdered, and the hostess' emerald was stolen. Lady Hardcastle and Flo were joining the police inspector in investigating the murder, but the stolen emerald was secretly handled by Lady Hardcastle due to its family secret.

💙 I loved everything about this book! First off all, the mystery was well thought of. The clue were scattered proportionately along the investigation, that the story is never dull. The interviews conducted by the inspector -and attended by our sleuths - unfolded slowly secrets and undoings of people involved.

💙 My favorite part is the dynamic duo of the lady and the maid. Their relationship is not like what a lady and her ladies maid had had in 1908. Lady Hardcastle and Flo seem more like a friend despite of class difference. I love their silly banters and teasing, and these are often the funniest part of the book, just like this one:

Flo: ...A maid with bad knees called Edna.
Lady H: She has knees called Edna?
🤣

💙 The unique personalities and mysterious past of Lady Hardcastle and Flo, added certain charm to the already delightful cozy mystery. We get glimpses of their past dangerous adventures abroad, which might have honed their detecting prowess, and gave them an ultimate weapon - hidden strength and confidence beneath their polite feminine manners.

💙 Needless to say, this will become one of favorite cozy mysteries this year, and a series I'm excited to read on - or listen on, I should've said, as I enjoyed the audiobook, nicely narrated by Elizabeth Knowelden.

Rating: 4,5 / 5

Blogger-Inspired Wishlist...with a Twist, Ep. 10,5

Blogger-Inspired Wishlist is a feature where I post recent additions to my wish list, which had been inspired by reviews from my fellow bloggers. Now, about the twist...

While browsing Twitter, I sometimes stumbled upon books that interest me. It could be from someone's tweeting about his/her latest book haul, or someone's retweet of book promotion from his/her favorite bookstore. Either way, if the title/cover and its Goodreads' summary attracts me, I'll put it into a list. No summaries/explanation, just the links.

Looking for the Durrells by Melanie Hewitt

From @MelanieHewitt61 

West with Giraffes by Lynda Rutledge

From @Kittling_Books, retweeted by @Caffyolay

Murder in the Basement by Anthony Berkeley

From @ArmchairSleuth 

The Square of Sevens by Laura Shepherd-Robinson

From @MalikaRamacha1 

Wrong Poison by Nikki Knight

From @AgnewRobin 

Comes a Stranger by E.R. Punshon

From @DeanStPress 

The Ghost of Frédéric Chopin by Eric Faye

From @Heaven_ali 

Vango: Between Sky and Earth by Timothée de Fombelle

From @debnance 

When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit by Judith Kerr

From @JanCarson7280, retweeted by @ds228

Hotel Splendide by Ludwig Bemelmans

From @nonsuchbook 

Wonder Cruise by Ursula Bloom

From @Heaven_ali 

Flying Too High by Kerry Greenwood

From @ChasingClues 

Ginger Pye by Eleanor Estes

From @ElliotBlackwe3 

Mrs. Plansky's Revenge by Spencer Quinn

From @Kittling_Books, retweeted by @Caffyolay

The Backyard Birds Chronicles by Amy Tan

From @ElliottBlackwe3 

The Biscuit Barrel Murder by Geoffrey Start

From @MallikaRamacha1 

A Murder of Aspic Proportions by Amy Lillard

From @AgnewRobin 

The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman

From @AgnewRobin 

The Shooting Party by Anton Chekhov

From @alokranj 

Dear Mrs. Bird by AJ Pearce

From @HLibraryofLife 

A Cadenza For Caruso by Barbara Paul

From @AgnewRobin 

Windswept by Annie Worsley

From @RedRiverCroft , retweeted by @holnicoteNH

Cooking with Fernet Branca by James Hamilton-Paterson

From @LouiseCulmer1 

Proud Sorrows by James R. Benn

From @AgnewRobin 

The Incredible Theft (1937) by Agatha Christie #NovNov23

📑 The dinner at Lord Charles Mayfield that night was no ordinary dinner party. The guests are Sir George Carrington - Air Marshal - with his wife and son; Mrs. Vanderlyn - beautiful American woman who often involves in espionage using her beauty to extract secrets from her victims; Mrs. Macatta; and Mayfield's secretary, Carlisle.

