Jessica Crawford

Book Review: A MOST AGREEABLE MURDER by Julia Seales

June 19, 2024June 21, 2024 | Jessica Crawford

A Most Agreeable Murder by Julia Seales, is a 300+ page debut novel published in 2023 by Random House.

Genre:

Cozy mystery/historical fiction with a hint of romance and heaps of humor

Opening Line:

In the English countryside there was a small township called Swampshire, comprised of several lovely mansions and one disgusting swamp.

Synopsis:

When a wealthy bachelor drops dead at a ball, a young lady takes on the decidedly improper role of detective in this action-packed debut comedy of manners and murder.

Feisty, passionate Beatrice Steele has never fit the definition of a true lady, according to the strict code of conduct that reigns in Swampshire, her small English township–she is terrible at needlework, has absolutely no musical ability, and her artwork is so bad it frightens people. Nevertheless, she lives a perfectly agreeable life with her marriage-scheming mother, prankster father, and two younger sisters– beautiful Louisa and forgettable Mary. But she harbors a dark secret: She is obsessed with the true crime cases she reads about in the newspaper. If anyone in her etiquette-obsessed community found out, she’d be deemed a morbid creep and banished from respectable society forever.

For her family’s sake, she’s vowed to put her obsession behind her. Because eligible bachelor Edmund Croaksworth is set to attend the approaching autumnal ball, and the Steele family hopes that Louisa will steal his heart. If not, Martin Grub, their disgusting cousin, will inherit the family’s estate, and they will be ruined or, even worse, forced to move to France. So Beatrice must be on her best behavior . . . which is made difficult when a disgraced yet alluring detective inexplicably shows up to the ball.

Beatrice is just holding things together when Croaksworth drops dead in the middle of a minuet. As a storm rages outside, the evening descends into a frenzy of panic, fear, and betrayal as it becomes clear they are trapped with a killer. Contending with competitive card games, tricky tonics, and Swampshire’s infamous squelch holes, Beatrice must rise above decorum and decency to pursue justice and her own desires–before anyone else is murdered.

My Thoughts:

This is a delightfully humorous Regency era locked room mystery! I agree with the comparison to the Bridgerton TV show crossed with an Agatha Christie novel, plus some hilarious ridiculousness added for flavor.

Miss Beatrice Steele and her sisters are expected to make advantageous marriages. There are very strict rules of decorum in Swampshire, England, and unfortunately, Beatrice’s interest in reading about murder investigations is quite explicitly forbidden in The Lady’s Guide to etiquette. She is therefore delighted when, one stormy evening at a ball at Stabmort Park, a guest is murdered. Here is her chance to conduct her own investigation while seeming helpful rather than morbid! The investigation is a twisty one, as it seems there are multiple members of Swampshire society hiding their own unseemly secrets.

This was a good mystery story, but the best part is the humor! From Mr. Steele’s constant silly pranks at the most inopportune times, to the frequent allusions to the fact that Beatrice’s youngest sister might be a werewolf without ever addressing it head on, and the explanation that no one else ever attended Miss Bolton’s theatrical productions because all of Swampshire happened to misplace their invitations in their fireplaces – this book was a hoot! The letters, article excerpts, play scripts and other little bits in between chapters are also a nice touch.

There is a bit of a romance burgeoning in this story. At the end of the book is a sneak peek at Book 2, which is the first I learned that this was going to be a series – this book could work perfectly well as a standalone, only the romance has not yet come to full fruition. I, for one, look forward to reading more about Beatrice and Inspector Vivek Drake simultaneously antagonizing and growing to care for one another as they solve crimes together in London.

Bookshop.org

Book Review: THE SQUARE OF SEVENS by Laura Shepherd-Robinson

June 12, 2024June 21, 2024 | Jessica Crawford

The Square of Sevens by Laura Shepherd-Robinson is a twisty 528 page novel published in 2023 by Atria Books.

