Probably my favourite Phryne Fisher mystery that I've read. It had all the usual elements but was more mystical and risque than previous stories. Didn't lose anything because of it. Looking forward to my next liaison with Phryne.

An amazing book. Very glad I had the chance to read and highly suggest it for fans of the show..

A few months ago, I was perusing my Netflix queue and happened to find a show called Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries. It looked fun, so I decided to give it a try. It became my favorite show to watch after the kids went to bed or when I tried to write a blog post during naptime.

Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries follows Phryne Fisher, who has come into a fortune later in life. She lives in Australia in the 1920s. Phryne is fabulous and she knows it. She ignores social convention by flaunting her lovers and even enjoying (!) her trysts. She drives her own car and is known to carry a gun (just in case). Our dear protagonist is hungry for knowledge and never content to leave a question unanswered. When local detective Jack Robinson finds her poking around his crime scene, he is initially irritated but soon discovers that Phryne is both charming and very good at solving mysteries. The two end up working together and the tension between the uninhibited Phryne and the very proper Jack is delightful.

There is also a fantastic roster of supporting characters including Phryne's butler (aptly named Mr. Butler); her ladies' maid/assistant Dot; Hugh, who works with Jack at the police station; and Burt and Cec, who help Phryne gather information. In the television show, these characters get enough screen time that you are almost in love with them as you are with Phryne herself.

After I finished watching the show, I stumbled upon the book series and decided to see what was source material and what was unique to the television show. The books were published before the television show was created, but they were recently re-released with tie-in covers. I read Raisins and Almonds and Murder in the Dark, which are #9 and #16 in the series.

I remember watching Raisins and Almonds on tv. Phryne is pulled into the dark corners of Jewish politics after a man is murdered in a bookstore and the owner is wrongly arrested. I don't remember watching Murder in the Dark, but it's certainly possible that the story was changed significantly or I've just forgotten one episode! In that story, Phryne is invited to a huge party at an estate. The host is threatened and people start to go missing.

Both books gave me a good sense of Phryne herself, but I missed spending time with the secondary characters. They were almost entirely absent in one book and appeared periodically in the other. It also seemed to me that being forced to condense a story to just one episode made it tighter, as opposed to a sprawling 250 pages where you can devote pages to Phryne thinking or spend a page describing the lunch they are eating.

I will always be a big Phryne Fisher fan in whatever format I can find her. For someone new to the fabulous Phryne, the show or the books are a wonderful place to start. But I have to confess I think I will find myself re-watching the television show more often than I will be picking up another book.

A Miss Fisher mystery set in the dog days of an Australian New Year's - the whodunit here falls apart a bit, mainly because the characters threatened are ciphers and irritating to an astounding degree. I came away thinking that Ms. Greenwood had a looser grasp on what she is trying to accomplish here than in other novels in the series and she ends up throwing a bit of everything at the wall (orgies, and goats, and Saint's stories, and polo, and jazz, etc.). As such, it reads a bit sloppy; it's a recommend for fans of the series but I wouldn't give this one to a reader just starting the series.

Murder in the Dark

by Kerry Greenwood

I read Murder in the Dark intermittently in the midst of traveling and chaos, but I always looked forward to returning to it and was never disappointed. Invariably, the character of Phryne Fisher as a sleuth is delightful. In this book, the regulars of the series play a role, but a minor one, as little action occurs in Phryne’s home setting, but at an old rented estate where a rich and magnetizing brother and sister are holding what they bill as the Last Great Party of the year. Phryne has been invited to stop a threatened murder of the host. She has also been personally warned away from the affair. Anyone who knows Phryne understands that such threats only serve to ensure her attendance.

These mysterious warnings are entwined with other puzzling events once the weeklong party begins. Phryne must use her deductive and social skills to solve the mysteries. She also enlists the help of a variety of people she encounters, both servants and other guests. The resolutions of the mysteries are surprising and not without action scenes. I love that Phryne spends her spare time at the event reading an Agatha Christie novel.

I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Poisoned Pen Press for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 4/5

Category: Mystery, Historical Fiction

Notes:
heavy doses of drug use, sex, and gender transposition
#16 in the Phryne Fisher Mystery series

Publication: May 2, 2017—Poisoned Pen Press

Memorable Lines:
“Dot has a talent for being happy.”