📑 The dinner was only a camouflage of the more important agenda: the secret meeting between Lord Mayfield and the Air Marshal concerning plans of the new bomber plane which will make England superior. Carlisle was instructed to lay out the plans on the table ready for the two prominent figures of the country, while they were taking a short after-dinner stroll.

📑 Things happened quickly in that very short time. Lord Mayfield thought he saw a shadow coming out of the room, while Sir George saw nothing. And when they were finally ready to start the meeting, the plans were stolen! Carlisle admitted that during their absence, he went out of the room after Mrs. Vanderlyn's maid screamed on the stairs, which she said, because she saw a ghost...

📑 Due to the sensitivity of the situation, the police couldn't be involved to investigate the matter. Sir George suggested then, to call Hercule Poirot, who soon decided that the theft was an insider. But which one? Is it Mrs. Vanderlyn, whom Lord Mayfield suggested? Or Carlisle, whom Mayfield defended? Or another unexpected one?

📑 I knew I hadn't read this novella before, but somehow the premise was familiar to me. A quick research told me that this was actually an expansion of Christie's earlier short story: The Submarine Plans. She altered the submarine to bomber plane, expand the story, and changed the characters; but the essence is there.

📑 On the whole, it's an interesting case. The theft is quite cleverly crafted, though it lacks subtlety. At least, there were some fishy things from the beginning, which should have led to the thief's identity. The element which was supposed to be red herring felt rather childish, and I wonder who would believe that. The solution was not very satisfying also, but it is still entertaining enough.

Rating: 3,5 / 5

I read this book for:

Novellas in November 2023 #NovNov23

British Crime Classic Challenge 2023

For Bingo Card: Private Detective

#MurderEveryMonday: Cover with Painting Equipment

Murder Every Monday was created by Kate @ Crossexamining Crime and @ArmchairSleuth. Put simply, the plan is for readers to take a photo of a crime fiction book (novel or short story collection) which meets a given week’s theme criteria and to then share it online, using the hashtag #MurderEveryMonday.

This week's theme is:

Cover with an artist/painting equipment on

I've found four books from three queens from Golden Age era which have paintings on the covers. I've only read one, though, Five Little Pigs, which was fantastic. Here's my review .

Have your read any of them? Which cover(s) do you like most?

If you want to participate, here's the list of the weekly theme

Six Degrees of Separation, from Western Lane to The Unfinished Clue

Six Degrees of Separation is a monthly meme, now hosted by Kate @ books are my favorite and best.

On the first Saturday of every month, a book is chosen as a starting point and linked to six other books to form a chain. Readers and bloggers are invited to join in by creating their own ‘chain’ leading from the selected book.

This month we start from yet another book I haven't read:


0. Western Lane by Chetna Maroo

A coming-of-age novel about an eleven-year-old girl who was shaped by her father to be a sport machine.

"Eleven-year-old Gopi has been playing squash since she was old enough to hold a racket. When her mother dies, her father enlists her in a quietly brutal training regimen, and the game becomes her world. Slowly, she grows apart from her sisters. Her life is reduced to the sport, guided by its the serve, the volley, the drive, the shot and its echo.

But on the court, she is not alone. She is with her pa. She is with Ged, a thirteen-year-old boy with his own formidable talent. She is with the players who have come before her. She is in awe.

An indelible coming-of-age story, Chetna Maroo’s first novel captures the ordinary and annihilates it with beauty. Western Lane is a valentine to innocence, to the closeness of sisterhood, to the strange ways we come to know ourselves and each other." ~Goodreads

The main character has lost her mother, and that would be the link to my first chain, a girl whose mother has just passed away in a book I've read very recently:

1. The Weather at Tregulla by Stella Gibbons

My review

Una Beaumont lost her chance of studying acting in London after her mother's death, and she saw her chance of freedom in a self-centered painter who regards his painting above anything else.

This reminded me of another book with a self-centered painter I've read lately:

2. Five Little Pigs by Agatha Christie

My review

Hercule Poirot investigates a murder which happened sixteen years ago. He classified the five suspects as five little Pigs, following a nursery rhyme.

Agatha Christie loved to title her books with nursery rhymes. Another of these is one of her famous books:

3. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

My review

And Then There Were None was originally published as Ten Little Indians, and the order of the murders were also following the nursery rhyme. I read it in junior high school and it was the first book I've read set in Devon.