Genre:

Historical Fiction

Opening Line:

People like to say they seek the truth.

Synopsis:

An orphaned fortune teller in 18th-century England searches for answers about her long-dead mother and uncovers shocking secrets in this immersive and atmospheric saga perfect for fans of Sarah Waters and Sarah Perry.

Cornwall, 1730: A young girl known only as Red travels with her father making a living predicting fortunes using the ancient Cornish method of the Square of Sevens. Shortly before he dies, her father entrusts Red’s care to a gentleman scholar, along with a document containing the secret of the Square of Sevens technique.

Raised as a lady amidst the Georgian splendor of Bath, Red’s fortune-telling delights in high society. But she cannot ignore the questions that gnaw at her soul: who was her mother? How did she die? And who are the mysterious enemies her father was always terrified would find him?

The pursuit of these mysteries takes her from Cornwall and Bath to London and Devon, from the rough ribaldry of the Bartholomew Fair to the grand houses of two of the most powerful families in England. And while Red’s quest brings her the possibility of great reward, it also leads to grave danger.

Laura Shepherd-Robinson, “the queen of modern Georgian literature” (Susan Stokes-Chapman, author of Pandora), has written a dazzling and Dickensian story of mystery and intrigue, with audacious twists and turns.

My Thoughts:

Three cheers and a round of applause for The Square of Sevens!

Our story takes place in eighteenth century England. Our main character is Red, a girl who travels the countryside with her father, the two of them telling fortunes for money and never staying in one place long. When her father falls ill, he asks a kind gentleman to take his daughter in after he dies, explaining that her mother was a lady and he wishes her to be raised as one as well. The man balks at first; surely there is family who can look after her? But the answer comes that her father has no family, and her mother’s family does not know she exists, and must never know.

Years later, sixteen year old Red is filled with curiosity to know who her mother was. She finds some hints in the belongings her father left behind, and comes to believe her mother was part of the wealthy De Lacy family of British high society. Her father probably only said what he did about it being dangerous for them to learn of her existence in order to persuade her guardian to take her into his care…right?

The De Lacys are a family at war with one another, in the midst of years of legal proceedings arguing who the rightful heir to the family fortune is. Red coming in and announcing herself as the late patriarch’s oldest grandchild is going to look like she is lying for the sake of putting in a claim of her own. So Red keeps her true identity hidden while infiltrating her own family, searching for proof to offer them in order for them to accept that she is actually one of them.

I enjoy family sagas and love court intrigue and machinations in my books, and this was a combination of these things. The story reaches from the fortune teller tents of county fairs to the grand estates of nobility. While attempting to uncover proof of her legitimacy as a De Lacy, Red digs up plenty of other dark family secrets as well. And I loved every minute of it!

AND THEN…I think my jaw literally dropped with the final reveal of many. I mean, this is historical fiction, not a psychological thriller – who would have expected such a twist?! Wowee!

I did notice that this book seemed very long. As I was enjoying it all along, this did not bother me, but I can definitely see how some readers might take issue with the length. As it is, this is hands down my top pick for books I have read so far this year!

Book Review: SIPSWORTH by Simon Van Booy

June 2, 2024 | Jessica Crawford

Sipsworth by Simon Van Booy is a 198 page book published by David R. Godine May 7, 2024.

Genre: Contemporary Literary Fiction

Opening Line:

Helen Cartwright was old with her life broken in ways she could not have foreseen.

The Synopsis:

Over the course of two weeks in a small English town, a reclusive widow discovers an unexpected reason to live.

Following the loss of her husband and son, Helen Cartwright returns to the village of her childhood after living abroad for six decades. Her only wish is to die quickly and without fuss. She retreats into her home on Westminster Crescent, becoming a creature of routine and “Each day was an impersonation of the one before with only a slight shuffle—as though even for death there is a queue.”

Then, one cold winter night, a chance encounter with a mouse sets Helen on a surprising journey.

