Perhaps all the violent and blood-curdling thrillers of this world have been written, as it looks as if the ‘cosy crime’ subgenre is steadily gaining in popularity. And with thrillers as good as ‘Last Seen in Santorini’, that’s no bad thing! This is the second tome in the Miss Ashford series (with Atalanta’s previous detective work done in Provence). The first chapter finds Atalanta Ashford in Venice on holiday. All thoughts of relaxation in these beautiful surroundings are discarded, however, when Atalanta is approached by a heavily disguised woman who implores her to investigate her daughter’s alleged killing on the Greek island of Santorini. Her appetite whetted and believing there might be a family connection between the victim and herself, Atalanta takes a live-in companion job to an elderly lady on the island. But no sooner has she arrived than a second murder rocks 1930s Santorini. Will Atalanta, supported by an eclectic cast of memorable side characters, manage to make sense of it all?
Hugely enjoyable, this is a book to lose yourself in and a wonderful introduction to the ‘cosy crime’ genre. I hope that Atalanta never loses her love of travelling, so that there will be plenty of future books featuring her investigations around Europe!

Many thanks to NetGalley and to the publishers for the free ARC that allowed me to produce this honest and unbiased review.

Cosy style mystery, beautifully descriptive with great characters. This is the second book in this series but can easily be read as a stand alone. Thank you netgalley for the advanced copy

Brilliant book to finish as the year ends
Really enjoyed it so very highly recommend!
Miss Ashford is following her grandfather's role
Helping nobility by discretely investigating is her goal.

After successfully concluding her very first case
She sets off to explore a new to her place.
A Venetian holiday in 1930 is where this story starts
When a grieving mother explains her broken heart.

An elderly aunt keeping an eye on things, a possible romance
And a young child who insists on taking chances.
Along with a marriage is it what it seems?
What about the other young lady following wild dreams?

A new investigation, another death, what’s the cause?
Evidence for an accident or murder give her pause.
A broken family with secrets galore
Can Atalanta discover more?

An intriguing read with so many disparate clues
Can she piece them together to create true views?
Strange friendships and relations, too,
But just who is saying what is true?

There are questions, suppositions, lies and deceit,
Nothing is really sorted, though it appears so neat.
With the help of someone from her last case
Can Atalanta put all the pieces into the right place?

For my complementary copy, I say thank you,
As I share with you this, my honest review

Atalanta is a private detective on holiday in 1930s Venice when she is hired by a mystery woman to investigate the death of a young girl in Santorini, where she was employed as a companion to an older lady.
This is the second book in the series, I haven't read the first one (yet) but this didn't spoil the story for me. The characters include a very strict man of the house, his wife and their young son through to a wild friend. Atalanta is helped by a friend, Raoul, a racing driver, to try to get to the bottom of the mystery. The clues are very convoluted and kept me guessing all the way to the end. More complex than some cosy mysteries, think Agatha Christie, and evokes other stories set at that time set in what sounds to be a glorious location.
I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley, however this did not influenced my review of the book.

This cosy mystery has beautiful descriptions of Santorini and Venice and would be a great holiday read in those places. Atalanta makes a likeable heroine as she investigates the death of an elderly woman’s companion. This book is the second in a series, and although it reads as a stand alone novel, I think readers would get more out of it if they read the books in order. I felt I missed out on not knowing the background of Atalanta’s unusual inheritance. Although set in the 1930s, it doesn’t have a particular feel of that period. Overall, an entertaining read.

Last Seen in Santorini is the second book in Vivian Conroy's well-written historical mystery series Miss Ashford Investigates.

This series takes readers on adventures to new, beautiful locales with each book, and this one takes us to the gorgeous Greek island of Santorini. I love the concept of these books. With the first set in Provence and future installments planned for Tuscany and Salzburg, they provide armchair travel to go along with each whodunnit.

It's 1930, and Atalanta Ashford is visiting Venice when approached by a woman asking her to go undercover as a paid companion in a wealthy family to investigate the mysterious death of the woman's daughter. Unfortunately, Atalanta finds more than she bargained for between the family, their secrets, and an unsettling feeling of imminent danger.

