1930s Transatlantic Murder Mystery

Miss Aldridge Regrets by Louise Hare is a captivating blend of historical fiction and murder mystery, offering readers a glimpse into the glamorous yet dangerous world of 1930s transatlantic travel. With its well-crafted plot, atmospheric setting, and complex characters, the novel is a must-read for fans of historical mysteries. Despite some minor pacing issues, Hare's storytelling prowess makes this a memorable and engaging read.

*Miss Aldridge Regrets* is a mesmerizing blend of historical fiction and mystery, filled with glamour, intrigue, and unexpected twists. Louise Hare crafts a vivid portrayal of 1936 London and the opulence of the Queen Mary, transporting readers into Lena Aldridge’s complex world.

Lena’s character is compelling and multifaceted, her struggle with her racial identity adding depth to her story. Her journey from the smoky basement clubs of Soho to the luxurious yet dangerous confines of the Queen Mary is gripping. The tension builds masterfully as she becomes embroiled in the Abernathy family’s secrets and the chilling murders that follow.

Hare’s debut in the US market is impressive, with a narrative that seamlessly combines seductive glamour and simmering family drama. The twists keep you guessing, and the atmospheric setting enhances the suspense. *Miss Aldridge Regrets* is a captivating read that balances historical richness with thrilling mystery.


A dazzling blend of glamour, mystery, and historical intrigue that keeps you on the edge of your seat.

Miss Aldridge Regrets by Louise Hare is a captivating read that will enthrall fans of historical mysteries, particularly those who delight in the intrigue of 1930s London, the glamour of the theatre, and the exploration of complex themes such as class, race, and the struggles of women during a tumultuous era.

I'd like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for a chance at reading this.

I attempted to read this and I gave it until 20% on my kindle - which is usually the stopping point for me. Some might enjoy the narrative, but I feel that killed the book's enjoyment for me. I would have probably loved it if it weren't in first person and if it didn't feel like the author was info/thought dumping and reacting to everything instead of letting us settle.

3.5 stars.

In 1936 London, Lena Aldridge, a talented mixed-race singer and actress, dreams of performing on grand stages. Yet, her reality finds her stuck in the dimly lit confines of a shabby basement jazz club in Soho. Life takes a cruel turn as her beloved single father passes away, her married boyfriend walks out on her, and her best friend involves her in a murder.

Just when it seems like all hope is lost, a mysterious stranger extends an irresistible offer: a starring role on Broadway and a luxurious voyage aboard the RMS Queen Mary. Lena jumps at the chance to skip town. So what if the offer is too good to be true?

Onboard, she passes as Italian, and a dysfunctional aristocratic family draws her into their fold. On their first day at sea, one among them is killed in an eerily familiar way. Soon, other members of the family meet untimely demises, and Lena can't shake the feeling that she's being framed.

The characters are well crafted, and the attention to period details is spot on. While the overall plot kept me guessing with its twists and turns, it is ridiculously implausible. The anti-climactic ending caught me off guard and Lena’s onboard romance seemed contrived and lacked natural flow.

While the story has its quirks, it is entertaining enough to pique my curiosity about the next installment in the Canary Club Mysteries series. If you’re a fan of Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, Lena Aldridge's adventures are likely to satisfy.

This historical mystery set in 1936 brings the culture of the time to life. Lena Aldridge is a mixed race singer passing for white at the seedy Canary Club in London when her life falls apart. The black father who raised her alone has recently died, her married lover has left her, and she has been fired from her job and her boss has been poisoned. She takes up a stranger’s offer to sail on the Queen Mary to New York for a role on Broadway. On the ship she is assigned to the table of the wealthy, dysfunctional Abernathy family. The narrative switches back and forth from the ship to London in the weeks before she left. Two members of the Abernathy family are murdered and Lena fears for her own life, while the murderer tries to put the blame on her. The novel deals with racism, class dynamics, alcoholism, and family relationships. The novel was a bit repetitive, but I enjoyed the setting and was kept guessing until the end.

Actually 2.5 stars
Lena Aldridge is leaving her life in Soho to get started on a new career in Broadway. She buys a first-class ticket on the Queen Mary that is bound for New York. When one of the first- class passengers is killed, Lena begins an investigation to find a killer. As she investigates, she learns that it is similar to a murder that happened at the club in Soho that she once sang at before she left England. Could the two murders be connected?