Phryne didn’t believe in rigid routines. They robbed the day of spontaneity.

Her childhood had been so poor that Phryne still got a vague thrill when she turned on a tap and hot water came out.

Murder in the Dark by Kerry Greenwood is sixteenth book in Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries. It is Christmastime much to Jane and Ruth’s delight. The Butler’s, Dot, Bert, and Cec will be spending Christmas Day with their families. Phryne’s sister, Eliza and her companion will be spending the day with Phryne and the girls. Phryne has received an invitation to Gerald and Isabella Templar’s The Last Best Party of 1928. After receiving a threatening Christmas card warning her off from the party, Phryne decides to attend. The next day the family is opening gifts and there is one last gift for Phryne that had been left on the front porch. There is a lovely cuff inside with a venomous snake wrapped around it. Thankfully, Ember (the cat) kills the slimy creature before it can harm anyone. Phryne is dropped off at the party, and she sets out to explore. It is a massive affair that will last from December 27 through January 1 with costumed events each evening along with music (Nerine is with us once again), polo matches, cocktails and other recreational (lascivious) activities. Gerald requests to speak with Phryne privately. He has been receiving threatening letters and needs her assistance discovering this perpetrator’s identity. Later Phryne discovers that Gerald and Isabella adopted children and Isabella’s adoptive daughter, Marigold has disappeared. It is assumed that she ran away. But one evening, Tarquin, Gerald’s adoptive son, goes for drinks and disappears. Phryne investigates and finds that Tarquin has been taken. But, the evildoer has left a riddle behind on a luggage tag. Phryne must unravel each riddle in this scavenger hunt to find the next clue. Will Phryne get to the end in time to save the victims?

Murder in the Dark is set at Christmas. We are told that it is Phryne’s first Christmas in Australia. Then everything that has transpired in the first fifteen books has occurred in less than twelve months. Does anyone else find this a little odd? I did like that we caught a glimpse into the lives of Bert, Cec, Dot, and the Butler’s away from Miss Fisher’s household. The party is an over-the-top affair with many varied activities. Readers need to remember that the story is set in 1928 when recreational drugs flowed freely and were not illegal. The mystery was complex, and I do not believe many readers will figure out the whole solution (I am being cryptic on purpose). I particularly enjoyed the riddles. They were fun to decipher. I give Murder in the Dark 3 out of 5 stars. I did feel that the book was a slightly too long. The book needed more focus and editing (it would have certainly helped with the books slow pacing). Kerry Greenwood was rather wordy. We are given descriptions of the clothes, food, costumes, house, grounds, tents, games, erotic scenes and so on. Several recitations and songs are also included in the story (I skimmed through them). I wish there had been less focus on the party with its varied activities. Since Murder in the Dark was a Christmas novel, I would have liked it to be more Christmas themed (instead of a hedonistic party). I did find the solution to the twin’s financial woes to be creative but unrealistic (might have been some eye rolling). I did like the afterward included by the author.

One of our pleasant discoveries since moving is to find that the local PBS station schedules lots more murder mysteries than Austin did, including our favorite, “Midsomer Murders.” On another channel, we also discovered the “Miss Fisher Mysteries,” based on the Phryne Fisher series by Kerry Greenwood being reissued by Poison Pen Press. When I saw that Netgalley was listing three of the series, I promptly requested them.

Phryne Fisher is a sort of flapper detective in this Australian series set in 1920’s Melbourne. Murder in the Dark is the 16th in the series. For those of you who have been watching the TV series, I have to warn you that this novel bears very little resemblance to the episode of the same name.

Christmas is nearing when Phryne begins to receive threats related to the Last Best Party, a house party given by siblings Gerald and Isabella Templar. Someone does not want Phryne to attend and even sends her a Christmas present of a poisonous snake. Of course, this makes Phyrne determined to attend.

When she speaks to Gerald about it, he admits that someone has sent him death threats. Soon after she arrives at the house, Gerald’s adopted son, Tarquin, disappears, as Isabella’s adopted daughter, Marigold, has already done. Although they thought Marigold had run away, Tarquin seems devoted to Gerald. Phryne also begins a sort of scavenger hunt, as she receives clues, supposedly from the murderer, that each lead to the next.

