Author:
Isabella Bassett
Series:
Lady Caroline Mysteries #2
Book Description: (goodreads):
Lake Garda, Italy, 1925
Uncle Albert, in relentless pursuit of his hobby, is off to a secluded island on Lake Garda, Italy. Guided by ancestral duty, Lady Caroline, his reluctant secretary, follows in his wake. An exclusive party has gathered to celebrate the coming out of the Queen of the Night with a midnight soiree.
But as the guests prepare to witness the exotic plant’s once-a-year bloom, Uncle Albert is discovered in the villa’s conservatory with a dead body. Worse yet, with the Queen of the Night completely destroyed.
While Lady Caroline is determined to clear her aging relation’s good name, Uncle Albert seems to dig himself further into trouble. When a second body turns up in the manicured gardens, and Uncle Albert again is the most likely culprit, Lady Caroline decides it’s time to put her scavenger hunt skills–the same ones that got her into this “secretary” mess in the first place–to good use and follow the clues to the real killer.
With a closed circle of upper-crust suspects, an elegant historic location, and a puzzling murder mystery without the gore, it’s a golden age country house whodunnit transplanted to Italy.
My Thoughts:
The first book I read in this series was Book 3 The Secret of the Scarab. It was set in Egypt and I really enjoyed it. Uncle Albert is my favorite character in the books. He is bumbling and appears not to notice what is going on around him but he's smarter than he seems. He is always trying to win and retain the coveted prize of the Golden Platypus. He is an avid member of the Royal Society for Natural History Appreciation, along with other Lords and royal nobility. They engage in competition to find rare plants and flowers and Lady Caroline travels along as his secretary and companion. This is unusual as she is a woman and the helpmates are almost always men. One of them, James is a love interest but they seem to be at odds often about how far the relationship goes.
Cut off from the mainland, the guests are reliant on each other and as two murders occur, suspicious as well. Caroline and James discover a grotto that seems to hold clues to the mystery of the island and possibly to why people are dying. As they work to unravel things, Uncle Albert is caught in the crossfire when he is accused of murder himself and Caroline does not believe for a second he is guilty.
She and James along with other guests await help and rescue while trying not to become victims themselves. Lady Caroline begins to realize there may even be an historical element to the murders as hints of treasure abound. She discovers clues to a way to summon help through a bit of sleuthing and trusts no one except James and her Uncle.
This was another fun cozy from Bassett and I will be reading book 4. Her characters and plots are endearing and fun to puzzle out. I want to read the current winter themed one but would rather go in order. A great series for taking your mind off your troubles!