Sipsworth is a reminder that there can be second chances. No matter what we have planned for ourselves, sometimes life has plans of its own. With profound compassion, Simon Van Booy illuminates not only a deep friendship forged between two lonely creatures, but the reverberations of goodness that ripple out from that unique bond.

My Thoughts:

Well, if this wasn’t the sweetest thing!

Helen Cartwright was raised in England, moved to Australia, spent sixty years there, many of them as a pediatric cardiologist. She lived an entire happy life there. But after her husband and her son both pass away, she moves back to her hometown in England and waits for her turn to die.

Walking helped, and she tried to go out every day, even when it poured. But life for her was finished…Each day was an impersonation of the one before with only a slight shuffle⁠—as though even for death there is a queue.

But then Helen encounters a mouse.

At first she intends to get it out of her home, then to bring it to a wildlife rescue center…but then she finds purpose and meaning again in caring for this little creature, whom she names Sipsworth.

Helen is certain now that the creature in her sink must surely have been a child’s pet that outlived his use as a companion and was left to die. Except he is downstairs in a pie box. Not dying. And for the first time in many years, against her better judgement, neither is she.

She even tells her new companion that if he passes away before her to keep an eye out for her husband and son:

“I want you to let them know that I’m fine. I wasn’t for a long time, but I am now.”

Not only do her interactions with the mouse bring her joy, he also winds up bringing other people back into her life: the owner of the hardware store where she initially intends to buy mousetraps, the librarian from whom she checks out books on mouse care, and others.

“You know what your gift to the world is, Sipsworth?” Helen asks him. “It’s that you bring out the best in people.”

A heartwarming tale about a renewed lease on life, meaningful connections, and found family, this story made me tear up while simultaneously pasting a wide grin on my face. I think fans of A Man Called Ove by Frederik Backman might enjoy this (although I hesitate to make comps because I personally always find them disappointing – like although books share some similarities, what I loved about the other book, such as the tone or voice, is not one of them). A real treasure!

(Side note: I was originally concerned about HOW MUCH TEA the people drink in this book – but the internet tells me that each cup only contains 26 mg of caffeine, so really 15 cups per day should be safe for consumption–which is good, because these characters are probably not far off from that!)

Book Review: I CHEERFULLY REFUSE by Leif Enger

May 27, 2024May 27, 2024 | Jessica Crawford

I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger is a 336 hardcover standalone novel published April 2, 2024 by Grove Press.

Genres: Dystopian, Literary Fiction, Speculative Fiction

Opening Line:

Here at the beginning it must be said the End was on everyone’s mind.

The Synopsis: Set in a not-too-distant America, I Cheerfully Refuse is the tale of Rainy, an aspiring musician setting sail on Lake Superior in search of his departed, deeply beloved, bookselling wife. An endearing bear of an Orphean narrator, he seeks refuge in the harbors, fogs, and remote islands of the inland sea. After encountering lunatic storms and rising corpses from the warming depths, he eventually lands to find an increasingly desperate and illiterate people, a malignant billionaire ruling class, a crumbled infrastructure, and a lawless society. As his guileless nature begins to make an inadvertent rebel of him, Rainy’s private quest for the love of his life grows into something wider and wilder, sweeping up friends and foes alike in his wake.

My Thoughts:

This meditative dystopian story is brimming with gorgeous prose (and also a fair number of instances of turns of phrase I did not understand, prompting me to wonder if the author was not American–but it turns out that is not the case). In a bleak near future with collapsed infrastructure, a U.S. headed by a proudly illiterate president, and more and more people choosing to shuffle off this mortal coil in search of something better, Rainy and Lark have managed to make a happy life for themselves. When they let a young man board in their home, trouble follows right behind him. Rainy finds himself on the lam in a sailboat on a capricious Lake Superior. As he grieves for the life and love lost to him and attempts to evade those who would do him harm, he encounters numerous strange characters, along with a girl who needs him (and vice versa) more than either would like to admit.

