From the authors of the best-selling series CHERRINGHAMSussex, England, 1929. Mydworth is a sleepy English market town just 50 miles from London. But things are about to liven up there, when young and handsome Sir Harry Mortimer returns home from his diplomatic posting in Cairo, with his beautiful and unconventional American wife, Kat. No sooner have the two arrived, when a jewel robbery occurs … robbery occurs at Harry’s aunt’s home – Mydworth Manor. The police are baffled and overwhelmed with the case. But Harry and Kat have an edge in the hunt for the dangerous culprit: not only do they have certain useful “skills” they’ve both picked up in service of King, President and Country, they also have access to parts of English society that your average bobby can’t reach …
Co-authors Neil Richards (based in the UK) and Matthew Costello (based in the US), have been writing together since the mid-90s, creating innovative content and working on major projects for the BBC, Disney Channel, Sony, ABC, Eidos, and Nintendo to name but a few. Their transatlantic collaboration has underpinned scores of TV drama scripts, computer games, radio shows, and the best-selling mystery series Cherringham. Their latest series project is called Mydworth Mysteries.
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This was a quick, fun read. What I truly enjoyed about this book were the characters of Harry and Kat. While I liked each immediately, I especially enjoyed them together. With their adorable and unapologetic affection for each other, they reminded me of Nick and Nora Charles in the Thin Man movies. Making Harry and Englishman and Kat an American added to the fun, as Kat has to negotiate a slew of new social rules, but not to worry, she has Harry to help her, or she’ll just plain ignore them if they don’t suit her. They make a great team and I intend to keep reading the series.
1920s, cosy-mystery, england, newlyweds, murder, theft, family, family-dynamics, friendship, verbal-humor, situational-humor*****
Good spin on a classic spoof of between-the-wars English cosy mystery! Nicely tongue-in-cheek portrayals of the aristocracy and the ‘outsider American’ while having a good amateur sleuth mystery full of twists and red herrings. The characters certainly are and the imagery is well done. Looking forward to listening to more of this series enjoyably narrated by Nathaniel Parker!
This is a delightful, historical cozy mystery set in post WWI England. I really enjoyed the characters and how they interacted with each other. As the wife was American and the husband upper class British. This allowed for humorous relief as the language and cultural expectations sometimes clashed. The supporting characters were unique and some quirky. The narrative was well done allowing the reader to visualize the era and setting in which the story takes place. The story is told from both the husband and wife’s point of view, allowing insight into their deductive reasoning, their motivations and their actions. The mystery had numerous suspects, subtle clues, surprises, danger and suspense. The storyline flowed along smoothly and quickly. I enjoyed the fact that both husband and wife were Intelligent, interesting and strong characters that worked really well together. This was a well written and performed story, so if you like cozy, historical mysteries you should enjoy this one.
A husband & wife avengers
Mydworth Mysteries, A Shot in the Dark by Matthew Costello and Neil Richards was a terrific English Manor cozy mystery. Lord Harry Mortimer returns to his home in Mydworth with his new American wife, but there home is not quite ready. They stayed with his aunt who has guests. A man is shot escaping from a jewelry heist. Auntie asks Harry to look into the murder.
Excellent plot. Lovable characters. I loved it.
Series: Mydworth Mysteries #1
Publication Date: 7/31/19
What a delightful introduction to a new series this book was! I love historical mysteries and this will be a new favorite series for me. I love that it features an American and a Brit and that the writers are also – one American and one Brit. That means that we get the correct lingo, etc. from both sides. Love it!
Kat Reilly and Sir Harry Mortimer are, on the surface, an unlikely match. He is an English aristocrat and she is the daughter of an American pub owner. Yet, each has served in the war and then served their countries in other capacities. Now, they have found each other and love.
Kat and Sir Harry are on their way to Mydworth Manor to begin their new life together. As their car and baggage are being unloaded from the steamer ship, a messenger shows up with an urgent summons for Harry to make an appearance at the Home Office. So, Kat heads to Mydworth on her own – driving Harry’s prized Alvis motorcar. She had a lovely adventure with learning the rules of the English road.
When she arrives at the dower house they plan to live in, it is dark and boarded up. Didn’t their housekeeper get the cable advising of their arrival? Kat heads off, on foot, across the field to the manor house where Harry’s aunt lives hoping for a place to spend the night and await Harry’s arrival. She arrives to find a man climbing out a window – only to be shot – and then more bullets are flying all around – several flying very close to Kat. What a welcome to her new home!
Since Mydworth is a very small community, Harry’s aunt asks him and Kat to investigate. When the dead man is identified, they worry that the murderer might be close to home. With the house full of guests and servants galore, there are plenty of suspects to go around. Time is of the essence since the guests are all planning to leave.
With suspects aplenty, Kit and Harry have to work quickly to identify the guilty party. Who murdered the man who just happened to be a jewel thief? The solution is hard-won, the villain unexpected and the punishment sad.
I loved the romance and the mystery was interesting – but I never did understand why the dower house was unprepared for their arrival. Just something that was left undone and unexplained, yet it was an integral part of the plot
I am really looking forward to the next books in the series.