In award-winning author Elizabeth J. Duncan’s tenth Penny Brannigan mystery set in North Wales, Canadian amateur sleuth Penny Brannigan attends a dinner party at a posh country house–where a historic chair disappears and a waiter is murdered.Artist and spa owner Penny Brannigan has been asked to organize a formal dinner to mark the centenary of the armistice that ended World War One. After … War One. After dinner, the guests adjourn to the library for a private exhibition of the Black Chair, a precious piece of Welsh literary history awarded in 1917 to poet Hedd Wyn. But to the guests’ shock, the newly restored bardic chair is missing. And then Penny discovers the rain-soaked body of a waiter.
When Penny learns that the victim was the nephew of one of her employees, she is determined to find the killer. Meanwhile, the local police search for the Black Chair. The Prince of Wales is due to open an exhibit featuring the chair in three weeks, so time is not on their side. A visit to a nursing home to consult an ex-thief convinces Penny that the theft of the Black Chair and the waiter’s murder are connected. She rushes to Dublin to consult a disagreeable antiquarian, who might know more than he lets on, and during the course of her investigation confronts a gaggle of suspicious travelers and an eccentric herbalist who seems to have something to hide. Can Penny find the chair and the culprit before she is laid to rest in the green grass of Wales?
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Remembering the Dead by Elizabeth J. Duncan is the tenth A Penny Brannigan Mystery. Emyr Gruffydd is going to host a dinner in honor of the hundredth anniversary of Armistice Day and he has asked Penny Brannigan to help organize the event. There will be a display of World War I artifacts plus the newly restored Black Chair that was awarded posthumously to Welsh poet Hedd Wyn in 1917. When they remove the black drape from the bardic chair, they find it is gone. Penny is looking for Lane Hardwick who disappeared during the dinner service and discovers one of the waiter’s dead outside. The waiter is Rhodri Phillips, the nephew of her spa receptionist, Rhian who asks Penny to investigate. Remembering the Dead can be read as a standalone for those who are new to the series, but I would recommend reading The Cold Light of Mourning first which will introduce you to the series. I thought the book was well-written with developed characters. Mrs. Lloyd, Jimmy and Dilys are back. Mrs. Lloyd is the town busy body. She likes to attend the big events and know the latest gossip. Jimmy provides insight on the theft of the chair (being a former thief himself). Dilys is an unconventional woman who roams the area and drinks an herbal tea that is unappealing. We meet Riley who is staying in the traveller’s encampment near Penny’s house and a talented artist. It was interesting to learn about the Black Chair and the poet, Hedd Wyn. It would have been helpful if there had been a pronunciation guide for the Welsh names. Elizabeth J. Duncan is a descriptive writer which allows the reader to imagine the characters and the scenes, but it does slow down the pacing. The mystery is multifaceted with a twist or two. I like how it all tied together in the end, but I did feel it could have used a little tweaking. There were some tense moments that will have you quickly flipping the pages. Solving the mystery, though, is not a challenge. There are lovely cozy moments and the tea was hot and abundant. Reading Remembering the Dead is a pleasing way to spend a quiet afternoon. Remembering the Dead is a diverting cozy mystery with a delicious dinner, a misplaced bardic chair, encamped traveller’s, a wandering waiter, a lost coffee aficionado, and one kindhearted sleuth.
I enjoy mysteries that educate me or teach me something or make me curious enough to look into a topic further. This book definitely did that, being based upon an actual award in literature.
I also enjoy mysteries that have elements of closed house parties, with deductive reasoning and which feature descriptions of the house’s footprint as clues to the crime.
This book can be read as a stand alone, but Penny’s character is well developed over the course of this series. Although she is Canadian by birth, which proves to be an obstacle in this investigation, she understands both the British and Welsh aspects of the history involved.
If you enjoy British television mysteries (or Canadian) you might find additional things to appreciate about these books. Penny has personal reasons to look at the crimes committed in a different way than the official police investigation.
Remembering the Dead is the 10th instalment in the “Penny Brannigan” Mystery series. At first I thought is this a reprint but realized I must of read a previous instalment. This reads more as a traditional mystery than cozy in my opinion and took me longer to read. It was like stepping back to when all I read was British mysteries. This can be read as a stand alone but recommend reading in order.
Canadian amateur sleuth Penny Brannigan attends a dinner party at a posh country house–where a historic chair disappears and a waiter is murdered.
Artist and spa owner Penny Brannigan has been asked to organize a formal dinner to mark the centenary of the armistice that ended World War One. After dinner, the guests adjourn to the library for a private exhibition of the Black Chair, a precious piece of Welsh literary history awarded in 1917 to poet Hedd Wyn. But to the guests’ shock, the newly restored bardic chair is missing. And then Penny discovers the rain-soaked body of a waiter.
When Penny learns that the victim was the nephew of one of her employees, she is determined to find the killer. Meanwhile, the local police search for the Black Chair. The Prince of Wales is due to open an exhibit featuring the chair in three weeks, so time is not on their side. A visit to a nursing home to consult an ex-thief convinces Penny that the theft of the Black Chair and the waiter’s murder are connected. She rushes to Dublin to consult a disagreeable antiquarian, who might know more than he lets on, and during the course of her investigation confronts a gaggle of suspicious travelers and an eccentric herbalist who seems to have something to hide. Can Penny find the chair and the culprit before she is laid to rest in the green grass of Wales?
