DEAD BY DINNER, STORY LINE:
The setting for Dead By Dinner is England during the 1920’s. Author Lillian Dore has penned a short sweet cozy mystery involving the upper crust. Lady Clara Callaway and her maid, Alice Hart, journey to Bramblehead Hall, home of the Rossington-Smythes for a fun weekend with the Rossington-Smythes and friends. To her surprise, Malcolm Wexley, falls over dead in his supper plate. Ah, as Sherlock Holmes so apply states: “Come, Watson or in this case Alice, The Game Is Afoot”! Ruled murder by the investigating constables, who did it and why? Wexley, the victim, is not all he appears.
Come along as Lady Clara and Alice become Sherlock Holmes and Watson to solve the murder.
DEAD BY DINNER, CHARACTERS, PLOTTING, AND DEVELOPMENT:
First of all, Dead By Dinner is a short, light, easy to read, cozy mystery that is relaxing and will give you a few hours of fun and relaxation in England. The author has provided several worthy suspects, brash over loud host Rossington-Smythe, his neurotic daughter Cecilia, Rossington-Smythes’ servant Baines, and Lawrence Clement duped by the dastardly Wexley, con man and thieving scoundrel. Lady Clara and sidekick Alice will unravel the schemes, plots, and reasons for murder while dragging along for the ride, Lady Clara’s childhood friend, Giles Fairweather.
In addition, most of the characters are the upper crust of England with overblown opinions of themselves. Ms. Dare gave Lady Clara a sweet, sincere, disposition as she rights wrongs and finds a killer. Also, Ms. Dore left an opening for a future romance between Lady Clara and Giles.
Finally, the pacing of the book was in line with the length. The plot moved along well with a light and airy writing style. Furthermore, the characters were well-developed. Also, the murderer was the last person I sniffed out as the culprit.
DEAD BY DINNER, RECOMMENDATION: 4 STAR
In conclusion I found Dead By Dinner a light short cozy mystery. It is just right for an afternoon of relaxing reading without having a lot internal angst or over long plotting and posturing.
Final Note: I received this book from the author in return for an honest book review. All book reviews of any novel are dependent on the book review author’s opinion; in addition, all book reviews on line and on my blog under my name are my opinion.