Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder is set in the late 1950s London. Marion is a first year apprentice for a secret detective agency called Miss Brickett’s Investigations & Inquiries that solves the crimes that have stumped Scotland Yard. I had to sit on my opinion of this book for a bit. I have come to the conclusion that I liked it, but I didn't love it.

I really wanted to love this story. My biggest issue is that I felt like I was just dropped into the story without a lot of world building. I'm still not sure how this agency operates. It was kind of a cross between steam punk and the underground world of the Ministry of Magic only without any magic. Because the story is mainly set within the walls of the agency, I felt like I didn't really get a sense of how the agency works out in the real world. This particular story line might have been better had it been the second or third in a series. The "locked room" setting didn't work for me here.

I did like the characters. Marion is a smart and determined woman. She has a lot of room to grow into her role as a detective. The peripheral characters were also interesting and ones I would like to revisit. The mystery was just OK. I found myself invested in the characters more than the plot. I will probably pick up the next one if it comes out. Hopefully, the world building will be a bit more fleshed out.

Some have compared Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder to Harry Potter and I can see why. There is a magical setting (Miss Brickett’s instead of Hogwarts), a special training (to be an investigator as compared to a wizard), orphans (Harry and Marion), ghastly relatives (Dudley and his parents and Marion’s grandmother) gadgetry, friendships, secrets, maps, mysteries, villains and more.

If all of this sounds good to you, think of giving this 1950s mystery a read. I think that you will enjoy it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

This was such a fun mystery!! I loved that it was set in 1958 London – historical mysteries are always a bit more exciting because they don’t have modern day means of detecting. The whole world of Miss Brickett’s was fascinating to me – it’s literally housed underground and men and women train to become Inquisitors. They are essentially “law enforcement” that keep out of the spotlight and exact justice apart from the government. Marion is in her first year as an apprentice here, and everything is exciting and freeing (much better than being forced into a marriage she doesn’t want). However, when a filing assistant is found murdered…everything changes.

I really loved Marion. She was, in most ways, smart about investigating the murder and ultimately trying to exonerate the person who is being held up as the culprit. She has a great friend named Bill who helps her through most of the book and I really liked their relationship – they really were great friends who told each other almost everything. There are a lot of secondary characters, so I got confused here and there about who was who, but I don’t think it’s anything that should deter you from reading. The author did a good job building this “world” if you will and creating a cast of characters that were all needed and important.

The book wraps up the main mystery, but there is a bit of a cliffhanger in terms of what could possibly happen next. This leads me to believe the book will have a sequel, and I certainly hope so! I really loved Marion, and I think she’s a strong character who understands right and wrong, and she doesn’t believe everything her superiors tell her to believe. She’s smart, for sure, and I think a lot of people will enjoy meeting her.

What a treat! This first in what I hope will be a series of books about apprentice Inquirer Marion Lane is pure fun and packed with gadgetry, espionage, camaraderie, and just great storytelling. With nods to multiple genre types across formats, Willberg crafts a story that engages the reader from the first few pages and keeps you enthralled to the very last page. At the heart of this is one of the most interesting and admirable female protagonists I’ve come across in a long time. Marion Lane is a character for the ages and one who I hope is destined for many more adventures.

I’ll be recommending this one...a lot!

Agatha Christie goes steampunk in T A Willberg’s Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder, an immensely enjoyable and engaging mystery I absolutely loved.

1950s London is full of dangerous secrets, scandalous misdemeanors and shocking transgressions that ensure that Miss Brickett’s Investigation & Inquiries Agency has plenty of business to keep it ticking over. The investigators might be used to dealing with all manner of exploits and shenanigans in their line of work, however, even they find themselves completely aghast at a terrifying twist of events that plunges them into acute jeopardy and a mystery that dates back to the Second World War…

When a filing assistant at Miss Brickett’s receives a letter of warning detailing a name, a time and a place, she goes to investigate but finds an empty room. However, it soon transpires that there was somebody waiting in the shadows for her because she doesn’t leave the room alive. At the stroke of midnight, she is cruelly murdered. Nobody knows who killed her or what motive they might have had for this cold-blooded murder with the only lead the investigators have being that whoever murdered her was one of the agency’s own….