Story is well written and the Welsh setting is lovely. I liked Penny but other character felt more alive to me. Love Mrs Lloyd, Jimmy and little Riley as well a few other characters.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves mysteries.
I requested and received an Advanced Readers Copy from the publisher and NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own
For anyone who enjoys British mysteries, the Penny Brannigan series by Elizabeth J. Duncan is a winner. And a Welsh setting is simply the icing on the cake! I discovered this series many years ago when searching for murder mysteries set in the UK and have greatly enjoyed each story. Remembering the Dead easily stands alone, but reading through the series gives a familiarity with the characters and setting.
Remembering the Dead is one of my favorites from the series, probably because of its historical detail and theme of honoring those who served and died in the first World War. I learned that Wales is a country that honors poets, the historical chair symbolizing that “the poet has a place at the table of princes.” The Black Chair itself was a national treasure, considered to be the masterpiece of a Belgian refugee. That it was bestowed upon a national poet was something that every person in the country would have known about – not exactly easy for a thief to hide.
Remembering the Dead has all the elements of a cozy mystery – murder committed off stage, amateur detective, idyllic setting – but is more serious and complex than what is typical for this genre. That’s a compliment, something that I loved about this story. The author vividly conveys the North Wales setting of Llanelen, with its natural beauty and interesting residents. When asked to organize a dinner party at Emyr’s estate, Ty Brith Hall, to celebrate Remembrance Day and mark the end of World War I, Penny Brannigan involves a few friends and business connections to help. The Black Chair, with its connection to the war, will also be there for one night, for the chair “represents all the empty chairs in front of the hearth that the lads and men of World War I never came home to.”
The mystery is well crafted, with beautiful prose, and one clue seemingly leading to another. I loved that there was a self-contained group of suspects, for the thief/murderer almost had to be a guest, staff, or someone with intimate knowledge of Emyr’s estate. Penny Brannigan makes a great protagonist with her skill, logic, intelligence and insight. She is methodic in her investigation and doesn’t rush headlong into danger. I loved reconnecting with some of the recurring characters who play important parts, such as the gossipy Mrs. Lloyd, ex-thief Jimmy, and eccentric herbalist Dilys. Remembering the Dead is an excellent mystery, one that I never wanted to put down.
Highly recommended.
I received a copy of this book through Great Escapes Tours. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
If you are new to this series, please don’t be put off by the fact that this is the 10th in the series. It stands on its own very well and, if you like it as much as I did, you have nine books to enjoy. Penny Brannigan is a wonderful character and the setting is perfect. Penny even takes a trip to Ireland in this one in her search for clues to catch a killer.
Somebody has stolen a chair and, in the process, committed a murder. Who would kill over a chair? Well, this is a historical chair, known as the Black Chair and it was awarded back in 1917 to poet Hedd Wyn. It’s Welsh literary history and its refurbishment was the reason for the gathering for a formal dinner at a local country house. Penny is in attendance and gets more than what was on the dinner menu. Instead of after dinner drinks and more conversation with fellow guests, they find that the famous chair has gone missing, replaced by a plain old chair. Penny goes outside to look for evidence of the thief only to discover homicide. As this isn’t her first dead body, she goes into investigation mode and follows the clues. She realizes that the victim and the chair are connected and she travels to Ireland, trying to beat the clock in finding the killer and retuning the chair. The Prince of Wales is on his way to view the chair. Will it make its return in time?
This series is one that keeps its place on my must read list. When I start the latest one I’m certain to find a five star mystery to engage me. I haven’t been disappointed yet.
This is the 10th book in the series, but I was able to muddle through fairly well. While at a dinner party that is supposed to end with the unveiling of Hedd Wyn’s Black Chair from 1917(which has been restored), we discover that the chair has been stolen and a person has been killed. The police were called in, but Penny has decided that she needs to investigate as well. Since Penny’s had experience solving mysteries in the past, no one objects to her involvement.
This is billed as a cozy mystery, but it was longer and drier than I would’ve liked. I normally devour this genre, but I just couldn’t get into the characters or story. I’m also a huge fan of anything historical, so it really threw me when I couldn’t get into it at all.
**I was provided an ARC of this story from Netgalley and this is my honest and voluntary review.
This is the 10th book in the Penny Branigan series.Penny is in charge of organizing the dinner party for Emyr that involves a small exhibit of WWll items and a poets chair dating from 1917 unfortunately things go wrong and chair goes missing then a waiter is found dead she then starts looking for clues to solve both mysteries. This was quick enjoyable read. I liked the details that were put into this book helped you to picture what it must look like.
amateur-sleuth, Wales, theft, murder, cosy-mystery, law-enforcement, contemporary *****
If you like a cosy mystery complete with an amateur sleuth, cooperative law enforcement, some history to learn about, theft, and murder, you just can’t miss with this one! I really don’t know where to start without doing the spoiler thing, but I can say that it doesn’t really matter if this is part of a series because I haven’t read any of the others and that was no problem. I hope lots of readers enjoy it as much as I did!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley. Thank you!