Miss Morton and the English House Party Murder

De: Catherine Lloyd

Narrado por: Lucy Rayner

The options for the penniless daughter of a deceased earl are few indeed in Regency England. So, following the suspicious death of her father, the Earl of Morton, and the discovery that she and her much younger sister have been left without income or home, Lady Caroline takes a post as a lady's companion to the wealthy widow Frogerton.

Just as Caroline is getting accustomed to her new position, her aunt, Lady Eleanor Greenwood, invites her and her employer to a house party in the countryside to celebrate her youngest daughter's birthday. Mrs. Matilda (Matty) Frogerton sees this as an opportunity to introduce her own rather wild daughter, Dorothy, to the ton, and Caroline is eager to see her sister, who as a child lives with their aunt.

But all is not well at the Greenwood estate. For one thing, Lady Caroline's former fiancé, Lord Francis Chatham, is a guest and refuses to speak to her. Far worse, after a series of troubling harassments of the staff, an elderly family member is found stabbed by a knitting needle. As Caroline and an unexpected ally—Mrs. Frogerton—attempt to solve the chilling crime, they discover the culprit may be leaving bizarre clues as to who will be next in the nursery. But they must make haste, for this heartless killer is engaged in anything but child's play . . .

©2022 Catherine Lloyd (P)2022 Tantor

Exceptionally Good Read

Setting the Scene: After she and her much younger sister are left orphaned and destitute by a complete wastrel of an aristocratic father, Lady Clara, now Miss Morton, sought and found employment as a paid companion to a boisterously outspoken woman of means and her spoiled daughter, Dorothy. Miss Morton's duty to help Dorothy navigate the treacherous waters of her first "season" is given a boost when Miss Morton's aunt invites all 3 to her youngest daughter's 17th Birthday Ball at the ancestral home. Miss Morton is pleased only because she will see her young sister who still resides with her aunt. Soon after they arrive, things go awry, family drama gives way to suspicious deaths, no one is acting as they should, but thankfully Miss Morton finds a surprising ally in her employer.

What I Thought: This is an exceptionally good read with unique but well developed complex characters, and an equally complex mystery that is well plotted, with ample twists and suspects and a totally unexpected ending. Miss Morton is a strong lead character who remains cool and calm in the face of surmounting obstacles yet somehow misses being cold and unfeeling. Her employer is a delight, and I look forward to more adventures.

Good story

Good plot…clear characters…reasonable historical accuracy…although a bit wordy at times…could be tightened up a bit with some further editing.

Strong characters

Loved the story and all of the different characters. Not a fan of the narrator’s lingering tones and accent. Still worth it!

Trigger alert

I was 3/4 way through this lovely period romance mystery book and enjoying the story and characters. Then a hint of sexual misconduct was introduced relating to, for all intents and purposes, a foster home. Had to stop. This story could have gone in a dozen ways that did not involve deplorable sexual misconduct with children. Seriously, does anyone want to have that theme rolling around in their mind? Now I’ll never know “who dun it.” The story line would allow other explosive conflicts - stollen heirlooms or an illegitimate child of the Lord that came to the foster home unaware of their heritage. Such a shame. The characters are excellent and the story portrays the position of having one foot in high society and the other in servant society, illustrating the thread of self determination needed to turn away from the privileged culture to avoid becoming trapped in it. For that, it gets 4 stars, but would have been 5 with a less disturbing and repugnant conflict. O don’t even know if that continues as a theme, but even bringing up as a potential driver for the crimes was too much for me. Great book up to that point.

Great story

I love the storyline of an independent female. I would have enjoyed it more if a different narrator was reading the box. If there are anymore books in this series, I pray that a different narrator be chosen. One who can do various voices and characters.