As the list of suspects grows with each passing day, it finally looks like the culprit has been found. Only Marion Lane, first year Inquirer in Training, is not so sure. With her friend and colleague in the frame for murder, Marion vows to leave no stone unturned and to prove her friend’s innocence – whatever it takes!

A terrific mystery that is absolutely perfect for curling up with, T A Willberg’s Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder is a thrilling, atmospheric and delightful crime novel packed with red herrings, twists and turns and jaw-dropping surprises readers simply won’t see coming.

A top-notch page-turner I couldn’t put down, Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder is a smart, stylish and scintillating crime novel suspense fans will not want to miss.

A thing I learned in (late) 2020 is that I'm more of a mystery fan than thriller so it was with that in mind that I thought I'd like to read Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder by T.A. Willberg. I thought right and quite enjoyed Willberg's debut novel.

Here's the synopsis:
The letter was short. A name, a time, a place.

Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder plunges readers into the heart of London, to the secret tunnels that exist far beneath the city streets. There, a mysterious group of detectives recruited for Miss Brickett’s Investigations & Inquiries use their cunning and gadgets to solve crimes that have stumped Scotland Yard.

Late one night in April 1958, a filing assistant at Miss Brickett’s receives a letter of warning, detailing a name, a time, and a place. She goes to investigate but finds the room empty. At the stroke of midnight, she is murdered by a killer she can’t see―her death the only sign she wasn’t alone. It becomes chillingly clear that the person responsible must also work for Miss Brickett’s, making everyone a suspect.



Marion Lane, a first-year Inquirer-in-training, finds herself drawn ever deeper into the investigation. When her friend and colleague is framed for the crime, to clear his name she must sort through the hidden alliances at Miss Brickett’s and secrets dating back to WWII. Masterful, clever and deliciously suspenseful, Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder is a fresh take on the Agatha Christie-style locked-room murder mystery, with an exciting new heroine detective.

The world Willberg created is quite like our own but unlike it all at once. Miss Brickett's is not a detective agency that you would ever find anywhere else (at least, that's what civilians like us would have been told). The agents (known as Inquirers) at Miss Brickett's have gadgets that wouldn't seem out of place in a fantasy novel except they're not at all magical. Just very clever devices that use mechanics and science to work. It was pretty neat but also pulled me out of the story every once and awhile as everything else was so normal that my mind didn't really want to comprehend what I was reading. A negative? No, not really. It was just...odd.

I often forgot that it was set in 1958 and I'm not sure it being set in the past really did all that much. Of course, having the story take place not long after WWII did explain a number of things and why some people would have chosen to work for an agency that, for the majority of people, doesn't exist. So much of the novel takes place in the underground world of the agency that you don't really get to see London during that timeframe.

While I definitely liked Marion immediately, I feel like the reader doesn't quite get to know her enough through the course of the story. She, understandably, holds people at arm's length and that meant the reader isn't fully let into her life either. And her friendship with Bill was supposed to be so obviously solid but I hardly know a thing about him either. That said, I looked past it because I did like her and I did care about her, almost as soon as I met her. She's intriguing, I think, and I liked that she was the heroine of the story (and not, say, Bill).

The murder referenced in the title was, as murders go, not a very nice one. It throws the agency into absolute chaos but no one is being officially told anything so rumours abound and productivity is low. The pace of the mystery is the star of this novel as I was highly invested and kept turning the pages to find out what the next clue would be. I was a teeny bit disappointed that the reveal was one of those instances where the villain tells their tale instead of getting to work of disposing of everyone and then ends up caught, but overall I was surprised and delighted (if one can be delighted with a murder mystery) at how Willberg constructed and revealed the whodunnit.

