Lady Eleanor Swift is back for another fun, exciting and unpredictable adventure in the latest entry in Verity Bright’s fantastic historical cozy mystery series.

It’s the king’s birthday and preparations are in full swing for this momentous occasion. Eleanor and her loyal butler Clifford are all busy lending a hand and ensuring that the grand dining room at Henley Hall is overflowing with rosettes and flags. Everybody is in party mode – even her bulldog Gladstone and ginger cat Tomkins! However, it looks like the celebrations will end up coming to a premature end because Eleanor once again finds herself having to turn detective when a body turns up at Henley Hall!

Chairman of the celebrations committee Mr Prestwick-Peterson has been strangled with some home-made bunting and as Eleanor begins to do some digging – helped by her charming beau Detective Hugh Seldon – it quickly transpires that in Little Buckford, Mr Prestwick-Peterson had his fair share of enemies who all had their own reasons for wanting him dead. But which one them did it?

Could the photograph of a young woman found in Mr Prestwick-Peterson’s pristine rooms help Eleanor untangle this twisted mystery? Is somebody deliberately sabotaging the king’s birthday celebrations? With the pressure mounting and the clock ticking, Eleanor and her team need to work fast to unmask a dangerous killer. However, Eleanor needs to watch her back and be very careful because the killer is watching and if she gets far too close to the truth, then she might just end up joining Mr Prestwick-Peterson in the cemetery!

Verity Bright strikes gold yet again with the latest Lady Eleanor Swift mystery, Murder by Invitation. Witty, entertaining and a delight from start to finish, Murder by Invitation is a nail-biting cozy mystery infused with all the charm, humour, intrigue and suspense which readers have come to expect from this superb series by Verity Bright.

A terrific page-turner that will keep you eagerly turning the pages late into the night, Murder by Invitation is another winner by Verity Bright.

Little Buckford's birthday celebration in honour of King George V is put in jeopardy when the committee chairman, Mr Prestwick-Peterson, is found dead in the village hall, throttled by bunting made by the female staff of Henley Hall. As expected, Eleanor and Clifford are drawn into the investigation, but this time they are working openly with Detective Hugh Seldon, Eleanor's fiancé.

The victim was an unpopular, interfering busybody, which makes for a long suspect list. Another line of enquiry is that anarchists and anti-royal sympathisers wish to sabotage the event, an alarming prospect for the inhabitants of Little Buckford.

As the investigative trio dig deeper, other clues surface that point to a false identity and a crime of a more personal nature. A quick trip over the border for Eleanor and Clifford uncovers a tragedy that helps unmask a murderer, the pursuit of whom will have devastating and unforeseen consequences.

This story line is a little grittier than those of the previous novels, but it still contains the elements that make this such a great series. I always look forward to the entertaining banter between the main characters, lots of giggling from 'the girls' and the endearing presence of Gladstone, the bulldog, and his feline friend, Tomkins.

What also makes this a memorable instalment, is that the dishy Hugh has much more page time. He comes under the scrutiny of the villagers not only as the detective in charge of the investigation, but more importantly as Eleanor's intended. Not one for being the centre of attention, especially after his first encounter with the inhabitants of Little Buckford didn't go too well (a previous case) and some still suspicious of him, he accepts it with good grace. Later, he does charm them with his public declaration of love for Eleanor.

The next book takes Eleanor and company to spend Christmas in Cornwall. Another great read coming up!

I love this series. Not a fan of historic fiction this series is wonderful showing life in England when the class system was in vogue. This is book 15 in the Lady Eleanor Swift series and is set during the King's birthday celebration, Lady Eleanor and her beau, Detective Hugh Seldon sold the murder of the chairman of Little Buckford's parade. Hope this series continues with a wedding soon. A good mystery with some historical facts thrown in to keep you informed.

This is the fifteenth in a series featuring the intrepid lady Eleanor Swift and her faithful and equally intrepid butler Clifford. It has a setting worthy of Wodehouse: an English village in the twenties on the eve of the king’s birthday celebration, and the traditional cast of eccentric villagers, one of whom is strangled early on. Since everyone in the village wanted to kill him, it’s left to Eleanor and her fiancé, Chief Inspector Hugh Seldon, to unravel it all. The best parts are the descriptions of munificent breakfasts and a hair-raising venture into the depths of an abandoned mine.
Anyone who has ever had to chair a patriotic event will identify with the beleaguered Eleanor, but I did find myself wishing that the authors (a husband and wife pair) had been more careful with authentic language. “No problem” was not a phrase in use until the 1960s; something that is not “even a thing” is a century too new. “Blown away” and “the suits,” meaning the county council, don’t ring right either and the occasional lapses into stage Englishman veer too far in the other direction—Lord Fenwick-Langham calls Eleanor “old fruit” three times in one scene. It is not easy to carry a set of characters through fifteen books and counting, though, and lovers of all things country British may be more forgiving.
Amanda Cockrell

This review ran in the February 2024 online edition of Historical Novels review

This was a really suspenseful, well done edition to the series. There was a specific scene that felt downright harrowing, an unusual but welcome departure from the Lady Eleanor books.

