The Mitford Scandal: A Mitford Murders Mystery (Mitford Murders, #3)

by Jessica Fellowes

'Absolute blissikins' THE GUARDIAN

The newly married and most beautiful of the Mitford sisters, Diana, hot-steps around Europe with her husband and fortune heir Bryan Guinness, accompanied by maid Louisa Cannon, as well as some of the most famous and glamorous luminaries of the era. But murder soon follows, and with it, a darkness grows in Diana's heart . . .

This wonderful new book in the bestselling The Mitford Murders series sees the Mitford sisters at a time of scandalous affairs, political upheaval and murder.

PRAISE FOR THE MITFORD MURDERS SERIES

'A lively, entertaining, well-written whodunit' THE TIMES (crime book of the month)

'Exactly the sort of book you might enjoy with the fire blazing, the snow falling. The solution is neat and the writing always enjoyable' ANTHONY HOROWITZ (crime novels of the year)

'A must-read series . . . exactly what we all need in these gloomy times. Inventive, glittering, clever, ingenious' SUSAN HILL

'All the blissful escapism of a Sunday-night period drama in a book' THE POOL

'An extraordinary meld of fact and fiction' GRAHAM NORTON

'True and glorious indulgence. A dazzling example of a Golden Age mystery' DAISY GOODWIN

'Keeps the reader guessing to the very end. An accomplished crime debut and huge fun to read' EVENING STANDARD

'This story is drenched in detail and feels both authentic and fun. Curl up in your favourite reading spot and enjoy' HEAT

'Elegant, whipsmart and brilliantly twisty-turny, this Downton-style mystery had me hooked from the first page' VIV GROSKOP

'Full of period pleasure' WOMAN & HOME

'An audacious and glorious foray into the Golden Age of mystery fiction. Breathtaking' ALEX GRAY

'A real murder, a real family and a brand new crime fiction heroine are woven together to make a fascinating, and highly enjoyable, read. I loved it' JULIAN FELLOWES

'Jessica Fellowes' deliciously immersive, effortlessly easy novel has a strong feel for period and a rollicking plot' METRO

'What a captivating crime novel. The instant reassurance of being in the hands of a true storyteller with a feel for period detail makes this a real treat' AMANDA CRAIG

'This is a chocolate souffle of a novel: as the enthralling mystery heats up, so the addictive deliciousness of the story rises. The sort of book you never want to end' JULIET NICOLSON

• ISBN10: 1250316804
• ISBN13: 9781250316806
• Publish Date: 21 January 2020 (first published 26 September 2019)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 30 July 2024
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: St Martin's Press
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 384
• Language: English

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

The Mitford Scandal is the third book in the Mitford Murders series by Jessica Fellowes. Due out 21st Jan 2020 from Macmillan on their Minotaur imprint, it's 384 pages and will be available in hardcover, paperback, audio, and ebook formats (some formats available currently).

This is a well researched fictionalized murder mystery woven around a framework of actual historical occurrences and people. This was the first book in the series which I read, and it worked well enough as a standalone for me, though some of the secondary characters blended together and I found myself going back to re-read passages to find out who was married to whom. The murder 'mystery' was not a big part of the central plot and that and the romance subplots felt a bit tacked on to satisfy genre content.

For readers familiar with the history of the Mitfords and especially Diana Mitford, this one covers several years from 1929 and her marriage to Bryan Guiness onward. The privileged lifestyle and excesses of the moneyed classes are front and centre, contrasted with the privation of many of those who serve and protect them. The story moves from London to Paris to Venice and onward as the bodies pile up. Lady's maid Louisa works to untangle the motives and suspects and solve the crimes against a backdrop of ever-rising fascism and the threats to peace.

I did enjoy the book, the author is talented at her craft. The plotting was well done and moved the action along at a good pace. For me personally, the murders and romance subplots felt tacked on and inorganic. I think my antipathy to Diana Mitford Guiness herself dulled my appreciation of the book as a whole. Definitely a readable historical mystery and a well crafted book.

Four stars. Well written, well paced and plotted, satisfying and undemanding read.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.