I have a feeling Willberg has set this up to be a series. The mystery was wrapped up but things still felt a wee bit unfinished so I hope that means we'll see more of Marion in the future. (Note: I've just read the author bio, below, and yes - it looks like the plan is for this to be a series!)

I'm really happy to have read Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder as T.A. Willberg's debut novel was not like any mystery I've read before. I'm excited to read what comes next and also to read more mysteries in 2021.

Buy the novel:
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Connect with the Author
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About the Author
T.A. Willberg was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, and holds a chiropractic masters degree from Durban University of Technology. MARION LANE AND THE MIDNIGHT MURDER is her debut novel and launch of her detective series. She currently lives in Malta with her partner.

*An egalley of this novel was provided by the publisher, Park Row Books/HarperCollins, via NetGalley for exchange for review consideration for the purpose of a blog tour. All opinions are honest and my own.*

Thank you to the publisher, Park Row, for providing me with an ARC of Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

The Gist
I have wasted almost an hour trying to write this review for Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder. During that time, I have cleaned the kitchen, made myself a tea, ate chips, moisturized my hands three times and watched 22:39 minutes of an episode of Grey’s Anatomy.

The thing is, I don’t want to sound mean. I am not a mean person. This is not going to be a positive review and I’d much rather braid my short hair with a sprained finger (it hurts a lot) than do what I’m about to do.

The Details
What I’m about to point out are common mistakes I have noticed in authors’ debut novels. And rest assured when and if I ever write my own novel, I will probably make the same ones.

In the first two chapters of Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder the author introduces us to three female characters. Which one is the main character? As far as I could tell, character 2 cannot be character 1 or 3. Character 1 could be the same as character 3. In chapter two we find out that character 3 is the protagonist, only because her name is mentioned in the title.

Are you confused yet? Well, it gets a whole lot more convoluted from here one out. But let me backtrack just a little.

The title included the word “murder” in it, so obviously I will sign up to read this, no questions asked. And yes, there is murder, however; it is so shrouded in the wordiness that is this story that it was difficult to detect it.

As I said, two chapters equaled three different characters thrown at us. On top of that we have immense world building that is layered on top of the ordinary world we are used to. This makes the subtle differences between the regular world and the world created in this book extremely difficult to keep apart and understand.

I think boiling this down to one major issue, I would say it is the issue of rushing things along too quickly. Sometimes this can be a very common rookie mistake. There are all these ideas floating around and they are great and have so much potential, but that fine tuning when spinning that delicate web of a story isn’t quite there yet.

A little more time editing this story would have done it a world of good. I am so frustrated with it, because I can see the potential. I can see myself reading this story in two days, because it is just that good. It all just got lost in the words and descriptions.

Also, I began to notice immensely long paragraphs and sentences. One paragraph consisted only of two sentences, throwing so much at us, it was impossible for me to stay focused.

The Verdict
Overall, this had real potential. Sadly, now I’m sitting here with a headache, constantly running different possibilities through my head of how this could have been a great read.

I feel awful about it. I don’t think I would recommend it.

Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder was a bizarre novel that easily could have been several hundred more pages. T.A. Willberg introduces us to a post-WWII London where Miss Brickett’s Bookshop is actually just a front for London’s most secret, underground (literally), and innovative detective agency. Housed in tunnels rumored to have been built by alchemists in the 1300’s, Miss Brickett’s agents go about their work anonymously and, often, illegally - such is the nature of having advanced gadgets that can bind, distract, and detect.
Miss Brickett’s is an insular institution, but its small community is rocked when one of its own is found dead in a room where she wasn’t supposed to be. Apprentice Marion Lane, overhearing some things that she’s not supposed to, involves herself and her friend Bill in the investigation in order to find the real killer and clear her mentor’s name. Armed with gadgets, lies, and the three months of training they’ve had, the two set out to solve a murder while appearing to live their normal lives.

