I received the ARC from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review.
This was a very enjoyable mystery. Very convoluted with a multitude of characters that makes you wonder how it all ties in together. Needless to say to does and in very surprising ways. Good read.

The Trouble with Harriet by Dorothy Cannell
Review by Dawn Thomas

316 Pages
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group – Alibi
Release Date: June 13, 2017

Mystery, British, Women Sleuths

Ellie stops by a Gypsy woman to have her future told. The woman tells Ellie that she shouldn’t be upset or surprised when her father shows up. Ellie’s father has been absent for most of her life with the exception of the occasional letter. When he does arrive, Ellie cannot believe he is there. But there is something wrong. He talks about Harriet being in his suitcase, which makes Ellie and her husband, Ben, suspicious. They listen to his story about meeting Harriet and her death.

This is the 8th book in the Ellie Haskell mystery series. There were too many characters in the story. Some were developed while others were merely mentioned. I got confused between some of the characters and had a time keeping them straight. I have enjoyed other books in the series but I felt this one was a bit long.

The Trouble with Harriet by Dorothy Cannell Originally published in 1999, an electronic version of this entry in the Ellie Haskell mystery series was recently released. When Ellie first appeared in the 1980s, she was a mystery series anomaly--a pudgy, rather plain woman, an ordinary heroine to whom genre characters could easily relate. Written with a not-so-subtle wink towards romance novels and some hilarious, intentionally flowery prose, I loved the series. I don't remember reading this when first published, so I happily revisited Ellie and Ben and Merlin's Court, especially delighted with the title since The Trouble with Harry may be my favorite Shirley MacLaine movie. Ellie's long-lost father arrives unexpectedly at Merlin's Court with the ashes of his lady love, and in the spirit of the movie, her ashes keep disappearing. Not my favorite entry in the series, but I did enjoy the peeks into Ellie's history before she became Our Heroine, and it holds up remarkably well despite the lack of modern technology that often glares in reissued novels. And no typos or other mistakes as the story was moved to a digital format--hooray! Recommended

If you love the south and little crimes, this is a fun book to read.

The Trouble with Harriet was the first of Dorothy Cannell’s books I have read. Set in England, it is a story of con artists and murders. The story itself was a good mystery and comedy combination: the story of an older man conned into a romance while in Germany, only to be told his beloved had died in a car crash, then requested to take her ashes back to her family in England. The Trouble with Harriet is a little like a cozy mystery, but not close enough for me to put it in that genre.

There was a large cast of quirky characters that included a kleptomaniac aunt, a self-absorbed cousin, an impertinent housekeeper who I kept wishing would be fired, and many others. The character development was superb, but annoyingly well-described. Unfortunately, with the exception of Freddie, the self-absorbed cousin, all the characters spoke in nonessential, archaic, flowery language.

More and more common these days is the inclusion of public health information in novels:  this time it was comments about tobacco use, such as the reference to a man who "looked as he did" because his health was “shot” after a lifetime of smoking. On a separate topic, and much to my delight, I found only three split infinitives.

 What Makes This Book Reviewer Grumpy?

It took far longer to read this book than I normally do, as I got bogged down in all the superfluous language, and unnecessarily lengthy description of places, furnishings, people, feelings, and behaviors.

The huge number of sentences beginning with the conjunctions “and” (123) and “but” (49) was extremely distracting - and I didn't count all of them. Most of them involved two sentences that should have been one sentence with a conjunction in the middle.

There were a few sentence fragments that should have been included in the preceding sentence;
Incorrect verb tense:  using “showed” instead of “shown”;

Improper placement of the word "only" within a sentence -- it changes the meaning of the sentence;

Statements ending with question marks led me to re-read them to be sure I hadn't missed something.

I have never read one of Dorothy Cannell's books before - my mother-in-law loves them so I was glad to have a chance to read this, thanks to NetGallery. I am truly glad I took the time to do so. Funny, well written cozy that was just a fun read for me. I will be going back to earlier books in the series for certain.- I think I might have missed some of the underlying 'bits' by not starting at the beginning, but I enjoyed this nonetheless!

