Murder in An Irish Castle by Verity Bright (Lady Eleanor Swift Book Twelve)

 

Publication Date:

November 28, 2022

Genre: 

Cozy Mystery/Historical Mystery

Length:   

320 pages

Series: 

Lady Eleanor Swift Mysteries

Book description courtesy of Goodreads

Irish whiskey, rolling green hills, a traditional Christmas feast and… a murder? Lady Swift will need the luck of the Irish to survive this holiday season!

Christmas, 1924. Lady Eleanor Swift has received a rather unexpected invitation to the village Christmas party in the tiny, rural hamlet of Derrydee in the west of Ireland. Eleanor is thrilled about exploring her ancestral roots at her late uncle’s estate and spending the festive season in a castle. Packing Gladstone the bulldog’s coziest Christmas jumper, they set off to the Emerald Isle with her butler Clifford in tow.

Arriving late at night, Eleanor and Clifford are shocked when they find a body sprawled in the snow on the winding country lane outside the estate. The local constable is immediately suspicious and all but accuses the pair of murder. This isn’t the warm Irish welcome Eleanor imagined.

Clifford is certain he recognises the poor fellow from the funeral of Eleanor’s uncle – but what was their connection? Undeterred by the villagers’ lack of gossip on the matter, Eleanor is determined to get justice for the victim. The man’s pockets are suspiciously empty of personal effects, but closer inspection reveals an old key hidden in the heel of his boot. Could this unlock more than one mystery for Eleanor?

But when a fire breaks out at the castle on Christmas Eve, an even bigger question looms: is someone out to ensure the family line dies with Lady Swift? And will Eleanor’s first Irish Christmas be her last?

My Thoughts:

This was a perfect November/December book to get me into the Christmas spirit. The descriptions of the Irish castles and surroundings, traditional food, and the local, quirky townspeople all made it feel authentic and I appreciated the author's research and interesting details. 

Eleanor, Clifford, and the dog, Gladstone really had a baffling mysyery to solve in this story. From the minute they find the nearly dead man in the road it seems no one wants them involved in questioning anything much less investigating suspicious clues. Of course this doesn’t stop them and after taking the man to a local convent and witnessing odd behavior by the nun and doctor there, they feel obligated to find out why. 

Can't Wait Wednesday: At Morning's Light (Home To Green Creek Book Two)

For this week's Can't Wait Wednesday hosted by Tressa at the book blog, Wishful Endings, I'm featuring, At Morning's Light by Lauraine Snelling. I am familiar with her other series set in the early Dakota territories and she is a wonderful storyteller of early pioneers coming over from Scandinavian/Norwegian countries. These are clean, Christian books that aren't cheesy and really pack in a lot of great history. This book takes place in Iowa during the 1800's.

Hope you have found something you can't wait for! Happy reading ya'll!

Christian Fiction/Historical Fiction

December 4, 2025

Book description courtesy of Goodreads

Newlywed Maya Bredesen and her husband plan their trek as immigrants from Norway to a new life at her cousin's boardinghouse in America, but on one last fateful fishing trip, a fierce winter storm steals away her husband. With her dreams for the future crushed, Maya is left grieving on the voyage to Iowa, accompanied instead by her brother, who plans to move in with the local magistrate and finish his seminary degree.
 
Arriving at a boardinghouse spilling over with orphans and a newly-married couple, Maya seeks to find her place amid the chaos. A new friendship develops between her and Eben Miller, the reserved, kind neighboring farmer. Just as Maya begins to recover from her wounded heart, more tragedy engulfs her. As she and Eben weather trials together, can they overcome the difficulties this new land holds when it seems so far from becoming home?
 
Lauraine Snelling creates a heartwarming picture of overcoming grief and embracing love on the Midwestern frontier.

