A nicely atmospheric cozy of sorts with a compelling protagonist in Flora. She continues to grow as a character, as do the rest. While this is part of a series. it will be equally enjoyable as a standalone.

I have a little confession to make- yes another one. I must admit that I haven’t previously come across Anita Davison nor her lead character Flora Maguire. Now after reading ‘The Bloomsbury Affair’ I am left asking myself ‘why the hell haven’t I come across them before?’. I really enjoyed reading it but more about that in a bit.
I couldn’t help but take to Flora Maguire. She used to be a governess but she is now married and lives rather comfortably with her husband, Bunny. A former charge of hers gets in touch with Flora, regarding the death of his companion on the train. Her former charge is prime suspect. Flora decides to investigate the case and try to ascertain who the murderer is. Flora is feisty, determined, stubborn and she isn’t afraid to make her way in what was then a traditionally male dominated role. I loved the way in which she isn’t easily dissuaded from a course of action. If she decides she is going to do something then she does it and she isn’t easily frightened.
I have to confess that this Ginger Book Geek is a history nerd with a particular interest in Edwardian Britain. I love reading and learning about that period in time. I love the attention to detail with Anita has and she has clearly done a lot of research into that era. So you can understand why this book appealed to me so much. The author uses such powerful and vivid descriptions that I really did feel as though I had travelled back in time to an era of great interest- to me anyway. If I closed my eyes, I could easily imagine that I was there with all the relevant sights, sounds and smells.
I was hooked on this book from the moment I read the synopsis. It didn’t take me long at all to get into the story and to take to some of the characters. I was so swept along by the story that I really didn’t realise how quickly the pages were turning or how quickly the time was passing. The first time I checked, I was really surprised to see that I had read about a third of the book and a few hours had gone past. I binge read the book over the course of a couple of days and at times I just didn’t want to put the book down. I had to keep reading because I needed to know if Flora solved the case, if her former charge was innocent and if Flora made it to the end of the book in one piece. The more I got into the story, the quicker the pages turned and the quicker I got through the book.
In short, I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘The Bloomsbury Affair’ and I would definitely recommend this book to other readers. I can’t wait to read what Anita comes up with next but whilst I wait, I will definitely be seeking out the other books in the series and I will definitely be reading them as soon as I can. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.

I was granted access to this book thanks to the publishers and NetGalley and I must add it is a very thorough and well written book. I will sing its praises before giving the reason I gave it only three stars (I am sure most people will rate it higher than that)

This is the fifth book in a series (my first mistake: starting from a book so advanced in the series) . There is enough background information provided to the reader to ensure that we do not feel left out but there is something to be said for the loyalty that comes with knowing all the main characters over extended periods of time. Flora Harrington has been in many hair-raising situations already which makes her the perfect candidate for her cousin to run to when he is suspected of murder. Her husband is indulgent, giving in to her wishes while looking out for her welfare, at the same time he does not see her as anything other than the intelligent woman that she is in her own right. Their relationship was refreshing to read about as was the social commentary that accompanies all the observations of the behaviour of 'Society' in the time period. The mystery is not too difficult to unravel once we are given enough hints but it ends in a very fast paced finish leaving a little room for more sequels. 

So in short, this is a highly informative and immersive story with a delightful cast of characters and equally interesting writing. The only reason I did not rate it higher was the that the entire experience would have been better if I was better invested (as mentioned earlier) and if I had not picked up on a clue or two and was more surprised by the ending. By reading just this book I can actually recommend the entire series to anyone who is looking for any historical mysteries/adventure to add to their TBR.

Lovely mystery with a great cast of characters, all with a part to play. This is the fifth book in the series, and they do refer to other cases so although it stands on it's own I would recommend reading them in order so you don't feel you've missed out. Beautiful descriptions of the period and all wonderfully in keeping, all in all a lovely read.

I really enjoy this series so I was delighted to see that a new book had been released!

I love Flora and it was brilliant reading about her again in this one. Her interaction with the other characters were great and I thoroughly enjoyed every page – and I have to say I do love Bunny too – she definitely deserves a mention!

The writing style was excellent and the book flowed very well. It was a real page turner for me and I was hooked! I love a good historical fiction story and this was certainly one of those. It also reads fine as a stand alone.

Five stars from me, another brilliant adventure with Flora Maguire!!

If you enjoy a good mystery with a surprise or two along the way, then this is a must-read for you.

In the early twentieth century, we find Flora happily married and with a new baby to enjoy. However, old habits die hard and when her previous charge looks set to be arrested for murder, Flora sets outs to find out the truth despite dire warnings from her old adversary, Inspector Maddox.

This is a very entertaining read, true to the time it's set in. Not only is the mystery attention-grabbing, but the extra details about life at that time add to the overall story. Nor are things straightforward; there are several twists and turns along the way adding to the tension - not to mention the whopping big shocker waiting in the wings! Truly enjoyable, but I was disappointed that so much detail was given about previous novels in the series making it futile to go back and read from the beginning. I have, however, enjoyed this one so much that I will definitely be looking forward to the next book.

My thanks to publisher Aria for my copy via NetGalley. This is my honest, original and unbiased review.

If you enjoy cosy historical mysteries and haven’t yet discovered Anita Davison’s fabulous Flora Maguire crime novels, then what on earth are you waiting for?

London in the beginning of the twentieth century was a place of great contrasts, adversity and simmering political tensions. While wealth, glamour and frivolity are in abundance, the dark shadows of the imminent war were fast approaching. With the world being a most uncertain and dangerous place, it is incumbent upon amateur sleuth Flora Harrington (nee Maguire) to keep her family safe and protected from risk and jeopardy. However, all of her plans to keep her loved ones secure are shattered to smithereens when one of her beloved charges is accused of the most heinous of crimes – murder!

With one of her loved ones in danger, Flora vows to clear Ed’s name and find the real criminal. Not having much trust in the police force and the authorities, Flora decides to solve this mystery herself – with a little help from her beloved husband, Bunny. This will be an investigation riven with spies, danger, chicanery, secrets and lies and Flora and Bunny will not rest until they get to the bottom of this perplexing mystery. With the police almost certain that Ed is the killer, Flora and Bunny will need to use all the resources available to them to catch the killer and prove Ed’s innocence. But will they be successful in their quest? Or is this an investigation which will end up stumping both Flora and Bunny?

With Ed’s safety and innocence of paramount importance, are Flora and Bunny up to this job? Or will this be the case that will convince Flora to give up sleuthing once and for all?

Anita Davison’s Flora Maguire novels are simply terrific! Beautifully written, wonderfully engaging, gloriously suspenseful and richly evocative, The Bloomsbury Affair is a spellbinding historical cosy crime novel that held me in thrall from beginning to end. Anita Davison is a writer who certainly knows how to bring the past to life and she peppers her narrative with captivating period detail, pulse-racing intrigue and heart-pounding suspense.

The Bloomsbury Affair is an outstanding historical mystery I just couldn’t put down and I hope that this isn’t the last we’ve seen of a sleuth who is more than a match for Phryne Fisher and Daisy Dalrymple: Flora Maguire!

I love this series!

Flora Harrington is upset when Bunny, her husband, arrives late and somewhat dishevelled for the dinner party they are hosting for Flora’s mother, Alice and father William. Flora had hoped that by inviting them to a dinner party, they might get reacquainted and even rekindle their love. Some twenty years earlier, William’s family had forbidden them to marry, forcing Alice to marry Riordan Maguire. The marriage was a disaster, with Alice disappearing and her disappearance being explained to Flora, as a young child, that she had died. Fate has reunited Flora with both parents quite recently, and the dinner party is taking them all a step closer to healing old wounds.

Bunny is preoccupied throughout the meal. It’s only after the guests have departed that Flora discovers that Viscount Edward (Ed) Trent arrived, very agitated and upset as the person he’d been sharing his train compartment with had been murdered, and the police suspect that he is the murderer.

It is up to Flora and Bunny to ensure that Detective Inspector Maddox doesn’t arrest Ed, To ensure that justice is done, Flora decides to investigate the murder herself.

This is the second book I’ve read in the series, and I once again found myself falling for the sheer opulence of aristocratic Britain in the early 1900s. Flora has a genteel nature hiding a rod of steel and a dogged investigative mind. However, it’s not just Flora who shines, it’s also her very patient, helpful husband Bunny, Stokes, the butler and Flora’s lady’s maid, Sally.

Anita Davison captures the period perfectly through her very descriptive writing. Hopefully, it will not be too long before I can once again enter this world of “upstairs and downstairs”.

Treebeard

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.

The Bloomsbury Affair is a delectable tale of murder and mystery and I was hooked from the opening page and devoured each and every word. The writing is open and inviting, pulling you into its web of mystery and adventure. Flora Maguire is the perfect character at the helm to capture the attention of the reader and hold intrigue throughout the book. Her amateur detective skills are in need yet again when Viscount Edward Trent is under suspicion of committing murder, creating another sleuthing challenge to solve. These investigatory skills are top notch much to the exasperation of Detective Inspector Maddox and her husband Bunny. I love how at ease she is in a man's world of crime and order, with a ballsy and brave attitude adding an element of danger to the storyline. The detail orientated description of Flora's world, at the turn of the 20th Century, is vividly real allowing me to step inside the scenes and witness the mystery playing out before my eyes.

The characters in Flora's world are created with such style and flair and each played their part extremely well, adding to the historical setting of London in the early 1900s. Their profiles are unfurled bit by bit to entertain the mysterious plot and keep the suspense hanging until the final reveal in the concluding pages. This created a gripping hold in order to figure out the 'who done it' aspect of the story.

The Bloomsbury Affair is a well written book, packed full of research and detail. I thought the plot played out extremely well and served to maintain interest and suspense for the reader. As this is the first book I have read of this series, I'm keen to read the remaining books in order to don my amateur detective hat for longer. It's safe to say I'm very much looking forward to spending more time in the company of Flora, in all her sleuthing glory.

I would like to thank Aria for asking me to review this book and organising the blog tour. This is a new author for me and I was so glad I picked this up to read as it was an exceptional read.
This is book 5 in a series but can be read as a stand alone as I did. The story is set in 1905 in London and is a mystery. A murder needs solving and Flora investigates hoping to keep her family save. The levels of description and historical facts make this an interesting read and I love a good mystery to solve. The era of the early 1900s is a great era to set a mystery. One of the most positive things about this read are the characters as the are very three dimensional.
A great read if you love historical reads and a mystery set back in time. I will be looking to read the others in this series.

1905 and a viscount is on the Cheltenham train when he discovers his companion has been murdered. His cousins are Flora and Bunny and after what happened he looks to them for help. Like some other historical- mystery novels, this one gets straight into the action. The descriptions are very vividly detailed and the characters are well fleshed out. I felt like I was there and was following Flora on this whodunit search.

This is the first book I have reviewed by Anita Davison and understand there are four previous books. It helped me that events from the previous books were referred to as I was able to get some backstory and information on previous events and apply that to the story in this book to understand it better. A well-rounded and engaging standalone novel. I hope to also see how the other books fit into the series as a whole.

Thanks to Anita Davison and Aria for my ARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review and a slot on the blog tour for this title.

Historical fiction with a murder mystery brings together two of my favourite genres. This is a later book in the 'Flora Maguire series', but it reads as a standalone. The mystery is created and solved within the book, and any backstory for the characters and their interrelationships is provided in the early chapters. 
England in 1905 was characterised by political intrigue and a shifting in the social and gender class systems.  This story uses the ethos of unrest to dramatise and authenticate the mystery Flora sets out to investigate. There are lots of historical facts, so the reader is able to step back in time as the story progresses.
Flora's social conscience and independent spirit, make her an intriguing and believable protagonist.  Her husband Bunny is an excellent sidekick and the long-suffering Inspector, the essential final ingredient for this type of mystery.
Like all murder mysteries, the plot is twisty and full of false starts, with numerous suspects. The motive behind the mystery is well concealed and trying to decide what really happened is a satisfying experience.
I received a copy of this book from Aria Fiction via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

In 1905 London, Viscount Trent has arrived from Cheltenham via rail only to discover that his travelling companion is dead, presumably murdered. He makes his escape, and go to his cousins, Flora and Bunny Harrington for help. Obviously Inspector Maddox believes him to be, at the moment, the prime suspect.
An enjoyable well-written cozy historical mystery, with its well-drawn characters. Another good addition to the series. Though I was not especially taken with the Viscount with its seems his sense of entitlement although it a reflection of the times. Flora also seems to have picked up to some degree this trait.