The Trouble with Harriet

by Dorothy Cannell

The Trouble with Harriet is different from many cozy mysteries that start with a crime to immediately draw the reader in. Instead the reader is enticed with more personal events—a chance meeting with a gypsy, a prospective getaway trip to France, and the appearance of a surprise visitor.

Replete with quirky characters displaying a flair for the dramatic, this book reads like a play from the era of Arsenic and Old Lace. I can picture cousin Freddy climbing with little ado through the living room window to make his entrance. Ellie’s father possesses a penchant for the dramatic. The Hoppers, who resemble stacking Russian dolls, are the things comedy is made of. The vicar in his dotage who rarely remembers what he should be doing provides all kinds of interesting possibilities. This book is quite enjoyable and would make an amusing theatrical production, featuring a play within a play.

The mystery develops gently during the course of the book, but with the reader unaware of it. It begins simply, but adds complexity as the book progresses. The Trouble with Harriet is an enjoyable book in an enjoyable series.

I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Random House (Alibi) for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 5/5

Category: Mystery, Historical

Notes: #8 in the Ellie Haskell Mystery Series (which currently has 13 books). In spite of having previously read only #7, I found this book delightful. I’m sure reading the whole series would be fun, but not necessary.

Publication: June 13, 2017—Random House Publishing Group (Alibi)

Memorable Lines:

She had a fatal flaw as a listener. She enjoyed the sound of her own voice.

And the world is filled with qualified interior designers, although possibly not in Chatterton Fells, where people tend to consider switching a picture from one side of the room to another a major renovation.

“You can’t go through life being an irresponsible charmer and not expect impressionable females to fall all over you.” “Sometimes I feel like a pound of bacon during wartime rationing.”

Ellie Haskell is back! She is quickly becoming my favorite cozy mystery heroine. And that handsome husband of hers, Hmmm, Hmmm. This story was delightful from beginning to end. Ellie and Ben are supposed to be off to France for a romantic getaway while the kids are with the grandparents. Then, just as they are about to leave, Ellie’s long-lost father shows up on their doorstep, with a broken heart and an urn. Seems he fell in love with Harriet while in Germany and then she died in a car accident. Meanwhile, the new vicar’s wife is putting on a play with Cousin Freddy as its star and objects are disappearing from the house. And who was the doom predicting gypsy?

As usual, the author has gathered up a quirky bunch of characters and the type of happenings that could only take place in an English village. The vicar’s wife is a force of nature but she has to be to keep up with her very absent-minded husband. Not only do we meet Ellie’s father but her kleptomaniac aunt as well. The storyline has something new for the reader on every page but she manages to flawlessly wrap it all up at the end. I highly recommend this book if you like to have some fun along with your mystery.

'm not quite sure how I feel about this one. It's a light-hearted romp in many ways, with over-the-top characters and situations. Note that I don't consider that a bad thing at all. So I'm not sure just why this one didn't sit so well with me. Maybe there were too many characters who were too absurd (the vicar rather bothered me). Maybe it was just being the wrong book at the wrong time. Because really, it was kind of a fun read in spite of my moments of irritation.

So is this a positive review? Well, it's not a negative review. I think the book would make a decent beach read, as long as you go into it knowing that much of it is a celebration of absurdity. My only real objection was that I found the ending a bit contrived, and the lengthy explanation of who everyone was and what happened bothered me--I like the sleuth to actually figure out more of the truth on her own. Other than that, I rather enjoyed the mess and Ellie's efforts to find a thread of sanity in the midst of it all.

My Recommendation:
Like I say, this is a promising read for a time when you are ready to embrace the absurd and enjoy some mystification. I appreciated that, with the sleuth happily married, the romance elements were minimal (if you are tired of young women who can't make up their minds who they love, this is refreshing, for sure!). Since I'm a bit obsessive about such, I'd probably want to start the series with the first book, but have to say that this seemed to stand on its own very well, though maybe some history with some of the characters would have made me less impatient.