It’s taken me all my life to learn protection is the promise you can’t make. It sounds absolute, and you mean it and believe it, but that vow is provisional and makeshift and no god ever lived who could keep it half the time.

But beyond the beautiful writing and the likable main character who was easy to root for, my overall feeling while reading this book was one of melancholy. So even though I appreciated the author’s skill with words (the main villain is described as a “relentless hellhound and necrotic Adonis”!), how glad am I that I set sail with Rainy on his journey? I’m still not sure myself. 3.75 stars

Book Review: KING NYX by Kristen Bakis

May 14, 2024 | Jessica Crawford

King Nyx by Kristen Bakis is a 320 page hardcover standalone novel published February 27, 2024 by Liveright (W. W. Norton & Company).

Genres: Historical Fiction, Gothic, Mystery

Opening Line:

Last night I dreamed my husband came back.

“This woman cannot think, she feels.” So the novelist Theodore Dreiser once wrote about Anna Fort, wife of the crypto-scientist Charles Fort. It was this line that inspired author Kristen Bakis to write a story of Anna’s own, albeit a fictional one.

I had heard this book was a Gothic tale that was more about vibes than plot, and I supposed that is pretty much the case (there is certainly plot, but I do think I’d say the pacing is on the slower side). But there were a lot of other elements to this story that I was not expecting.

Anna’s husband writes about verified anomalies that science has failed to offer sufficient explanations for, and who then proposes his own rather outlandish theories. A wealthy recluse invites them to stay on his private island estate while Charles finishes writing his book. But all is not well on Prosper Island.

We learn a lot about Anna’s memories from before her marriage, at a time when she herself experienced something unexplainable and wound up having a mental break and spending time in a sanatorium. This history has her questioning when she can and cannot trust herself and her own thoughts and perceptions. She discovers that one can perform any number of mental gymnastics in order to keep one’s view of the world palatable.

Visitors to Prosper Island are made to quarantine in cabins in the woods for two weeks upon arrival, and it is here Anna and her husband meet another couple, a psychologist and his wife with an oddly antagonistic relationship, who are also guests of the eccentric Mr. Arkel. In fact, the story doesn’t actually arrive at the house itself until very near to the end, and then only briefly.

The story also includes: missing girls (pulled from the penal system and put into a school for domestic service), creepy automata (the most horrifying part of this book, IMO!), and a toy bird elevated to the status of deity. Oh, and several pet parakeets. I wasn’t expecting all of these elements, but they still wound up telling a decent Gothic mystery.

Book Review: THE MORNINGSIDE by Tea Obreht

May 10, 2024May 14, 2024 | Jessica Crawford

The Morningside by Tea Obreht is a 304 page long dystopian literary fiction novel (with the door left open for a hint of magical realism) first published March 19, 2024 by Random House.

“And I realized that I’d brought you into life at a time when everyone else’s debts had come due.”

This book is narrated by Sil, twelve years old for the majority of the story. She lives in a dystopian version of the world where climate change has really done a number on us. Everyone is expected to do their part to try to help the world heal. Eating meat is illegal. What food you do get depends on what ration cards the government has allotted you this week. Sil and her mother, refugees from a war torn country, are able to move to the once illustrious Island City as part of the Repopulation Program. With the changing tides, much of the island that was once inhabited now lies underwater. Sil and her mother move into the building where Aunt Ena serves as superintendent, a tower of apartments called The Morningside.

Sil’s mother and great aunt couldn’t be more different. As for the former,

The pronouncement of intent, the hubris of self-determination–these did not fit her notion of the universe

She teaches her daughter never to tell anyone their country of origin or to speak their mother tongue outside of the home, never to try to plan for the future but only meet challenges and opportunities as they come, and to leave the past in the past.

Ena on the other hand…

This was part of Ena’s magic. Familiarities you had come to take for granted were transformed by the act of her storytelling. Her version of things became the only one. She could change the reality of something you thought you’d known all your life.