I was taken aback by this novel as, from the synopsis, I thought the novel would be more Historical Mystery than it was Fantasy. I hope you all know by now that I love a good historical mystery, and the intrigue of the war, secret detective agency, inside job, etc. totally sucked me in to trying this book. So, I thought it would add some gadgetry and secret agency to a heavier mystery plot. However, this novel concentrated too much on the fiction to be called a historical mystery for my taste. The setting was mainly in Miss Brickett’s, and I thought it would have more to do with the outside world. In Miss Brickett’s, there are ropes that strangle themselves, shifting walls, special invisible ink, robotic snakes, and more, not to mention the entirely fictional series of tunnels in which the agency is housed. It was more like entering the world of Harry Potter than it was an intriguing mystery in 1950’s Britain.
The writing itself was really not bad in this novel. For a first time author, Willberg did a great job of building an entirely fictional world with no gaps big enough to bother a reader. I kind of wish she had supplied a map to Miss Brickett’s; I think that would have helped me a lot. There were some gaps in the description, which I didn’t find too troubling, and could have probably been resolved with a closer look at the subject, but that would have meant a higher word count… and not everyone wants to read The Stand from a first-time author.
Marion Lane was an okay character; she had a little of a tragic backstory that didn’t do much for me emotionally, but did play into the plot well. Marion isn’t overly emotional, she uses her brain, and she keeps a level head throughout her investigation. Part of this is probably her personality and another part is aided by the training she’s received at Miss Brickett’s. While Marion is a fine character, I wouldn’t describe her as an exciting heroine, just one who’s solving a stressful mystery.
Let’s move on to my biggest flaw with this book: THE ENDING. The plot was building steadily along (and gaining suspense, I’ll grant it that) until about 70-75% of the way through the book when the culprit was identified and it started getting pretty thin. It was good when it involved WWII secrets, hidden tunnels, secret maps, and suspicious partnerships - not so good when it all hinged on an inconsequential point of personal revenge. I found this and the resolution to be so anticlimactic that I was really disappointed, and I don’t say that too often. After all of the world-building and secrecy, I expected the conclusion to be more dramatic and impactful.
Now, don’t read this as a totally bad review, because it’s not. If world-building, fantasy, and mystery are your thing, this book is probably a good pick for you. I might even describe it as a little bit Steampunk. I was expecting the book to go the opposite direction, with more mystery than fiction, but it didn’t - and that’s due to either a bad synopsis or a lack of understanding on my part. The writing was good, the plot was solid, and it had a pleasant main character, even if she wasn’t earth-shattering. My only legitimate disappointment with this book is the ending, which I feel could have been improved. If you want to give it a try or learn more about the author, check out her website at https://tawillberg.com/.

"A snitch, stabbed with a snitch."

Michelle White knew just about everybody's secrets. And she knew how to use them to her advantage. So it is no surprise when she turns up dead killed by the instrument of her snooping. But who killed her? Just about everybody had equal motive. In a room full of spies there are many secrets worth killing for.

Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder reminded me a lot of Harry Potter. With its underground labyrinth hidden behind the facade of an innocuous bookstore and all of the gadgetry it was a fun book to read.

The maze of tunnels was inspired by the cities of London and Valleta, Malta which both used underground passageways for defense during the second World War. What T. A. Willberg does to bring them alive is make them ever-changing with doors sealing off passageways and tunnels shifting direction.

Marion Lane is a new Inquirer and is trying to establish herself amongst this elite and almost mythical organization. As a woman in 1950s London, it is hard to break the mold and get out from under her grandmother's thumb to live the life she wants for herself. Willberg does a great job of incorporating this into a story and I wonder what plans she has for Marion Lane.

This is a very interesting story of mystery and some cool spy gadgets. I loved Marion and really liked Bill and Kenny. It would be fun to be a part of this inquiry agency though I don’t know if I would be able to stay underground most of the day. This has a lot of twists and turns so you are not sure who the murder was or if he had help. I received a copy of this book from Harlequin for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.