Phyrne soon finds out from her sources that someone has hired a hit man. Unfortunately, the description of the man is so vague that it could apply to most people.

In the sybaritic atmosphere of the party, Phryne tries to find the clues and locate the hit man before he kills someone. Since the guests include members of the upper classes, polo players, musicians, hashish smokers, the acolytes of the hosts, and even a goat lady, there are a lot of characters roaming about.

This novel was a pleasant enough light reading experience. The culprit wasn’t readily guessable because there was so little information about the plethora of characters. And indeed Greenwood cheats a bit by having, count ’em, three different culprits. I did glancingly guess the identity of the person who hired the hit man but dismissed the idea because it didn’t seem to make sense.

One character who doesn’t appear in the TV series (oops! not until after I wrote this) is Phryne’s lover, an elegant Chinese man named Lin Chung. In this book, at least, he seemed to be completely unnecessary, perhaps only around to make Phryne’s behavior at the party seem more scandalous. But maybe he is more important in some of the other books. In any case, the TV show centers around a flirtation between Phryne and the police inspector, Jack Robinson, that does not seem to be present in the novels. Or maybe I’m talking from too little exposure to Phryne’s world.

I have to be honest, this Miss Fisher novel was quite disappointing. In fact, characters act and speak so differently from the other two novels I’ve read, they don’t even seem to come from the same hand.
The story was all over the place. As usual, there are many threads intertwining, which I normally like, but here they just confused me. I kept losing sight of what the mystery was all about and what was Miss Fisher doing about it. The investigation didn’t seem tight at all and often I didn’t see where some conclusions came from.
Miss Fisher finds herself at the Best End of the Year Party of 1928, where an assassin is lurking, but it looked to me as if the author was much more concerned with describing the party (there were loooong sections of this) than building a mystery. I still read it with some pleasure, because Phryne Fisher is a good character and because the writing was easy and nice, but honestly it wasn’t as entertaining as other novels in the same series.
Still, I suppose long series like this one will always offer good stories and less good ones. I will read more Miss Fisher novels.

It is 1928 and it is going to end with the best of parties The rich and not so rich but flamboyant and the risque are going to be present. The Hon. Phyrne Fisher is also invited. She was in two minds about going but when threats appeared telling her not to go if she valued her life, she knew she had to be present.

A sleuthing mystery of a different kind as the setting was unusual to say the least. The atmosphere is full of hash and sex, romance of many kinds, unusual men and women, unusual children as well and the underlying threat that follow in the form of riddles accompanied by the mysterious disappearance of both children. A world of glamour, parties of the most complicated kind and a lot of fun and laughter and high living.

Unravelling the riddles was an experience in itself and Phyrne has to make sure that the children are discovered before harm comes to them.

Unexpected twists and very quaint story telling made this an usual mystery thriller, one of a series.

Goodreads and Amazon reviews up on 11/5/52017. Review on my blog mid August.

I hated this book. No more in this series for me

I know I say it all the time, but Phryne is the unflappable flapper! This adventure finds Phryne attending the Last Best Party of 1928 - an elaborate week-long event in extravagance. With the invitation in hand, and bags packed, murderous threats begin arriving with the Christmas cards. Not only is Phryne never one to cower at threats, if anything, the threats only promise that the party will be anything but dull. In the face of Dot's ever-loyal concern for her safety, Phryne rises to the challenge of unmasking a villain.

I love that bits of the story are told from various characters - including a killer. I especially enjoyed knowing what was going on at home with Dot and the girls while Phryne was away. And, this adventure finds mysteries unfolding within mysteries... every time I thought I had it figured out, a new twist took the things in another direction.

This installment also saw the introduction of at least one new character in the form of the dashing Nicholas, who I hope we have not seen the last of! A Miss Fisher mystery never disappoints - no matter what, I know I'm always in for a treat.

Phryne isn't sure she wants to go to a big party at Christmas but when she gets a note warning her not to come, she makes up her mind. She's going!

Poisoned Pen Press and Net Galley allowed me to read this book for review (thank you). It will be published May 2nd.

She knows the "golden" couple who are hosting the event. They've rented a house, have a big blowout planned with lots of booze and drugs, and lots of people. Once she's arrived, she starts getting notes left where she can find them with riddles on them. She has to figure out where the next note will be be. She knows she may be in danger but she doesn't back off.