I did not warm up to Lena Aldridge as the protagonist. I found her to be clueless on many occasions. She often gets herself into reckless and dangerous situations. She does not see the obvious of what is in front of her. Therefore, I was not impressed with her skills as an amateur sleuth. She made many foolish choices and was not a clever protagonist. Therefore, I did not find Lena Aldridge to be very likable and yearned for a smarter heroine.

Overall, this novel is about dreams, love, and racism. I found all the characters to be very bland and unlikable. I also thought the novel seemed to be dragged out and had a predictable mystery. Still, there is a lot of glitz and glamor and scandals that will pique the reader’s interest to keep reading. I also like the historical details of what it was like to be a passenger on the Queen Mary. I am going to give this series a second chance and read the sequel when it comes out to see whether I like the series or not. I am hoping that Lena Aldridge will grow into a smart and mature heroine. I recommend this for fans of The Secret Life of Anna Blanc, The Key to Deceit, and The Mitford Murders!

1936. Lena Aldridge is a singer/dancer/actor, of mixed race, for whom life is not looking up. She's singing, but in a back-street basement club. Her lover, a married man, has left her. She's been kicked out of her apartment space, and to cap it all off, there's been a murder at the club. She's ready for something positive to come her way so when a stranger approaches and offers her a starring role on Broadway and first class passage for a cruise on The Queen Mary, Lena accepts the offers. But while aboard the ship there's a death that suspiciously resembles the murder at the club and Lena wonders if she is somehow connected.

By the description, this book is exactly the sort of book that I've been enjoying reading the last few years ... historical fiction, borderline jazz era, theatre and music, mystery. What's not to love? But the book rather let me down.

The plot is complicated - which is a good thing, for me, in a mystery (as long as it is traceable, and I believe it is); the setting is stunning, so what doesn't work?

I think it was the constant reminder that Lena isn't white.

I get it. I really do understand that race is something that those who are not white are constantly aware of, perhaps particularly so during this era. I completely understand that there is an inherent danger for someone like Lena to pose as white if she is not. The book brings nice awareness of this and puts it into historical perspective very nicely. But it's out of balance. This is not what the book is about, but it's given a lot of weight.

This theme is central to a book like The Personal Librarian (which I reviewed in December of 2021) but this book doesn't seem to have made a decision as to how important this is to the story and for me this really took away from the pleasure of reading the mystery.

Overall, the book was okay, but nothing so strong that I can't for the next in the series.

Looking for a good book? Miss Aldridge Regrets by Louise Hare is an historical fiction mystery that maybe spends a little too much time internalizing to make it truly enjoyable.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Lena Aldridge is a mixed-race Jazz club singer in Soho, London in the 1930’s. She wants to be an actress and has auditioned for many roles, but to her dismay, she can only find employment in the seedy Canary Club. Her best friend Maggie is married to the club’s owner and when Maggie informs Lena that her husband is cheating on her and has filed for divorce, Lena tries to restrain her friend from doing anything she will regret. Maggie, having a mind of her own, will brook no challenge and sets out to destroy her husband and Lena finds herself right in the middle of a nasty dispute between the two. Lena is torn between wanting to be there for her friend, but she also needs her job. When Maggie’s husband dies at the club under mysterious circumstances, Lena decides to take up a stranger’s offer of a role on Broadway and a first-class ticket to New York. She sets sail on the Queen Mary hoping for some peace and quiet before she starts her new life in New York.

Of course, that is not meant to be. On the first evening of the voyage, Lena finds herself sitting at dinner with the wealthy Abernathy family and soon becomes involved in their family drama. When the patriarch of the family is murdered in a way similar to Maggie’s husband, Lena becomes very concerned that she will be blamed for both murders. She is determined to solve the murder before she is carted back to England to face the hangman’s noose. Using her plucky personality and keeping her wits about her, she is determined to clear her name so she can have the dream life she always wanted in New York.