Top Ten Tuesday: 10 Beautiful Winter/Holiday Book Covers

 

This week's theme for Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, is a December free choice. I decided to display ten beautiful winter/holiday book covers. The beautiful artwork in the book world is amazing and puts me in the spirit of the season. Being from Texas we don't get much of a winter, much less snow very often so these covers make me feel cozy and like I'm in a snowy, wintery setting. 

Click on the picture to go to Goodreads for more on each book.

What are your favorite types of book covers that really catch your eye?

 

Stacking the Shelves #76

 

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Reading Reality. It's a place to showcase any books I have purchased, borrowed, or been lucky enough to have been given an advance copy of. 

Hope you find something that looks interesting to you or that makes you remember a favorite book you need to finish. Happy reading ya'll!

The Duke's Agent by Rebecca Jenkins (A Raif Jarrett Regency Mystery Book One)

Kindle Purchase: Kindle Unlimited Free Trial

This mystery is set in England just after the Napoleonic Wars. The main character, Raif returns from them and is employed as the Duke of Penrith's agent. He soon uncovers crime, corruption, and murder. I like books set in this era featuring male protagonists similar to Poldark. Add in the mystery and I'm really hooked.

The Winter Mantle by Elizabeth Chadwick

Kindle Purchase: Free with Kindle points

First of all, what an absolutely gorgeous cover! It made me want to look into the book. Add in the reputable author and time period of the Norman conquest and I had to get it. This was a Chadwick novel I'd not heard of before. It is a stand alone, not part of a series. Set during 1067, it is about an English noble returning from battle who falls in love with William the Conqueror's niece. They are forbidden to marry and must navigate their feelings through the dangerous times. Should be a great historical read.

Murder at the Winter Gala by Rosie Hunt (A Lady Felicity Quick Mystery Book Ten)

Kindle Purchase: Free with Kindle points

I haven't started these books yet but such a gorgeous cover and I love historical Christmas cozies. I keep hearing it is a good series so I'd like to start it and I have book one. In this story Lady Felicity is planning her wedding while also solving the murder of the charity chairwomen at the village fundraiser for an orphanage. Add in a blizzard and it sounds like a great holiday/winter cozy.

They Came To Baghdad by Agatha Christie

 

Publication Date:

March 5, 1951

Genre:  

Cozy Mystery/Historical Mystery

Length:   

368 pages

Series:  None

Book description courtesy of Goodreads

She fell head over heels for the charming young man one afternoon. And by nightfall, Victoria Jones had conspired to follow him to Baghdad.

But no daydream of love could match the real life adventure that unfolded: a stranger was stabbed in her bed, someone issued a hushed warning, and her rival for Edward's affections neatly arranged her kidnapping. From the steamy Arab marketplace to the vast and arid desert, Victoria was pursued by an unknown power that threatened not only her, but the fate of the entire world.

My Thoughts:

I absolutely loved this one! It was more of a thriller/spy book and it didn't feel like a true Christie mystery. But it was fast paced and the main character, Victoria, was fantastic. She had spirit, was both funny and sometimes naive and I was sad to say goodbye to her. When it was over I was wishing she was a recurring character in other books but I don't think so.

The setting was also well described and I appreciated the local characters and the way Christie described some of their ways, how they thought and behaved differently from Western culture. 

The first half of the book unfolds with her just getting to Baghdad and the why behind her visit. I really did see through some of the red herrings early on and in the second half quickly figured out who the main villains were. But it didn't matter because I was loving seeing the story of Victoria's kidnapping and realization that she is part of a much larger world plot. She just keeps plugging along and doesn't lose her wits despite being faced with so much danger.

I thought reading this that Christie nailed some true sentiments not as likely to be discussed in her time, especially by the non-political person. She talks about people who think they are smarter than everyone else and have the right to direct their lives for their own good. And how that is the worst kind of evil. She says they have lost all brotherhood and humanity. Great observation.

I wish she'd written a few more like this one. The Tommy and Tuppence mysteries are probably the closest to them and I really like those. If you like spy type mysteries you will love They Came To Baghdad.