Kitty Underhay is on holiday after returning from her cousin’s wedding & is looking forward to a week of long lunches and wedding planning with her husband-to-be, Captain Matthew Bryant. But the plan is derailed when he is called on to collect a former comrade-in-arms, arriving on the 15:50 from Paddington. As the train bearing Simon Travers pulls up to the platform, a piercing scream rises over the screech of its brakes. Travers is dead in his seat, a dagger in his heart. Only a few individuals had access to Travers’s compartment so the suspect list is small. But when Kitty’s prime suspect, the travelling salesman with no merchandise, is found murdered, she is stumped. Then past secrets start to emerge.
This is the eighth book in the series & whilst it’s easily read on its own the characters have developed over the series & Matthew & Kitty are now engaged. I’ve loved how their relationship has grown & changed, they are now partners who work so well together. The ongoing thread about Kitty’s mother reaches its conclusion or does it? The murder of Simon & then Billy at first seem puzzling but as the pair dig deeper secrets & revelations about the others travelling in the train compartment are revealed. There are twists & turns as well as red herrings & surprises. I just love this series & look forward to each new book, so far I’ve not been disappointed. I read this captivating cosy mystery in two sittings.
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

Murder in first class by Helen Dixon.
Miss underhay #8.
Kitty Underhay is looking forward to a week of long lunches and wedding planning with her husband-to-be, Captain Matthew Bryant. But the plan is derailed when he is called on to collect a former comrade-in-arms, arriving on the 15:50 from Bakerloo. As the train bearing Simon Travers pulls up to the platform, a piercing scream rises over the screech of its brakes. Travers is dead in his seat, a dagger in his heart.
A really good read. I love this series. Kitty is my favourite. I loved the cover. 4*.

Thank you very much for the ARC of Murder in first class by Helena Dixon.
This was the second book in the series I have read and I enjoyed it just as much as the previous one.
Kitty Underhay and her fiancé Matt come across another murder when a witness in a robbery is stabbed in a first class train carriage. They are asked to assist the Devon police and they are happy to comply.
I love the descriptions of Devon throughout the book. Kitty and Matt are very likeable characters. I look forward to the next instalment in the series!

4.5* upped to 5.
This a great series and this is a very good addition as it's compelling, riveting, and highly entertaining.
At the core it's a homage at the Golden Age mystery impossible murder with a closed circle of suspects, please don't talk about locked room because there's no locked room.
Helen Dixon did a good job in creating a complex puzzle, who killed Simon Traver in full view, and making her detective work on it. The solution is satisfying and there's plenty of clues that helps you to understand who the culprit could be.
I was happy to catch up with Kitty and Matt as I loved these characters. Kitty is a very modern character, and she is experiencing a lot of pressure to become a housewife leaving her detecting days behind.
The characters are interesting, and the hypocrisy/prejudices of the age are well described.
My only note is related to Ezekiel and his sister: this is the fil rouge of the series, but I think it lost steam and I read the part related to this subplot quite fast.
I had fun in reading this novel and I did in one setting. It's always a pleasure to read novels in this series and I thoroughly enjoyed this one
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Another very enjoyable book in the series featuring heroine Lady Kitty Underhay and her now fiancé the dashing Matthew.

In this book Matthew is tasked with minding a witness from a robbery trial who looks like he may be in danger. Indeed when Matthew and Kitty arrive to meet him from the train he has been murdered, while seated in a full carriage. Leaving Matthew to take ownership of the deceased’s dog, he and Kitty to plough through the clues to solve the murder mystery.

As well written as ever and the relationship between Kitty and Matthew has deepened and this is featured more in this story. The way the two work together to solve the crime is a joy to read. As usual there is danger , lots of potential suspects and an array of characters that make the book come to life. Again there is also the beautiful cover to enjoy, which makes the book stand out to the reader as they are all so well illustrated.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoy this series of books and always look forward to seeing what's in store for them. This time was no exception.