I really enjoyed this book. Lena’s character is a little more forceful than others in this time period, and it really goes a long way to endearing the reader to her. She doesn’t take anything from anyone and she is determined to make sure that everyone knows that even though she is a mixed woman in a white man’s world, she will not be kept down. I really thought that this mystery was well-developed and you couldn’t help but root for Lena and want everything to work out for the best. This series has a lot of potential and I can see how it sets itself apart from others in this genre to focus the reader on characters who don’t have the social status and racial equality and who are often overlooked as main characters in historical mysteries. I thought that this book was phenomenal and I cannot wait to read more in the series in the future.

Overall Rating: 5 stars
Author: Louise Hare

Series: Canary Club Mystery #1

Publisher: Berkley

Publication Date: July 5, 2022

Pages: 368

Genre: Historical Mystery

Get It: Amazon

Disclaimer: This book was given to me by the publisher, through NetGalley, in exchange for my honest review. I reviewed this book without compensation of any kind. All thoughts and opinions are solely mine.

Miss Aldridge Regrets follows the seafaring adventures of singer and aspiring actress Lena Aldridge. Lena is crossing over to New York for a job that promises Broadway stardom, leaving behind her job as a singer in a seedy bar, her best friend, and a murder that's casting a shadow over her life and her future. Onboard an ocean liner in swanky cabin (first) class, Lena has to try and blend in with the rich, white people throwing their money around. Lena is a biracial woman who passes as white, and her time at sea shows her warring with herself, feeling like she has to pick a side, an identity to show the world. It's the 1930s, and there are major consequences for her profession and personal life depending on how she is perceived. There isn't space for her to just exist. When a second murder eerily similar to the one haunting her steps takes place on the ship, Lena is suspicious of how they might be connected and what danger it might mean for her.

This is a historical mystery with nuance, suspense, and character-driven intensity. The murder doesn't take place until a third of the way in, but the author is busy building up potential suspects, victims, and connections from the first page. The reader can already have her detective hat on, especially as flashbacks reveal more about what Lena is running from in London. The story is propulsive, always engaging and moving on to Lena's next challenge. This is one of those mysteries where I suspected everyone of everything by the end, assuming ill intent and secret motives on behalf of the whole cast. On the other hand, it's easy to be in Lena's corner, whether it's about her budding romance with a pianist who treats her well, her strained relationship with a sister-like best friend, or her safety as a murderer stalks the corridors of the ship, I was cheering for her.

Beyond the cast and plot, the historical elements and social commentary are also strong. The conversation around race covers many aspects, including how Lena's experience once she reaches New York will likely be jarring as she's dropped right into the segregated muck of 1930s America. The rise of the Nazis is also on the minds of the cast, a major news story that is already affecting many communities though war is not yet upon them. Lena considers the costs and morality of speaking up when political conversations about Germany veer towards the privileged and bigoted. On a lighter note, it is fun to see Lena reading Poirot novels as a contemporary, enjoying his detecting even as she takes up amateur sleuthing under duress.

This is the most fun I've had with a mystery in a while. Thanks to Berkley for my copy to read and review!

A perfectly fine historical mystery (enhanced by a unique setting in the form of a transatlantic voyage) but not very memorable for me

A nuanced first start to a series. I wish the murderer had faced more concrete consequences (the lawyer in me) but very excited to see where Lena and Will end up next.

Miss Aldridge Regrets is engaging historical crime mystery that revolves around Lena Aldridge, a showgirl in London Soho, finds herself amid murders and drama of upper class family when she has to leave London after the murder of her best friend’s husband and owner of the club she worked at. The story is about class differences, social and ethinic culture in early 20th century, prejudice, betrayal, racism, dysfunctional family, and survival.

It is told in first person narrative from Lena’s perspective. In the beginning and occasional killer’s perspective made the story intriguing. The plot is filled with glamor, mystery and drama that take place mostly on the ship, RMS Queen Mary while all the backstories of characters take place in London that mostly includes what happenes in Lena’s life a week ago and how that influences her to take role on Broadway and board the ship to NY.

Lena's back story is tocuhing. I enjoyed reading her relationship with her father and best friend, Meggy. I loved layers in the story and the setting of Queen Mary. We see the class differences on the ship, how the floors was divided in classes, some people were allowed to explore certain levels while some were not, and how staff also behaved as per the class they dealt with was interesting to read. We also read the struggle of working class family, life in Soho through Lena’s past and prejudice of higher class through secondary characters and Abernathy family.

