Death At Victoria Dock (Phryne Fisher Mystery, #4)

by Kerry Greenwood

Phryne Fisher is a likeable, charming and vibrant individual. She's kind and generous to those she meets, smart and logical when faced with problems or obstacles and adventurous in her dislike of boredom. She is brave and tenacious and brutal when faced with injustice.

A few deaths of distant relatives were all that stood between her life of poverty and her ascent into luxury at the age of 12 and she never takes her wealth and social standing for granted. The result of which is a kind and generous soul who is always willing to speak up for the victims, the downtrodden or the underdogs and one who relishes fine food, fine clothes and the myriad of pursuits open to her. Her open mindedness leads to an unique and vibrant cast pulled from all walks of life.

Being an Aussie and a proud Melbournian - the Melbourne setting was a highlight. Recognising the street names and places was fun. And Melbournians will understand the delight in recognising how strange our weather is to outsiders.

As far as the genre goes, I don't know if I'd really say it was crime or historical. I mean it is a historical period but it felt kind of modern. The crime was good but it was interspersed with character relationships. There was romance but none of it was meaningful or relevant. It was too lowbrow to be literary and too much reality to be chick lit. It's an odd mix that was an enjoyable read but likely not for everyone.

It's also fairly different from the tv show (and she's a lot younger in the books) but the main elements are present - like Phryne's love of clothes, her humour, confidence and loveable charming personality.

Character wise, I love them all! Phryne, Dot, Dr Elizabeth MacMillan, WPC Jones, Inspector Robinson, Bert and Cec, Mr and Mrs. Butler, Jane, Ruth, they were all fantastic and had me giggling throughout. And I adore the way women are portrayed in this series. I love that all the female characters are strong willed and fierce and able to look after themselves - even when it doesn't always seem like it. I also really like how the cops aren't written as useless or inept - but rather unable to significantly help without someone willing to speak up and testify.

Well this was intense. There was things happening all over the place. Unfortunately unlike the last book where I could push my issues aside fairly easily, this book I could not. I didn't like Peter. I hated the whole anarchy storyline. It was just too political for my tastes I think. I didn't much like most of the characters involved either which likely didn't help.

What I did like was the plot about the missing girl and Ruth and Jane's deviousness in finding out extra details. I loved the tattoo guy being cowed because Phryne goes in and is happy to reveal her skin in order to be tattooed. I liked getting to see more Bert and Cec and their confidence in leaving Phryne to do what Phryne does best without their help. I also loved the developing romance between police detective Hugh Collins and Dot. I loved the the ways they both foiled the criminals - Hugh taking the car part so they couldn't be chased, Dot breaking down the gun to cause it to jam at the crucial point of time.

Overall it wasn't as strong as the other books - but honestly it probably was just me not liking the content all that much. 3 stars.