Another Golden Age murder mystery set in Devon:

4. Murder in the Mill Race by E.C.R. Lorac

My review

A quiet little village was disturbed by the murder of its prominent figure, Sister Monica, whose body was found drowning near the mill.

The mill here instantly reminded me of another book, also with 'the mill' in the title:

5. The Mill in the Floss by George Eliot

My review

I read this book many years ago, so I had to read my own review to find any thing to link with the next chain. And I got it! There's a minor character in this story called Stephen Guest. And that reminds me of another Stephen Guest on another book I've read recently:

6. The Unfinished Clue by Georgette Heyer

My review 

It's a perfect Golden Age detective story with a charming detective, wonderful plot with surprising twist,  proportionate writing with decent pace, a tinge of efficient romance, pleasant and believable characters, set in an English countryside.


Have you read those books? If you do #sixdegree, how it worked out for you this time?

Operation: Happy by Jenni L. Walsh

Thanks to Zonderkidz-Books and NetGalley for providing me review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

🐕 Happy is a big fluffy sentry dog - a German shepherd-collie-husky mix. And this is a story about an American Naval family. The year is December 1941, the main setting is Pearl Harbour. You know what will happen, but if you imagine this would be a heartwrenching story about dog in WW2, relax, because the author has guaranteed through her opening credit:

For dog lovers everywhere.
(Don't worry, Happy is going to be okay.)

Are we okay? Can I go on, then? 😀

🐕 I have mentioned that Happy is a sentry dog, but when his holder is retired, he has a new owner: a twelve year old girl called Jody. Happy's eyesight is weakening, while she's approaching her golden years. Jody is used to live from place to place, according to where her naval officer father was ordered to go. And amidst all the confusion and unsettling feeling of the ever changing circumstances, Happy is, for Jody, her solid rock, the stability she longs for.

🐕 The book opens with the Zuber family (Dad, Mom, Jody, and her older sister Peggy) and Happy on board a ship towards their new abode in US Naval base at Ford Island, in Honolulu, Hawaii. The fast changing environment causes Jody to feel a little shy and nervous. But she is a resourceful and optimistic girl. To overcome it, she has started a best-of-list for every place she had lived in. Right now she's starting Fort Island list. The list starts sunny and cheerful, but Jody also notices her mother's growing nervousness.

🐕 The first sign that WW2 is touching America is when the siren began to wail. Then air raids and hiding in the bunker became almost a routine, until the Pearl Harbour attack. It was during these terrifying moments that Jody's character shines through. Her father judged her correctly by making Jody the leader of Team Zuber, while he's fighting for the country. Happy is constantly on guard during these attacks, he knows the way to the bunker, and always make sure that his girl, and Pebby, and Mom are save.

Happy doesn't leave my side. He's like a second skin. I don't mind. He's my constant, always there. My number one.

Jody is also starting another list during these moments, trying to have what fun she can amidst the gloomy circumstances.

🐕 After Pearl Harbor attack, Jody, Peggy, and Mom must leave Fort Island, and stay in an apartment in San Fransisco, while Dad is staying behind. While Happy thinks they are finally safe now without air raids and what not, some events unfold before him, that Happy knows he needs still to keep on duty. Mom is having a nervous breakdown, she becomes lethargic, can't do anything, can't make any decision, and sometimes seems to be oblivious of her surroundings. Jody and Peggy are never sure which Mom will they see when they're coming home from school, the Sad Mom or the Old Mom?

🐕 During these moments, Jody takes charge and do in her utmost to ensure they live as normally as possible. The 'attack' on Peggy by a man at their apartment hall, forces Jody to take responsibility as an adult. Can she lead Team Zuber to safety until Dad's return? And what will she do to ensure she's having happy moments with Happy while they still have time?

🐕 I love everything about this book. It's alternately funny and heartwarming, sad and cheerful. Sometimes the story is told from Happy's point of view, and these are my favorite. Happy's eyesight might be weak, but not his nose. He can smell Jody's nervousness - it smells bitter like broccoli - and her smile smells like vanilla. And of course, I love Jody. She's brave and resilient, and I admire her for taking adult responsibility almost without a flinch, and always humble on taking compliments.