Mystery is most interesting, well written filled with red herring. Climax is tense with anticipation of another murder and Lena in danger, risk she was taking by attending that last dinner. What came next is partially expected as I knew it’s not one person job and partially surprising because I couldn’t guess the killer until this point. I’m also disappointed with the reasons motive of whole game. It didn’t make sense the way the killer changed thoughts and decisions which makes the end weird, implausible and questioning the morals and ethics that’s why it’s a 4 star from me. However, I could agree on one thing one has to put their own survival first when caught in situation like this so I don’t mind Lena’s decision in the end.

Overall, Miss Aldridge Regrets is intriguing, well written and fun historical murder mystery with many layers and perfect setting.

Miss Aldridge Regrets by Louise Hare was an enthralling and mysterious read that takes place in the mid-1930s.

After watching her best friend’s husband get murdered by cyanide poisoning, singer Lena Aldridge decides now is a good as time as any to leave England and take up the mysterious offer from Benny Walker to perform in a new show on Broadway in New York City.

Hardly knowing the agent, Charlie, Lena puts all her trust in him and takes the journey across the ocean on the Queen Mary. However, all too soon a one of the wealthy people she is schmoozing on the ship is murdered… the same exact way her best friend’s husband was. It is all just a coincidence, or is someone trying to implicate Lena for both murders?

Overall, I really enjoyed this novel. It was highly engaging and kept me wanting to turn the page to find out what happened next. Some of the twists were predictable, but there were also some surprises. I enjoyed how the secrets unraveled throughout the novel. I also liked the dual timelines - before Lena boards the ship and after. I liked Lena as the main character and admired how she kept her wits about her throughout the murder investigations.

On @goodreads, it appears there will be a sequel to this book. I am looking forward to reading that as well and seeing what the future in NYC holds for Lena.

I love historical cozies and this one did not disappoint! Loved the characters and the timeframe. It reads quickly and is the perfect little "pick me up" on a drab day!
Thank you for my galley!

The book takes place first in London, then on the cruise ship Queen Mary in 1936. Lena witnesses a murder at the club she performs in, at the same time she is offered a role on Broadway. Most of the action takes place on the cruise ship, entangling Lena with the wealthy and obnoxious Abernathy family. Although the book had potential, I felt that it could have been edited better as the mystery unfolds painfully slowly. I liked Lena, but the many murders and length of the book took away from that. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group, and to NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

This book sounded like something that I was really going to like. Instead it just didn't work for me. I really struggled with this one. I wanted to like it but sadly I didn't care for it.

I really wanted to love this book. But it didn't work for me, the story was boring, unconvincing and very slow. I didn't really like the heroine as well.

Oops, forgot to post my goodreads review! I really appreciate the print copy you sent, and we're still hoping to hear back on whether the book is available for film option. Goodreads review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4705310602

Historical mystery aboard the Queen Mary bound to New York in 1936.

Lena Aldridge aspires to a life on the stage so she jumps at the chance to travel to New York when Charlie Bacon offers her a job on Broadway and a first class cabin on the Queen Mary. Let's just say that she is leaving London under a bit of a cloud so she does not ask the right questions when she accepts this opportunity from a stranger who claims to be there at the behest of an old friend of her recently deceased father. Once aboard the ship, she meets an upper class family that is traveling together and, although she is mixed race, Lena allows others to believe she is Italian. Not that they really pay much attention to her as they have enough drama among them. Soon enough there's a murder and Lena has no idea whom to trust.

This was an entertaining read but I especially enjoyed the historical and period details more than the plot. The timeline jumps between events that transpired in London and those that happen on the ship. Mostly told from Lena's point of view, there is, however, another character whose narrative informs that they know what is going on and why with a very elaborate plan. The character of Lena is tolerable, but she did not capture my interest as she seemed very shallow and immature. The secondary cast personified all the types that you might find on a ship during that time period doing all the things that would be normal behavior for them. Casual drug use, alcohol, sexual trysts, and smoking combine with the class dynamics between the upper and lower deck people. I just never really became totally convinced by their authenticity enough to care about any of them. I had already figured out the mind behind the intrigue so the reveal was no surprise.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Books for this e-book ARC to read and review.