Favorite Quote:

But that was the thing about death, as Marion knew so well. No matter how much the deceased were loved, life does not wait for the grieving. Though on the inside everything will change and what used to matter falls away, the routine and ordinary remain unchallenged.


My Review:

This is not my typical genre and I struggled a bit with the unfamiliar world-building, complex storylines, and vast cast of uniquely drawn and unorthodox characters, but my curiosity was well and truly poked and continually primed throughout this deeply puzzling and intriguing tale. Ms. Willberg deftly staged her scenes and players with intricate and unfailingly compelling descriptions so finely detailed that sharp visuals danced through my gray matter with the smoothness of a film reel.

This would be an excellent series for the big or small screen. The unusual storylines and writing style were polished, well-honed, and maddeningly paced; keeping me on edge with dark and gloomy settings, untrustworthy characters, questionable hidden agendas, and ingenious and creative gadgets. I coveted their resourceful tools and could put some of those items to good use for myself on a despicable neighbor or three.

Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder by T.A. Willberg
Available Now

What a wonderful book to come out on my birthday! This is an absolutely delightful locked-room mystery full of steampunk elements. Set in the 1950’s, we are introduced to the intelligent and resourceful Marion Lane. Single, to the great disdain of her Grandmother, she is far more interested in pursuing her career as an Inquirer for the secret organization known as Miss Brickett’s Investigations & Inquiries than she is in pursuing a husband. When her Grandmother sells the family home without consulting her, Marion has no choice but to live full time in the underground facility where she works. When an investigation into a colleague’s murder leads to the arrest of someone close to Marion, she and her best friend Bill, must work to clear his name. As their investigation progresses, Marion and Bill discover there is more to Miss Brickett’s than even they were led to believe.
I am a huge fan of steampunk and this is my first historical set in London after the second world war. Miss Brickett’s Investigations & Inquiries is an interesting setting and truly a character itself. The Agency has a unique and seemingly magical system of collecting tips and clues into all types of criminal behavior and is incredibly effective at dropping those criminals, literally, on the steps of the police. There are so many secrets inside the agency, both amongst the employees and found within the building itself. It had a very Warehouse 13 feel to it, just set in the 1950s. Secret rooms, hidden compartments, objects are that are definitely more than they seem-it’s all here.
Marion is an excellent character who has to deal with family expectations, a difficult and stressful work environment, and trying to find a place for herself when society still believes that women are at their best when they are at home. I really enjoyed following her investigation into helping her colleagues and the way that she was able to stay true to her own goals and feelings.
The story itself moves quickly and without sacrificing any worldbuilding. I really hope this is the beginning of a series because there is a lot to explore. While there is a murder, and some fight scenes, none of it is excessively violent.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I truly hope there is more to come!
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions and mistakes are my own.

I was excited to pick this novel up and start it as my Xmas read, I was in the mood for a cozy murder mystery, however, I am afraid this book was a letdown and I had to DNF.

I got about 50% of the way through.

The first few chapters really grabbed my attention, I was very intrigued by a secret mystery-solving society under the streets of London, I was even ok with the slightly whimsical spy gear and seemingly magical items. However, I had a very had time connecting with any of the characters, distinguishing which male character was who, and I didn’t care for the boring desk job or the inner politics of the secret society, those very much took the fun out of the story and really dragged it down for me.
After all of that was said and done, I didn’t even really care about the murder or who was mixed up in it.

I'm sad this one fell flat for me as I was anticipating reading it for a while now.
I think a lot of people would enjoy this novel, for me though it wasn’t my cup of tea.

3 stars.

**ARC provided by Harlequin Trade Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder reminded me so much of Harry Potter and it brought back so many amazing memories. Marion is an intern learning about the secret world of detectives in underground London. The gadgets reminded me of the spells in Harry Potter and the tunnels in the underground felt like the many passageways in Hogwarts.

Unfortunately that is where the similarities ended. JK Rowling created a magical world where you remember traits about every single character, regardless how minor of a character they were. Even though I’m not a big fan of fantasy, the magical world wasn’t hard to understand and I could easily picture what was going on, even at a young age.