This is an intriguing tale. The guest are all outrageous in their behavior. Phryne adds another conquest to her list. Two children are missing. There is more than one threatening party. Murder is within reach. And the only one who can stop it is Phryne.

She finds one missing child and keep searching for the second. She also searching for the potential murderer. The problem is that he is searching for her, too...

There's lot of action, plenty of misunderstandings and confusion and when it gets settled at the end it's amazing, but everything works out. I was also amazed by who ordered the killing. Ms. Greenwood is very inventive and I like it.

The Honorable Phryne Fisher undertakes some sleuthing into the threats to the life of the delicious but dishonorable Gerald Templar, newly arrived to Australia from Paris. Gerald and Isabella Templar — known as the Golden Twins — have transported their sybaritic posse of lesbian lovelies and handsome young men with them and are now staging a four-day Last Best Party of 1928 to welcome 1929. Phryne knew the Templars and their lavish, scandalous parties from her days in Paris, but she’s of two minds as to whether to attend the hedonistic spree — until someone tries to warn her off with a venomous coral snake. Fierce Phryne therefore determines to head to Werribee Manor and unmask the villain — preferably roughing him up in the process.

While nearly ever Phryne novel provides a glimpse into Phryne’s own sybaritic side, Murder in the Dark dwells heavily on that part of her. In addition, there’s an intriguing puzzle as Phryne, with the aid of a new boy-toy named Nicholas Booth, tries to discover who wishes to harm the gorgeous Gerald and why. This 16th novel seems more dreamy and sensuous than usual (I know that’s promising a lot!), and longtime readers will enjoy its change of pace; that said, newbies to the series will find this novel a great introduction to the fabulous Phryne.

In the interest of full disclosure, I received this book from NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press in exchange for an honest review. And special thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for reissuing the fabulous Phryne Fisher in paperback and Kindle editions for a new generation to devour.

This is a little bit of a weird one! Most Phyrne Fisher mysteries are a little more straightforward, but this one takes a lot of twists and turns, with an unusual backdrop. I thought the weirdness of the cult/party was really fun, though I missed seeing some of our usual players as much. The mystery was quite entertaining - I particularly liked that she wasn't really 100% confident on most of it, but sort of bluffed her way through until she got what she needed.

I have a confession - Miss Fisher Mysteries was my first experience with binge watching on Netflix and I am addicted to the series. I know that the book is always better than the movie/TV show but I was really hesitant this time. When the book came up in my feed I thought - oh no I already have a visual of the characters and the setting, is this going to work? Well YES and even better than I hoped. I love Phryne Fisher and her collection of characters even more now that I got an insider's look into all of them. The details and deeper knowledge of the personal quirks of Miss Fisher's personality just makes her even more fun. At a few times this book is a little closer to a R rating than the show but it is done in a tasteful and enjoyable (ok double entendre) way. One of the real treats are the smaller characters and subplots that happen during the "Last Best Party". They kept me reading well into the night.
Like any series jumping in at #16 could have been confusing but having watched the show everything was understandable. I will definitely be looking for all the other books now that I know what a treat they are.

I'm bounding through a few of the Phryne Fisher mysteries this week and definitely think that an "immersion course" in them is the way to go. Each book (so far) has had its strength's (Phrynee) and weaknesses (ease or challenge of working through the plot), but the cumulative effect of the group I've read so far is definitely greater than the sum of the parts. In essence, more is more when it comes to Phryne Fisher.

I noticed that other reviewers varied considerably in their reactions to this particular installment in the series. Greenwood goes to considerable lengths to articulate every detail of an over-the-top, Bacchanal at a country estate. Pages and pages are spent describing the poetry readings, parlour games, and (yes!) group sex offered for the amusement of the guests. Phryne is a master of it all and I suspect this annoys and offends (or bores) some readers. But, for me, this was very effective in re-creating the Jazz Age culture. Phryne is "a player" and Greenwood has placed her in an environment that fits her as beautifully as one of her couture gowns.

I am simultaneously watching the PBS series "Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries" and will be anxious to see if(and if so, how) the decorous PBS Mystery series tackles this decadant weekend event.