Verity Bright gives her fans Lady Eleanor Swift mystery 15 in Murder by Invitation. As the village plans to celebrate the King's birthday, the unliked chairman of the planning committee is found strangled. Too many suspects. Chief Inspector Hugh Seldon, Lady Swift's fiance. teams up with Eleanor and her butler Clifford to solve murder. Gladstone the bulldog and his friend the cat provide comic relief. Clues point to victim's past history in Wales for the murderer. Charming period cozy of the 1920's England.

To be honest, I’m very divided on this book.
Being a big mystery fan, I am extremely disappointed with the ending. I was caught up in the story, nevertheless, I’m left wanting more.
This was the first book I read from Verity Bright, and I don't know if I'd look into the others in the series. Let's see if one of them ends up piquing my curiosity.
Unfortunately, this book wasn’t made for me.

Murder by Invitation is the 15th book in the A Lady Eleanor Swift Mystery series. I am really enjoying this series, set in the small countryside village of Little Buckford. The King's birthday is coming and there is going to be a wonderful celebration with everyone either participating or attending. A relative newcomer to the village, Mr Prestwick-Peterson is the chairman of the celebrations committee. He is a bossy man, more concerned about safety than alienating his neighbours. When he is found dead in the village strangled with handmade red, white and royal blue bunting, it seems everyone in the village had a gripe with him and could be considered a suspect. One man, the blacksmith, Clanger, is missing and the prime suspect in the case. Can Eleanor, her butler Clifford, and Chief Detective and Eleanor's fiance, Detective Hugh Seldon find the murderer before the celebration?

This was another entertaining historical cozy mystery that I recommend. The characters in these books are wonderful, and I love spending time with them. Eleanor is nothing like a Lady should be and she often acts quickly and irrationally, but thanks to her butler, Clifford, she seems to come out of all her exploits relatively unharmed. The ladies that work in her home are a hoot. They can yell at a worker one minute, then swoon over Hugh Seldon the next. I love the relationship Eleanor has with her employees as well as the villagers. Everyone, including me, seems to love Eleanor's pets, Gladstone the bulldog and his new friend Tomkins the ginger cat. They are included in everything Eleanor does and are welcomed. The mystery was excellent. Eleanor has a way of deducing things and every time Hugh got called away, she and Clifford were off following one of her hunches. There was a dangerous situation as a result of one of their chases, but you will have to read this one to find out what happened. You do not have to read the series to enjoy this book, but I am enjoying catching up on the ones I missed and suggest you do the same if you enjoy this book.

'Not another body, Clifford!' Lady Eleanor Swift's piercing green eyes swivelled in horror to her butler. On her lap, her bulldog offered her a sympathetic yelp. 'I know, Gladstone. There simply can't be!'

In this case Verity Bright pokes fun at her heroine - the body here is not a human being, but a body of people involved in organising events for the King's birthday. Oops, but then there actually is a dead body....

Yep, another fun and engaging entry into this wonderful little series. You know exactly what you get - a host of dodgy characters, slight danger to Ellie, and then everything works out. Phew!

Long may the series continue.

(With thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this title.)

3,5 ⭐️

After being away on her travels for the last three installments, Lady Swift is finally back home at Henley Hall in Murder By Invitation, the 15th book in the series, in which the birthday celebrations for King George will be the perfect backdrop for another cozy mystery.

Lady Swift is part of the planning committee charged with preparations to toast the King’s birthday but, days before the event, Mr Prestwick-Peterson, the chairman of the committee is found dead, strangled with some bunting. Is someone sabotaging the celebrations? With the help of her trusted butler Clifford and her fiancé, Detective Hugh Seldon, Eleanor will delve into the lives and secrets of Little Buckford neighbors to try and catch the killer before celebrations are ruined.

It was so nice to be back home in Little Buckford and getting to know more about Ellie’s neighbors. One of the greatest things in this series are its characters and how they interact with each other. I love how at home Ellie feels with everyone, no matter their social standing, and how she always knows how to deal with everyone to bring out the best in them. The love the village has for her is more than evident, you only had to see how everyone congratulated her on her engagement.

Another of the novelties I enjoyed the most this time was how she and Hugh worked together as a team. It is the first time we see them so much time together and it offered a glimpse into what their new life as a married couple will be like.

