The fifteenth Phryne Fisher murder mystery
The nice men at P+O are worried. A succession of jewellery thefts from first class passengers is hardly the best advertisement for their cruise liners, particularly when it is likely that it is a passenger who is doing the stealing.
Phryne Fisher, with her Lulu bob, green eyes, Cupid's bow lips and Chanel travelling suits, is exactly the sort of elegant sleuth to take on a ring of jewellery thieves aboard the high seas - or at least, aboard the SS Hinemoa on a luxury cruise to New Zealand. With the Maharani - the Great Queen of Sapphires - as the bait, Phryne rises magnificently to the challenge.
There are shipboard romances, champagne cocktails, erotic photographers, jealous husbands, mickey finns, blackmail and attempted murder, all before the thieves find out - as countless love-smitten men have before them - that where the glamorous and intelligent Phryne is involved, resistance is futile.
P&O have approached Phryne with a mission, to investigate jewellery theft, apparently someone in first-class is committing the deed, she's asked to pose as a first class passenger (not that Phryne would countenance anything less these days) and use a lure to catch the thief. Things start getting complicated and everyone is a possible suspect.
Poor Dot gets knocked out, but Phryne does her bit in panache and elegant clothes.
Twisty plot with lots of red herrings and plenty of moments where Phryne is magnificent.
This qualifies for Amateur Sleuth, Terrifying women and possibly locked room mystery, also probably country house mystery, I'm going to go with Terrifying women
Reading updates
-
Started reading
-
5 September, 2017:
Finished reading
-
5 September, 2017:
Reviewed