A very nice, enjoyable and entertaining historical mystery.
I loved the cast characters, all are well developed and intereting. Flora is great character and Bunny a great counterpart.
The mystery was good, it kept hooked till the last page.
There're some slower part but it's an enjoyable and fun read.
The historical background is well researched and I liked the way the women condition was described.
I look forward to the next instalment in this series and will surely look for the previous ones.
Recommended!
Many thanks to Aria and Netgalley for this ARC

I really liked the unusual time period--pre WWI London. If you're a fan of Downton Abbey, I think you'll enjoy this one too.

Many thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

This is the first book I've read of this series, and now I want to read them all. I liked the characters. Flora and Bunny are an engaging couple. (You gotta love a lawyer named "Bunny."). The mystery was well thought out. Every part of the solution made sense, and there was a logic to the whole thing that I appreciated. The historical details really added to the sense of being in the moment. You can tell that Ms. Davison researched the period well.
All in all, a great read.

So, once more I’ve stumbled late into a series of cosy historical mysteries, and once more I’m left vowing to go back and catch up with the treasures I’ve missed early on in the series. The Bloomsbury Affair is the fifth in the Flora Maguire series by Anita Davison (though, a little confusingly, Flora is now Mrs Harrington rather than Miss Maguire, but that’s a minor detail).

In Edwardian England, former governess Flora Harrington is settled with her solicitor husband Bunny and they’re doing very nicely, thank you. Affluent, well-looked after by the staff, socially well-connected and with the delightful addition of a new baby, everything is going fine — until the arrival of Edward, Viscount Trent, a young man to whom Flora was formerly governess. Ed was on a train with a young man who was found murdered, and he’s the main suspect. Convinced that he can’t be guilty, Flora and Bunny, hampered by Ed and to the exasperation of the detective on the case, set out to prove his innocence.

What follows is a romp through Edwardian London involving the aristocracy, a mysterious interloper and a plot to inherit, all against the background of exiled Russian revolutionaries, including Lenin himself. The plot was twisty yet credible and kept me guessing all the way through. The historical background was cleverly done but not overdone, and somehow Davison manages to subsume her readers without them noticing, so that I felt I was sitting in the lobby of the Dahlia Hotel, or in the doctor’s waiting room in Cheltenham or wherever else she happened to take us.

The book’s greatest strength, however, is its characterisation. All of the main characters are well-drawn and entirely believable. Flora is slightly uncomfortable with the gulf she sees in social class yet human enough to enjoy her advantages, and the relationships between the main characters are wonderfully done. Flora’s interactions with chirpy maid Sally and aristocratic Ed both respect their individuality and yet keep within the social requirements of the times. And Flora’s relationship with Bunny is humorous and touching.

I’m a harsh critic and no book is ever perfect, but the only criticism I have with this one is minor. It’s part of a series and the author seemed to want to make sure we knew it, though actually it worked fine as a standalone. Early on in the book there were plenty of references to Flora’s previous adventures, which added nothing to the plot and served only to spoil a little of the mystery for me for when I go back and catch up with the others. But that’s a minor gripe. I’m looking forward to books one to four in the series — and I’m certainly looking forward to book six.

I received this book from Aria Fiction and Netgalley in return for an honest review.

This book introduces us to amateur sleuth Flora who helps investigate a murder where her cousin Ed is a prime suspect. It rambles somewhat in places but wraps up well.

Interesting historical detective story, with good characters. Set in an interesting age when times were changing,especially for women.

Excellent book with a great storyline. Characters that are so well written. I would highly recommend this book to anyone!