I found the mystery to be a little bit darker than we’ve come used to. I suspected the culprit pretty early on, so it was a bit bittersweet when my suspicions were proven right. While chasing the killer, Ellie and Clifford will face greater dangers than usual and, although it was tense and nerve racking (especially if you’re a bit claustrophobic), I think it was a bit drawn out.

Another enjoyable historical cozy mystery that portrays vividly an interesting place and time, with a cast of fantastic characters that is always a pleasure to go back to.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is the latest Lady Eleanor Swift book and this time they are back at Henley Hall after being away for the past few books. It was lovely to see Eleanor and the rest back home. I really enjoyed this book, partly because we had more of the lovely Detective Seldon (who I admit has grown on me since we first met him). It felt like him, Eleanor and the indispensable Clifford were working as a proper team for the first time, rather than Hugh trying to keep Eleanor from being too involved. I enjoyed watching them all work together, it was lovely to see them collaborating and sharing ideas.

There’s a lot more of Hugh in this book and he felt more of a main character than he has previously. He seems to have mellowed a little recently and become a bit more open, and I have to admit it was a little fun seeing him so flustered at all of the attention, especially from Eleanor’s staff who are clearly very fond of him.

Being set back at home, we once again saw all the aspects of village life; people living close together and not always seeing eye to eye on things, some viewing themselves as superior to others, and those who just did what they could to make a living after the war. I enjoyed meeting and revisiting the characters in the village and following Eleanor, Hugh, Clifford and Gladstone around the countryside, tracking down clues and suspects.

This is another excellent addition to the series and I’m, as ever, excited to see what comes next.

The entire village of Little Buckford is enthusiastically preparing for the King’s birthday celebration. Eleanor, Clifford, and the ladies are all in on the preparation efforts. Eleanor’s sweetie Hugh – Detective Inspector Seldon – is on the scene, too. And that turns out to be a good thing, as murder strikes close to home this time. The chairman of the celebration committee is found dead in the village hall just days before the big to-do. As it turns out, he was almost universally disliked. But who hated him enough to kill him?

I think this is the best Lady Swift mystery yet! What a challenge, for Eleanor to consider that someone she knows and sees regularly might be a killer. From the pub owner to the butcher and everyone in between, almost everyone found Prestwick-Peterson annoying, or worse. In some instances, he’d taken action that threatened people’s livelihoods. Is that enough to push someone to murder?

And there are always close calls for Eleanor and Clifford, but this is the first time I think they’ve been in serious danger. I was biting my nails, waiting to see how Verity Bright got them out of their sticky circumstances.

The mystery itself kept me guessing, and I did not at all figure how it would end up. I’m not telling you what happens, but Bright led me a merry chase until it all started to come together. I do love a mystery I can’t figure out!

It’s also delightful seeing Hugh’s first real introduction to village life as Eleanor’s fiancé, indeed, their first real time together since their engagement. Eleanor is worried that some might think the lady of the manor is marrying beneath her station, but that doesn’t seem to be a problem. In fact, they’re officially introduced at a formal celebration dinner, and it goes off quite well!

The supporting cast of characters is, as always, thoroughly enjoyable. Butter, Trotters, and the rest of the staff must never sleep and must have eight hands each, what with all they were doing to prepare for the celebration and to lay on a good spread for Hugh’s benefit! The relationship Eleanor has with her staff is truly a treat. She is a woman ahead of her time, and I love her for it.

With Murder by Invitation, Verity Bright gives us another delectable entry in the adventures of Eleanor Swift. May there be many more! Highly recommended if you like Golden Age mysteries told with humor, wit, and a side of nonconformity from your heroine.

This series gets better and better.
Lady Eleanor is an unwilling volunteer on the King’s birthday celebrations in Little Buckford.
But murder interrupts and there are too many suspects.
When her staff are accused our heroine sets off to clear his name.

Some really great detail about Britain in this period and a thrilling adventure.

This is the 15th book in the series and whilst I haven't read all of them I have read quite a few. It was good to see the main characters are still in the story and I'm interested to see what happens once they get married!

Overall a fun, cosy murder mystery.

Thank you for the arc.

Lady Eleanor Swift is an adventurous young woman. She inherited a title, an estate, a great deal of money, a staff and most of all a butler, Clifford. Clifford is a wonder, a treasure and a miracle worker. He knows everything about everything and he can save Ellie’s life when they get into terrible danger together. Everyone should have a Clifford in their life.

This book takes place after the Great War. Much of life is about to change in England. Servants are a rarity. More and more people are leaving the countryside to move to the city for different work. The wonderful thing about these stories – the village is filled with people who love where they live and are happy to live the slower paced life they share with one another.

