Murder at the Brightwell--A Mystery

August 25, 2014
Fans of plucky female amateur sleuths will welcome Amory Ames, the heroine of Weaver’s pleasing debut set in 1932 England. Amory’s rake of a husband, Milo, a man she “loves and hates in equal proportions,” has just returned from Monte Carlo, where he was reported to have spent time with other women. Meanwhile, Gil Trent, the man Amory was engaged to before Milo swept her off her feet five years earlier, invites her to join him and others in a large party planning to stay a week at the Brightwell Hotel in Kent. There Gil hopes Amory will help persuade his 23-year-old sister to stop seeing a man he deems unsuitable. Amory accepts, but she soon turns detective after a fellow hotel guest turns up dead and another is suspected of foul play. Despite the routine sleuthing and predictable love triangle, the affable Amory could carry a series, though plausibly involving her in future murder cases will require some imagination. Agent: Ann Collette, Rees Literary Agency.

February 23, 2015
Voice actress Fulford-Brown turns in a lackluster reading of Weaver’s Edgar Award–nominated debut mystery, set in 1932 England. The story revolves around Amory Ames, a wealthy young woman who becomes a plucky amateur sleuth when she learns that her former fiancé is a suspect in a murder investigation. Weaver’s tremendously strong plot, fresh style, and skillfully crafted writing fades in Fulford-Brown’s presentation of it, which is dirge-like and frequently belies the text. The excellent production value is lost on her fatigued read, with its frequently off-putting intonation, pronunciation, and cadence. A Minotaur hardcover.

October 1, 2014
A lovely seaside hotel is the backdrop for murder. England, 1932. Young, beautiful and wealthy, Amory Ames has a dashingly handsome, equally wealthy husband and an unhappy marriage. Milo Ames is seldom home, and when he is, their relationship is, to put it politely, strained. So when Amory's former fiance, Gilmore Trent, begs her to go to the Brightwell Hotel with him to help break up his sister Emmeline's romance with Rupert Howe, she agrees, even though her joining Gil may create a scandal. Upon their arrival, Amory and Gil run into Yvonne Roland, a society gossip who jumps to the conclusion that they're a couple. There's quite a mixed group vacationing at the Brightwell, but when Howe is found dead at the base of a cliff, it's Gil who's suspected of killing him. Amory, still in love with Milo, feels guilty about dumping Gil. She's quite fond of him and determined to prove him innocent despite warnings from DI Jones that her sleuthing could prove dangerous. When Milo arrives on the scene, their brittle conversations don't tell Amory whether he's motivated by jealousy or just looking for excitement. Snooping in the room of the bullying Nelson Hamilton, the pair is forced to hide in a wardrobe when he suddenly returns to take a bath. Attempting to sneak away, they find him dead in the bathtub. Despite her unhappiness and confusion in her relationships, Amory is still determined to save Gil, even if her snooping puts her on the killer's to-do list. A spunky heroine, a tense romance and red herrings galore make Weaver's debut a pleasant read for nostalgia buffs who miss Agatha Christie.

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September 15, 2014

This first novel by librarian Weaver is, in a word, charming. Set in 1930s England, at a popular upper-crust seaside resort, the story's heroine and reluctant sleuth, Amory Ames, is at best ambivalent about her marriage to flighty playboy Milo. That is part of the reason she agrees so readily to spend a week at the resort with her former fiance, Gil Trent. Gil's reason for asking Amory is to enlist her help in untangling his sister from an unsuitable engagement--to Rupert, a man who appears to be very much like Amory's wayward husband! To the surprise of both Amory and Gil, Milo decides to show up at the resort as well, adding to Amory's problems...for Rupert is dead, and Gil is the main suspect. A second murder adds to the mystery, and Amory finds herself battling for time to solve the murder and decide whether she wants to continue in her marriage. VERDICT A pleasant debut novel, nicely evoking the 1930s with strong atmosphere and the beginnings of some intriguing characters. Readers who enjoy this period will not want to miss what is likely the first in a new series.--Pam O'Sullivan, Coll. at Brockport Lib., SUNY

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September 15, 2014
Amory and Milo Ames, landed gentry in 1930s England, have a modern marriage. He jaunts off to the Riviera without her, and she takes up the invitation from her former fianc', Gil Trent, to join him and 10 other vaguely connected acquaintances and friends at a seaside resort, with the express purpose of trying to talk sense into Gil's sister about her current suitor, Rupert Howe. On the second day at the Brightwell Hotel, Amory discovers Howe's body, tossed over a railing onto a terrace partway down the bluff to the beach. As the murder investigation progresses, Milo arrives. Setting aside their marital ennui, Milo and Amory join forces to do amateur sleuthing, much to the annoyance of the local detective. Using the forced social gatherings that are part of upper-class resort life, as well almost farcical visits to each other's rooms, they untangle the connections among the group, breaking the case. This debut novel by a librarian lays the foundation for a stylish series with Milo and Amory channeling Nick and Nora Charles.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)