🐕 All in all, it's a lovely, heartwarming coming-of-age historical fiction about a dog and his girl's hopeful and courageous journey during one of the darkest moments in history. I read at Jenni Walsh' website that this story was actually inspired by real-life experiences of a young Pearl Harbor survivor. This story also inspired me for creating a bucket list with my eighty-two-year mother, who, like Happy, is having a weakening eyesight. And like what Jody did, to and with, Happy, my mother and I will do things together that will make, her especially, happy, while we still have time!

Rating: 5 / 5

**Operation: Happy will be published on 2nd April 2024.

The Cryptid Files: Loch Ness by Jean Flitcroft #WitchWeek23 #NovNov23

🦕 It's been four years since Vanessa's mother died, and unlike her twin brothers Luke and Ronan, who's getting on with life nicely, Vanessa's heart is still gripped with anger and grief she's unable to cope with. Her father's growing intimacy with his girlfriend Lee doesn't make it any easier. Now her father's proposing a family holiday in Scotland, which Vanessa would've accepted gratefully, if his father hadn't mentioned that Lee is coming too. Not only coming along, she realized later on that they are staying at her house! What a preposterous idea!

🦕 On the other hand, visiting Scotland would be exciting for the twelve year old Vanessa. She might be able to complete her mother's search about Nessie, the Loch Ness monster. Like her late mother, Vanessa is fascinated with this Cryptid creature. She has even met Nessie in her dream when she's fainted near the bank of the loch.

🦕 When she's taking the boat to the loch alone (her father and Lee, who had promised to take her, don't show up), the boat overturned, and Vanessa is drowning into the deep dark water. When she's awake, she finds herself lying in a sort of cave. Inside her head she hears a soothing voice telling her to scrape moss from the wall under the cave, and eat it! Strange as it is, Vanessa eats the moss anyway, and just like the voice said, it makes her stronger, and enable her to swim deep in the water without breathing air: "Swim down deep enough and you'll find me" said the voice. And she swims on.

"She was aware now of a large shape glowing at a distance beyond her.... A huge object moved slowly towards her.... As it approached her, the glow grew more intense and the water warmer... She found herself face to face with large real-life eyes, only a couple of inches away from her. [...] 'Put your arms around my neck and I'll show you my Loch.'"

🦕 Vanessa did as she's told, and with that, a strange unlikely friendship between two creatures is cemented. Like Vanessa, Nessie had lost her mother when they came through the lock-gate many years ago. They were stuck, and couldn't come out to the sea. Nessie's mother crushed by boat when they swam under it while the water got shallow. That is what draws them together - that, and the fact that Vanessa believes in Nessie. And that believe, in turn, saved her from death. But how about returning up the land, back to her family? Could Nessie help Vanessa one more time?

🦕 This was unexpectedly a poignant and heartwarming novella. I have just lost my father three months ago, and I can imagine how hard it would have been for a twelve year old girl to cope with losing her mother. The safety and comfort of having a mother is too acute for teenage girl at that age. Though it is a fantasy story, I'm so relieved that Vanessa found Nessie's presence soothing. It might not replace a mother's love, but at least it might soothe her wounded heart a little. From then on Vanessa would be able to accept the lost of her mother, but from time to time she might perhaps relapse into sadness when something reminds her of her mother. Well, at least that's what I've been having with my late father...

🦕 I loved how each chapter starts with snippets of articles about Nessie's history and sightings. It helps elevating Nessie into the spotlight. Unlike some stories where Nessie are indicated in titles or subtitles only but her role is insignificant, this story keeps a nice balance between the humans and monster. Nessie here isn't a cute childish creature, but graceful and elusive, worthy of its legendary status.

🦕 On the whole, it is a middle grade fantasy that also touches a sensitive issue of grief, told poignantly to remind us about the true value of love, family, and friendship. It is short but wholesome, fantastic but down to earth.

Favorite quotes:

   "Life without adventure is no life at all."

   "There's nothing like imagination to get you through life."

Rating: 5 / 5

I read this book for:

Witch Week 2023 (Cryptozoo)

hosted by Chris @ Calmgrove & Lizzie @ Lizzie Ross

Novellas in November 2023

hosted by Cathy @ 746 Books & Rebecca @ Bookish Beck