Ellie is engaged to Hugh, an Inspector for Scotland Yard and the two of them are very much in love. Everyone in the village is over the moon at this joyful event. It almost over shadows the planned King’s Birthday celebration in the village.

When the chairman of the birthday committee is murdered, Ellie is put in charge of arrangements. The man who was murdered was disliked by nearly everyone who knew him. So, the number of suspects is almost as large as the number of people who live in the entire county. And when there is another murder, things get very tense.

Ellie and Hugh as well as Clifford investigate to try to keep the village safe. But, when Joseph, Ellie’s gardener, becomes the main suspect the investigation becomes more intense. Ellie and Clifford know Joseph is too kind to be a murderer. Hugh must go with what the evidence shows.

The original suspects are varied. All of them are people known to Ellie and are important parts of her life. It is easy to see there may have been motives, but it is hard to imagine these kind and caring people could possibly be murderers.

This book is part of a series. But, it works well as a stand alone read. Eleanor and Clifford are two of the best characters ever created. They are funny and the affection they have for one another is evidence of who they truly are. They are both intelligent and both have a natural affinity for solving puzzles.

I love the series and loved reading this book.

I received the book from the publisher through NetGalley. I am voluntarily writing this review and all opinions are completely my own.

“Not another body, Clifford!” If you are a devotee of the Eleanor Swift Golden Age cozy mystery series, those words should alert you that another clever and often hilarious investigation is afoot and this is going to be a jolly good page turner. There are suspects galore and mad dashing about and this story did not disappoint. If you like/love this series or if you have yet to become acquainted with it, I encourage you to take a chance as it is great writing which throws in humor, wit of the tongue-in cheek variety and of course a little bit of murder.

Thank you again to Bookoutre and NetGalley for a copy.

Lady Swift is back and although I have not read all of the books in this series I have enjoyed the ones I have. This one had me from the start and I enjoyed Lady Swifts antics and her personality.

The book is fun, entertaining, suspenseful and worth reading. I always love a book with humour and this one does fit that bill. But it isn't all fun and games and this had that little bit of darkness, mystery and murder and the historical aspect of these books.

Hugh is a great character and I enjoyed the interaction between him and Lady Swift. The writing makes it easy to read and it flows well, is not too long and is a book you pick up and don't put down until you finish that final page.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

After a lot of adventures as a team abroad, in the fifteenth installment of this series, Lady Eleanor is home and busy. Everyone knows of her engagement now, and given that she is the local bigwig, everyone has an opinion on her nuptials.
The village is throwing its own celebration of the King's birthday, and our leading Lady is part of a few committees. We know within the very first chapter who the victim will be. He makes himself a pain in everyone's life. How much of his behaviour caused other people trouble starts to surface once Eleanor starts to investigate after his death.
Being a celebrity in town and being known for getting to the bottom of such things, some people help the Lady of the Manor while others try to hide. The Chief Inspector is also sent to the location, and he has to fend off well-meaning enquiries into the 'future'. It is not a book I would advise to newbies of the series, mostly because of the personal distractions that take up some space in the story.
Once again, the revelation felt like a change from the direction of previous books. This is unexpected this late in the series, but not unwelcome. For readers who have been following the series and have not gotten this far yet, I would recommend sticking with it.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

This is another great installment in the series. As Lady Eleanor is helping to prepare for a gala for the King, of course there is a body found. And are you surprised that She along with her butler investigate the death. While this is book 15 in the series, I have only read a handful, so I can offer that this can be read as a stand alone, but I am probably missing out on a little of the backstory, but enough is always provided by the author.

Filled with the usual humor of the series, this cozy is an entertaining read. While I enjoyed the last book set in NY, this one finds the crew back home. and a little darker than the other few I have read. Also Clifford had more of a role than the other books, which is good as I really like him. I always love Lady Eleanor and that she is strong and independent in a time that isn’t the norm for women. She is undeterred as she questions suspects and works to find the murderer.

If you like cozy mysteries and haven’t read this series, I highly recommend it. I always read these books quickly and am never disappointed.

Favorite Quotes:

Aye, even at the worst of times, when he’d pulled on the devil’s own trousers, it don’t make it right for someone to have done for him like this… Not even if he’d pulled on the devil’s trousers and the jacket to match!

He were trouble with a head as twisted as the neck of a chicken on roastin’ day!

My Review:

This enjoyable and well-written series is always a fun read. I adore the characters and their progressing relationships and slowly evolving dynamics. The well-contrived mysteries are always confounding and unpredictable puzzlers to keep the little pea in my brain bouncing. This installment was busy and action-packed with peril for all involved, yet was easy to follow and kept my curiosity well-honed.