This setting is spectacular and reads rather like a PBS Masterpiece show. The descriptions of the island and the grand house put you in the time and place. A large pool of suspects with tense interpersonal dynamics and plenty of motives creates enough misdirection to keep you guessing. Atalanta's backstory is intriguing. A poor school teacher, she was left a fortune by a grandfather she never met as he and her father were estranged. But it comes with strings as he asks her to make discreet inquiries for the well-to-do. As Atalanta travels, sees more of the world, and works as a detective, her confidence grows, and her naivete is slowly fading. However, this works as a stand-alone, and there are no spoilers from the first book. Enjoyable and escapist, this immerses the reader in a picturesque world, and the clever globe-trotting premise promises more adventures to come.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Collins UK, One More Chapter, for the opportunity to review this ARC.

I received a copy of this title from the publisher, but all thoughts are my own. Last Seen in Santorini is the second title in the Miss Ashford investigates series. After learning about her inheritance and successfully solving her first case, Atalanta is taking a much deserved break by visiting Venice, a location she's always wanted to visit. While on the island of Murano, Atalanta feels like she is being watched. She encounters a mystery veiled woman who asks for her help in determining if the death of her daughter on the island of Santorini was a tragic accident as she's been told or if it was murdered. Atalanta is to go undercover as the companion to the elderly aunt of the family that the dead young woman had been working for. Once she arrives, she quickly finds that there are plenty of suspects. The head of the family seems to have a roving eye for young women, his wife is deeply unhappy with her life, their young son is a handful, his nanny is lax in her duties and seems to have something secret she's up to, the elderly aunt may or may not be as senile as her nephew makes her out to be, and one of the locals working for the family tells Atalanta that she should watch her back. Luckily, Atalanta has a secret ally in Raoul, who is known to the family and has traveled to the island in case backup is needed. Add in a highly strung family friend, and Atalanta has an almost impossible task of discovering what really happened.

I am really enjoying this series and think that this second title has done a good job of building on the promise shown in the first book. Atalanta is a very likable character, and there is good character development. She continues to build her detective skills and there is a nicely developing potential romance between Atalanta and Raoul. The mystery is a good balance with some parts of it pretty obvious to readers, but other parts of it feature enough twists and turns to keep the reader engaged. Overall, I really enjoyed this title and will be reading the next title in the series as soon as it is available.

This is book #2 of a series following Atalanta Ashford, who has inherited her grandfather's wealth along with his role as a private detective/sleuth for hire. Due to this turn of events she has been able to give up her teaching job at a boarding school. When we meet her she has already solved her first murder in Provence, and is travelling in Italy on holiday. She is sightseeing in Venice when she's approached by a mysterious woman dressed in black with a veil - she wants to engage Atalanta to investigate the death of her daughter Leiticia in Santorini, where she was a companion to an elderly lady.

The initial descriptions around Venice really help build the visuals for the story, but once the action moves to Santorini there isn't the same lush level of detail. This was a real shame and a missed opportunity I felt, it meant the story could really have been located anywhere/anytime. There wasn't much of a feel of the 1930s in the majority of the story.

Atalanta arrives in Santorini to take up the companion post and also attempt to discover what happened to the previous companion. During her time at the castello she finds a tangled web of intrigue and tensions running high - when another murder happens she starts to feel that she may also be at risk.

The mystery is well constructed and there are plenty of twists, turns and false leads, Atalanta does however seem to spend a lot of time asking the same questions and going over the same ground without actually doing an awful lot to progress her investigations - but luckily the answers seemed to come to her without a lot of effort on her part.

Atalanta Ashford is back and a new case takes her to Santorini, where she finds herself living with a family who are full of deceit and the underlying tension is palpable.
The writing is excellent and descriptive leaving the reader revelling in the beauty of the island of Santorini.
This cosy mystery left me reading late in to the night to find out whodunnit!
An enjoyable read , highly recommended!
Eagerly awaiting the next in the series.
Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter.

Book 2 in the Miss Ashford Mysteries but my first read although that didn’t matter as the first chapter was virtually a précis of book 1 so this can easily be read as a stand-alone. Very descriptive the book takes you from the canals of Venice to the idyllic island of Santorini with its narrow steep streets and dangerous cliffs, in the 1930’s. I liked the idea of this protagonist, her background is brilliant and the storyline is good, but I think Atalanta needs to be a bit sharper.