I love how there are a number of levels to the story all being moved along with each book, Matt and Kitty's relationship maturing. the murder mystery and then the long thread of Kitty's mother's murder, which took place so long ago and yet where the detail continues to unravel as the culprits are still active.

It felt a little more on an Agatha Christie-style story this time - after all, there were only so many people in the train carriage, but the back stories to each and way the story was crafted, over time, exposed the many links, twists and turns and this made it an enjoyable read. Once again, great characters and conversations,

I was right when I commented that I expected, "The next instalment is going to be a goodie." I have read all the other seven and I highly recommend the series.

With thanks to #NetGalley, Bookouture and the author for my free advanced reader copy to review in exchange for an honest opinion

When Kitty Underhay accompanied her fiancé Captain Matthew Bryant to the railway station to pick up a person who was to spend some time with Matt, the scream as the train pulled in was ear-splitting. Mrs Craven, Kitty’s nemesis, was at the door to the first-class carriage, yelling that a man had been murdered in his seat. As Kitty and Matt joined Inspector Greville in viewing the body of Simon Travers, Matt realized this was the man coming to stay. The other people in the carriage were immediately separated so questioning could begin.

With Inspector Greville’s blessing, both Kitty and Matt set about investigating the few people who were in the carriage with the dead man. It was obvious it could only be one of the few who was a cold-blooded murderer, but who fit the bill? With Kitty and Matt still on holiday for another week before she returned to The Dolphin where her grandmother was in charge with Kitty away, they had the time to ask their questions. But would they come up with the right answers? Kitty had a fair idea who the culprit was…

Murder in First Class is the 8th in the Miss Underhay series by Helena Dixon and once again I thoroughly enjoyed it! The covers to all these books are excellent, eye catching, crisp and clear, and this one would be one of the best. Kitty and Matt are looking to their wedding in the near future and I’m looking forward to being present to celebrate. A great historical cosy mystery, Murder in First Class in one I recommend.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

This was ok, but I felt it rather dragged in places. A light undemanding read.

As i felt it was a little long, I would give this 3. Not the worst of the series but not the best either

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my review.

Loved this latest instalment of the Miss Underhay mystery after having waited so long for this

Looking forward to wedding planning with her husband to be Matthew Bryant Kitty is dismayed when he is called upon to meet an old accomplice from the train but as the train arrives his friend Simon Travers does not leave the train alive

Up to eight books now and I am still enjoying this delightful series and its beautiful covers.

In Murder in First Class Kitty and Matt, newly engaged, go to meet Simon Travers from the train only to find him murdered in a first class compartment. There are only five people there who could have committed the crime but which one and how did he/she do it without the others seeing.

It is a fascinating mystery which takes a great deal of work to solve. I enjoyed the approach taken by Matt and Kitty and the way they worked together. I also liked observing their developing relationship and I am looking forward to their eventual wedding which will obviously not be complete without someone dying in some unforeseen way!

‘Murder In First Class’ by Helena Dixon is the 8th book in her Miss Underhay Mystery Series. I have grown fond of Kitty and Matt and the fascinating characters they find themselves with. I like that there are links to previous books in the series. But there is no need to have read any before as they are self contained.

This time Kitty hopes to spend some quiet time relaxing with her new fiancé, but when he is asked to meet an old comrade from the train and have him stay for a few days, that looks unlikely. When there is a murder on that train and the pair are called in to help, there is no way they will have any time to themselves. Trying to find a suspect from the unlikely collection of passengers proves difficult. And as secrets are revealed Kitty and Matt are in more danger than ever.

This was a good mystery that kept me interested throughout. The 1920s setting works perfectly for this type of cosy mystery and the descriptions of England of that time are so well crafted, that I feel as if I’m there. I can open this book and wallow in the beautiful clothes and fascinating characters. Helena Dixon has perfected the art of mystery and has found a way to bring her readers back for more. I look forward to more in this series.

I was given this ARC for review.