This book, although not really my style, kept me engaged all the way through, a few good giggles along the way, writing style is good and easy to read.

Dorothy Cannell has Ellie Haskell and her husband Ben bamboozled by the Trouble with Harriet who may or may not be her father's wife. Is Harriet in the urn that keeps going missing? Who are all the suspicious characters who claim a connection with the urn or with Harriet? This is a reissue of a popular book in the Ellie Haskell series.

The 8th book in a series, I have jumped into the middle here. I fell for the adorable cover to start with. Light, fluffy and cozy, this book is a delightful read, with humor and a plot that I can't complain about. It's a perfect fireside or beach read.

My copy came from Net Galley. My thoughts and opinions are my own. This review is left of my own free volition.

The Trouble With Harriet is the Eighth book in the Ellie Haskell Series. .Each book is a delight and I recommend the entire series for every mystery series lover. This series is comical and the humor is done to perfection. In this next in series Ellie and her husband are planning to leave for a long deserved vacation when her long lost Father appears with a urn of ashes from his dead girlfriend which has left him lost. Ellie and her husband soon see their vacation plans go away as her Father is not leaving. When the urn is lost and may have been stolen, Ellie finds a mystery is at hand that involves her family and her time.
Our protagonist Ellie is such a delight and each book is the perfect blend of a good sleuth, humor and great characters. I highly recommend this series for your reading enjoyment.

A fun, light read.
Amusing characters with differing agendas

I'm happy to see this series reissued- it's light, it's fun, and it's entertaining. Ellie and her cast of characters sometimes go a bit over the top but there's always a laugh or two and the plotting is good. This installment is no different from the rest. It would be easy to dip in and enjoy it even if you haven't read the others- and if that's the case, the bonus is that you'll have discovered a new cozy author. Thanks to Netgalley for the DRC.

A typical romp with beloved characters. There are not many authors that can make me laugh out loud, but Dorothy Cannell can do it. Ellie and her never-ending cast of wacky British relatives and neighbors aways delight.
These are cozy mysteries I always recommend to friends.

I have ALWAYS liked Cannell' s books and the Trouble With Harriet is no exception. ALL her books are enjoyable, but I especially like the Ellie Haskell series. They are definitely not heavy reading just fun and almost satire or tongue in cheek. I consider them money well spent.

Dorothy Cannell's The Trouble with Harriet is part of the Ellie Haskell Mystery series. Ellie is all set to embark on a trip to France with her husband, Ben. Her long lost father suddenly appears with an urn of ashes from her beloved Harriet. What comes next is a comedy of errors. From her father's refusal to turn the ashes over to Harriet's family to the absent minded vicar, Ellie has her hands full. I liked this book, but I did not love it. Ellie's dad, Morley, was more dramatic than a teenage girl. He had only recently met Harriet, but one would think they had been married 60 years or more. My second problem was the vicar. Calling him forgetful is putting it lightly. He "forgets" that a car is not his own and drives off in Ellie's for over a day. I find it impossible to believe that he can be a working vicar in his condition. Those two characters made it a struggle to get through to the end.

Princess Fuzzypants here:
Ellie is at it again. This time her long lost father has returned to her, kaboshing her romantic plans for a getaway with her husband. Her father is carrying with him the ashes of his true love to give to her family in England. He did not know Harriet long but he is totally bereft at her loss. Harriet isn't the only thing to get "lost", The absent minded vicar steals Ellie's car with the urn in it thereby starting a crazy chase to find the missing car and ashes.
But Ellie senses there is something wrong with the story. Too many odd occurrences make it more than coincidence. Nothing and nobody, including Harriet, is quite what they are supposed to be. And you know when Ellie and company get involved in the weird and wonderful, there is going to be lots of wacky humour.
Written not unlike a melodrama that swings into theatre of the absurd, the characters and the books are highly entertaining. Ellie is a down to earth person who bravely attempts to make sense of the craziness that swirls around her. It is great fun for the reader to accompany her.
I give this five purrs and two paws up.