T.E. Kinsey takes readers on another jazzy adventure with "A Baffling Murder at the Midsummer Ball," the second installment in the Dizzy Heights Mystery series. This four-star novel offers a delightful blend of 1920s charm, a locked room puzzle, and a mysterious death that challenges the wit of the Dizzy Heights jazz musicians.

Set against the glitzy backdrop of the Midsummer Ball at Bilverton House in Oxfordshire, the Dizzy Heights jazz band anticipates a weekend filled with flappers and toffs. However, when a summer storm strands them at the country house and a member of the Bilverton family is found dead in a locked room, the atmosphere takes a dark turn. What initially appears as a suicide soon evolves into a complex murder mystery, setting the stage for Skins, Dunn, and Ellie to showcase their sleuthing skills.

Kinsey masterfully captures the essence of the 1920s, immersing readers in a world of jazz, glamour, and intrigue. The characters, especially the members of the Dizzy Heights, are endearing and well-developed, each contributing a unique flavor to the narrative. The author's witty writing style adds a layer of humor to the investigation, making the story an engaging and enjoyable read.

The locked room puzzle adds an intriguing element to the plot, keeping readers on their toes as they try to unravel the mystery alongside the Dizzy Heights. The novel seamlessly weaves together elements of suspense, humor, and clever improvisation, creating a narrative that is both entertaining and intellectually satisfying.

While the pacing is generally brisk, some readers may find certain segments of the story slightly repetitive. However, the overall charm of the setting, the well-crafted mystery, and the camaraderie among the Dizzy Heights members more than compensate for any minor pacing concerns.

In conclusion, "A Baffling Murder at the Midsummer Ball" is a swinging jazz mystery that transports readers to the glamorous world of the 1920s. T.E. Kinsey delivers another engaging and witty installment in the Dizzy Heights Mystery series, offering a delightful combination of music, murder, and mayhem. With its clever plot twists and lovable characters, this novel earns a well-deserved four stars, leaving readers eagerly anticipating the next encore from the Dizzy Heights.

Enjoyed this fun story very much. TE Kinsey has filled the book with well-drawn characters and wrapped them up in a cozy mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

The characters were well-developed, and I found myself invested in their lives. The plot was well thought out and had enough twists and turns to keep me on the edge of my seat. I appreciated the attention to detail, and the author did a great job of creating a vivid world that was easy to picture in my mind.
The themes explored in the book were thought-provoking and gave me a lot to consider. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good story with well-developed characters.
Overall, I was thoroughly impressed with this book and would definitely read it again. It was a great addition to my reading collection, and I can't wait to see what else this author has in store.

The second book in the Dizzy Heights series. This time the band is invited to play at the Midsummer Ball in Bilverton house. All goes spectacularly well. Due to rainstorm the band can't leave but the family are wonderful hosts. So basically everything goes great until a body is discovered in a locked room staged to look like suicide. Ellie, Skins and Dunn don't buy into that though and start investigating.
I liked this one way more than the first book. There was more humor,more charm,some time period references, and just its own vibe. Even the tricks of the crime are well familiar to those who have read some historical mysteries(like ice, gramophone - if you know you know). There are even secret passageways! All in all a delightful read. The murderer is not hard to figure out but that is not the point, it was the charm and vibe of the book that got me going. Really looking forward to the next installment.
Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the ebook. A good murder mystery novel. Highly recommend

Huge fan of T.E. Kinsey. This guy knows how to write, and how to craft a fun murder mystery. His second installment of the Dizzy Heights mysteries didn't disappoint, and I think it was better than the first. He eased back on the somewhat unbelievable, ratatat banter between the band members, which I thought was a good choice. This was a light and entertaining read. I enjoyed the setting (both place and time), the plot was fun, the mystery was guessable, and I am ready for another installment, please and thank you.

My thanks to the publisher for providing an ARC via netgalley in exchange for my honest review of the book.

A Baffling Murder at the Midsummer Ball is a different kind of mystery. Or rather, a different kind of detectives.
The Dizzy Heights are a jazz band booked to play at a Midsummer ball. It is the roaring twenties.
A storm blows down all of the lights and soon a member of the wealthy family that hired them is found dead in a locked room.
Suicide or murder?
The band must solve the mystery.

