Death at Cherry Tree Manor by Tannis Laidlaw - Traditional/Cozy

I read the second book in a new series coming out in March. I really enjoyed it. I would say it is a traditional mystery and a cozy. It is set in an English village. I always like those mysteries.

Death at Cherry Tree Manor by Tannis Laidlaw.
This is the second book in her new Madeline Brooks Mystery series.



About: 

"Madeleine Brooks is learning on the job. What she doesn’t need is a grouchy seller. What’s worse, he doesn’t yet own the grand manor but hopes to inherit it. With a failed marriage and bills to pay, Maddie needs this listing. She has to establish the heir’s right to sell. And that means finding his great-aunt Beryl, the lawful owner, dead or alive.

Death at Cherry Tree Manor catapults Maddie into the role of an amateur detective in an Oxfordshire village full of past histories and deep secrets.

Love Agatha Christie-style murder mysteries? Cosy crime novels?  Stories set in an English village? Then get your copy of Death at Cherry Tree Manor now! Grab a cup of coffee and find out whodunit...."

If you like English countryside mysteries you will love this. We get to know Maddie and the others in the village. The descriptions of the countryside village are great. You will empathize with Maddie, Douglas and William. Maddie is drawn to figuring out what happened to Douglas's Aunt Beryl; was she senile and walked away from home never to be found? Did she take her money and flee to live a life of luxury in another country? Is Maddie in too deep between trying to learn the real estate business and playing sleuth? The ending is very suspenseful and exciting. And there may be a romance budding...Seems like an opening for a second book and am thrilled to read that there is a second book in this series.

I love the cover too. It does have an Agatha Christie feel with a touch of Agatha Raisin, two of my favorites.

About the author: 

http://tannislaidlaw.com/

"Dr. Tannis Laidlaw has worn many hats in her career as a psychologist: clinician in private practice, in psychiatric bins and in the prison service; researcher in schizophrenia, anxiety, psychopathy and other personality disorders, mind-body interactions, and the therapeutic use of hypnosis; research manager; writer and lecturer.

She has always been fascinated by the human condition, not only in those with crossed wiring but also when ordinary people are driven to behave in extraordinary ways. Her fiction reflects her psychological background; her non-fiction, her interests as a wife, mother and friend.

Tannis lives with her husband in Auckland, but spends half her time at a deserted beach in Northland, the semi-tropical northern part of New Zealand, and in a remote cabin in the woods on a Canadian lake – all places where she writes and writes and writes."

Tannis's first books are suspense/psychological thrillers. I want to read those also. 

I received a free book and voluntarily provided this review.

The Six-Week Solution by Paula Darnell

I read this very good historical mystery last week.

About: "Never guessing that their very lives might be in danger, well-to-do women come from all over the country to stay at guest ranches around Reno to establish the six weeks' residency required for a quickie Nevada divorce in 1955.

When a Circle E Ranch guest dies after her Cadillac plunges off Mount Rose Highway, a mountain road between Lake Tahoe and Reno, Washoe County Deputy Sheriff Ben Cameron is assigned to investigate the accident. His inquiries lead him to question everyone at the Circle E, where he meets Mary, an attractive prospective divorcée from New York. Unfortunately, Mary soon has an accident of her own. In the meantime, Ben's case takes a turn as twisty as the Mount Rose Highway, and when Mary suffers a second accident, he figures that someone is out to get her. Unless Ben can discover who's targeting the out-of-towners, some of them won't live long enough to have their day in court."

This book had a different setting from any I have read lately. Set in 1950's Nevada, I learned about a piece of Reno history, I wasn't aware of. The description of life, fashion and etiquette of the '50s was very good. The story was great. We think this story is only about the car accident and the victim who dies in the crash. But there is so much more to the story. Mary can't believe she is a target. Is her husband, soon to be ex- husband trying to kill her? Ben, finds out there may have been other similar "accidents" and his investigation takes him to Los Angeles and many calls to New York to make the connections necessary to solve this case.

So what about this "Six-Week Solution? Is it true?

https://thisisreno.com/2016/02/reno-a-history-of-divorce/

From the above article/link: 

"By 1909, Reno had earned the title of “the nation’s new divorce headquarters.” The generous number of grounds available to divorce-seekers in Nevada in addition to its relatively short residency period—six months, at the time—set it apart. In the decades to follow, an increase in the number of legal grounds and the reduction of the residency period further increased the Reno’s appeal.

Residency Requirement:
In 1931, in an attempt to help secure Nevada’s economic health through the Great Depression, the state legislature dropped the residency requirement to an unheard-of six weeks. In the same session, the state legalized wide-open gambling, ensuring even more entertainment options for divorce-seekers. More than 30,000 divorces were granted in the Washoe County Courthouse during the 1930s.

For some, the residency period for divorce also served as the countdown to a wedding. An advantage of divorcing in Nevada was the ability to immediately walk down the aisle with someone else.

In many cases, divorce-seekers brought their future spouses to Reno to wait out the residency period together, or arranged for them to arrive in town upon its completion. Tales abound of divorce-seekers who received a divorce decree in the morning and tied the knot with someone else that very afternoon, with both proceedings sometimes officiated by the same judge."

Here's a bit about Paula Darnell. She is new to me.

https://www.pauladarnellauthor.com/2018/12/about-author.html

"An instructor at five colleges over the years, Paula Darnell most often taught the dreaded first-year English composition classes, but she's also been happy to teach some fun classes, such as fashion design, sewing, and jewelry making. Paula has a Bachelor's degree in English from the University of Iowa, Iowa City, and a Master's degree in English from the University of Nevada, Reno. 

Like Laurel, the main character in Death by Association, Paula enjoys all kinds of arts and crafts. Some of her memorable projects include making a hat and a cape to wear to Royal Ascot, sewing wedding gowns for both her daughters, exhibiting her textile and mixed-media artwork in juried art shows, and having one of her jewelry projects accepted for inclusion in Leather Jewelry, published by Lark Books. She sells some of her jewelry and hair accessories in her Etsy shop.

Paula's interest in DIY craft projects and fashion led to her writing hundreds of articles for print and online national publications. She is the author of Death by Association, Death by Design, and Death by Proxy, all in her cozy series, the DIY Diva Mysteries. 

She is also the author of The Six-Week Solution, a historical mystery set in Reno, Nevada, in 1955. A former Reno resident, she was inspired by the local history and found the 1950s when Reno was considered the Divorce Capital of the World to be an interesting era in which to set a mystery.
 Paula lives in Las Vegas, Nevada, with her husband Gary and their 110-pound dog Rocky, whose favorite pastime is lurking in the kitchen, hoping for a handout."

I would like to see a second book with the characters and setting of this book.

"Why Cozy Mysteries are the Hottest TV Genre of 2020"

This article popped up on my Google search page today. I thought it was pretty interesting.

https://www.geek.com/television/why-cozy-mysteries-are-the-hottest-tv-genre-of-2020-1818154/

Let's review what a cozy mystery is first. 

From Wiki: "Cozy mysteries, also referred to as "cozies", are a subgenre of crime fiction in which sex and violence are downplayed or treated humorously, and the crime and detection take place in a small, socially intimate community. Cozies thus stand in contrast to hardboiled fiction, which features violence and sexuality more explicitly and centrally to the plot. The term "cozy" was first coined in the late 20th century when various writers produced work in an attempt to re-create the Golden Age of Detective Fiction

.

The detectives in such stories are nearly always amateurs, and are frequently women. Village policeman Hamish Macbeth, featured in a series of novels by M.C. Beaton, is a notable exception. These characters are typically well educated, intuitive, and hold jobs that bring them into constant contact with other residents of their community and the surrounding region (e.g., caterer, innkeeper, librarian, teacher, dog trainer, shop owner, reporter). Like other amateur detectives, they typically have a contact on the police force who can give them access to important information about the case at hand, but the contact is typically a spouse, lover, friend, or family member rather than a former colleague. Dismissed by the authorities in general as nosy busybodies, particularly if they are middle-aged or elderly women, the detectives in cozy mysteries are thus left free to eavesdrop, gather clues, and use their native intelligence and intuitive "feel" for the social dynamics of the community to solve the crime. 

The murderers in cozies are typically neither psychopaths nor serial killers, and, once unmasked, are usually taken into custody without violence. They are generally members of the community where the murder occurs and able to hide in plain sight, and their motives—greed, jealousy, revenge—are often rooted in events years, or even generations, old. The murderers are typically rational and often highly articulate, enabling them to explain, or elaborate on, their motives after their unmasking.

The supporting characters in cozy mysteries are often very broadly drawn and used as comic relief. The accumulation of such characters in long-running cozy mystery series, such as those of Charlotte MacLeod, frequently creates a stock company of eccentrics, among whom the detective stands out as the most, perhaps only, truly sane person.

One subtle joke in such series is how the main character constantly becomes embroiled in so many high-profile cases, often by accident. A long-running joke about the series Murder, She Wrote was how the main character/detective had to be the actual murderer in every case, because, "No matter where she goes, somebody dies!" 

An good example is The Wizards of Evesham by M.C. Beaton. I watched that made for TV movie last weekend and it really was hilarious.

The article cites Midsomer Murders (pictured above) as a good "bridge cozy", for people who may not want to go full cozy. lol They also talk about the recent movie Knives Out as a good example of a movie.

Myself, if cozy mysteries are becoming more popular, I have my own ideas of why. I hate to sound like an old stick in the mud, but do we really need more television shows and movies depicting graphic violence with step by step how to do these things? Let's just call it Murder and other Ghastly Deeds School.  The news gives us enough of that, I think. (I don't watch that either.) I like mysteries for the puzzle and twists, but I don't need all of that "other".

It is a good article and will give you some ideas of other TV cozy mysteries. 

New Hallmark Mystery Movies and a Netflix book to movie - Good Sam by Dete Meserve

Happy Valentines Day. I hope you are spending the day with someone or doing something you love.

Here's what's coming up on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries for February.

Sunday 2/16/20 8 p.m. CST

Dead Over Diamonds: A Picture Perfect Mystery starring Alexa PenaVega, Carlos PenaVega and Erik Estrada 

About: Photographer Allie and Detective Sam's investigation into a priceless stolen necklace leads to danger and an unexpected death.

Sunday 2/23/20 8 p.m. CST

Riddled With Deceit: A Martha's Vineyard Mystery starring Jesse Metcalf and Sarah Lind

About: Former detective Jeff Jackson teams up with Dr. Zee Madeiras to track down their friend's missing emerald brooch, a thief, and also... a murderer.

I stumbled upon this book and author on FB. Then I saw it had been made into a Netflix movie so dialed it up and watched it this week.

Good Sam (Kate Bradley Mystery #1) by Dete Meserve

About: 

"After years covering murders, disasters, and tragedy for Los Angeles TV news, Kate Bradley knows that violence and cruelty are everywhere and that good is hard to find. When she is assigned to cover a story about ten people who have each found $100,000 in cash on their front porch, Kate is intrigued by the anonymous Good Samaritan, dubbed Good Sam, who is behind it all.

As interest in the extraordinary gifts sweeps across the country, Kate finds the elusive Good Sam and her exclusive interview with him thrusts her into the national spotlight. Even as his message captivates viewers and wins ratings, Kate suspects he may not be all he claims to be and that the real Good Sam is still out there.

Searching for answers, Kate unravels the powerful and unexpected reason behind the mysterious cash gifts. The true identity of Good Sam becomes the biggest surprise story of her career, turning her personal and professional life upside down."

I haven't read the book, but really enjoyed the movie. There are several twists and surprises. No, no one gets murdered but it is a mystery. If your Valentine likes mysteries, this would be a good movie to watch, mystery and some romance. 

There are two more books in this series; Perfectly Good Crime and The Good Stranger coming out May 20, 2020. 

Another of her books is a stand alone, The Space Between, which is on my TBR list.

About:  "After presenting a major scientific breakthrough to a rapt audience across the country, renowned astronomer Sarah Mayfield returns home to a disturbing discovery. Her husband, Ben, a Los Angeles restaurateur, has disappeared, leaving behind an unexplained bank deposit of a million dollars, a loaded Glock in the nightstand, and a video security system that’s been wiped clean. The only answers their son, Zack, can offer are the last words his father said to him: keep the doors locked and set the alarm."

I will let you know what I think. Sure sounds good.

Featuring on Friday - Rhys Bowen

Our Mystery Book Club selection for February was books by Rhys Bowen.

I had read several books by Rhys Bowen and really liked all of them. Everyone in the book club really enjoys her books so I thought I would share more about her.

About Rhys: https://rhysbowen.com/

"Rhys Bowen is the New York Times bestselling author of two historical mystery series as well as the #1 Kindle bestseller In Farleigh Field and the international bestseller The Tuscan Child.