Briefly, following the previous investigation Atalanta has decided to take a holiday in Venice only to be accosted by a woman who asks her to investigate her daughters death which she believes was murder. Curiosity winning out Atalanta takes a job as a companion with the Bucardi family. Not long after arriving a second woman working for the family dies. There is clearly something amiss!

It’s a good read, written from Atalanta’s POV, although I did find some of the repetition as she considered possible scenarios unnecessary. That said it was a fun cozy mystery, with a few surprises, and a perfect holiday read. I think this is a series that could be really good and I would read again.

Despite this being the 2nd in a series you can read as a stand-alone novel. Pure escapism and a delight to read.

Love going to Santorini, this murder mystery was well written. The series is well written and look forward to more

“Last Seen in Santorini” (Miss Ashford #2) by Vivian Conroy ⭐️⭐️⭐️Genre: Historical Cozy Mystery. Location: Venice, Italy and Santorini Island, Greece. Time: August 1930.

THE SERIES: Atalanta Ashford taught at a Swiss boarding school until she inherited her grandfather’s fortune. With her new fortune comes a legacy passed down from grandfather to granddaughter…discreet private detective for Europe’s elite.

THIS BOOK: Atalanta is sightseeing near Venice when a veiled lady asks her to look into her 19-year-old daughter Leticia’s death. Leticia fell from Santorini’s cliffs while working as a companion to the prominent Bacardi family. Atalanta sails to Santorini, goes undercover as the new companion, and discovers her client didn’t tell her the full truth. The seductively mysterious Raoul from book 1 surfaces, and follows her to the island to help investigate. A 2nd victim is killed, and Atalanta worries there will be more unless she quickly solves the case.

This is book 2 in the series. It’s common to find a previous events summary or a cast of characters at the beginning of a 2nd book. Instead, author Conroy spends the 1st chapter describing events in book 1 and reintroducing characters.There’s a great deal of description, but overall it works. Descriptions would be more meaningful if there was a map of Santorini and a floor plan of the burg.

Conroy writes Atalanta as quite naive, which fits her backstory. She writes her with a need to have men, Raoul in particular, think well of her. This also fits 1930’s attitudes and beliefs. Atalanta debates the possibilities of everything in her head instead of letting readers do that on their own. The questions she considers are often repeated several times. Both techniques slow down the action.

This is definitely an armchair travel mystery. If you like your cozy mysteries with lots of local description, and don’t mind reading the same thoughts and questions more than once, this may be a book for you. It’s 3 stars from me. Thank you to NetGalley, HarperCollins, One More Chapter, and Vivian Conroy for the early ebook copy. Publishes 1/6/2023.

An enjoyable good murder mystery set in beautiful Santorini. Atalanta is approached by a person dressed in black and asked to go to Santorini to investigate a possible murder. Lots of twists and turns in this novel which keep you wondering as the ending is not what you would expect.

I would like to thank Netgalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for an advance copy of Last Seen in Santorini, the second novel to feature Miss Atalanta Ashford, set in the 1930s.

Atalanta is on holiday in Venice when she is asked to take another case. Letitia fell to her death while working as a companion to an elderly woman on Santorini, but her mother thinks she has been murdered and asks Atalanta to investigate. Once on Santorini she finds more problems and mysteries than she was led to believe.

I enjoyed Last Seen in Santorini to a point, as it is a light read with a mystery attached, but it’s not as exciting as it perhaps could be due to the format. I did, however, like that it is told entirely from Atalanta’s point of view, which allows the reader to get stuck in to the read and guess alongside her.

It is a novel of secrets and seething emotions, so Atalanta’s job is to try and uncover a motive for Letitia’s death, if, indeed, she was murdered, but it’s not a happy household and there are deep waters to navigate. Ordinarily this would hold my attention relentlessly, but her habit of continually rehashing what she knows and learns becomes repetitive and slows the momentum of what is a well thought out plot. Still, the author manages a few surprises and a few well deserved dressing downs to some characters, which are unexpectedly sharp in a cosy. I was last seen cheering them on.

I love the concept of Atalanta Ashford, a poverty stricken schoolteacher left a fortune by grandfather she never met, due to her father being the family black sheep, and a request that she carry on the family tradition of discreet enquiries for the rich that she accepts. After two novels I still find her a bit of a cypher with no obvious personality and too many repetitive thoughts. There is a potential love interest in the form of racing car driver Raoul Lemont, but a tortoise could move faster than their relationship, so there’s no excitement there.