A fun read

I enjoyed this book. It kept me intrigued until the very end. I thought it had a nice pace. Nothing felt rushed or too drawn out. I liked the mix of mystery and music. The characters are also nicely developed and not too many that it gets confusing.

With another sterling performance in their book, the Dizzies now have a puzzling case of suicide on their hands. It was puzzling with a twist so undefined they almost lost hope until the deaths increased. This puzzler was engaging, captivating, and entertaining.

This was an entertaining novel and atmospheric of the era. I love jazz and all of the references to various songs was interesting to me. The plot and mystery were good and made for a great escape.
Many thanks to Amazon Publishing UK and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

A Baffling Murder at the Midsummer Ball is the second book in the Dizzy Heights historical mystery series by T.E. Kinsey. Released 27th July 2021 by Amazon on their Thomas & Mercer imprint, it's 318 pages and is available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately. For Kindle Unlimited subscribers, this book (and the first in the series) are currently included in the KU subscription library to borrow and read for free.

This is such an exuberant jazz-fueled musical romp and combines a lot of my favorite elements of classic crime novels from the British Golden Age. It's a closed room murder mystery, set in a country house in the 1920s interwar period, and the action plays out in isolation (golden age trifecta, right there), since the country home where the murder has taken place is also isolated for the moment by a huge flood which also knocks out the telephone lines and roads.

The characters are unusually well rendered and it was easy to keep them distinct in my mind whilst reading. The plotting is spare and subtly twisty with lots of undercurrents and red herrings to keep readers engaged. The resolution and denouement were written with finesse and facility and I found it a satisfying read. I was unaware that the author had written another series besides the lightly humorous Lady Hardcastle books and I enjoyed this series very much.

Although this is the second book in this series, I read it as a standalone and it worked very well. I intend to go back and read the first book as well. I was especially impressed by the characterizations. The author manages to keep more than a dozen characters quite distinct and I had no problems at all remembering who was who which is often a problem for me. If there are more than a few suspects, they sometimes tend to blend together.

This one reminded me in a lot of good ways of the best of the golden age authors, especially Dorothy Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, or even John Bude or Edmund Crispin's slight shadings of campy lighthearted repartee.

Really a worthwhile read. Fans of golden age British crime shouldn't pass it up since there won't be anymore classics from the original sources.

Four and a half stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Classic easy reading cosy mystery. Perfect for a wet winter days escape.
Good plot, likeable characters and well written.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

The dialogue was fun and the clues subtle. I did work out the murderer and method, well before the investigating team of Ellie, Skins and Barty from Dizzy Heights, plus Veronica 'Ronny' Bilverton. It didn't spoil the book in any way as there was still the motive to work out. Plus, why the various Bilverton family members were behaving in such a way.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A really enjoyable, engaging Agatha Christie-esque murder mystery. Great characters and plot, kept me page turning til the end. A cosy crime book for a wintry weekend. Highly recommended

i really enjoyed reading this mystery, it had a great well done plot and I enjoyed how it was written, This was a great job and I look forward to more in the series.

I really enjoyed this book.
I liked the characters and the plot was very well thought out.
I like the Agatha Christie feel to this book with the plot and the characters make it really enjoyable makes you want to keep reading.

Thanks to #NetGalley, the publisher Amazon Publishing UK and the author T E Kinsey
for providing me with a digital ARC of #ABafflingMurderattheMidsummerBall in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and not influenced in any way. This book was such a fun read and even though it is the second book in the series and I have not read the first it certainly can be read as a standalone. The characters and plot are so engaging and I am now going to have to read the first book. This book comes highly recommended.

I haven’t read the other lady hardcastle books but enjoyed this one. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I read the first one in the series but by the end of that and into this one, I really enjoyed the cosy vibes of this murder mystery series and the characters. I really liked the audiobook and thought the narration fitted it very well.

Thanks to Thomas & Mercer and Net Galley for this ARC. A great spin off series - love the characters and the story telling

The band has gone to play at a private party. All is going well, when the man who owns the mansion is shot dead in a locked room. When they break in the room, it looks like suicide, but it's not.
Thomas and Mercer and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you). It has been published so you can get a copy now.

The band had previously solved a murder and they want answers for this death, too. They are stranded there while the storm goes on, so why not?

Everybody listens to the family members and the staff to sort things out. They also ask questions. The more they ask, the closer they get to the truth.

But the killer isn't done yet. He'd willingly kill more for his own safety.

So who wins?