I enjoyed this mystery with interesting characters (especially Fran) and a good plot. This is a light read but pretty well executed. Wasn't familiar with this author, but I may check out her other work.

I really appreciate the advanced copy for review!!

This is the third book in the series featuring amateur detectives Frances Black and Tom Dod. For those already following the series, this is very much more of the same: a well-plotted, cosy crime novel with a historical setting and a hint of romance.

This one is set in 1930 in a stately home where the old patriarch of the family has died and a diamond has gone missing. The family, the Edgertons, call in Frances Black to investigate, something she is keen to do to escape the mess of her divorce proceedings. What Frances reveals is the usual mess of family tensions, secrets and lies, although possibly with deadly implications.

Frances really takes the lead here, which is good as she is an appealing character with strength and integrity who is struggling with social restrictions placed on women of the era - much more interesting than the slightly ineffectual and bland Tom Dod. The will-they-or-won't-they romance meanders on, but very much takes a back seat to the more engaging crime story. Frances' investigations are a bit slow, but the narrative is cleverly plotted and comes together well. My main quibble is that I find it hard to imagine the characters - I like a bit more character description to go on so that the characters feel more real.

I enjoyed this as a light, easy read and would recommend it to those who enjoy cosy crime novels, especially those with a historical setting.

What a very pleasant book to read. Fran, the 'Lady detective' goes to a family in Devon to help them with a mystery.
Her own circumstances are awkward, being in the middle of a divorce. It's easy to forget the rules in the 1930s, which did not allow any apparent liaisons with members of the opposite sex. A divorce might easily have been refused. So it's a bit difficult when her friend Dod appears on the scene, and meetings with him have to be under cover.
Quietly and seemingly without major effort, Fran unravels the mystery and reveals a murder plot.
Nicely written. I shall look for the other stories in this series.
Thank you NetGalley and Sever House for a review copy

Book three in the Black & Dod series of mysteries. To help remove herself from her personal problems for a short while, Fran travels to Devon to assist in a family mystery including a possibly suspicious death. Gentle amateur sleuthing, credible and enigmatic characterisation and a swiftly moving plot makes for a very satisfying and enjoyable read. Reads well as a standalone although there is further enjoyment to be had in reading from the start of the series. Recommended.

I adore Fran Black. She’s smart, spunky, independent and fun loving. She’s also going through a divorce after being left for “the other woman”, who is now pregnant. Set in the 1930’s Britain, divorce was both uncommon and terribly skewed against women. Fran just wants the divorce over and the upheaval to end. In order to distract from the situation, Fran’s partner-in-crime-solving Tom Dod suggests she take off to the country to assist in solving a mystery for a family Tom is a business associate of.

In very Agatha Christie fashion, Fran finds herself at the Edgerton’s lovely country home in the Devonshire country side. She must solve the disappearance of a large diamond, which went missing around the same time as the Edgerton’s grandfather passed. And, as a matter of fact, the grandfather died under mysterious circumstances. The Edgertons graciously welcome Fran to their home, particularly the handsome and charismatic Eddie Edgerton.

The story unfolds as Fran pursues both the mystery of the missing diamond, as well as the uncertain circumstances of Grandfather Edgerton’s death. It’s a lovely slice of country life in the 1930s polite society in addition to the fun of following up the threads of both mysteries. The plot is solid, the motivations deeper than expected, and the characters compelling and interesting. A very enjoyable historical mystery with a charming lead character – I would definitely read more Black & Dod mysteries.

Missing Diamond Murder is the third I. This series and the first I have read. It is a good historical mystery with interesting characters and storyline. I would read more by this author.

Diane Janes writes a satisfying country house historical mystery. This is book three in the Black & Dod series, but you can read them in any order.

This is a new author to me, and although the third in a series, I did not feel compromised by not having read the first two books. It is a period mystery, set in 1930, very reminiscent of Agatha Christie and Patricia Wentworth, two of my favorite authors. Set in a grand country home on the Devonshire coast, Fran Black is summoned to help solve the mystery of a missing diamond and the unexpected death of the family patriarch. The wealthy Edgerton family are relying on Fran Black’s discretion as the last thing the family wants is a scandal. Grandfather Edgerton , old, frail, and wheelchair bound was found at the bottom of a seaside cliff. Surely he didn’t have the strength to get to the top of the cliff, so Fran Black is enlisted to solve the mystery of his death and to find the missing diamond. Several generations of the family live at Sunnyside House in a happy relaxed manner, butler, maids, gardeners, chauffeur, a nurse for grandfather and governess for 11 year old Imogen. They enjoy a very “golden age” lifestyle with no worries of money or responsibilities. Even though they grew up with privileges, they are genuinely nice people and very welcoming to Fran. Focusing on the mystery is a nice distraction for Fran, who is currently awaiting a divorce from from an unfaithful husband which provides another storyline of the mores of the time and the scandal of divorce.
Well written with well developed characters in a beautiful setting, the book was a real pleasure to read and I hope to read many more in the series.
Thank you to netgalley and Severn House for an electronic arc.

A nicely-crafted plot, with interesting characters, in the Christie-like setting of a beautiful house on the Devon coast, makes this, the third in the Black and Dod Historical Mystery series, the best read so far.

Fran Black is close to obtaining her divorce and, given the draconian dictates of the English divorce laws in 1930 and an anonymous letter, must be careful that her developing relationship with Tom Dod does not halt the process. She therefore embarks on a solo investigation into the death of Frederick Edgerton and the disappearance of a valuable diamond.

Along with the complications of the case, there is romance in store when Fran receives an unexpected proposal of marriage. There is also a taste of gracious living in the luxurious and cosseted surroundings of Sunnyside House where many of the Edgertons live.

Fran solves the mysteries, not without danger to herself, since behind the crimes there is a strong, determined, and obsessed individual who will stop at nothing to gain their ends- restitution and revenge.

Thank you to NetGalley and Severn House Publishers for the digital review copy.