I received a free E Arc from Netgalley.

This is the fourth Miss Fisher book I've read and by far the longest. That said, it's still a quick, and intriguing read and I did very much enjoy it.

The descriptions of the very elaborate party she attends are not quite as long and tedious as other reviewers have complained, although there is quite a lot of poetry which is irrelevant. That said, it's all scene setting - showing the ridiculously opulent lifestyle of the brother and sister at the heart of the story, and the way that the very rich choose to amuse themselves when they decided to have a party. That said, it's very much Miss Fisher's associates who complete the story, the cook, the maid, the 'strongmen' and the eventual appearance of good old Jack Robinson, not to mention Dot, her daughters and indeed, her sister.

I particularly enjoyed the brief scenes where Miss Fisher is reading the latest Agatha Christie novel, and determining who Hercule Poirot has decided is guilty of the crime. In its own way, this serves to highlight the differences between the hedonistic lifestyle of the party givers, Miss Fisher, and the far more sedate, Hercule.

Miss Fisher manages to solve the mystery, as always, and if the 'happy' ending is a little silly, then it is fiction - and why not allow the characters, who admittedly aren't that likeable, to profit from their misfortune. It was a neat solution to the problem of the cast forever onwards being stuck in Miss Fisher's circle of friends.

4 and 1 / 2 stars

These Phryne Fisher books are so delightful! I’ve enjoyed every one that I’ve read, and of course I liked this one too. The writing is most excellent and the story keeps rolling along, ratcheting up the suspense as you go.

I like the characters in this series; Phryne, Dot, the Butlers and all the others. Although these stories differ on some key points from the television series, they are great reads from a truly great author.

The honorable Phryne is not sure if she wants to attend the “Last Best Party of 1928” or not. Then she receives a card telling her not to go…or else. Well, that settles it. She sends in her reply immediately, saying she will attend.

This party is a chance for the two hosts to go wild – as in everything they do. With a wide variety of guests, this party is way beyond the norm: drinks, hashish and odd behavior – everything goes. But when three of the guests go missing; are kidnapped in fact, Phryne is on the case.

I want to very much thank Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for forwarding to me a copy of this most delightful book to read.

Murder in the Dark by Kerry Greenwood is another fabulous murder mystery. Inside, I found myself following Miss Phryne Fisher as entangles another crime. Her detective skills are amazing. Miss Fisher is a modern living woman who defies that of her own time period. She's bold, clever, and charming. Kerry Greenwood has once more kept me hanging onto every one of her words. Action, adventure, and clues to chase.

Murder in the Dark is highly engaging to read. I never knew what to expect next from the woman detective. Danger is always around with Phyrne Fisher. That and nothing is done in simple terms either. The high, rich, and dramatic lifestyle is featured every time. Miss Fisher may have many faults but her skills make up for them. A daring personality is needed when threats are made and people are missing. Time is racing and Miss Fisher is chasing after the evidence...

Richly detailed, exciting,and thrilling...Kerry Greenwood has done it again. Creating a vivid bright world of fiction that readers can loose themselves within and feel the rush of adrenaline as the plot unfolds...overall, I highly recommend this book to readers everywhere.

I received a free copy for review from NetGalley.

I've only read the first two Phryne Fisher murder mysteries, but I'm a big fan of the TV series with Essie Davis based on the series. This is my first Phryne Fisher book that wasn't adapted into a TV episode, so it was refreshing to see a different sort of adventure and in the world of book-Phryne (where her most romantic relationship is with Lin Chung, not Jack).

Kerry Greenwood writes wonderful descriptions of the atmosphere, clothing, and food, and Phryne continues to shine as a character. I also appreciate that Phryne recognizes and befriends different types of people, so the book doesn't gloss over the class or racial differences that existed in the world of 1920s Australia (and the broader world).

That said, I don't think I'd reread this particular adventure because I didn't find the riddles as interesting or the side characters as sympathetic. [(spoiler) I was also pretty dismayed that at the end of the book Phryne has PIV sex with someone after purposefully misleading him that all he was consenting to was clothed mutual masturbation...not the attitude of a progressive, sex positive woman at all! (hide spoiler)] So, I think I'll check out more Phryne Fisher books that aren't connected to the TV show, but leave this one off the keeper shelf.