This was a pretty standard historical cosy mystery. I struggled to get into the story line, but I think that may just be me and that my taste in genres may have evolved.

I appreciated the characters and liked Cassie and her quirky ways and Flora was a sweet animal loving character too. There wasn't much mystery for me as I had the suspect pinned pretty early on and there were some historical inaccuracies which I find to be irritating.

I liked the narrator and I think she did a great job with all the different characters and I was able to differentiate between them all throughout.

I don't think I will pick up the rest of the series, but this is down to me and not the author or story itself.

In a Nutshell: Didn’t work much for me, though it has its moments.

Story:
1883, Florida. Cassie Gwynne has just got off the steamship at Fernandina harbour, hoping to meet an aunt she had never known about and whose identity she discovered only after her father’s death. She has also undergone a makeover that befits her status as a wealthy lady. Cassie gets off to a rocky start in this new place when she discovers that her Aunt Flora is in jail for causing social disturbance. When this problem is sorted out, another one comes up. Flora’s grouchy neighbour Peanut Runkles is found dead near the foot of the harbour pilot’s tower. And as Flora and he have had plenty of tussles over the years, Flora becomes the main suspect in this crime. Will Cassie lose her aunt even before she has come to know her well?

Where the book worked for me:
✔ It’s quite funny in places. (The very fact that my first positive feedback about a cosy mystery is that it’s funny, should tell you a lot about the mystery in the book.)
✔ Cassie is an entertaining historical pseudo-detective. It was a different experience to see her trying to solve the mystery while struggling with her fashionable new gowns.
✔ The location of the story, Fernandina Beach in Nassau County, Florida, is put to excellent use in the story.

Where the book could have worked better for me:
❌ There are multiple officials and investigators checking out Peanut Runkles’ death. But guess who correctly interprets each and every clue? Finds objects at various locations that no one else detects? Uncovers the big mystery without help from any single person? Goes into strange and/or dangerous places all alone and comes out unscathed? You guessed it. The amateur Cassie who isn’t even interested in being a detective but just wants to help her aunt escape the death noose. It felt so unrealistic that only one person could detect every single thing and all the others were just bumbling and stumbling around.
❌ A couple of things felt anachronistic, though I'm not too sure about these. For instance, Cassie pays $5 to a young boy to run an errand for her. That’s ridiculously high for 1883. Another thing is that she’s constantly chewing gum, at least in the first half. The book mentions that she has overhauled her entire wardrobe and manners to appear more ladylike, so I didn’t get how chewing gum matched this personality change. Also, was chewing gum so popular in 1883 that a lady would keep popping it in her mouth again and again and no one would comment on that habit?
❌ There are allusions to outfits again and again and yet again. This might have been a deliberate choice to enhance the comic factor of the book but I just got bored by the repeated references to gowns and shirt coats and hats and what-not.
❌ Unfortunately for me, I had a clear suspect in mind very early in the book, somewhere within the first quarter itself. So the rest of the book was just a wait-and-watch situation to see if the big reveal matched my guess. It did. Sigh!
❌ Everyone knows that in a thriller, the person to whom most fingers are pointed at is never the culprit. In this book, there is ONLY one person in whose direction the clues seem to sway. So it is but obvious that that person would not be the actual guilty party. Once this big reveal comes about, the book starts introducing twists, some of which were just for the sake of it and were too farfetched to be believable. This further chipped away from my experience.



The audiobook experience
The audiobook clocks at 11 hours and is narrated by the excellent Lauryn Allman. She deserves full credit for helping me complete this book. Her voice suits Cassie’s character perfectly, but she does justice to the other characters too. And when I say other characters, I mean, every single character (and even some objects!) Ever heard a narrator who can chime like an actual bell and mew like a cat? (I actually thought there was a cat in my room when I heard her mewing!) I’m in love with her voice and capabilities. One full star from my rating is for her performance. (I would have given her 5 stars if there were a separate rating field for narrators.) I would love to pick up more books read by her.
There are too many characters at the start, so I had to hear the initial couple of chapters twice to get a rough hang of who was who. But soon things started falling into place. If you get confused with too many names, better skip the audio version and try reading this.

Overall, this was not really ‘A Deception Most Deadly’, more like ‘A Quandary Quite Quirky’. Recommended only if you want a humorous historical cosy mystery and if you read without using the logical side of your brains too much.