3.75 stars

Kitty Underhay and her fiance Matt are back for another adventure. Kitty runs a hotel for her grandmother and helps her private investigator beau track down murderers. Matt, who sometimes assists shady government agencies in pre-WWII England, is asked to stash a witness in a robbery/murder case, but when he and Kitty go to meet the man's train, it's too late -- he has been stabbed to death in the train compartment. Obviously, the murderer is one of his fellow passengers.

The mystery is nicely done with some unexpected elements. A significant thread in this series is Kitty's family, her search for her mother who disappeared when Kitty was a child, and her sketchy father, currently in America. In a previous book, we discover what happened to her mother and she is still following up on the circumstances. I find this thread to be a distraction and would like them to wind that up and concentrate on the mystery plots.

Kitty is a strong-minded modern woman who is competent and clever, and she and Matt are an appealing couple. Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Kitty Underhay is looking forward to a week of long lunches and wedding planning with her husband-to-be, Captain Matthew Bryant. But the plan is derailed when he is called on to collect a former comrade-in-arms, arriving on the 15:50 from Paddington. As the train bearing Simon Travers pulls up to the platform, a piercing scream rises over the screech of its brakes. Travers is dead in his seat, a dagger in his heart. This is #8 in a thoroughly enjoyable series and it did not disappoint. Just the right combination of mystery, murder and romance made this story every bit as the other in the series if not better. Anxiously awaiting #9! Thank you NetGalley for the advanced readers copy for review.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for a copy of "Murder in First Class" in exchange for my honest review.

This is the eagerly anticipated book 8 in the Miss Underhay series and as with previous books, this one did not disappoint. We met a new character that really brought sparkle to the story. Bertie the black and grey Cocker Spaniel that Matt seems to inherit. Hopefully he will be prominent in coming books as well.

The story starts with an article in June 1934 in the Torbay Herald that Ezekiel Hammett (the suspect in the murder of his half-brother Denzil and Elowed Underhay) has been captured.

The trial of the Tower Hill Jewelry robbery is the main focus of this story. Captain Matthew Bryant, the fiancé of Miss Kitty Underhay -has been asked to collect a Mr. Simon Travers at the train station by his former boss. When Kitty and Matt arrive at the station of course, they run into Mrs. Craven who is her annoying self and a murder. 1 train compartment, 1 victim, 6 passengers - who did it? It should be a very simple murder to solve yet no one saw or heard anything.

After another death, and a request to find a long ago abandoned baby - Matt and Kitty start to put the pieces together - how the Tower Hill Robbery, the murder on the train and the identity of the baby are all linked together.

Kitty pushing to have a meeting with Ezekiel in prison, has a frightening encounter with him. We may not have seen the last of this murderous family.

Kitty and Matt are being pressured by Kitty's grandmother and Mrs. Craven to set a wedding date. This is where the story leaves off with them having picked a date but also with a threat from Esther Hammett.

As always I feel that 5 stars are not enough for Miss Dixon's books. I'm very much looking forward to the next book in the series.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Bookouture for an advance copy of Murder in First Class, the eighth novel to feature amateur sleuth Kitty Underhay, set in Dartmouth, 1934.

Kitty is newly engaged to Captain Matthew Bryant, so she accompanies him to the station to meet a house guest foisted on him by his former boss. To their consternation the man, Simon Travers has been murdered on the train.

I enjoyed Murder in First Class, which is my first foray into the series. It works well as a stand-alone and I didn’t feel that I had missed much by not reading the previous novels as all the salient points are explained.

The novel is a variation on the golden age locked room construct and is well handled. Simon Travers was killed by one of six people who shared a closed train compartment with him, so the questions are who, why and how. The author does a good job of casting doubt on all the suspects, except Mrs Craven, who as a friend of Kitty’s grandmother is obviously above suspicion, throws in one main motive which could apply to any one of them and produces a mind boggling solution that I doubt many will guess.

