Naughty in Nice (Royal Spyness Mystery, #5)

by Rhys Bowen

[jesstheaudiobookworm]

4.75★ Audiobook⎮ After reviewing the first installment of the Her Royal Spyness series, I new I was in love. That was when I vowed to hold off further reviews until finishing the [lengthy] series in order to do a series review. However, I decided to write a quick review today to yet again gush over my love for this series. It is officially one of my favorite series of all-time. Even though Naughty in Nice wasn’t the strongest of the series so far, it was still incredibly scrumptious. In my mind, this series is exactly what cozy mysteries should be.

After five installments, Bowen’s writing still fills me with delight and I’ve come to adore every character for their memorability. I think of Georgie, Darcy, Fig, Queenie and the entire cast of characters with the same fond familiarity as I do the cast of a syndicated television show (i.e. Friends). The story lines are never too heavy and provide a much needed escape from reality. I can always count on this series to get me out of a listening slump or general life funk.

Georgie is a wonderfully entertaining protagonist and I admire her progressive attitude, which is somewhat similar to that of Lady Sybil of Downton Abbey. Living in the middle of two very different worlds and trying to navigate the 1930s British class system, Georgie always manages to find herself in a spot of trouble, usually involving a dead body. I am rarely able to solve the mystery before the big reveal and I don’t think my delight would be spoiled if I did. The pleasure isn’t as much in solving the mystery as it is in enjoying the literary journey Bowen provides.

If anyone were to approach this series too seriously, it would not be enjoyed. My suggestion is to view it with the same level of amusement with which one would watch an episode of I Love Lucy. I recommend this to fans of Downton Abbey searching for more fun and less drama.

Narration review: The more I hear Katherine Kellgren’s work, the more I am convinced that she is one of my favorite audiobook narrators. She is certainly one of the best at providing character distinction. Her talent is at the level of a professional comedic impressionist. As soon as she voices a character, I immediately have a mental image of them. This is especially important because so many of the characters in this series are divided by distinct class system levels and the associated levels of education are evident in their dialect. Many of those distinctions are referenced in Bowen’s writing, but Kellgren’s voicing of them is what always drives the point home. Her narration takes the audiobook listening experience and the overall experience of this series to a new level of enjoyment. Kellgren is such an asset to this series. ♣︎