3 stars from me. (Remember, 1 star is for narrator Lauryn Allman.)

My thanks to Bookouture Audio and NetGalley for the ALC of “A Deception Most Deadly”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the audiobook.

Cassie Gwynne arrives in the wild and wooly town of Fernandina Beach, Florida in 1883. Cassie is trying to please her aunt Flora by acting in a more “ladylike” fashion. But as she soon discovers there is very little about her new home that is civilized; when she discovers the body of Peanut Runkles, Flora’s neighbor and enemy. flora is immediately arrested for the murder, leaving Cassie to uncover the truth and free her aunt. I love Fernandina Beach, even now, it’s a little “crazy” around the edges and I enjoyed this foray back into its past very much

**please note due to low rating I will not be leaving a public review for this book as I have not paid for it.**

So sorry for the poor feedback but I just could not get into the story. It just didn't grab me.

I listened to this audiobook while I was gloss painting a few of my doors, and it helped me to enjoy my painting more. I felt like I was on a little adventure and in my own world. The book was great and I loved going back in time to 1883 for this cozy mystery.

The story is about Cassie, who is on a journey after her Dad dies. She goes to visit her Aunt Flora, and they form a lovely bond. One of Flora's neighbours is found dead, and Cassie starts investigating it. Cassie then has to help Flora with something that happens to her regarding the neighbour, and they also have to sort out their feelings for each other, which relate to their past and to Cassie's Dad. I liked Cassie and Flora, as well as all of the animals in the story, especially the cute kitten.

The narrator of the book did a great job and she had a lovely voice. I really enjoyed this book and I look forward to reading more of this author's work in the future.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I listened to the audiobook version of A Deception Most Deadly. This is a historical cosy mystery set in 1883 on the island of Fernandina. Cassie Gwynne arrives to visit her Aunt Flora - the trouble begins when Aunt Floras neighbour Peanut Runkles is found dead floating in the harbour - and as he has been quarrelling with Flora, she is immediately arrested! But it seems Peanut has been having quarrels with several people. And so the story begins with Cassies investigations. I loved this audiobook , Lauren Allman is a marvellous narrator to listen to. I was transported back in time and away from reality. Thank you to Netgalley and to Bookouture for my copy.

Cassie Gwynne looked for a fresh start after her father's death. They lived in New York, her father was an attorney, and she use to help him with his works.
She off to see her aunt who has owns a perfume and scented goods store in town, for the first time at Fernandina island, 1883. As a very gentlewoman and proper lady, as we expect in that time, soon as she arrived, arrested for ...
Well, not exactly arrested but was taken to the police station for answering some questions. Like other usual and ordinary families, she met her aunt for the first time at the jail, accidentally!

Wait a minute, the story didn't begin yet. Aunt Flora has very compassion for animals and cares about them. Like real life, there is always a neighbor who ALWAYS complains about animals.
Peanut Runkles has been quarreling with Flora for years, about everything from Flora’s eccentric ideas to Peanut’s vegetable patch that was destroyed by pet pig Flora.

"Who may have had an issue with Peanut.”
“That’s easy. Downing, Smalls, Meeks, Mr. Shaw, Mrs. Shaw, all of his neighbors, anyone else who’s ever met him."

Cassie accidentally finds Peanut's body lying at the foot of the harbor pilots’ lookout tower. Flora was arrested for his murder. Cassie and a few loyal friends try to find the real killer and help Flora. During this investigation, Cassie finds some unusual information about the last huge fire in town and the insurance company. It looks like is not only about Peanut anymore. There will be another murder, other documents against her aunt and meet an old friend after years, he had changed a lot!

A great start for a new historical cozy mystery series! I really enjoyed the narrator. The story was great with humor. I loved the Plot, the island city of Fernandina 1883; the characters, Cassie, her Aunt Flora, their friends, and also their lovely animals, especially the new kitty "Hesychia", Esy for short. :) I really like to read how the story could continue.

Many thanks to Bookouture Audio and NetGalley for giving me a chance of listening to A Deception Most Deadly (A Cassie Gwynne Mystery #1) by Genevieve Essig, Narrated by Lauryn Allman, I have given my honest review.
Published Date 14 Jan 2022
My review on 11 Dec 2021