False face by Veronica Heley.
An Abbot Agency mystery Book 14.
Bea Abbot’s husband and talented artist, Piers, is in a state. His morning visit to actress and ‘national treasure’ Karina’s Belgravia home has ended in chaos. An antique necklace and diamond ring have been discovered missing, along with a memory stick storing Karina’s highly anticipated memoirs.
A good read with good characters. Great story. 4*.

I enjoyed the story and the plot. I didn't care for the ending. I need more of the bad guys lose. This ending was probably more realistic however. I really wanted Molly smacked up side the head. That being said, I like the regular occurring characters and following along as they figure out who did it and why.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is the 14th novel and my first in the Abbott Agency Mystery Series and I kinda wanted to give it a go. Sometimes a light comedic cozy mystery is perfect for these short days and cold nights!
False Face follows Bea, our matriarch and soon to be detective, and her artist husband Piers, who was recently been commissioned to paint a portrait for the cover of a rather washed up movie star’s latest memoir. Like most Hollywood actresses, she hired a ghost-writer, so when the news of stolen jewellery and a missing manuscript breaks, the ghostwriter and portrait cover artist are first in line to blame. Bea’s new job? Number one investigator to get her family out of this peculiar mess! Heley’s ‘Clue-Like’ murder mystery delivers in all the ways of the classic one robbery, one murder, many suspects and many motives. But who or how many are to blame? The characters are VERY English and wildly quirky giving Heley’s ‘who done it’ a satirical edge. Not exactly my cup of tea, but if you are into this vibe, this book may be for you!

It took me a while to get into this book, which was totally my own doing, I didnt realise that this was part of a series and that this was book 14. There were obviously a lot of content that I was not familiar with however, I kept reading and i still enjoyed the story and the characters. I feel that I would have liked it a lot more if I ad read the previous books.

It's always tough to step in to a series that's well along- in this case, 14 books in. I wasn't at all familiar with any of the characters but the basic plot carried me through. Bea's husband Piers, an artist, finds himself in trouble because valuable items, including her unfinished and unpublished memoirs, belonging to an actress turn up in his pockets. There's a murder, Bea, investigates, and of course Piers is proven innocent. But who is the villain? No spoilers from me. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read that I'm sure fans of the series will enjoy.

A delightful & entertaining whodunit full of hilarious slapstick, fiendishly plotted and blessed with a cast of unforgettable characters.

In this 14th addition to the Abbot Agency Mystery, Bea is now married to the talented artist Piers who has been commissioned to paint a portrait of Karina, a faded movie star whose memoirs are set to be published soon. Of course Karina has hired Molly, an ambitious ghostwriter to write them up and Piers' portrait will be used for the book cover.

But Karina is a capricious & overbearing woman, often hysterical , a manipulative diva with lots of skeletons in her closet who lives in Belgravia with two sons, an ex-husband, a current husband and lots and lots of financial issues.

So when Karina and her entourage start accusing Molly and Piers of stealing some of Karina's jewels,
mayhem ensues, murder follows and Bea will have to do her utmost to try to entangle this big hilarious mess full of self-centered nitwits who are a wheel short of a full set.....

A higly recommended romp full of delightful English humor and terrific comedic scenes that will definitely keep some readers in stitches for a few delicious hours......👍👍

Many thanks to Netgalley and Canongate/Severn for this wonderful ARC

The Likeable And Shrewd Bea…
The fourteenth, no less, in the Abbot Agency mystery series and the serenity of being newly married is soon to be dashed for Bea and Piers when a chilling and potentially deadly turn of events comes crashing into their lives. Well written, as is the norm for this entertaining series, with credible characterisation and a likeable and shrewd protagonist in Bea. Can happily be read as a standalone although there is more enjoyment to be had in terms of both timeline and character development in reading from the start of the series

Very well written and fun to read mystery novel. The characters themselves were very relatable and well developed. The story itself held my interest and contained both mystery and suspense. Some twists and turns and great detail turned this into a highly recommended read from me. I look forward to reading more from this author.