I like Kitty and Matt, who are sensible characters with him offering a steadying hand to her more impetuous character. Of course, she’s a modern woman so it’s a fine line between independence and impetuosity.

Murder in First Class does its job as a light and frothy piece of entertainment so I can recommend it as a good read.

1930s, ex-cop, private-investigators, murder, murder-investigation, law-enforcement, cosy-mystery, historical-fiction, assassins, jewelry-heist, relatives, relationships, family, mystery, verbal-humor, suspense*****

The publisher's blurb is a good hook, and the story itself is another winner. The due diligence that Kitty and her fiancé work so hard at is hampered only by the times in which they live. No spoilers.
This is not an unbiased review because I love the characters and plots (complete with obscure twists and red herrings) in this series. For those who haven't read any of the others, this can stand alone. But why? Despite being part of a series, you can't feel like you're out of the loop because the author keeps inserting useful tidbits.
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Bookouture via NetGalley. Thank you!

I received a copy of this title from the publisher; all opinions are my own. Murder in First Class is the eighth title to feature Miss Kitty Underhay. The main mystery of the book can be read as a standalone, but there is a overarching story involving Kitty's mother that doesn't work as well without having read previous titles in addition to the development of Kitty and Matt's relationship throughout the series. Recently engaged, Matt and Kitty find themselves once again involved in a murder when Matt is asked to provide a place for a witness to a jewelry store heist doesn't survive the train trip. The matter is much more complicated then quickly determining which of the 7 other passengers in the compartment did it (with the exception of being able to rule out Mrs. Craven). There is more than meets the eye to most of the passengers. In addition to trying to figure out the murder's identity, Kitty is trying to obtain an interview with Ezekiel Hammett to help her finally get closure on her mother's death.

Overall, this is my favorite title in the series; I thought the mystery was extremely strong and I enjoyed the continued growth of both Kitty as an individual and Kitty/Matt as a couple. I am not sure how I feel at the development revealed at the end of the book, but I will continue to read additional titles in the series to see if Kitty and Matt make it down the aisle.

Kitty Underhay is on holiday. Recently returned from her cousin Lucy’s wedding she still has a week before she resumes her job running the Dolphin Hotel for her grandmother. Recently engaged Kitty has her own plans to make but makes time  to go with fiancé Matt Bryant to meet an unexpected house guest especially as it means she can drive them both to the train station.

Unfortunately the discovery of a dead body in a first class compartment charges their plans completely and Kitty and Matt find themselves once again helping the local police with their investigation. Kitty is also still trying to find out why her beloved mother Elowed was killed but with only a few days left before her holiday ends time is of the essence.

This is the eighth book in the wonderful Kitty Underhay mystery series and they keep getting better and better. There is a familiarity to the main protagonists who are now like old friends and all are in great form especially Mrs Craven, who is a definite thorn in Matt and Kitty’s sides; she definitely has all the best dialogue this time around. A new character is also introduced who, I think, will become a popular regular, Bertie will definitely keep them on their toes! There is a very satisfying, Christie-esque cast of suspects, all realistic products of the time period and red herrings abound within their little group.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers but the opinions expressed are my own. This comes highly recommended, I loved it.

I really enjoyed reading Murder in First Class. It was a fun read. It starts with a prologue about the capture of Ezekiel Hammett who killed his half-brother. Kitty Underhay, the main character in the story wants to meet with him to find out if he is responsible for her mother's death. All the supporting characters are. very important to the storyline.. Captain Matthew Bryant, Kitty's fiance gets a call from his old boss, Brigadier Remmington-Blythe that he would like Matt to meet the train and take Travers and his dog to his house before the trial he is going to testify. When waiting for the train they learn that Travers has been murdered on the train. There are two parts to this story. One finding out what happened to Kitty's mother and who killed Travers on the train. Both of the story lines come to separate conclusions and surprising endings.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC.

Thank you to Net Galley and Bookouture for this ARC. Another great installment in this brilliant series. Good under story running through all the books, not getting bored yet, looking forward to the next book.