With these two models in her life, even though Ena dies not long after their arrival in Island City (leaving the job of superintendent to Sil’s mother), Sil learns to look for signs of “the world beneath the world”.

I quite liked the writing and tone of this book, but I have to say, all of the characters annoyed me at one point or another. Sil would get so upset with Mila when she in fact was the one being unreasonable. I actually quite hated her mother at times. And at the end, you’re not 100% sure what the real story was with the reclusive wealthy artist Bezi Duras, or the daughter of the warlord Rait Belen, but I gather it’s supposed to be kind of left up in the air for the reader to continue thinking about. In fact, Sil even admits that what is true is not necessarily the point, or at least not the whole of it.

It had been wonderful to stand, however briefly, in the lighted rooms of Ena’s heart and know things as she knew them. But she was dead now. And were you really part of something if you were part of it alone?

This story is sort of unsettling and courageous at the same time, and I quite liked it, even if it’s the ideas I enjoyed more than the details. 4 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: SISTERS OF THE VAST BLACK

May 8, 2024May 14, 2024 | Jessica Crawford

“We’re all just scattered, lonely specks out here, unless we try to be more. We shouldn’t be brutal just because the universe is.”

Sisters of the Vast Black by Lina Rather (first in the Our Lady of Endless Worlds duology) is a novella about an order of nuns traveling through outerspace in a “liveship” (a giant slug bred to be able to transport people within inner chambers and survive vacuum) manages to include SO MUCH MORE than you would expect from a story of this length!

We get to know each of the sisters aboard the Our Lady of Impossible Constellations as they perform consecrations, marriages, baptisms, and funeral rites for various colonies and stations scattered among the stars. We learn about the debilitating war that broke out when Earth resisted losing control of its children that left and spread across the universe. The convent is chagrined as Earth attempts to use them in its renewed bid to bring everyone under a centralized system once again.

And yet, she also knew her history. Religion was a useful arm of the state, often enough. What better way to crush resistance than to own the souls of the people? What better way to spread your government than to tie it to the name of God?

When their liveship receives a distress signal from a new colony, the sisters must decide how best to keep their vows: through obedience to the planet-bound Vatican that does not understand the flexibility required to survive in the vastness of space, or by offering aid and comfort to those most desperate for it.

Some of the feel of this story reminded me a bit of the parts that I liked about the cozy nature of The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (a book that otherwise didn’t 100% appeal to me as a reader), and parts of it (the parts having to do with the biology of the space-faring slugs as vehicles of transport) were delightfully sciency. But overall, it was the characters confronting issues regarding ethics, morals, and personal fulfillment that drove this intriguing story.

Book Review: THE FAMILIAR by Leigh Bardugo

May 4, 2024May 14, 2024 | Jessica Crawford

This gorgeous book, The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo (author of Six of Crows and Ninth House, among others) is a 387 page standalone adult historical fantasy novel set in sixteenth century Spain.

The opening line:

If the bread hadn’t burned, this would be a very different story.

When Luzia’s employers discover that their scullion can work small magics, “miracles”, she finds attention drawn to her from all sorts of corners. She fears catching the notice of the Inquisition for multiple reasons, but the flames of her ambition are stoked by the opportunity to compete for a place in the king’s service. Her patron’s familiar, a man made immortal through an ill-gotten bargain, is tasked with teaching her how best to wield and control her powers.

I very much liked the romance in this book, unexpected at it was to the characters involved–but the story was about so much more than that and the magic. It was about class, political machinations, being a Jew in a land that would never trust you, and more. There is one particular side character whose journey and personal growth was quite lovely. 4.5 stars, rounded up!

All that being said, I feel as though some die-hard fans of Bardugo’s YA books, or maybe even Ninth House and Hell Bent, will be disappointed in this one. It is a “quieter” book– there is some showy stuff, but it’s more about the feels and reflection on some serious topics. Which is typically more my jam.