How to Solve Murders Like a Lady is the second outing for Violet Hamilton, Lady Detective. I read and really enjoyed the first book in the series, No Life for a Lady last year and over a sunny weekend recently, dipped back into Violet’s world, set in the English coastal town of Hastings in 1897.
Opening sentence: Life was good, full of recent achievements and adventures to come.
Violet Hamilton, Lady Detective
When we last saw Violet, she had met Benjamin Blackthorn, an antiques dealer and detective. She fell for both him and his career. She helped him find her mother (missing for 10 years – read more about that in my review of the first book, No Life for a Lady here) and knew then she wanted to be a Lady Detective.
‘I am a Lady Detective,’ I said. ‘Tough, decisive and when necessary, brutish.’
In How to Solve Murders Like a Lady, we find Violet engaged to Benjamin but still living with her father. She is a little fed up of the finding-lost-cats type of cases she’s been working on, so is more than ready when one of the ladies in her circle (not that she particularly likes her) is found dead on the beach.
Violet is on the case and although more than a few spanners are thrown into the mix, including that pesky sexism that was far more prevalent in 1897. It means she is forever fighting against both what society thinks that she, as a Lady, should be doing with her life, alongside that, men with more freedom and hidden agendas mean Violet must use her wit and charm to find out what really happened.
It was power, wielded so carelessly, just because he was a man and could.
How to Solve Murders Like a Lady really transported me back to the Victorian era, there’s great historical research on show in these pages and Violet is such a well-rounded character that you can’t help but believe in her. It makes some strong feminist points too.
If you like gentle murder mysteries with dashings of retro charm and funny, sweet moments – not to mention a heroine ahead of her time – then pick up How to Solve Murders Like a Lady and enjoy! It also gives enough plot summary so you can read it without having read the first book (although highly recommend that too!)
It’s a delightful choice for a summer / holiday read.
- Thank you to Aria for the ARC;
- Get your copy of How to Solve Murders Like a Lady here;
- Published by Aria 6th June 2024;
- 304 pages;
- My rating:
Books on the 7:47 
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