In Marion Lane, it was hard to tell any of the characters apart. All of the professors/more experience professionals all blended together and same with the rookies. There were many times where I was questioning which character Marion was talking to and if I had previously been introduced to them.

The mystery was lackluster and the whole time I was wondering what all of the other detectives were doing and why the murder of one of their own was left to be solved by a first year trainee.

2 calculators out of a potential 5. I loved the memories of reading Harry Potter, but sadly that’s all I enjoyed about this novel.

Thank you to Netgallery and HARLEQUIN – Trade Publishing (U.S. & Canada) for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Well this was a delightful read I was not expecting!

Set in post WWII London, Miss Brickett’s Investigations & Inquiries is an underground, off the radar institution that solves crimes for the people of London. They’re highly effective and highly illegal. Trained detectives called Inquirers work to solve the crimes the Police can’t. Marion Lane, a first year appreciative wants to be one of these Inquirers and is on the right track until someone ends up dead and her only familiar presence within the agency is framed for the murder. It’s up to Marion to try and uncover the murderer.

This is such a fun and imaginative story and is said to be perfect for Harry Potter fans. While I am a Harry Potter fan and this could currently be a fabulous series, I think that depiction of the story is wrong and that it’s really more in it’s own league. It does have a ‘magical school’ vibe though, even though it’s not school aged characters.

I kept thinking that this book was going to include magic but it’s mainly just engineered items that the agency uses. Since this is set in post WWII London, a good many of the inventions talked about in this book could certainly be seen as magic. Even without the magic aspect though, this book is certainly a magical read.

The setting is great. The story is great. The characters have just enough depth for this type of story to really draw you in. Plus I love a good mystery and this was surely that.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good detective novel! If you like secret societies, alternative history, magical schools, amateur sleuthing shenanigans, borderline-science-fictional gadgets than this book is totally for you!


I hope you enjoyed my thoughts on Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder. Huge thank you to Park Row for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. If you liked this review please let me know either by commenting below or by visiting my instagram @speakingof_books.

It's my first historical mystery read, so I'm super excited and it's a debut novel, just like what they said, new author new adventure.

The story is set in 1950s post war, it's a bit slow at the beginning, but when the suspense and mystery kicks in and the awesomeness of underground labyrinths and tunnels and the magic of metal gadgets comes up, it becomes like Miss Fisher meets Mortal Engines, it's fun to read and all the characters are pretty unique, it's an underground inquirers cover, so I imagine it like Hogwarts but underground, yup it's pretty entertaining, although I feel that Marion is not as strong as I expected from a heroine, I still admire her bravery though.
Overall the whole book is like an introduction, a beginning, a start of something, hope there'll be a sequel, I'd love to see what kind of inquirer Marion becomes and I want to know more about all mysteries in that tunnels.

If you're looking for a historical mystery read, I think you should try this book.

From the blurb, I was expecting Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder to be an Agatha Christie style detective crime thriller set in the fifties. Although this is true to a certain extent, this book holds a delightful surprise!

I would describe the book as a mix between Sherlock Holmes, James Bond and Harry Potter. The setting is Mrs Brickett’s Investigations and Inquiries, an organisation deep in the bowels of underground London, where Marion Lane is working as an apprentice. The organisation is top secret, created to help those who post their requests into secret post-boxes and the headquarters is disguised as a bookshop. There are elements of traditional 007 Spy Gadgetry but the whole book also has a supernatural and fantasy element to it as we are introduced to magic maps and walls that constantly shift around to hide secrets. The world itself is really well plotted and we are introduced to elements in a way that doesn’t feel too heavy on the exposition.

It’s easy to forget in places that this book is set in the fifties – because of the magical elements it could almost be set at any time but there are certain remarks such as a woman wearing trousers causing outrage that bring us back to the setting nicely. Marion is a great main character; she is spunky and curious and has an interesting backstory that is slowly revealed as the book progresses. The other characters are well rounded, I would perhaps have liked to learn a little more about some of them but I imagine from the ending that this is the start of a series and so perhaps we will learn more in future books – I will certainly be keeping an eye out for them!

