Mystery isn’t my go-to genre unless it’s a sub-theme. So, I’m wrong for picking a book based on its cover, but I did like parts of this story.

The story follows Imogene Lynch who arrives in Dartmond to fulfill her late husband’s final wish to solve the mystery of the Christmas baby. The Christmas baby is her cousin, Finch, who was adopted into the household and to receive his inheritance needs to find his birth mother. However, this opens up many more intertwining events and stories.

Personally, this didn’t feel like a mystery to me. It felt more like a diary, going through Imogene’s life and thoughts many times unrelated to the mystery. There was no suspense or thrill reading this story. It was quite calm and the mystery was easily solvable and practically written out multiple times. The only hurdle was obtaining proof which seemed far too easily achieved at the end of the book.

The story is told from Imogene’s perspective which has its pros and cons. We got to be right in the midst of the mystery by experiencing the clues firsthand. However, Imogene’s motivation to solve the mystery is dampened many times so the clues become disjointed and randomly spaced. I felt that reading about the other towns folk that interacted with Imogene was much more enjoyable than the mystery element itself.

There are some disturbing events and mentions in this story such as possible murder, molestation, rape, death, pedophilia, and more. I strongly urge everyone to research the trigger warning before reading this book. Although these topics aren’t a large part of the story, they are still mentioned and hinted at.

The characters aren’t really my favorite but as the story went on they grew on me. Imogene isn’t a perfect character but she’s not a very likable one either, in my opinion. I don’t read many western historical stories so it’s possible her character is correct but her thoughts didn’t really sit well with me. I did like some of the other characters and found their fun personalities brought some life into the story.

Overall, this was a good read and I’m glad I finally got to it. I would classify this more like a general fiction read than a mystery. It has a little of everything really from romance and mystery to themes such as trauma, family and growth.

I really wanted to live this mystery because it is set during Christmas time. However, the story is very slow. I also was not really invested in the mystery and thought it was predictable. Hopefully, the next book will be better.

I loved the cover and the ambiance. It was a bit too slow moving for me, though. I had a hard time getting into the story. It was a great take on cozy mysteries during such an era.

I will admit the this book does have a very slow start to the excitement of the story. The plot also has great intrigue. I would have like to read a little of the carried over with some entertainment at the beginning. I do love the main character Imogene. Her personality floating through the book spoke volumes. Each scene her character could over power with just how her character is written. I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

This was a much lighter from of crime fiction than I usually read, but from the very start I loved the feel of this book. It is set in the late 19th Century, and following the death of her husband Imogene Lynch sets out to take on his task and find out the true lineage of her brother-in-law, following a claim made on the death beforehand of his father.

As part of her investigation, and to keep eyes on who she believes could be his real mother, Imogene moves to Dartmond. This is a very cosy and light touch mystery, with the reader finding out a lot of Imogene’s thinking through her internal dialogue. However bit by bit she builds up the story of what she think happened and she just needs to get the right people to reveal their part in the story.

I found this a very enjoyable book, and whilst slow moving at points I still feel the book overall moved forward at a good pace and I enjoyed the way the book was structured and how the puzzle was out together piece by piece. Not my usual crime fayre but I will certainly be looking out for the next book in the story. If you enjoy cosy mysteries and historical mysteries I would recommend this book.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I

Although this novel hit the spot this past Christmas, it was unfortunate not everything I had hoped it would be as a mystery. The writing was easy and fast-paced, but the plot could've been more challenging and well frankly, mysterious! However, I don't want this review to be a downer so yes, I will recommend this book as a Christmas read.

The Unsolved Case of The Secret Christmas Baby is the first book in a Victorian cozy mystery series by Hannah Byron. Released 6th Dec 2022, it's 236 pages and is available in paperback and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats. For Kindle Unlimited subscribers, this book is currently included in the KU subscription library to borrow and read for free.

This is such an oddly written book that quite often, the choice of third person present tense overshadows the actual story. It does have many of the well-loved cozy tropes: deathbed confession, secret adoption, Victorian scandal, secret pregnancy, and holiday resolutions, but the pacing never really recedes sufficiently to make it an easy reading experience.

Although it's set in the Victorian era, there are lots of anachronistic phrases sprinkled throughout, for example "right on", the first registered usage of which wasn't for another 30 years. There are also some distractingly odd turns of phrase, for example calling her late husband her "benedict" no fewer than 23 times in the course of the book (his name was Thaddeus).

Sensitive readers should be aware that there are some unusually difficult themes for a cozy mystery including child abuse, infanticide, post traumatic stress (of a child), and suicide ideation.

All the oddities aside, this is a well written and engagingly constructed story with an interesting mystery and a worthwhile read. The second book in the series, The Peculiar Vanishing Act of Mr Ralph Herriot, is due for release in Aug 2023, and will also be included in the Kindle unlimited library according to the release info.

Three and a half stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

This cozy mystery checks the boxes if you are looking for a Victorian cozy mystery that happens during the holidays. It was just ok, in my opinion. It needed some editing and could have been half the length and told the same story. The characters were fine. The story was fine. I found myself hurrying to finish it up because it seemed to be dragging on.

A cozy mystery full of dense characters and of course with the mystery intact and well done written.
I will recommend this book to everyone for sure.

i like the story, the plot and the web of connections created by the author.

A cute little Christmas mystery with a nice cozy vibe. All and all this was just ok. Nothing special.

An interesting read for me. I really enjoyed the mystery behind the story. A five star book to enjoy!

The highlight of this cosy crime for me is Jasper - an old Jack Russel with special needs. I found the story a little bit lengthy, but I liked the cover very much.

This is a really slow moving story about a grieving widow investigating, on behalf of her family, a fifty-year old case of a missing baby.

The widow is Imogene Lynch, the wife of a now dead policeman, who had been looking into the case though he was gravely ill. Imogen had promised to continue the search; she moves from her comfortable home to Dartmond, the town central to the case, so she can spy on a potential mother of that missing baby.

Imogene is a passive character, spending much of the book in her head, rather than leaving her chair to go detecting in Dartmond. She’s got a suspicion that things aren’t what they seem when a child’s skull is found, but months go by before she gets on and does something. It makes for frustrating reading at times, but I could also appreciate that a grieving woman prone to migraines and eating barely enough to sustain her would hardly go running about the village, peering into and under things and interrogating people.

She does end up solving the case, but not through action but through instinct, some kindness, and conversation. So, from that perspective, this is definitely a cozy mystery, and it did have several enjoyable scenes. I just wished that the pacing had been tighter. I liked Imogene, and her doting on her overweight dog Jasper.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Hannah Byron Books for this ARC in exchange for my review.

I love books to read during Christmas! This one had a unique book title, and unique story. But, it wasn’t my favorite. Thanks to the author and publisher for my copy in exchange for a review.

I wanted to venture outside of my comport zone, but I couldn't get on board with this. I was confused and the historical elements just made it worse for me. Its not the book's fault; I had a hard time comprehending

This first book in the Victorian Cozy Mystery Series introduces Mrs Imogene Lynch, a willy-nilly detective who talks too much and eats too little.

Yes, this premise is right. Mrs Imogene Lynch does eat very little (and it is mentioned more than once in the book). However, she talks a lot, like really a lot.

I found this novel a load of white noise with no intents or purpose. Yes, it is a mystery. Yes, it is set in 19th century England. Yes, it has all the right tropes for historical crime fiction (one of my favourite genres). However, I could not like characters or immerse in the story.

All in all a very superficial, wordy read.

This was exactly what I thought it would be a cozy mystery. I loved the characters; I loved the descriptive storytelling. I loved being in the thoughts of the MC, I am not usually one to like historical fiction but the Victorian era was very interesting and added to the story. Great book.

The Unsolved Cast of the Secret Christmas Baby is a mystery set in Victorian England.

A wife solves a cast that her recently deceased husband never could. It deals with an adoption and a missing child.

The book is the first in a new series. I liked the plot but the writing was flat in many places. I skimmed those places because I wanted to see the resolution.
So - worth a read.

This book caught my attention because of the title, the cover, and the general plot..

Here are my honest thoughts.

I liked it! I mean, it was a tad quirky, slower paced than I would have liked, but interesting. Victorian historical vibes kept my interest, as did Imogen. She's grieving and lonely, but becomes immersed in a mystery as she puts pieces together of an adoption and a murder that her late husband was working on. Also? I loved Jasper!

I did hope for more fast paced action, but I think the pace fit Imogen and the mood of the novel just right. She's a very likable character and I look forward to reading about her in the next book in the series.

Overall, I give this book a 3.5/5!

Thank you NetGalley and Xpresso Book Tours for the ARC!

This was a different sort of mystery than I usually read. It was calm and cozy with a subdued undertone, as the protagonist is grieving the loss of her beloved husband. Mrs. Imogene Lynch is a delicate woman in her late forties, working to solve her constable-husband's final case: the parentage of her cousin, Finley. In between bouts of grief, and accompanied by her beloved dog, Imogene, sets out to fulfil her husband's dying wish and determine once and for all what exactly took place on Christmas Day some fifty years before.

The tone was more somber and drawn out than I'm used to, but the longer timeline allowed for greater changes between updates. I did enjoy seeing the townspeople over the course of the book, but I don't know that I found it compelling enough to seek out the sequel. Imogene keeps to herself quite often, so we see only bits of other folks as they cross her path. Much of the book is simply her internal ramblings. Her mourning seems to keep her from moving forward with her investigation in any sort of straightforward manner. I think I prefer a bit more warmth and wit with my mysteries, though the circumstances of Imogene's present life certainly make the tone understandable. As you can see by the date of this review, I did not prioritize it enough to get through it by Christmas, and I didn't really feel like it was a holiday book.