Last Seen in Santorini is an easy way to spend a few hours.

In the style of Agatha Christie, this 1930s whodunnit is good.
Atalanta Ashford is contacted whilst on holiday in Venice on the island of Murano, to help investigate a death on the Greek island of Santorini. Under cover she joins the Bucardi family in their Castello. The family seem to hold a lot of secrets and it’s not long before Atalanta gets to know them.
An easy read, seems very American rather than English, and a bit repetitive and simplistic for me. I enjoyed the read but generally not a style of writing that I would want to read more of. Uncomplicated old fashioned easy reading, great for some!
Thank you NetGalley for the early read.

This is a second book in the series about Miss Atalanta Ashfords mysteries. She is in Venice when’s she meets up with Raoul a race car driver who she met in Provence in her first case. They are followed by and approached by a mystery woman who wants Atalanta to solve a murder case on the island of Santorini. She will hide her disguise by accepting a job as the old lady’s aid. The mystery then starts to unfold.

I loved the setting, when reading you feel like your there. All the characters are great, loved the wit of the old lady and the secrets of the other characters. The book will keep you guessing too about the murderer. Loved the little twists too. A great all round mystery novel.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a copy for an honest review.

I was immediately attracted by the gorgeous book cover portraying Santorini, but slightly disappointed as most of the plot was within the dark and gloomy walls of an ancient Greek castle. (Reading in deepest winter I had hoped for summer in the Med.)

The plot was slow to start and, not having read the previous book, much wasn't explained. How did Atalanta’s wealthy grandfather become a sleuth and where did Atalanta gain enough knowledge to become an investigator, particularly in solving crimes of murder.

Once the plot gathered speed I forgot my ignorance of the backstory and enjoyed the novel.
Atalanta Ashford, previously employed in Switzerland as a french language teacher, has become the heiress to her late grandfather's massive fortune. She plans to continue her grandfather's legacy becoming a globe trotter and solving crimes, mainly murders. After successfully solving her first case (Book 1;Mystery in Provence) Atalanta is on holiday in Venice, when she's approached by a woman who insists her daughter was murdered and begs help to discover the culprit. The daughter, who's death was reported as an accident, was working for the wealthy Bucardi family in Santorini. Agreeing to investigate, Atalanta poses as a companion and travels to the Bucardi's castle, where she'll attempt to discover the truth while acting as a companion for the family's elderly aunt. Arriving at the castle Atalanta finds tensions are high, after another death occurs she wonders if she herself might be at risk.

An enjoyable cosy mystery set in the 1930s with plenty of clues, real or misleading, and false trails to keep the reader guessing.

ARC generously supplied by HarperCollins, One More Chapter UK and NetGalley, this review is my personal, unbiased opinion.

Another good mystery in this series: I thooroughly enjoyed it, had fun and the solid plot kept me guessing.
I loved the descriptions of the setting and was glad to catch up with the characters.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

I do enjoy a cosy mystery, so when the author Vivian Conroy connected with me on Twitter and suggested I might enjoy her latest book, I decided to give it a read. Although this is the second book in the Miss Ashford Investigates series, I didn’t have a problem settling into the characters and the premise behind Miss Atalanta Ashford becoming a secret investigator. This book takes us on a murder mystery adventure starting in Venice and journeying to the beautiful island of Santorini. Whilst holidaying in Venice, Atalanta is approached by a mysterious grieving mother who wants to know the truth behind her daughter’s death in Santorini. Linking herself to Atalanta’s grandfather ensures Atalanta accepts the case. And so begins the challenge of uncovering the truth.
The island is full of charm and history; the home of the Bucardi family is filled with intriguing characters all of whom could have been responsible for the death of the girl. As Atalanta plays her cover role of companion to an aging aunt, can she and the dashing Raoul (a daring racing driver who obviously featured prominently in book one) discover who the murderer is before more tragedy strikes?
At first I thought the story was a little slow to get going, but once it did I was hooked. There are lots of potential suspects and in fact nearly everyone could have been guilty. I enjoyed solving the case along with Atalanta and I’m sure she’ll be back soon with another case in another destination. If you enjoy a cosy mystery and an arm chair travel, then this is a lovely book.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for a review.