Tag: Victorian Lit

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: Murder in Masquerade (A Lady of Letters #2) by Mary Winters

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: Murder in Masquerade (A Lady of Letters #2) by Mary Winters

I absolutely adored the first book in this series! I loved the idea of an advice column as a catalyst for a murder investigation (which is how the first book starts!) and while I didn’t think I would like reading the advice columns at the beginning of each chapter—it grew on my and now I love it! A cozy mystery with some romance was just what I needed going into the long winter months. I started this book in early January and was done with it in a matter of days and naturally I am anxious for the next book in the series to come out and sadly I am going to have to wait another year I bet!

I know the reading market is somewhat saturated with historical cozy mysteries/romances, but for me this one stood out for the advice column as a way to get readers ‘in the door’ as it were—it had a little overtones of Bridgerton with the advice column—but readers will stay for the charming characters and mystery! That’s how this series got me, I liked the idea of the story, but fell in love with Amelia and Simon and now I have a new favorite series on my list!

While this is only the second book in this series, I hope that it will be a long running one! This one can be read as a standalone, but there are some elements that readers won’t fully appreciate unless they read it in order. Since this is only book two you obviously don’t have to go back and read a ton of books. So if you are new to the series, sure read this one but also go back and read the first book. You wont’ regret it!

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Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: The Castle Keepers by Aimee Runyan, J’nell Ciesielski, and Rachel McMillan

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: The Castle Keepers by Aimee Runyan, J’nell Ciesielski, and Rachel McMillan

Over the years I have enjoyed each of these authors on an independent basis. I love all of their respective books individually and I was so thrilled to see that these three powerhouse writers were teaming up to write a collaborative novel! Obviously no one had to twist my arm to get me to review this one, it was an absolute no brainer!

Sometimes collaborative novels can be difficult. I have only really seen a couple of writing teams successful with it. It can be hard blending different writing styles let alone character visions. I believe this is the first collaboration for these three authors as well which can sometimes bring its own set of challenges but I had so much confidence in these three authors that I knew I was going to read something special!

All three authors are so strong and have written such great novels prior to this do if you read this book and enjoy it, then you should certainly check out their own individual books as they are all so wonderful. But if you are looking for a book that feels a little more ‘saga ish’ and sweeping, this is a multigenerational novel with lots to enjoy, devour and unpack! I really really loved my time with the characters and plots!

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Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: No Life for a Lady by Hannah Dolby

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: No Life for a Lady by Hannah Dolby

When this one came up for review it sounded cute and charming. Like it might be a little bit cozy mystery with a little bit of romance which made me excited to read it. Though the cover doesn’t scream ‘cozy mystery’ to me—in fact the cover felt a little blah. But what the cover lacked in eye catching detail, the summery made up for and I was excited to check this debut novel out! I am always a sucker for historical mysteries (cozy or otherwise) and I thought this one sounded like it would be something new to check out.

One thing that surprised me about this book was it’s a standalone. So many historical mysteries are long standing series and while I love revisiting favorite characters again and again, sometimes it’s nice when things wrap up after just one book. That said I think this book left some options open for additional stories so if you indeed love this book, there is a possibility for future books to revisit favorite characters, but again it’s not necessary for this book to become a series.

With sunny days ahead, it’s nice to read something that makes you feel happy and that’s just what this book did, it was entertaining, charming, and had a lit bit of everything but ultimately it made me feel content and happy which is what I love about reading! If you are looking for something fun to read this spring, this book might be just the ticket for you!

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Special Feature: Murder on Bedford Street (Gaslight Mystery #26) by Victoria Thompson

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Special Feature: Murder on Bedford Street (Gaslight Mystery #26) by Victoria Thompson

If you are a cozy mystery fan then you not doubt have seen Victoria Thompson and her Gaslight Mystery series SOMEWHERE! Her series is incredibly popular with historical cozy fans and with good reason! I have read a few throughout the series over the years and they are always a well constructed mystery with likable characters and tons of Victorian charm! Thompson has branched out to other book series as well but this one remains her most popular, as we are on book number 26 in the series.

I have been able to jump around in the series for the most part but like with any well established series, there are characters and relationships that are established throughout the books. I don’t know that I would say reading the books in order is an absolute must, but obviously helpful to understand the more broad themes of the books, plot and characters. For those of you who do not want to go back and read 25 books before this one, I think that the author generally does a good job focusing on the mystery and explaining important parts of character relationships and how they connect to the larger storylines. So not required but encouraged to read the series as a whole.

For this particular book I wasn’t able to fit it into my review schedule but I can say that early readers are loving this one! Many are noting that the book has lots of twists and turns that will keep readers engaged and entertained. I know that Thompson does spin a great mystery and no doubt this one delivers on the well crafted mystery part! If you are a cozy fan, this book series needs to be on your radar. This latest installment is out now so be sure to pop by and take a look!

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Review: Murder in PostScript (A Lady of Letters Mystery #1) by Mary Winters

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: Murder in PostScript (A Lady of Letters Mystery #1) by Mary Winters

When I see books with any mention of “Bridgerton-like’ in the summary or taglines, I am at once skeptical and yet can’t pass up on said book based on hope of finding another wonderful series that is indeed like Bridgerton! I often get asked what books would I recommend for Bridgerton fans, and that is such a hard question because there are so many historical romances out there that have a Bridgerton feel but aren’t necessaitly Bridgerton like if that makes sense. So sometimes when I see this statement on books, I become skeptical because there is nothing like Bridgerton but yet like so many others I can’t resist finding then next Bridgerton like book to fall in love with.

That’s how this book came to be on my review radar. It was described as “… the first novel in a new historical mystery series perfect anyone who loves the secret identity intrigue and swoon-worthy romance of Bridgerton“. So naturally I couldn’t resist even though I was skeptical. The idea of a new murder mystery series with a hot romance even if it didn’t quite live up to the Bridgerton claim, intrigued me enough that there was no way that I would pass on this!

I am a huge fan of historical mysteries and romances and any time that the two cross over is a win-win for me. I am always on the look out for new lady detectives and sleuth series to dive into. There are so many good ones out there—-Veronica Speedwell, Lady Darby, Lady Sherlock—and new female detectives are hitting shelves everyday so when I saw this was a debut and a new series, I knew it must be worth checking out if it had already been acknowledged as an upcoming series rather than just a standalone.

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