In Farleigh Field was nominated for the Edgar Award, and won the Agatha Award for best historical mystery as well as the Macavity and Bruce Alexander Memorial Awards. The Tuscan Child has sold over half a million copies to date.

Rhys was born in Bath, England, and educated at London University, but now divides her time between California and Arizona. Her books have been nominated for every major mystery award and she has won twenty of them to date. They have been translated into twenty-two languages, including Chinese and Arabic.

She currently writes two historical mystery series, each very different in tone. The Molly Murphy mysteries feature an Irish immigrant woman in turn-of-the-century New York City. These books are multi-layered, complex stories with a strong sense of time and place and have won many awards including Agatha and Anthony. There are 17 books so far in this series, plus three Kindle stories, The Amersham Rubies, Through the Window and The Face in the Mirror—a great way to introduce new readers to Molly’s spunky personality.

Then there is Lady Georgie, Rhys’s latest, and very popular, heroine. She’s 35th in line to the throne of England, but she’s flat broke and struggling to survive in the Great Depression. These books are lighter and funnier than Molly’s adventures. They poke gentle fun at the British class system—about which Rhys knows a lot, having married into an upper-class family rather like Georgie’s, with cousins with silly nicknames, family ghosts and stately homes. The thirteenth book in the series, Love and Death Among the Cheetahs, was published August 2019. Two books in the series have won the Agatha Award for best historical mystery. The series received the Readers’ Choice Award for favorite mystery series and Rhys was nominated for career achievement. It was also voted one of Goodreads’ top-10 cozy mysteries.

Her most recent achievement has been the big historical stand-alone novels, In Farleigh Field, The Victory Garden, and The Tuscan Child. They have enjoyed impressive sales world-wide and brought Rhys many new readers. Her latest stand-alone, Above the Bay of Angels, will be published in 2020.

As a child, Rhys spent time with relatives in Wales. Those childhood experiences colored her first mystery series, about Constable Evans in the mountains of Snowdonia. She wrote ten books in the series, including the Edgar nominee Evan’s Gate.

he has lived in England, Germany and Australia, but has called California her home for many years. She now escapes to a condo in Arizona during those cold California winters. When she’s not writing, she loves to travel, sing, hike, paint, play the Celtic harp and spoil her grandchildren."

I have read one Molly Murphy, a couple of the Royal Spyness books (Lady Georgie), and In Farleigh Field.

Here is the book I read for this month's Mystery Book Club.

About:

"Evan Evans is a young police constable who has traded in the violence of city life for idyllic Llanfair, a Welsh village tucked far away from trouble. Nestled among the Snowdonia mountain range, Llanfair looks to Constable Evans like a town forgotten by time, but he quickly learns that even the bucolic countryside has its share of eccentric - and deadly - characters. Evans' new neighbors include two competitive ministers vying for the souls of their flock, one lascivious barmaid, and three other Evanses: Evan-the-Meat, Evans-the-Milk, and Evans-the-Post (whose favorite hobby is to read the mail before he delivers it). 

Before Evans has time to sort through the complicated relationships and rivalries of his new home, he's called to the scene of a crime as brutal and fearsome as any he encountered in the big city. Two hikers have been murdered on the trails of the local mountain, and Evans must hunt down a vicious killer - who may or may not be linked to the mysterious destruction of Mrs. Powell-Jones' prize-winning tomatoes."

I loved this book also. It is the first in the series, so the characters and setting is being introduced for the next books. Evan Evans is a very likeable character, with good, strong morals which are tried many times. The mystery is good, reminiscent of Midsomer Murders. I like his relationship with his landlady - even though he could go get his own place, he feels she needs his company. The descriptions of the extravagant meals she makes him that he feels he must eat, is comical. Mrs. Powell Jones also gives the reader a laugh. I thought the ongoing description of Evan's investigation was very good.. The village teacher could be a love interest but the local bar hussy is constantly throwing herself at him. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I listened to this book and thought the narrator was great too.

As I said, everyone in the group, likes the books by this author. Some have read all the books in one series or the other. Some of their comments were; like the descriptions of the city life, the historical facts, funny, likes the use of play on words, and commented on how much meticulous research Rhys puts into the books. 

Two thumbs up!

Rhys Bowen's books are a Mystery Book Club 5 Star recommendation!