Overall, Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder is a great supernatural detective thriller and I can’t wait to read the next adventure! Thank you to NetGalley & Harlequin – Park Row for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

whodunit, inventions, investigation, 1950s, steampunk, clandestine-agency, London, locked-room-mystery, family-dynamics, friendship, murder, murder-investigation*****

Marion Lane is a new recruit in a clandestine under-the-ground investigation agency with a difficult task ahead (even more so than the usual). She has to solve the locked-room murder of an unpleasant co-worker and clear her friend of the deed. Marion is gifted but underestimated and the agency is reminiscent of Veronica Speedwell, The Chronicles of St Mary's, and even Inspector Gadget. There are lots of plot twists, mysterious maps, and peculiar clues. Some characters are drawn in depth, but there are others who seem to be waiting for a sequel. The publisher's blurb is a good hook, but the story has a bit of background to overcome, so don't expect it to hit the ground running.
I noticed some other reviewers had issues with the gadgets in a timeframe of the late 1950s, but as someone who was in grammar school at that time, I have no problem at all with it. I really loved it!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from HARLEQUIN (U.S. & Canada)/Park Row Books via NetGalley. Thank you!

"Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder" is a mystery set in 1958 in an England filled with clockwork gadgets. The story started off with two characters who were not the main character, and I didn't find the story interesting until Marion became the point of view character. This happens quickly enough, but I think I would've liked it better if the story had just started with her. Anyway, Marion has been recruited because of her mechanical skills, but she spent most of her time investigating (so may end up as a detective). She worked with her friend and a detective who's investigating the murder. They listened to gossip, uncovered secrets (including doing things that could get them fired), spied on people, and put together clues to discover what's going on and whodunit.

The main characters were interesting and likable. It's more of a suspense than a puzzle-mystery, with physical danger to those investigating. Even Marion questioned why the World War II secret hadn't simply been destroyed (rather than hidden), and given the answer provided her, one has to question why it still hasn't been destroyed at the end. I also found it odd that these recruits--skilled professionals in their 20s--were being treated (and acted) like teenagers. However, the overall story was an enjoyable, lively mystery with some clockwork fantasy thrown in. There was no sex. There was a fair amount bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this interesting story.

From just seeing the cover, I knew that Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder by T.A. Wilberg would be a much different mystery read, and I am thrilled that I was right.

The aspect I loved the most was the main character, Marion Lane. She is filled with intriguing nuances and complex layers. She is the kind of character I want to know better, and she is complicated enough that I learned more every time I encountered her. Marion is full of surprises, determination, and heart and is the most unlikely of investigators on the surface. Once you start peeling back the layers, though, you realize she has the heart of a warrior, and nothing will stop her until she solves her case.

The world in this novel is so intriguing that I still think about it. From the secret passages and doors to the cool gadgets, they all enthralled me. I particularly loved the map that you needed a special monocle to see and the snake that had a camera that was activated by movement. But these are just two gadgets among many throughout the story.

The murder mystery is brilliant with a long, complicated history that spans a post-WWII world sublimely and mixes such traditions as alchemy and chemical warfare. It brought in the reason this secret compound existed for the equally secret investigative firm to use with a modern mystery story in a seamless telling that left no questions at the end. It has its moments of high suspense and action, but mostly this mystery is atmospheric.

Technically, the story checks all the boxes. The dialogue flows naturally and realistically. The exposition allows the reader to pull facts together to solve the murder mystery and solve the mystery of what makes each character tick. The third-person narration allows the reader to explore the world better than a more focused narrative would have, and there are so many cool things to explore, it would be a shame not to be able to do so.

If you are looking for a different kind of murder mystery – one with the most genuine main character I have ever read in the genre and with many cool gadgets, doorways, and tunnels – you will want to pick up Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder.